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fly nerd - Cappelen Damm

Feb 11, 2022

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Page 1: fly nerd - Cappelen Damm

fly nerdSteven GoldfineSteven Goldfine (f. 1967) er halvt norsk, halvt

amerikaner og bosatt på Nord-Jæren. Til daglig

er han partner og art director i et reklamebyrå.

Om vinteren binder han fluer, og om sommeren

fisker han ørret, fortrinnsvis i elv, og laks,

fortrinnsvis i de jærske elver. Steven blogger

om fluefiske på www.fluenerd.no,

og Fluenerd er hans første bok.

Fluenerd er en inspirasjonsbok stappfull av

ørret- og laksefluer. Den er skrevet av en entusiast

som er oppslukt av fluebinding og fluefiske.

Her er alle typer fluer: enkle, kompliserte, gamle,

nye, innovative og til og med morsomme fluer.

Vi blir med forfatteren på fisketur, og her

hagler det med gode tips. For fluene må testes

og erfaringer høstes. Og – for de som ønsker

å begynne med fluebinding selv: Her får vi vite

det som trengs for å komme i gang. Stramme liner!

fly nerd

Steven G

old

fin

e

ISBN 978-82-02-37353-5

www.cappelendamm.no

Page 2: fly nerd - Cappelen Damm

fly nerd

Steven Goldfine

Page 3: fly nerd - Cappelen Damm

© CAPPELEN DAMM AS 2012

ISBN 978-82-02-37353-5

1. utgave, 1. opplag 2012

Omslag og bokdesign: Steven Goldfine

Fotografier og illustrasjoner: Steven Goldfine

Sats: Steven Goldfine

Trykk og innbinding: Livonia Print, 2012, Latvia

Satt i 9 pkt. Berthold Walbaum Book og trykt på Arctic Volume White

Tilleggsfoto (s = side, r = rad og f = foto):

Erling Goldfine: Omslag, bakside. S 51 r 2, f 3. S 178.

Eli Goldfine: S 50. S 102–103. S 120. S 138. S 139. S 150, f 2. S 169.

Petter Helland: S 37, r 1, f 1 og 3. S 51, r 1, f 3. S 65, r 1, f 1. S 77, r2, f3. S 147, r 2, f 1. S 172.

Svein F. Hestvaag: S 147, r 3, f 3

Lars Erik Ørgersen: S 148. S 155, f 3 til høyre. S 156.

Trond Askildsen: S 153. S 147, r2, f3.

Henrik Melcher: S 51, r 3, f 2. S 181.

Christian Vassdal: S 146. S 147, r 2, f 2.

Fiskekompiser og tilfeldige fiskere: S 147, r 1, f 1; r 3, f 1. S 160.

Fluer: Steven Goldfine.

Fluenerd er skrevet på MacPro, MacBookPro, iPad og iPhone.

Materialet i denne publikasjonen er omfattet av åndsverklovens bestemmelser. Uten

særskilt avtale med Cappelen Damm AS er enhver eksemplarfremstilling og tilgjengelig-

gjøring bare tillatt i den utstrekning det er hjemlet i lov eller tillatt gjennom avtale med

Kopinor, interesseorgan for rettighetshavere til åndsverk. Utnyttelse i strid med lov eller

avtale kan medføre erstatningsansvar og inndragning, og kan straffes med bøter eller fengsel.

www.cappelendamm.no

«The quickest way to a flyfisherman’s heart is through his fly.»

Page 4: fly nerd - Cappelen Damm

4

8 Trout gastronomy

10–49 Dry flies

52–63 Terrestrials

66–75 Nymphs

78–85 Wet flies

88 Salmon provocateur

90–109 Modern salmon flies

110–113 Module based salmon flies

114–119 Modern Scottish salmon flies

122–124 Dry flies for salmon

125–137 Classic salmon flies

140–145 Nymphs for salmon

148 The summer in waders

150–161 Salmon fishing

162–177 Trout fishing

178–181 Practical and handy

184 Tying, the art of happiness

186–187 Role models

188–193 Tools

194–195 Materials

196–197 Proportions

198–199 Finishing – super glue

200–201 Testing

204 Patternity

205–210 Dry fly patterns for trout

211–213 Terrestrial patterns for trout

213–214 Nymph patterns for trout

215–216 Wet fly patterns for trout

217–220 Modern salmon patterns

221 Module based salmon patterns

222 Modern Scottish salmon patterns

223–224 Dry fly patterns for salmon

224–227 Classic salmon patterns

227 Nymph patterns for salmon

230 Index

Contents

My faithfull fishing buddy, Erling.

Page 5: fly nerd - Cappelen Damm

We fly fishermen are tricksters. Literally. When we fish for trout,

we’re trying to trick the fish into believing that a hook, covered in silk,

hair, feathers and maybe some artificial materials, is edible. We try to

persuade the trout that our flies are fish food. We call this fishing with

imitations.

Before we begin fishing, we try to determine what the fish are feeding

on. Is it something freshly hatched? Is there a clue washed up on the

bank? When we find a prime suspect, we open our fly boxes and extract

a fly we see resembles or that we know should resemble. With a lot of

faith and a little insight, we tie our fly on and cast it towards the patch

of water where we imagine the fish to be. Then we strive to make the fly

behave like the real thing, either by letting it float along with the stream,

or by retrieving it in one way or another. If the fish is selective, small

nuances in size and color also play an important role.

Some patterns are more realistic, while others exaggerate certain

features, that the trout recognizes it’s prey by. In other words there is

room for diversity, variation and innovation. As an enthusiastic fly tyer

I have an overabundant selection of flies in my boxes. The constant

challenge is finding the opportunity to try them all out.

8

Trout gastronomy

Page 6: fly nerd - Cappelen Damm

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The Floating Dutchman with the Norwegian name

Having seen one of Oliver Edward’s Master Class videos, where he ties

and fishes the Klinkhåmer Special, I was convinced this was a fly for me.

After tying a couple of dozen Klinkhåmers and testing them thoroughly, I

was a fan! This is a fly that really works.

It was invented by the Dutchman, Hans van Klinken, on a fishing trip to

the Glomma river in Norway in 1984. Hans needed a pattern that could

imitate the hatching caddis flies he observed being consumed by the

arctic char. He sat down by the river with his vice and this is the result.

His Dutch fishing comrades gave the fly a name that was meant to sound

Norwegian. It’s worth taking note that in van Klinken’s opinion the fly

should be as slim as possible, on a fairly large hook. Remember also that

the front third of the hook shank needs to be bent slightly downwards.

When fished, a floatant should be added, but only to the wingpost. The

abdomen (the hind part of the body) is submerged. Be ready for strikes, they

come often and fast. The fly was intended for char but van Klinken has also

caught trout, sea trout and salmon with it. And he fishes it upstream...

The original Klinkhåmer Special was initially called the LT Caddis.

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13

Dr. Jekyll & Mr. CdC

The smaller the better!

When the snow settles, I often digress in my fly tying. Moments where

my mind wanders and I experiment. In this case, it is the Klinkhåmer

that has ended up with a CdC hackle. Perhaps a poor combination,

considering that the usual stiff hackle is one of the cornerstones in the

original Klinkhåmer design. But, CdC, along with the poly post wing

gives the fly enough buoyancy to keep it afloat. At the same time the

CdC adds more life and imitates the insect better. Another advantage is

that the CdC is soft and will collapse better than a stiff hackle, when a

trout swallows it. This could mean a higher catch percentage. Not all my

experiments are as successful as this variant of a Klinkhåmer. Although

a little madness doesn’t hurt while we wait for the next season to come.

This is a Klinkhåmer tied on a regular dry fly hook size 20. The original

Klinkhåmer is a large fly. These are not, but they do the job, especially

when the trout are after smaller insects like emerging midges. Notice

the somewhat over dimensioned hackle. Because of it the fly floats like

a cork. If you want the hackle to be more subtle and less visible, simply

use lighter colored hackle. The key to Klinkhåmers this size is to use

hooks with a wide enough gape. That avoids potential hooking problems.

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32 33

Easy as f!

The fly fisherman Marjan Fratnik comes from a small valley in Slovenia.

The rivers Soca, Idrijca and Baca run through the valley. These rivers

are known for their large and beautifully marbled trout. During a

long and active fly fishing life, Fratnik has developed the dry ‘F’-fly

(Fratnikova puhovka). This pearl of a fly imitates just

about everything, including midges, mayflies, caddis flies and even stone

flies. The F-fly design is all about pure simplicity, a pheasant tail body

and wings of CdC feather tips. That’s it! The simple things in life are

often the best, especially when a fly works like F!

Shadow theater

As mentioned before, Neil Patterson is the master of simplification. As a

fly tyer I can become slightly indignant over flies that are too simple to

tie. I like challenges in my tying as well as on the water, so this super

simple fly of Patterson’s should in that respect irritate me, but it doesn’t,

in fact I like it. In spite of it only taking five minutes to tie. This is due to

its elevating imitation to a whole new level. What it does is simulate the

shadow of a caddis fly, and not the fly itself. From a design standpoint this

is a brilliant way to tie smaller sizes of fairly realistic caddis, and it works

like a dream. I can recommend either naturally colored or black CdC,

though you can of course use any color you want.

Patterson calls the fly an S-fly. Partially because it’s inspired by Marjan

Fratnik’s F-fly, and partially because the S fits silhouette, shadow and size.

Fish it dry and static, often with a careful jerk or tug, but since this is CdC,

don’t strip it. When it drowns, and it will drown, continue fishing and now

strip it. This also gives results.

For me it’s simple. If you’re a progressive dry fly fisherman, you have to

invest half an hour and tie half a dozen S-flies and try them out at the

earliest opportunity.

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38 39

Swedish puppies

Superpuppan (super pupa) is an ingenious and effective dry fly invented

by Lennart Bergqvist of Sweden. Incidentally, Lennart is a friend of

Kenneth Boström, the man behind the Rackelhanen fly covered later in

this book. Superpuppan imitates a hatching caddis fly (Rhyacophilidae

pupa). It is both easy and quick to tie, and it fishes just as well if it

lands hook up or down. The basis for the pattern was a rare fishing

experience, all the way back in 1977. Lennart and Kenneth witnessed

a hatching caddis fly creepeing out of the mouth of a newly landed trout.

Another thing about the Superpuppan that I find compelling, is a tip that

it also interests salmon, and dry flys for salmon are still exotic enough

to increase the pulse of a dry fly fisherman living in close proximity to

several salmon rivers. Fish it drag free and retrieve it with small, careful

pulls, or a figure-of-eight.

American cripples

During a hatch, many insects are injured, don’t shed their nymph shucks

or are just caught in the surface film. These are often referred to as

cripples. Andy’s Cripple, a pattern I discovered in American Angling

imitates this phenomenom. What I found most exciting about this pattern

was the brown marabou dubbing. It creates more life on the water

surface, like an insect twisting, trying to get away. Fish Andy’s cripple

static. If neccessary add floatant to the hackle and deer hair wing.

Page 11: fly nerd - Cappelen Damm

41

French temptations

Flies, unlike cars, do not become obsolete. A fly that was effective eighty

years ago is just as effective today. New flies and new trends turn up all

the time, but the old flies work just as well today as they did when they

were first conceived. One such fly is the Palm Ailes, a French fly first

tied in the thirties. Developed on the chalkstreams of Normandy, it got

it’s name from Aimee Devaux, who started producing it commercially.

Palm comes from the palmered hackle and Ailes from the fact that it

also has wings. It is not unlike the Adams fly. A common denominator

for these flys is that they both incorporate an abundance of hackle that

makes them “roll” around on the water and imitate an insect moving on

the surface, rather than submerged. It’s a simple enough design. You tie

the hackle in at the beginning of the hook bend, using the hackle tip as

a tail and trim it to the right length. Afterwards you palmer the hackle

with turns as tight as possible up to and just behind the eye of the hook.

The wings aren’t really necessary, but if included, they come last. This

fly works best when it moves around, so I prefer to use it on windy days.

And to the trout I say, “Bon apetit!”

English Moles

Some modern patterns that we celebrate as innovative are not always as

new as we think. Our Klinkhåmers, Avon Specials and similar patterns

are all based on old and well known, but almost forgotten principles.

One of the flies that can be considered their ancestor is the over hundred

year old Mole Fly. The name comes from its origin on the Mole River

in Surrey, England. It was developed as an imitation of an emerger

and meant to be fished static. Two large, forward pointing wings act

as sails and ensure that the fly always lands with the hook down.

An over dimensioned hackle makes sure that the submerged, dubbed

body hangs securely from the surface film. This is a fly that is so effective

that it merits membership in the killer club. Funny enough, in their own

eccentric way, the British stopped using it around seventy years ago.

Perhaps it did not completely conform with the gentleman’s rules for

dry fly fishing? Who knows. Since then it has lived well in exile on the

continent, especially in France, where fly fishermen are more concerned

with productivity than etiquette.

40

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53

The long legged delicacies of summer

Daddy Longlegs are on our trout friend’s menu. There are innumerable

patterns that imitate it. So many that I chose to invent a couple myself.

Daddy long legs are terrestrials that don’t belong in the water. They have

wings, but are such poor flyers that they don’t really belong in the air

either. They blow easily across the water, crash landing and continuing

to make a racket on the water surface while they fight in vain for their

lives. To imitate this phenomenon, I fish my Dad’s Daddy with a harder

presentation, resulting in a nice splash. I have given the fly a generous

hackle, to make it rock back and forth and maybe blow across the water

with the wind. When it drowns, it imitates a dead daddy. I have yet to fish

this pattern without catching something.

Dad’s Daddy is an imitation of the more realistic kind.

Page 13: fly nerd - Cappelen Damm

89

Fly fishing for salmon is something entirely different from fly fishing

for trout. The salmon are on their way up the river to spawn. After they

leave saltwater, they stop eating and they take no other nourishment.

The farther up river they swim and the closer it gets to spawning time,

the more territorial and aggressive the salmon become. That is the

theory at least. The point is that it’s not enough to welcome the salmon

to dinner. Instead it is all about triggering the salmon’s instinct to strike.

Put simply, we must provoke it to take the fly.

With a few honorable exceptions, salmon fishing pretty much means

fishing blind with sub-surface flies. To the degree these flies imitate

anything at all, they are over- exaggerated and barely recognizable

caricatures. Don’t misunderstand me, salmon flies are more often than

not the most beautiful of fishing flies, but they play by a whole different

set of rules than trout flies.

Personally I believe in having just a few good basic designs or patterns of

varying sizes and materials, and last but not least, varying colors. In the

river it’s important to be able to vary the depth and speed the fly fishes at.

It also helps to know the pools and the rocks in the river. Then you know

where you’ll find the salmon.

88

Salmon provocateur

Page 14: fly nerd - Cappelen Damm

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Micromalistic

These micro tubes are simple

to tie, but it is important to vary

the materials. Different colors

and types of flash and hook/cone

finish. This quickly produces

many different micro tubes. It’s

important to have a few different

ones to choose from for dealing

with different conditions and

to be capable of showing the

salmon something they haven’t

seen before. The micro tube

can be fished just as easily on a

floating, intermediate or sinking

line. If more weight is needed on

the fly, simply add a loose cone

or bead, in front of the fly when

you tie it on. Let the hook hang

loose behind the fly. It is also

possible to use a small piece of

S-tube as a sheath on the loose

hook. The hook and hook color

is also an important part of the

pattern. Choose carefully. I am

also convinced that the smaller

the hook is the better. And believe

me, they work. That’s why my fly

boxes are replenished regularly

with new micro tubes.

Page 16: fly nerd - Cappelen Damm

109

The brass band

Tie a salmon fly following Frödins design, but with the cone put on

backwards to create more turbulence and more movement. The fly’s

silhouette changes and the increased movement also changes the fly’s

behavior when the cone is reversed. I have called it the Hornblower after

its trumpet shaped head, not Horatio of the same name. It may not be

revolutionary, but it did give me a nice fish on my sixth cast of the day, in

the Mandal river in Norway, the first time I tried it.

Page 17: fly nerd - Cappelen Damm
Page 18: fly nerd - Cappelen Damm

For me the summer is synonymous with fishing and I’m more bound to

be found wearing waders than swim trunks during the summer months.

As my children have grown up, I have more often sought out a river or

lake with trout or salmon, rather than a beach. I am also lucky to have

a son who often joins me, fly rod in hand and a youthful portion of

optimism hanging at the end of his fly line.

In our part of Norway, we often have short winters, and the fishing

season can sometimes begin as early as the end of March. Fishing for

trout in the highlands gets it all started. Most of our local rivers are

salmon rivers, and these don’t open until June. Because these rivers are

salmon rivers, we fish in mountain streams for river trout. That means

waiting until the snow melts and for the rivers to reach a comfortable

temperature for the trout.

For me, July is all about going on holiday with my family. Most often we

travel further afield in Norway or to other countries. This makes possible

other kinds of fishing. From trout in larger rivers in the east of Norway to

rainbow trout in Scotland, perch in Holland and carp in Germany. In the

fall the trout season ends around spawning time. This is when salmon

fishing intensifies. Between the middle of September and the beginning

of October our waders are hanged to dry for the last time of the year.

All in all, a summer spent in waders isn’t about performance and size,

but experiences and adventures. The most enduring memories are not

necessarily related to the biggest fish or the most expensive rivers. For

example the time when my son netted a four plus kilo salmon for me

and then somehow managed to lose it out of the net again. Or when

stock fishing after the end of the season, I had to return another four kilo

salmon to the river. How it slowly and majestically slid off my hand and

back out into the river, no longer aware of my presence by the bank. The

trout in crystal clear water, that circled my daddy longlegs imitation four

times before attacking it so brutally that I jumped when it struck, or the

small mountain trout that took my Klinkhåmer in mid air, before it hit

the water. Memorable moments!

A summer spent in waders

149

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151

It’s funny how you can fish in the same river over so many years that

you feel a sense of ownership. That’s how I feel about the Bjerkreim

river. Not the whole river, mind you. I have my own stretch. It’s mine.

Of course I don’t fish it alone, I am amiable enough to share it with

others. I have absolutely no judicial rights here and buy a fishing permit,

just like everyone else. There are seasons when I am all but completely

absent. Nevertheless, there is a feeling of ownership. Much like what a

true diehard football fan feels for his favorite team. My river.

I always fish in zone 5, a stretch of the river where the pools are smaller

and other fisherman fewer than in the more heavily populated zone 3,

a bit further down the river. We fish in close proximity to both cows and

sheep, but we never get the feeling of fishing on a farm. We mostly fish

from the bank, but waders are still handy, just to get from one stone to the

next or over shallows between pools. At the bottom of the stretch you can

fish in the estuary where this part of the river runs out into the lake, Svela.

The water in the river is normally crystal clear and mostly stays that way

even when the river is high or flooded, although the mottled riverbed

still makes spotting difficult. The pools are at most only fifty to a hundred

meters long. Some pools even demand a bit of “indian-fishing” including

climbing in and out, up and down to get to the various ‘sweet spots’.

In other words, there are ample variations to take advantage of on

‘my’ stretch of the river.

We catch a lot of ‘grilse’ (salmon under three kilos) but we also hook

a few proper salmon in zone 5, especially towards the end of the

season. Personally I have caught both four and five kilo fish here, but

the record, set by a youth a couple of years ago exceeded 15 kilos. The

fish are healthy, most often shiny silver in color and with long, slim,

hydrodynamic torsos, almost torpedo shaped. And they have a preference

for the smaller flies. I have also caught fish here on my largest flies, but

the statistics favor micro tubes and small Sunray Shadow variants.

Mostly you will find that a one handed rod is sufficient for zone 5. I fish

the river almost exclusively with a 9’6” class 7/8 rod. The lines I use vary

from float to sink 6, but I probably use my intermediate and sink 2/3

lines the most, depending on the conditions. The tippet shouldn’t be

too thick either. Crystal clear water and small flies dictate stealth.

If we catch trout in a pool, we seldom catch salmon there at the same

time. I assume the pool is empty and move on. And salmon are almost

always greener on the other side of the river or in the next pool...

My river

150