By Andrew Frutiger
In our third installment of online fly tying seminars, Colin Flournoy led four of our veterans through one of the more challenging patterns they’ve attempted to date, the wired stonefly. Colin was then followed by Larry Forte, who walked the group through something near and dear to all of us: a practical guide to fly fishing equipment.
The evening started with a 10-minute YouTube video by InTheRiffle.com on the wired stonefly, where everyone was able to see the stonefly pattern tied in its’ entirety before making their own attempt. After the video, Colin walked the group through tying their own versions of the pattern. Each veteran worked through the fly at their own pace with plenty of questions and retakes but, in the end, everyone nailed the fly. I am always impressed how quickly all of our veterans have taken to tying and how full their fly boxes are with their own flies. In addition to tying flies, it’s also a good thing to know where to fish them. This is why it is always fantastic to have Don Fine on hand to talk about what sizes you should tie the fly in, as well as where to fish them. In this case, the wired stoneFly can be tied anywhere from size 8-12 and fished locally in clear, mountain fed streams like Big Hunting Creak or the Savage. It can also be fished on the North Branch of the Potomac.
Larry Forte took some time at the end of the night to help everyone understand the history of fly fishing and how to sort through all of the equipment that is out there, and how to choose the right tools for the type of fishing they’ll do. If you are ever looking for a primer on fly fishing equipment, Larry has an excellent presentation.
Favorite quote of the night: “The Post Office is going to be busy delivering fly tying material to my house.”
Question of the night: In what era did the first recorded example of fly fishing occur?
If you have any questions or would like to participate in any of our upcoming fly tying sessions at Fort Detrick, please reach out to me at any time at andrewfrutiger@yahoo.com or go to our Facebook page at Project Healing Waters – Frederick Chapter.
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