Dave's Hopper | |
---|---|
Artificial fly | |
Type | Dry fly |
Imitates | Grasshoppers, crickets |
History | |
Creator | Dave Whitlock |
Created | 1950s |
Variations | Dave's cricket (tied in black) |
Materials | |
Typical sizes | 6-14, 2X-3X long |
Typical hooks | TMC 200R, DaiRiki 700 |
Thread | 6/0 nylon brown |
Tail | Red deer hair |
Body | Yellow wool or synthetic yarn |
Wing | Mottled turkey wing or tail |
Ribbing | Brown hackle |
Legs | Yellow grizzly hackle stems, knotted |
Collar | Deer hair tips |
Head | Spun and clipped deer hair |
Uses | |
Primary use | Trout, Panfish |
Other uses | Bass |
Reference(s) | |
Pattern references | Trout Flies-The Tier's Reference (1999) Hughes [1] |
Dave's Hopper is an artificial fly used for fly fishing, designed to imitate adult grasshoppers and other Orthoptera species. It is considered a dry fly terrestrial pattern. It was designed by fly tyer and angler Dave Whitlock, and combines the best aspects of Joe's Hopper [2] and Muddler Minnow patterns. [3]
Oklahoma fly tyer Dave Whitlock conceived the Dave's Hopper in the 1950s when he was dissatisfied with the performance of the Joe's Hopper pattern popularized by angler Joe Brooks in his Trout Fishing (1958). Joe's Hopper (also known as the Michigan Hopper) was created in the 1920s by a Traverse City barber and fishing guide, Art Winnie. It was essentially the only hopper pattern being tied commercially in the 1950s. Joe's Hopper has a red hackle fiber tail and traditional rooster hackle for legs. Whitlock believed its biggest faults were its tendency to twist the leader and failure to float well for long periods. Whitlock's friend Joe Brooks suggested Whitlock use the Muddler Minnow as a hopper imitation instead. This inspired Whitlock to combine the best features of both flies, particularly the spun deer hair head, into the fly known as Dave's Hopper. The fly was originally tied without the yellow grizzly hackle stem legs. Fly tyer and fishing guide Jay Buckner of Jackson, Wyoming, suggested that Whitlock add these legs to the pattern to improve its performance. [4]
The Dave's Hopper imitates adult short-horned grasshoppers (suborder Caelifera) of which there are thousands of individual species. Grasshoppers frequent grassy areas adjacent to rivers and lakes but are generally considered weak flyers. During windy conditions or when trying to cross bodies of water, they routinely land in the water and are consumed by fish. The Dave's Hopper is a generic terrestrial pattern designed to float and suggest a grasshopper that has just fallen into the water. They are most often fished close to banks and shorelines. They have proven to be an effective summertime and fall pattern for trout, bass and panfish anywhere grasshoppers are found.
Dave's Hoppers are usually tied on 2X or 3X long dry fly hooks such as the TMC 200R and uses red deer hair for the tail. The body was originally tied with yellow wool yarn, but more modern examples use yellow synthetic yarn for better flotation. The body is ribbed with a brown rooster neck hackle. The wing is created from a section of mottled turkey tail or wing feather. The head and collar are created with spun and clipped natural deer hair. Legs are simulated with a yellow grizzly hackle stem that is knotted to resemble the large rear legs most hoppers have.
Dave's Hopper's are usually tied in sizes 6 to 14 to represent the typical sizes of hoppers found throughout the summer and fall months. Dave Whitlock created the Dave's Cricket using the same basic tying technique and materials in black to simulate a typical cricket (Gryllidae). Dave's Hopper can be tied with a variety of colors for the tail, ribbing, body and deer hair head to represent different colored grasshopper species. Many tiers substitute rubber or pheasant tail feathers for the legs. [5]
The Hare's Ear or Gold Ribbed Hare’s Ear is a traditional artificial fly imitating an aquatic insect larva (nymph) used in fly fishing.
John Clarence "Jack" Gartside was an American fly tyer and fly fishing author.
Fly tying is the process of producing an artificial fly used by fly fishing anglers to catch fish. Fly tying is a manual process done by a single individual using hand tools and a variety of natural and manmade materials that are attached to a hook. Although the recent history of fly tying dates from the middle 1800s, fly tyers were engaged in tying flys since at least 200 AD.
The Woolly Bugger is an artificial fly commonly categorized as a wet fly or streamer and is fished under the water surface. It is a popular and widely used pattern for both freshwater and saltwater game fish and is generally listed as one of the top patterns to have in any fly box. John Gierach, a noted fly fishing writer discussed the Woolly Bugger first in his chapter on streamers in Good Flies. Woolly Buggers are typically fished in streams, rivers, ponds, lakes, and tidal flats. Today, Woolly Buggers are tied in a wide variety of styles and colors to imitate a wide range of game fish prey.
The Woolly Bugger is so effective, it should be banned from some watersheds. I suspect its effectiveness is due to its resemblance to so many edible creatures in the water—nymphs, leeches, salamanders, or even small sculpins. Its tail undulating behind a fiber, bubble-filled body is just too much for most fish to resist. It just looks like a meal!
The Muddler Minnow is a popular and versatile artificial fly of the streamer type used in fly fishing and fly tying.
The Pheasant Tail nymph or PT Nymph or Sawyer's Pheasant Tail is a popular all purpose nymph imitation used by fly anglers. It imitates a large variety of olive, olive-brown colored aquatic insect larvae that many fish including trout and grayling feed upon.
The Clouser Deep Minnow is an artificial fly commonly categorized as a streamer and is fished under the water surface. It is a popular and widely used pattern for both freshwater and saltwater game fish and is generally listed as one of the top patterns to have in any fly box, especially for bass and saltwater flats fishing.
An artificial fly or fly lure is a type of fishing lure, usually used in the sport of fly fishing. In general, artificial flies are an imitation of aquatic insects that are natural food of the target fish species the fly fishers try to catch. Artificial flies are constructed by fly tying, in which furs, feathers, thread or any of very many other materials are tied onto a fish hook.
The Grey Ghost Streamer is an artificial fly, of the streamer type. Its primary function is to imitate smelt. The streamer's wing gives it a swimming action while trolling or using the Dead Drift technique.
The Partridge and Orange is an artificial fly commonly categorized as a wet fly or soft hackle and is fished under the water surface. The fly is a very well known fly with its roots set firmly in English angling history. It is an impressionistic pattern fished successfully during caddis hatches and spinner falls. The Partridge and Orange is traditionally a trout and grayling pattern but may be used for other aquatic insect feeding species.
The Royal Coachman is an artificial fly that has been tied as a wet fly, dry fly and streamer pattern. Today, the Royal Coachman and its variations are tied mostly as dry flies and fished floating on the water surface. It is a popular and widely used pattern for freshwater game fish, particularly trout and grayling. Large streamer versions are also used for winter steelhead and Atlantic salmon.
This annotated bibliography is intended to list both notable and not so notable works of English language, non-fiction and fiction related to the sport of fly fishing listed by year published. Although 100% of any book listed is not necessarily devoted to fly fishing, all these titles have significant fly fishing content. Included in this bibliography is a list of species related fly fishing literature.
This annotated bibliography is intended to list both notable and not so notable works of English language, non-fiction and fiction related to the sport of fly fishing listed by year published. Although 100% of any book listed is not necessarily devoted to fly fishing, all these titles have significant fly fishing content. Included in this bibliography is a list of fly tying, fly tackle, regional guides, memoirs, stories and fly fishing fiction related literature.
The Elk Hair Caddis is a dry fly commonly used for trout fishing. The Elk Hair Caddis was created by Pennsylvania fly tyer Al Troth in 1957. He is considered a pioneer in the sport of fly fishing for this invention.
The Royal Wulff is a popular artificial fly used for dry fly fishing. It is an attractor pattern and a descendant of both the Royal Coachman fly and the Wulff style of hair wing flies named for Lee Wulff.
The Adams is a traditional dry fly primarily used for trout. It is considered a general imitation of an adult mayfly, flying caddis or midge. It was designed by Leonard Halladay from Mayfield, Michigan in 1922, at the request of his friend Charles Adams. The Adams has been considered one of the most popular, versatile, effective and best selling dry flies since its creation.
The Stimulator is a dry fly popularized by angler, fly tyer and author Randall Kaufmann to imitate large adult stoneflies.
The Wulff series of dry flies evolved from a dry fly style conceived by angler Lee Wulff in the 1930s.
The Humpy fly is a popular and effective dry fly used by fly anglers for trout in fast-water conditions.
Terrestrial flies are a broad group of artificial flies used by fly anglers to imitate terrestrial insects that fall prey to fish in rivers, streams and lakes. Most typical are patterns imitating grasshoppers, crickets, ants, beetles, leaf hoppers, cicadas and moths.