By Anthony Naples, on April 25th, 2009
Yellow and Partridge Soft Hackle
Classic Wet Fly: Yellow and Partridge Soft Hackle
Hook: Standard Light Wire Dry Fly or Stout Wet Fly Hook, sizes 10 to 20
Abdomen: Yellow Floss
Rib: Fine Copper Wire
Thorax: Hare’s Ear Dubbing
Collar: Hungarian Partridge
Notes: Use light-wire standard dry-fly hooks for some and stout wet fly hooks for others. This will give you the ability to fish in the surface film, or deeper depending on the hook.
The thorax of hare’s ear dubbing should be dubbed large enough so that it can support the soft hackle -the thorax is there primarily to prevent the partridge hackle from collapsing against the body.
I like the effect of using a copper rib for the appearance of segmentation – not all tyers do this. I feel more confident fishing it with the ribbing though.
Make sure to tie the partridge in very sparse – stripping the hackle fibers from one side of the feather can help to keep it sparse.
Fishing Notes: I haven’t fished this color variation as much as the Green and Partridge. I include it though because I’ve had success with it during yellow crane-fly activity. I haven’t yet used it for the Sulphur Hatch, however Dave Hughes in his book Wet Flies, recommends it for this.
By Anthony Naples, on April 21st, 2009
Rich's Sulphur Emerger
Rich’s Sulphur Emerger:
Hook:Standard Dry Fly Hook, size 14 – 18
Thread: Camel Brown
Thorax: Orange-Sulphur Fly-Rite Dubbing
Abdomen: Orange-Sulphur Fly-Rite Dubbing
Legs: Dark soft hackle fibers
Tail (shuck): Mallard dyed wood duck
Wing: Tuft of muskrat from the pelt
Notes: I can remember walking into South Hills Rod and Reel about 15 years ago and telling Rich Roseborough that I was going to Spring Creek (in Pennsylvania) for the Sulphur Hatch. He took me over to the fly counter, picked out a small fly, handed it to me and said “Tie some of these.” What he handed me was a sulphur emerger pattern. Boy was he right – I had a banner day catching fish on that emerger. Rich retired and closed the shop a few years back – but I’ll never forget the fish that I caught on that fly.
Well, the pattern pictured above is similar to what Rich showed me. It has probably been unconsciously mutated over the years – so how close it is to the original I can’t be sure anymore. But it still works. I’m not sure what Rich called it , so I’m calling it Rich’s Sulphur Emerger.
I generally tie it in 16 and 18. On Spring Creek, as the sulphur hatch proceeds the bugs get smaller – so it’s good to be prepared with several sizes. I generally fish it as a dropper under a comparadun or parachute sulphur dry.
