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Moosehair Wings From The Rock

4K views 11 replies 6 participants last post by  sayow 
#1 · (Edited)
Guys, just a sample of some moosehair wet flies that fish both the Main and Humber rivers very well here. They may work well in your areas as well.
Tight lines!
Sayow
 

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#3 ·
Simple, but effective.
The moosehair just riffles better, not sure if it's the buoyancy of the moosehar, or just the inherent stiffness of the hair. We fish them in medium to fast flowing water, usually tied with a Portland Creek Hitch, and the moose hair keeps them up and riffles them beautifully. I tie most of my atlantic salmon flies with moose hair, regardless of what the pattern calls for. It just fishes better. You'll notice that the Orange Riffle ( A Rob Solo pattern, renowned West Coast Newfoundland tyer) has a layered wing with grey squrrel tail over moose hair. This fly has taken countless 20-30 pound salmon on the Lower Humber over the last 10 years or so. However the best producer of the lot is probably the Blue Charm (Tied here with a green butt as opposed to the traditional yellow), followed by the Thunder & Lightning and the Green Highlander. Despite the peat stained waters of both major rivers in my area, the black body flies work best, followed by green bodies.
Tight lines!
Sayow
 
#5 ·
Thanks. I agree, the wing material can have a huge effect. I know in Central Newfoundland on the Gander and Exploits rivers, white calf tail is used on a lot of the traditional patterns. The White Thunder being a prime example. Not many fish the white winged versions on the West Coast of the Island, and I don't know why. I will be trying a few this summer, because just like the fluorescent green butts that are working wonders this spring, you just never know. Thanks for the reply.
Tight lines!
Sayow
 
#6 ·
Sayow
Nice flies !!I'll try and post a streamer pattern that we use in Gaspe.Speakin' of the rock did you here about the 50# fish they hoisted over the Harry's River trap lats week ? It broke the net and two attendants had to handlift it over !!!
Cheers
Brian
 
#7 ·
WOW! No I didn't hear that! That's great news. Harry's was one of the best rivers on the west coast at one time, but poaching has dessimated the stocks over the years. Good to see a BIG breeder like that going upstream to spread his/her genes! Thanks for the post. I'll keep an eye out for the streamer post.
Tight lines!
Sayow
 
#8 ·
Salar-1
I wonder how long before some poacher gets that one, too. Harry's was not only the best river on the west coast of Newfoundland...it was THE best in Newfoundland (and perhaps Labrador as well). Caught my first large Atlantic there in the Lower Dump pool. Haven't been back there for years. The last time a fishing buddy and myself fished there we met a couple of fellow fishermen in the Upper Dump pool. Like ourselves, they bemoaned the fact that such an amazing river was practically poached to death.They were from the Stephenville area and told us of a chap who brazenly sold poached Harry's River salmon from the back of his truck on a Stephenville street! He had even told them the pool he netted them in!
Hope the big one makes it. How did you ever hear about that in the Gaspe?
 
#9 ·
Your use of stiff moose hair for wings reminds me that coarse bucktail was the standard winging material for the early Pacific N.W. steelhead flies. Styles then evolved to softer bucktail and other, softer materials to give more "action." But as you're discovering, stiffness in the wing, inasmuch as it makes the fly riffle better, is a virtue.
Are you willing to take it farther? How about cutting the wing's end into a little protruding stub, like the Troth's Elkhair Caddis? How about going farther still: leaving a big wing stub, even coating it with a semi-flexible cement like Dave's Fleximent or Goop and finger-molding it into a flat disc? Purists would say that that's crossing the line from fly to lure, but some radical steelhead fly anglers have been using such riffling (popping? chugging?) flies for more than a decade.
 
#11 ·
Chare
Read the news aout Harry's on TheSalmon Preservation Association for the Waters of Newfoundland ( SPAWN).Click on News and it's in there.
BTW the University in St John's hosts the SALAR list if your interested in joining up.
Good info on Nfld, NS,NB and QC fishing
Cheers !
Brian
 
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