"Gray Ghost"

There is a little camp that sits on the carry road at Upper Dam, Maine. In this cottage in 1924 the wife of a Maine guide tied one fly fishing's most recognized items. The "Gray Ghost" streamer.

I know as a starting fly fisher it was one of the first flies I purchased and fished with. It was a productive fly then and continues to be to this day.
From what I've read on the history of Carrie's streamers the Gray Ghost was not her first streamer, and I know it was not her last. But I believe it to be her finest.

This plaque sits right across from the little cottage where the Gray Ghost was tied.
There is a well there, with a hand pump. Several cups are there, just as they were in 1924. Stop, fill your cup, take a drink and pause to reflect on what took place here so long ago. I have been here many times, fished the Upper Dam pool, and stood in front of the little cottage. It is a special feeling.....





I tie many streamers, most of them of my own thoughts. I believe they are a form of art, and are beautiful to look at.

But this is a true classic. It's been tied in so many ways, that some of them in fly shop bins don't even look like Carries original.
I have tied this "Gray Ghost" exactly to pattern as she tied it in 1924.

Hook, Martinek Rangeley Streamer
Body, Orange Floss
Tag and Rib, Flat Silver Tinsel
Belly, Peacock Herl, White Bucktail, Golden Pheasant Crest
Wing, Golden Pheasant Crest, Gray Saddle Hackle
Shoulders, Sliver Pheasant
Cheeks, Jungle Cock