Tuesday, October 20, 2015

"Flymphs"......What?

The "Flymph" is the name Pete Hidy gave this style of fly. I guess it's a cross between a wet fly and a nymph. The basic pattern call for silk thread, I use cotton, natural dubbing, I mix some synthetics, tinsel, or wire, and soft hackle feathers from a chicken or game bird. Flymphs can be fished on the swing, dead drifted, allowed to sink to the bottom and worked back like a bugger. In most cases these flies will bring a strike, even to fish that don't appear to be feeding.



This is a flymph I tie. This one uses badger hackle, I like this for the natural dark color near the center, it add a bit of a thorax. The dubbing is hares mask with a bit of UV, a tail of Coq de Leon and a fine gold tinsel rib.




These flies are pretty easy to tie and they will most times bring the angler a strike.




So the next time out give the "Flymph" a shot, you never know.







16 comments:

  1. Now that's a tying bench loaded for the task..nice close ups..

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    1. penbayman
      Thanks
      Mike one of these days I'll get organized.....maybe then I can find my scissors.

      Delete
  2. Alan
    This would be an excellent pattern to fish like I have fished the soft hackle, shot jerks with a pause; at times the trout on the Sipsey will take a hackle pattern when that technique is used. Glad you added the wire weight. Thanks for sharing

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    1. Bill Trussell
      Thanks
      Bill these flies have a bit more dubbing and they look kind of scruffy. They do draw some attention though.
      The wire ribbing doesn't add weight its just a little flash and protection for the dubbing.

      Delete
  3. Must be hard to choose a fly whenever you open your flybox. Every thing you tie looks great.

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    1. Kevin Frank
      Thanks
      Keven the box pretty much has the favorites. I seem to reach for those I'm familiar with.

      Delete
  4. Alan, this is great. I recently discovered this term after someone saw my fly box told me that I tie a lot of "flymphs." I do most of mine with beads, but I find these flies work great. They are similar to some of the Japanese Tenkara flies too.

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    1. Klags
      Thanks
      Adam these flies have been about for some time. I like the beadhead flymphs to.
      I can see some similarities to Tenkara.

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  5. You tie great looking flies, Alan. I appreciate seeing and hearing about the patterns you tie.

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  6. Alan, I'm missing something. To my untrained eye they look like wets. What's the difference?

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    1. Howard Levett
      Thanks
      Howard pretty much all flies that don't float can be lumped into the folder as wet flies. Each one of theses wet flies have distinct differences though. Nymphs, wet flies with wings, spider patterns which have thin sparse hackle and bodies of silk and this group of wets the flymph. They usually have scruffy bodies and are tied with soft hackle collars. Hope this helps.

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  7. In Spain there is a very similar classical fly. Specifically in the province of Leon, there is a classic fly known as "mosca ahogada" (wet fly), dating from 1624 and known as described in the Manuscript of Astorga which has been renovated and updated to today. A greeting!

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    1. Mario GC
      Thanks
      Mario you are absolutely right. I read of these Spanish wet flies in the book "The North Country Fly". The flies were documented in the Spanish manuscript "El Tratadico de Pesca" in 1539. They have been with us for quite awhile......they work.

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  8. That fly looks very familiar to me Al!!! Hmmm interesting!!!! It works real well on the brook trout!

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    1. TROUTI
      Thanks
      Pete I thought you might recognize it. You have to give some credit to the man fishing it, "well done buddy".

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