Friday, April 23, 2021

From out of the past, a great fly remembered.

On our trips to Rangeley Maine each fall we would drive through Vermont. Just outside of St. Johnsbury  is a little fly shop. Each year I would stop in and just talk to the owner and buy something. It was never nothing major but perhaps a fly box, some tippet and always some flies. I tried to focus on local favorites that were tied by local tyers. I still have many of those flies and will dig around and find them for a later post. This one time I picked up a wet fly that had some striking colors involved in it's construction. I asked about it and the owner told me that it was popular with locals. He said that the Canadians that have been passing through all but cleaned them out. They said the fly was a killer for perch. Well I bought a couple and left for Rangeley. I did not fish the fly for awhile but one day I decided to give it a go, you know it was a killer. 

After all that time I never knew what the fly was called. Investigation time, and the internet told me it was called  the "Professor"..a wet fly created in Scotland in the 1800's, by James Wilson. How is it a fly that has been around for over a century never came to me in some form.
 

 

The "Professor"  the top fly is tied as a streamer, and the bottom fly a traditional wet fly. The tail is red saddle hackle, the body is yellow floss, I think the one I bought in Vermont had a yarn body. The rib is flat gold tinsel, the collar is brown hen hackle and the wing is natural mallard. The fly is a brook trout magnet.
 

Here are two wet fly versions tied on different hooks. I think this fly would look great tied on those Mustad wet fly hooks.
 

How about some fried dough for breakfast, maybe some jam or butter on top or perhaps be creative.

Have a spectacular weekend.
 

 

23 comments:

  1. Hello from Illinois Alan,

    Agree. The Professor is a great pattern. As a wet fly, it works quite well in our small Midwest streams for Smallmouth. Drifted down stream with the current makes them quite the target for an ambush.
    Great story. Thanks for sharing.

    John V.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. John V.
      Thanks
      John I believe your my fist commenter from Illinois.
      So you have heard of it and have fished it with success on smallmouths. The colors on this fly say strike.

      Delete
    2. Professor is a classic. I grew up fishing the small streams of Vermont north of St. Johnsbury for brookies with my dad. Lots of fond memories there.

      Delete
    3. Toonces
      Thanks
      Maybe you know of the Wild Branch fly shop in Lunenburg. That's where I first encountered the Professor. Do you still fish small streams?

      Delete
    4. No, not familiar with it. I did most of fishing in that area 30 plus years ago. My grandfather had a summer house in Caledonia county. My dad and I fished every blue line within 30 miles of the house every summer. My grandfather had a pond on his property where I learned to flyfish (also loaded with brookies) Hoping to buy a retirement summer place there and hit the old haunts again and revisit some ghosts.

      Delete
    5. Unknown, thats a lot of blue lines to fish. I would love that challenge. I hope your plans of a retirement place hold.

      Delete
  2. It's always interesting to me to see the Rangeley patterns. They never migrated up this far in any great numbers, just as the Fish River lakes patterns never made much of an impact down in Rangeley. The 'Professor' is a new one to me.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. mike
      Thanks
      Mike some patterns seem to reach acclaim on a regional basis. It's when a traveling angler picks up a pattern and then fishes it at home that the rest of us find out about it. The Adirondaks have many great streamer patterns that seemed to remain there.

      Delete
  3. Alan
    What trout wouldn't want to hit either the streamer version or the wet fly version??? I have to say you know how to make food look good!! Thanks for sharing

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Bill Trussell
      Thanks
      Bill the fly has some strong attracting qualities, especially for brook trout.
      Fried dough is a welcome change from normal breakfast fare.

      Delete
  4. The colors on those flies are great. Would work out here for Rainbows and Browns. Trout season open the end of this month. I will get out this year.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Mark Kautz
      Thanks
      Mark doing a little research on that fly and I found out that it also works well on browns. I'm sure the rainbows are no exception. I'm pulling for you this season.

      Delete
  5. Beautiful pattern I was not familiar with. I really appreciate the attention that you pay to some of these patterns. Makes me want to start a small streamer wallet.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Michael Agneta
      Thanks
      Mike those forgotten flies brought back to life. Streamer wallets now there is an item left to the desk drawer.

      Delete
  6. Alan,
    The Professor one one of O.W. Smith's go to flies.
    I have never fished it. I will have to tie some and give them a try.
    Thanks for sharing.
    JJ

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Beaverdam
      Thanks
      Joe your brother Mike also mentioned O.W. Smith fondness to the Professor. Tie some up and let me know how they worked.

      Delete
  7. I have a strange premonition of something new on my vise....

    Thank you!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Nathan Camp
      Thanks
      Nate please do and we both know the perfect stream to fish them in.

      Delete
  8. "Pizza Fritta" with butter and/or confectionary sugar!

    ReplyDelete
  9. I think the color red is a big brook trout magnet and the rest of the fly says “alive, kicking and edible!” Thanks for sharing the inspiration. Kevin

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ned Zeppelin
      Thanks
      Kevin it was exciting to see how well CT. brookies reacted to the Professor. Try them on some PA waters.

      Delete