"The Chocolate Covered Cherry"
As tyers we are always searching for new fly pattern ideas, and the latest and greatest new materials! We constantly attempt to construct new age bugs for steelhead, salmon, and trout. Over the past year I have been tying several different color versions of Kevin Feenstra's popular steelhead patterns like the Emulator, Grease Stain, and Aquatic Nuisance. The Chocolate Covered Cherry is just that! A color version of these original designs, and this is one that I found to be successful while fishing on the Alley.
Step #1: Place a 20mm Articulated Shank in your vise. Take a 7 inch piece of 30 pound Fire Line fold it in half, and thread the loop through the eye of a #2 Owner Mosquito hook. Open the fire line loop and pull it over the hook bend to form your connection. Attach the Fire Line to the shank with several thread wraps, and apply a drop of super glue. Your hook eye should be roughly 3 inches away from the shank loop when finished. Bring your thread toward the eye of the shank and attach a small dumbbell to the bottom of the shank with several thread wraps. Be sure to leave roughly 1/8 of an inch between the lead eyes and the eye of the articulated shank. When finished return to the rear of the shank.
Step #2: Tie in a 3 inch piece of Bright Purple/ Baby Blue Two Toned Rabbit Zonker strip.
* Note- make sure rabbit strip hide doesn't extend past the rear hook eye, this will prevent fouling.
Step #3: Tie in a 2 inch piece of Purple UV Polar Chenille, and wrap 2-3 times around the shank toward the lead eyes and secure. Make sure you leave enough room for remaining steps.
Step #4: Tie in 10 strands of Opal/Purple Mirage Flashabou, 10 strands of Black Flashabou, and finish with a short 1 inch trimmed stack of 10-15 strands of Fuchsia Flashabou.
Step #5: Tie in and Palmer a single Gadwell or Natural Mallard Flank Feather.
Step #6: Center tie is a small clump of UV Callibaetis Ice Dubbing behind the lead eyes. When Ice Dubbing is secure bring your thread in front of the lead eyes.
Final: Compress and cut off a 1inch chunk of Chocolate Australian Opossum Fur as close to the hide as possible. Splay and push the fur over the eye of the hook. Make 10 or so wraps in the center of the fur to form both a collar and the head. Bring your thread to the front and form a thread head, whip finish, and cement.
A Great Lakes Steelhead posed over one of Kevin Feenstra's Sculpin Fly Boxes. (Kevin Feenstra Photo)
Take a few moments to check out Kevin's Latest DVD called Searching For Steelhead, and you can find several of Kevin's original pattern recipes by visiting Here...
All materials unless stated are from Hareline Dubbin Inc. All materials should be available at your local fly shops, if you can't find it, let me know I will point you in the right direction.
