Table Of Content·FLIES FOR·
ALASKA
A GUIDE TO BUYING & TYING
·ANTHONY J. ROUTE·
Johnson Books: Boulder
Spring Creek Press: Estes Park
Flies for Alaska : A Guide to Buying &
title:
Tying
author: Route, Anthony J.
publisher: Johnson Books
isbn10 | asin: 1555660878
print isbn13: 9781555660871
ebook isbn13: 9780585021591
language: English
subject Flies, Artificial--Alaska, Fly tying.
publication date: 1991
lcc: SH451.R66 1991eb
ddc: 688.7/912
subject: Flies, Artificial--Alaska, Fly tying.
Dedication
To my wife
Ann Ivancich Route
© 1991 by Anthony J. Route
Cover design: Bob Schram
Cover photographs: Robert Pollock
Photographs not otherwise credited are by the author.
ISBN 1-55566-087-8
LCCCN 91-77326
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Printed in the United States of America by
Johnson Printing
A Division of Johnson Publishing Company
1880 South 57th Court
Boulder, Colorado 80301
Page v
Contents
Preface vii
Acknowledgments ix
Introduction Flies for Alaska xi
Chapter 1 Eggs to Flesh 1
Chapter 2 Flash and Fluorescence 22
Chapter 3 Subsurface Uglies 48
Chapter 4 A Streamer Selection 74
Chapter 5 Topwater Models 102
Chapter 6 Stillwater Specialties 130
Appendix A Saltwater Flies 151
Appendix B Keys to the Tables 154
References 155
Index 157
Page vii
Preface
Please don't use Flies for Alaska as you would a dictionary of fly
patterns. You won't get the most from this book by simply flipping to
a section on flies, nymphs for instance, that you feel like tying at the
moment. For one thing, you'll find that I didn't consistently use
discrete sections like those found in a standard book of patterns. It
would be best to read completely through the book once and then
develop your own game plan regarding what patterns you would like
to tie. This way you'll grasp the overall scheme of things and be able
to customize your assortment to suit your own needs.
For instance, regardless of the season in which your fishing will take
place, you will most likely want some representative whether it be an
alevin or a maggotfrom Chapter 1, Eggs to Flesh. Likewise you'll
probably want to make standard selections from the other chapters. It
is at this point that you'll be able to make the best use of the seasonal
and species-related charts at the end of each chapter to create a list of
patterns that you would like to tie or, in some cases, buy.
The photographs and fly recipes should be studied closely because not
much in the world of fly tying is standardized, and some fly patterns
may be called by other names on a regional basis. A case in point is
the Lake Leech. Almost everywhere outside of Alaska, it's called the
Marabou Leech. I suspect that it had its origins outside of Alaska so
the name Marabou Leech probably should take precedence, but it is
not my aim in this book to consider such things. I'll let it stand simply
as what it isthe same fly pattern with two different names.
You should also realize that many proven patterns undergo a complete
name change when even a small bit of new material is added to them.
For example, add some Krystal Flash to the tail of an ordinary Wooly
Bugger, and it's often called a Flash-A-Bugger. If you're familiar with
the Wooly Bugger, you can probably see through the smoke and
recognize a Flash-A-Bugger for what it is. I don't subscribe to the idea
of changing the name of a fly if only a minor addition has been made,
but I have mentioned variations of the dressing in the text.
Page viii
I do, however, add a descriptive term when a major component in the
original dressing has been replaced with a material different enough to
warrant mentioninga practice put forth by Eric Leiser in The Book Of
Fly Patterns. For instance, I tie my Black Ghosts with a marabou
wing instead of a hackle wing and therefore refer to the fly as a
Marabou Black Ghost. By understanding these two precepts, in
conjunction with a look at the photographs, you may recognize a very
similar or identical pattern that is available locally for your inspection
or purchase.
Incidentally, the flies photographed here are true representations of
the ones that I use. I haven't spruced them up with extraordinary
materials nor have I tied them on classier hooks than I regularly use.
Like many other fly tiers, I will spend hours working on Atlantic
salmon flies or Alaska patterns destined to be enclosed in glass on
someone's office wall, but the flies discussed here are meant to be tied
on the end of a leader. I don't want anyone, especially a novice fly
tier, to get the impression that all the legs on a Marabou Girdle Bug
have to be perfectly straight and exactly the same length. If that's
something you want to strive for, so much the better, but if your time
at the tying bench and on the water in Alaska is limitedand whose
isn'tit would be better to have a dozen less-than-perfect Marabou
Girdle Bugs than one perfect specimen.
There is one other item I need to point out. Because it is often difficult
to distinguish between Arctic char and Dolly Varden without
performing an autopsy, I will use the term char for both, except in the
case of sea-run fish which will be called Dolly Varden. I realize lake
trout are also char, but in flyfishing terms they are different enough to
be dealt with separately and will be referred to as lake trout.
Page ix
Acknowledgments
As I began to put together this book, I asked for a lot of help and I got
it. I asked for information on origins of flies, sample flies, and
samples of various tying materials. I received a lot more information
and samples than I needed or could use, so even if their contributions
are not present within these pages, I thank the following people and
companies: Robert Borden of Hareline Dubbin; Phil Camera of Larva
Lace Products; Hedron, Inc.; Andrew Kreinik of Kreinik Fly Tying
Supplies; Mike Mercer of The Fly Shop; O. Mustad & Son; PAC
Manufacturing and Distributing; Mark Roth; Ray Treanor of Umpqua
Feather Merchants; Stephen Vletas of Westbank Anglers; Robert
Weet of Angler Sport Group; Wright & McGill Co.; and
Wyndemasters, Inc.
I also thank Marcella Hackbardt for her beautiful illustrations which,
although not included in these pages, did appear in Flyfishing Alaska.
Somehow, her name and due credit disappeared from the title page in
the finished book.
Much thanks is due Bob Boyer for his photographic skills; Scott
Roederer, my editor, for his encouragement, criticism, and long phone
conversations when he could have been out fishing; and to all the
anglers I have met astream who have freely volunteered information.
Page xi
Introduction
Flies for Alaska
If you're looking for a book that contains thousands of fly patterns,
you've picked up the wrong one. If you want to put together a
manageable assortment of flies that will catch fish in Alaska and you
don't have several years to use the trial-and-error method, you've
found the right book.
Without any difficulty at all, I could have doubled or tripled the
number of fly patterns described in this book. That, however, would
have undermined the book's purpose. For example, there are
thousands of fly patterns tied specifically for steelhead, and it may be
possible to find a single volume that lists as many as 500 patterns.
This is great if you're already a steelhead fanatic. You can spend hours
during the off season poring over the book and randomly tying
patterns that look good. But what if you've never fished for steelhead?
Where do you start? Do you make a crazed attempt to tie and carry all
of those patterns with you, or do you use something more scientific
such as a Ouija board?
I encountered this same problem prior to my first visit to steelhead
waters. Perceiving myself to be smarter than the average garden
hackle, I devised a foolproof plan. I would collect all the magazines,
catalogs, and books on the subject and then select only what I
considered to be the best fly patterns. In theory it sounded good, but
after much scrutiny and a lot of list making, I wound up with over 100
patterns that I just had to have. I didn't have the time to tie all of those
patterns and buying them would have been a financial nightmare.
Essentially, I was back where I started. Instead of inundating you with
hundreds of fly patterns, I have presented you with a selection of 46
flies (not including color variations) that can carry you through an
entire season of fishing in Alaska. They are the patterns that I, and
many other flyfishers, consistently use in Alaska.
Description:The companion volume to Tony Route’s popular "Flyfishing Alaska," this book helps the reader select and tie the flies needed to take trout, char, and salmon throughout Alaska. Tony has chosen 46 proven flies based on his years of experience flyfishing Alaska’s rivers, lakes, and saltwater. Brief
