March is here, and with it comes that restless stretch where winter’s grip is loosening but spring hatches haven’t quite kicked off. The water’s still cold, the fish are still deep—mostly—and the best thing a tyer can do right now is fill the box from top to bottom. This week’s Tying Tuesday does exactly that, with four patterns that span the entire water column.
We’re starting on the surface with the Parachute Adams—arguably the most trusted dry fly ever tied and a must-know pattern for any tyer working the vise. From there we drop with a euro-nymph built around Finn raccoon dubbing, a material that reveals its underbody when wet for a subtle, lifelike effect. Then we go to the bottom with the Depth Charge Crawfish, a jig-style micro craw pattern heavy enough to dredge the deepest runs. And because sometimes the challenge is the point, we’re finishing with a Size 20 Micro Bugger—proof that marabou and hackle belong on hooks of every size.
Queue up the videos, clear the desk, and let’s tie.
Parachute Adams
Hook: Dry fly hook, size 14
Thread: 8/0 or 6/0
Tail: Grizzly and Brown Coq de Leon fibers
Body: Perfect Quill (stripped quill)
Post: White Poly Yarn
Hackle: Grizzly and Brown dry fly hackle
Dubbing: Superfine or similar (for thorax)
Head Cement: Head cement or super glue
Finn Nymph
Hook: Ahrex FW550, size 8
Beads: 4mm Mounds Firehole Stone and 3.8mm slotted tungsten
Thread: UTC 70 (brown); fluorescent orange UTC for hot spot
Tail: Pheasant tail fibers
Body: Uni Floss (brown)
Dubbing: Finn raccoon
Hackle: Brown CDC
Depth Charge Crawfish
Hook: Jig-style hook
Thread: Veevus Red
Weight: Lead wire
Claws: Burnt orange marabou
Legs: Brown vinyl legs; gold/black rubber legs
Eyes: Crustacean eyes (custom)
Dubbing: Cohen’s Carp Dub (Rusty Nail)
Carapace: Blane Chocklett’s Craw Claw Carapace (extra small)
Size 20 Micro Bugger
Hook: Core Nymph Hook, size 20
Bead: Saluda Beads
Weight: 0.3mm wire
Thread: TheFlySmith 10D GSP
Tail: Fulling Mill Marabou
Body: Superfine Dubbing
Rib: XS Ultra Wire, UTC (chartreuse)
Hackle: Honey Dun Hen (Whiting cape)
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