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Fly of the Month – Eggie Special

by Matt O’Neal of Savage Flies: Find him on his YouTube channel at Savage Flies

Created by Egbert Earl “Eggie” Bugby of Grayling, Michigan sometime between 1920-1950, the Eggie Special was once a popular fly in the area. Researched by Paul Beel of Frankenfly, the pattern here is tied with the original dressing Eggie used. For more history on the pattern, read an earlier blog post here on the J. Stockard blog by Paul.

Matt O’Neal of Savage Flies, who has a terrific YouTube channel where he shows how to tie many different flies, including the Eggie Special. Be sure to check it out and give him a follow! Watch his video below to see how to tie this interesting dry fly pattern.

And, find all the material here!

Materials list:
Hook: #10-12 dry fly – standard dry fly
Thread: Black
Tail: 3-4 turkey tail fibers
Rib: Brown dry fly hackle
Body: Yellow wool
Wings: Barred ginger hackle tips
Hackle: Brown and grizzly

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Fishless Fishing Trip

Guest Blogger: Chuck Lee, New Mexico

There are dozens of small alpine lakes dotted throughout the Sangre De Cristo Mountains in northern New Mexico. At the end of a hot summer in 2017, me and two friends, Craig and Eric, backpacked to one of these lakes to catch some fish. It was intended to be a celebration of sorts as Craig was recently married and Eric was moving out of state a few weeks later. I was just happy to be along for the ride.

We got advice about techniques and flies from the local fly shop and were all set. I even bought an inflatable raft; an advantageous piece of gear, I thought. We left before the sun came up and started on our 8 mile hike from the ski basin outside of Santa Fe. 

Craig managed the 25 pound raft rolled up like a sleeping pad on top of his already heavy pack. We used the aluminum paddles as walking sticks as we traversed the rugged mountain side. After several hours we finally reached the lake and found a campsite about 50 yards up from the lake. We all stood in awe of the beautiful setting and the high alpine rocky mountain lake. Cold, clear water surrounded by rocky cliffs.

We spent some time resting and getting camp set up, but were all eager to do some fly fishing! We took turns blowing up our inflatable raft, which took a while considering our already exhausted lungs. After about 30 minutes our little dinghy was lake worthy. We thought it would be a good idea to fit everyone in this tiny raft, which seemed smaller with 3 men and a dog inside.

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North Georgia Fly Fishing

Guest Blogger: Georgia Wild Trout Fly Fishing Guide Service

Georgia is not known for having many of the accolades that come with most of the trout fisheries out west, but still offers excellent opportunities for anglers to get outdoors and experience the sport of fly fishing. The different opportunities you can find across the state make Georgia a near perfect location for beginning fly anglers to learn and hone their craft. Add that to the scenic back drop of the North Georgia mountains and the remoteness of Southern Appalachia, and you can see why many locals of the Southeastern U.S. gravitate to trout streams. In Georgia there are 4 distinct types of trout fisheries that each offer something different to anglers. Stocked Trout Streams, Wild Trout Streams, Private Water Trout Streams, and Tailwater Trout Streams can all be approached very differently and often require different tactics for success.

North Georgia’s Tailwater Trout Streams
Georgia has two year-round tailwater trout streams that each receive a good amount of attention from anglers. The Toccoa River tailwater below Lake Blue Ridge and the Chattahoochee River below the Lake Lanier Dam offer great angling opportunities for local and out of state visitors. The Toccoa sees many more out of town visitors as its tucked into the foothills of Blue Ridge while many more locals find their way onto “The Hooch” in metro Atlanta.

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