Mar 22 2008
‘Fly day- Friday: The Usual
After you have spent a while on the stream, you realize that every fisherman has his own favorite fly. Although I have a number of flies that I have deemed valuable to me because of their effectiveness, and even though I have a handful of flies that have sentimental value to be, due to the fact that they were tied by my dad when he was young, none of these flies truly take the place pf my favorite fly.
My favorite fly, is undoubtedly the Usual. The Usual is actually a very unusual fly. As the story goes, there once was an old man who fished under a bridge. Every day he fished in the same hole, and he always caught fish; even when all the fishermen around him, upstream and down, caught nothing. This old man could fish at any time of day, in any weather, during any season, and always catch fish. Naturally this spurred curiosity in minds of the other fishermen, so every time they saw the old man they would ask him, “Old Man, what are you fishing with?” and every time they asked him this, the old man would reply with the simplistic answer, “the Usual;” as to not reveal his secret to success.
Since that time, the pattern to this fly has been revealed, and it is now a popular fly among fishermen across the country. What makes this fly so effective, is that it can be used as both a wet fly, or as a dry fly (this is very helpful for those of us that can’t seem to keep a fly from sinking).
When casting this fly as a wet fly, there is one method that I find to be most effective: the “quarter-turn sweep.” (I will be discussing these different casting methods early this coming week.)
What makes the Usual an effective wet fly, is the fact that it is constructed almost entirely from snow hare’s fur. When submerged, this fur becomes transparent, revealing the flies scarlet underbody.
As a dry fly, one can utilize either the “quarter-turn sweep,” or the method of sight fishing.
I suggest that any fishermen that are looking to broaden their arsenals, tie themselves a handful of Usual. This fly will truly serve you well.
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