STREAMERS & PULLING FLIES

YETI

I'm not sure where or when Max Christensen came onto the scene but in any case he has left a worthwhile legacy in the Yeti. I have modified the original tie a little to suit my requirements by extending the tag to a tail and tying a Zonker strip along the top of the hook shank rather than just a wing at the front. In any case this fly fishes well and is equally at home fished as either a general prospecting fly retrieved slow and deep around weedy margins or as a fly for windy conditions where it can be allowed to slosh around for a few seconds and then can be slowly retrieved or as a point or attractor fly in a loch style fishing team of flies. In windier conditions it also works well when ripped across the surface. I only tie it in size #8 and in three colour combinations. In smaller sizes I prefer my Bag Fly or a Tom Jones.


*MATERIALS:* Hook - Size 8 to 12 dry fly Thread - Olive Weight - Lead wire as required Tail - Orange hackle barbules Body - Olive wool Rib - Copper wire Wing - Olive Rabbit Zonker strip Cheeks - Jungle cock. Bib - Orange synthetic living fibre	*MATERIALS:* Hook - Size 8 to 12 dry fly Thread - Black Weight - Lead wire as required Tail - Red hackle barbules Body - Red wool Rib - Copper wire Wing - Black Rabbit Zonker strip Cheeks - Jungle cock. Bib - Red synthetic living fibre	*MATERIALS:* Hook - Size 8 to 12 dry fly Thread - Black Weight - Lead wire as required Tail - Red hackle barbules Body - Peacock herl rope Rib - Copper wire Wing - Olive Rabbit Zonker strip Cheeks - Jungle cock. Bib - Black synthetic living fibre

A) Wind the thread from the 95% position to the bend of the hook in touching turns. Tie in a hackle tail equal in length to the hook shank. Tie in a length of copper wire at the bend of the hook. Tie in a length of wool - I generally use just one ply stripped out of a 4 ply or 8 ply length of wool. The underbody should be uniform along the rear 80% of the hook shank. If its not build up any imperfections with scrap wool or dubbing.
B) Take the thread forward 4/5 of the distance along the hook shank. Wind the wool forward to the thread in touching turns. Tie the wool off and trim the excess.
C) Tie a length of Zonker strip equal to the length of the hook shank at the 80% position.
D) Leave the thread at the front and pick up the copper wire with your right hand. Whilst retaining pressure on the copper wire use your left hand to separate the Zonker strip so that you can wind the copper wire around the hook shank without tying down any of the fur fibres Continue this process as you wrap the copper wire along the fly to the 80% position creating 6 or 7 segments and locking the Zonker strip neatly along the top of the hook shank.
E) Take an extra wrap of copper wire around the hook shank just in front of where the Zonker strip is tied in and whilst holding the shank of the hook steady with your left hand pull the copper wire toward you with your right hand breaking the excess copper wire off.
F) Invert the fly and tie in just a few strands of SLF just behind the eye of the hook.
G) Bring the fly back up the right way and use the fingers of your left hand to stroke the forward facing SLF fibres back toward the eye of the hook.
H) Tie a jungle cock hackle in at the cheek of the fly on each side to represent the eyes. Build up a neat head of thread, whip finish, trim the thread and varnish the head of the fly.

Last modified: 25-Jun-2008.