This Friday Night Fly Tying Video is brought to us this week by Rich Strolis and features a versatile soft hackle pattern that can also be fished as a nymph in the round and deep simply by adding a bead.
Farmington River Yellow Quill Hatch
Rich ties and fishes the Vitreus Soft Hackle to match the prolific Yellow Quill hatch on the Farmington River in Connecticut where he guides.
I like Rich’s tip of using UTC florescent orange thread since the female Yellow Quill have orange eggs – pretty neat! Another key tip that Rich points out is to minimize the number of thread wraps used while tying this soft hackle pattern. This helps maintain a slim profile on the fly.
Yellow Quill or Pale Morning Dun (PMD)
The Yellow Quill hatch has baffled some fly fisherman because in many localities it occurs at the same time as the pale morning duns and the adult is a similar color. Closer observation reveals that the yellow quill is bigger and the wing is yellow, not blue-gray.
It’s important to know which is hatching, Yellow Quills or PMDs. Not only is the yellow quill bigger, but the dun usually hatches underwater and drifts to the surface. Trout prefer to take them underwater, so a dry fly is of limited use during a Yellow Quill hatch. For this reason, the Vitreus Soft Hackle (or a similar yellow or orange bodied soft hackle) presented on a wet-fly swing is a good tactic.
Vitreus Soft Hackle Pattern Materials List
Hook: Dohiku 302 (or any similar barbless wet or nymph hook)
Size: 12 – 14
Thread: UTC 140 Florescent Orange
Tail & Hackle: Brahma Hen
Body: Brown Squirrel Dub
Rib: Small Oval Gold Tinsel
Enjoy!