Wednesday, July 9, 2014

A Pair Of "Classics"

Classic, the flies of Carrie Stevens. Streamer flies tied in her style are just so "classic". These feather wing creations have graced many an anglers fly wallet. They have been pulled from the lips of some big brook trout as well as landlocked salmon. And now many of her streamers are kept with in those families who have been fortunate enough to have had them handed down.

There are a select few who still tie her patterns as well as other streamers using her methods. These flies are not easy, and require some time to put together. This maybe one of the reasons why they seem to be gone from most retailers. A few fly shops that I have visited over the years have had some of Carrie's patterns available, most notably the Gray Ghost. As H. Wendell Folkins, he's the man who took over Carrie's fly tying business, said....I can assure you that this method of dressing a streamer will never be adopted by the commercial tyers, as it is to labor intensive. The book above is also a classic. I pick up this book almost daily just to view the beautiful streamers on it's pages.

Here are a few links to some of the sites devoted to these long graceful flies. http://www.streamerlist.com/ and http://www.classicstreamerflies.com/

These flies are from the pages of Carrie Stevens, a book by Graydon, and Leslie Hilyard. The "Gray Ghost"


"Morning Glory" streamer. These are two of my favorite patterns.


Here's the two classic Stevens streamer flies. "Gray Ghost" and "Morning Glory"

CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE


10 comments:

  1. I have to say that Carrie tied beautiful flies. I'll never have the chance to fish one.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Howard,
      Thanks.
      That she did, and without a vise.

      Delete
  2. Alan
    To me the streamer is the Cadillac of flies, the sheer beauty one can achieve tying one of these patterns is amazing, and Carrie and yes you are in a class by themselves when it comes to tying streamers. Thanks for sharing

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    Replies
    1. Bill Trussell,
      Thanks.
      Bill it must have been wonderful living in the age of these long flies.

      Delete
  3. The Morning Glory is a beautiful fly. From my experiences in northern NH and Maine, I'd say the Gray Ghost will always be a working classic and "carry" the Stevens reputation.

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    Replies
    1. rivertoprambles,
      Thanks.
      I agree on the Gray Ghost's having a lock on NH, and Maine.
      NY state had some pretty good streamer originators.

      Delete
  4. The beauty of these fly patterns when seen, or where available, just seizes the soul. Labor intensive and true works of art. Shadow box necessary. I don't think I could fish one if I owned one!

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    Replies
    1. Pond Stalker,
      Thanks.
      Mel if I had an original Carrie Stevens fly it would never hit the water.

      Delete
  5. Those flies look more like art than fishing lures! I've never attempted to tie any classic streamer flies like that, but I can't imagine the time and skill needed to do it.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Joseph Hord,
      Thanks.
      To a great deal of folks they do represent art, and I'm one of those.
      They do take some time but I believe that with practice most can accomplish tying them.
      Just have fun.

      Delete