Ed Gallop
Virginia
I
started tying decent flies in 1961, when I obtained a vice, but was taught tying
large bass flies by hand a few years earlier while in the Navy. In my
younger years I fished Virginia's
eastern lakes with dreams of living in the majestic west. In mid 1970
I moved to Alaska where I was employed by the Police Department in Anchorage and
also managed Big Red's Flying Service (air taxi wheel and float service). I had my own
personal airplane so managed to fish extensively throughout Alaska's
remote areas in my free time.
After retirement I lived and fished a year in western Washington State (Issaquah) and then moved to Carbondale, Illinois to teach law enforcement at Southern Illinois University for a professor on sabbatical. While there I fished the Ozarks of Missouri, Arkansas, and several lakes in Kentucky, and Illinois.
I moved back to Virginia a year later to be near family. I now live and fish mostly for trout in Virginia's Blue Ridge Mountains. Native brook trout in rugged spring creeks are my favorite pursuits. It takes a toll on my old worn out body but it is worth the pain.
I enjoy tying a wide range of traditional flies and experimenting with unusual materials. Besides tying and fishing, other hobbies include breeding chickens, beekeeping, shooting/reloading, and building this web site on rainy days.
I tied production flies for a year in the mid 80s. It became a burden with quotas and low profits, no matter how fast I became, so I gave it up. It was two years later before I returned to the vise for pleasure. I had picked up the bad habit of tying fast and it took a long time to slow down enough to enjoy myself.
Anyone considering tying production flies should know you will likely enjoy it less and profits will be low. Your competition are imports from foreign countries where tiers earn pennies an hour. Fly shops and other outlets (Orvis, Cabelas, etc.) can't resist the low prices so it has eliminated production fly tying businesses in more advanced countries. It is a consequence of world trade and corporate political control.
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Tier: Ed Gallop
Hook:
Standard dry.
Thread: Black.
Body: Black seal's fur, spun heavily and trimmed away on top
and sides.
Legs: Black seal's fur, trimmed to length shown.
Wing/Back: Moose body hair.
Head: Tag ends of moose body hair, trimmed to shape.
This hair/dubbed version rides lower in the surface than the foam/hackle versions. I use it with a slightly weighted leader to make it sink when imitating aquatic beetles. Although they spend much of their time in bottom debris they occasionally surface for air. They also enter the water from rocks or other objects to lay eggs so I fish wet by bouncing off rocks or landing near other objects extending through the surface.
Anglers should
not ignore the potential for imitating beetles, aquatic or terrestrial.
There is little difference in appearance between the two so anglers only need a
few variations in their box. For terrestrial beetles, which are
usually more common than aquatic, I use foam instead of hair or
synthetics. The basic black beetle in sizes 10 to 16 seems to work best
for me.
For lady beetles
(ladybugs), I use size 12 and 14 short shank hooks. I have used paint for
colors but permanent markers are ideal to obtain the colors you want. I
also use a lighter colored hackle for the legs but it doesn't matter much.
Although, somewhat of a traditionalist, I've never been a fan of foam but started using it for beetles many years ago. I used moose and deer hair for several years before giving way to the ease and floatability of foam. I've even used styrofoam but quickly converted to closed cell when I discovered it. Only recently, as a result of popularity, have I used it for other terrestrials.
Fished on
windy but fishable days, near overhanging vegetation along the shores of lakes
and rivers in mid to late summer, beetles can provide action when other patterns
fail. They are more plentiful than most anglers realize and frequently fall or fly into the water.
Fishing coldwater lakes and rivers of the north can be especially productive with beetles. Look for warm pockets of water, caused by thermal circulation and springs, because fish seem to like these areas. I usually skimmed a beetle, with 6 to 12 inch strips and short pauses, across the surface to cover a large area in hopes to find the warm pockets. I would strip a little slower than I would imitate a caddis taking off the surface. This was not as easy with hair beetles and is the main reason I converted to foam for terrestrial.
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Tier: Ed Gallop
Hook:
Dry #12.
Thread: Black 6/0.
Tail: Ibis or swan dyed red (this fly has red
hackle
fibers).
Body: Silver tinsel.
Rib: Gold wire.
Wing: Crow wing.
Hackle: Red hackle fibers (black is standard
Butcher).
Note: This is a great wet fly that dates back over 150
years. There are several variations of Butchers: Teal-Winged (barred teal feather), Gold (gold tinsel and rib), and Bloody (red
hackled). The Butcher was originally named Moon's Fly, after one of the two co-inventors, Moon and
Jewhurst. However, the name was changed in 1838 to the occupation of Jewhurst (a butcher).
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By: Ed Gallop
This is a fascinating terrestrial insect that can provide
great action on rivers and lakes when they hatch.
Hook: Mustad 9672 Size 8.
Thread: Black 3/0 or Danville 210 Nylon.
Body: Coastal deer body hair.
Under Wing: No Fray Wing Material or plastic paper found in craft stores.
Thorax: Same as body but slightly larger in width.
Over Wing: Untrimmed hair from thorax.
Eyes: Black plastic beads attached on monofilament by melting ends.
A dab of red Hard Head cement on the eyes represent the 17 year cicada but isn't necessary for other type of cicada.
The
secrete of tying this fly is to spin, pack, and trim the deer hair in small
sections up to the wing tie-in point and then shave short with a razor blade
into a bullet shape. Attach the wing and then spin, pack, trim, and shave
to the eye tie-in. After attaching the eyes spin, pack, trim, and shave
the head.
A double edge razor blade can be broken into two edges. Pinch the ends together to cause the blade to bend into a curved shape as you shave the hair. Works great.
Some additional ideas would be to spin small sections of dark olive, then yellow, and alternate throughout the body for a more realistic appearance.
There are several types of cicada, normally identified by the number of years they hatch. The largest hatch being the 17 year cicada and their most recent hatch was in 2003 and 2004 across the eastern USA. There are other cicada that hatch in large numbers but they all have the same basic shape.
The
map at right shows the concentration of the 17 year cicada that hatched in 2003
and 2004. Mark your calendar for the year 2020 and check out the
action. The darker colored areas are the most concentrated hatches.
I was in the dark area of Virginia and hatches were heavy both years. It
was spectacular.
I found that the most productive time is when the fly hits the water so I don't allow it to drift very far before casting again. I twitch the fly on the surface a few times and lift off for another cast. There is little movement that the natural produces but twitching can make that final enticement.
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Tier: Ed Gallop
Hook:
Dry, this fly is #14.
Bead:
Green glass.
Thread: Black 6/0.
Tail: Pheasant tail fibers.
Body: Peacock herl, front half built up with thread
base.
Wing Case: Pheasant tail fibers, tied over front of body and then
over glass bead.
Beard: Pheasant tail fiber tips of wing case tied back.
Note: I decided to put a bead on this fly a couple years ago thinking
it would carry it under the surface without weight but not sink fast. It's a simple fly that has proven to be quite effective.
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Pheasant Tail Nymph
Tier: Ed Gallop
Hook:
Nymph.
Tail: Ringneck pheasant tail fibers.
Ribbing: Fine copper wire.
Body: Pheasant tail fibers, wrapped to thorax.
Thorax: Peacock herl.
Wing Case: Pheasant tail fibers.
Legs: Pheasant tail fiber tips from wing case.
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Gold Ribbed Hare's Ear
Tier: Ed Gallop
Hook:
Nymph.
Tail: Hare's guard hair.
Rib: Gold tinsel.
Body: Hare's mask dubbing.
Wingcase: Turkey tail fibers.
This is another very popular worldwide fly that every fly box should have.
Like many flies, the sky is the limit when tying variations of pattern. Being authentic as possible is an enjoyable experience but many tiers, including myself, seem to enjoy the creative part of tying.
Here's an olive green Hare's Ear (left) with
a bronzed peacock herl wing case instead
of the traditional turkey or pheasant tail fibers.
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Tier: Ed Gallop
Hook: Dry,
Size 12 to 16.
Tail: Pardo Coq de Leon fibers.
Body: Rust brown Antron dubbing.
Wings: Clear wings.
Hackle: Dun.
Note: Trim an inverter "V" under thorax and the fly will float upright and lower in the water.
Bob Balogh sent me some wings he had cut from plastic film he bought in a craft store. You can find many creative materials from craft stores that can contribute to productive flies and your tying pleasure.
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Humpy
Tier: Ed Gallop
Also known as "Goofus Bug, Wonder Fly, and Horner's Deer Hair Fly."
Hook:
Dry.
Tail:
Deer body hair.
Shell
Back: Deer body hair.
Body:
Red floss or material of choice.
Wings:
Deer body hair.
Hackle:
Brown hackle (or brown and grizzly mixed).
This dry fly is very popular on fast waters around the world because of it's ability to float well. It was developed on the west coast (California) as a variation of Jack Horner's "Horner Deer Hair Fly." It's popularity is contributed to Charlie Brooks, Dan Bailey (named it Goofus Bug), Jack Dennis, Pat and Sig Barnes, and a Canadian named Tom Thumb even stuck his thumb in it. Most agree that Jack Horner was the original creator though.
Above: Humpy Red
Left: Humpy Yellow is probably the most common.
Below: Humpy Chartreuse
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Tier: Ed Gallop
Hook:
Hook of choice.
Tail: Groundhog (aka: woodchuck) body hair.
Body: Silver tinsel.
Wing: Silver monkey hair.
Beard: Silver monkey hair (butt ends of wings pulled back and
down).
Head: Epoxy.
Note: It should be noted that this monkey hair has been around
much longer than the Silver Monkeys have been endangered. If you like the style you can use any
limp hair for this fly. Monkey hair is similar to coarse straight human hair.
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Mosquito
Tier: Ed Gallop
Seems to me that this fly has been around forever. I have fished it in pools and runs as well as on quiet lakes, especially late in the evening, and must say it has taken it's share of fish. In Alaska it was my favorite dry fly for many years, and the greyling loved it.
I don't know the origin and would appreciate anyone that knows it's history to let me know so I can add it here. I do know it has managed to stay popular for a long time.
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Tier: Ed Gallop
This is a fancy eye catching fly that can provide a lot of action, just like it's namesake.
Hook:
# 4 streamer, 6X long.
Thread: Black.
Ribbing: Flat silver tinsel.
Body: Florescent orange chenille or yarn.
Wing. Blue bucktail, over which is white bucktail, over which is red bucktail, over which is white marabou.
The blue bucktail doesn't show well in the photograph, but it's there.
If tied with yarn, instead of chenille, you will have a tighter body and the rib will lay on the surface, which I sometimes prefer.
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Tier: Ed Gallop
Hook:
Dry.
Thread: Gold.
Body: Kangaroo underfur, dubbed.
Wing: Kangaroo hair.
Legs: Peacock center herl.
Head: Thread, marked on top with black permanent marker.
Note: When Australia's first European explorers saw
this strange animal they asked the Aborigines, "What are these animals?"
They replied "kangaroo," which means, "I don't understand
you" in their native tongue. The Europeans thought they were referring to the big-footed hoppers, so they named them Kangaroos.
A kangaroo can travel up to 60kmh (40mph) and leap over obstacles up to 3m (10ft) high.
Kangaroo fur is not easy to come by, unless you live in Australia. I doubt you will be tying this fly but it is included to show how being creative can be fun. You might try using underfur from your house cat or even from your dog.
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for your tying needs.