Orange Fish Hawk

[Old Hat]

So I was enthusiastically reading Bob's (redietz) Bergman post. I agree highly with what he had to say but I also realized I didn't have any Orange Fish Hawks in my box. What a travesty! A fish hawk or two should be in every decent wingless fly fishers box. Just kidding, but they are "almost" always in mine. Any way, after tying a half dozen or so to put in my box I decided to use one of the beautiful little doubles I graciously received on this forum. This is on #16 double hook. I love these. This was the third fishawk I tied on this hook. I was trying to get it how I wanted and being a bit of perfectionist as I don't use these doubles, I just display them when I have a pattern that I think might look nice on them. I used one strand of Pearsall's floss for the body and tried to burnish it a bit to smooth it out.

[redietz]

Nice! Did you "enhance" the black on the badger?

[Old Hat]

Nope not at all. Bought a new light last weekend (at Costco) and it really gives me a very natural color. The histogram on my camera comes in very nicely. This is a really nice badger neck that I have. It is very distinctly marked genetic hen cape. It has some speckling on some of the feathers and you can see there is some tipping as well. I was pretty picky on the feather I chose from the cape for this fly...just because...

[letumgo]

Carl - The care you put into the hackle selection, silk work, proportions and head make an immaculate dressing. The wee double hooks look really nice. It adds a nice "vintage" quality to the appearance.

Well done, sir.

[William Anderson]

That double hook really transports this tie to another era. What a beautiful pattern. certainly one of the finest I've ever seen. Just a prize of a fly. Very eye catching. I have carried this pattern for a couple years. A tidy set of three sitting proud in the spider box ready for the right opportunity.

I have heard and fully believe many who claim this pattern indispensable and it has everything you would want in an attractor. For those who have worked this attractor into their regular rotation must have high expectations and a good reason to choose this over the hundreds of other patterns we carry, so my question is when and why would you tie this pattern on. I guess this applies to so many of the other attractors we carry. Vague discriptions like "a capital killer in june and july from morning to afternoon" must have meant something to someone in a particular region on a specific Northern UK river system, but it's very far removed from my own experience. I would love to find this pattern a capital killer for myself, but I have patterns for species, so a vague resemblemce to an insect falls short. What is it that would cause you to choose this pattern over others. I realize how broad the question is but the season is upon us and I'm sitting on hundreds of different patterns all vying for their time on the tippet. If I'm going to work this into rotation and eventually declare that I can confirm this is a staple in my box, where would I start? Does anyone have a good correlation with their experience. Thanks for your thoughts. Any fly can be productive if presented well and this has bling and action so it will work, but to promote this fly over others, there needs to be some other evidence. Is that muddy as hell? Maybe muddy as hell is just he circumstance that makes this the right pattern for the time. I just dunno.

w


Carl, again, major props to you sir for this pattern. Beautifully done.

w

[Old Hat]

Hi William,
Great questions and I don't know if I have the answer. Certainly an answer though. I did have to think about it a bit. Thanks for the perspective invoking discussion.

Well...simply put, I believe it is personal perspective and one's approach to fishing that would determine if a fly like this finds a permanent spot, not just in one's box but commonly on one's leader. To the fly fisher that puts a very high value on matching the current hatch, this pattern may not be that attractive of a choice. I would then liken it to the Partridge and Orange. I am not aware of a hatch in the US that the partridge and orange fly covers very well. However it is in a lot of boxes of fishers who cast about soft hackles and it certainly accounts for a lot of catching. Myself, I am not a big hatch matcher. I prefer to mimic the hatch with a general likeness of size and color. Action (presentation), size, color, profile are my current stream side checks in order. Being that I place a high emphasis on presentation of the fly and size, I often am drawn to tying and selecting patterns that contain a bit more "attractor" properties. That's just my approach for the water I fish most often. It is certainly not the best approach everywhere. I have been on a lot of water where "matching the hatch" is extremely important and this type of fly would certainly not be the one I select first from the box. But on the other hand, I have also been on enough water where matching the hatch is thought to be the "only way" to catch anything and a nice little attractor fly, or God forbid... a monster streamer has served me very well. The key is flexibility and a willingness to not be railroaded by our own thoughts. Our own experiences mold each person's fishing style. Over time, that style works the best for each's own until stubborness and unwillingness to break the mold we've created makes one mediocre at times. Nobody has the answer all the time, if they did what a boring sport we would have. This fly is all about attractor to me. The orange color is a proven fish catcher. The contrasting hackle color plays the same roll as the white biots on a prince nymph. It is attractive to fish. The soft hackle and the gold flash give the pattern a liveliness that says fish food. Especially in the right conditions. I like a little sun when fishing this pattern. When placed correctly in relation to the fish it gets attention and peaks curiosity and has enough insect mimicry in the profile, darker thorax and right size to invoke a strike.

With all that being said, when might a guy such as yourself tie this pattern on his leader? I would suggest when you fist think a partridge and orange might work. Then if there is a little sun out and the water isn't spring creek clear but with a little turbidity all the better, or when the fish are hungry and the moon alignment is just right.

Sorry for the rambling in my attempt to answer your question.

[zen leecher]

I always appreciate seeing the Orange Fish Hawk. It was included in the first batch of flies I ever got. I only knew how to fish dry flies back then and kept looking at the Orange Fish Hawk and wondering how well it would float and be seen when fishing. Boy was that thought wrong.

[lykos33]

Just a simple "gorgeous" from me sir
Murray