Tying Instructions: Catskill Dry, BWO
1. Attach the hook to the vise and attach your thread just behind the eye. Wrap to the 1/2 position on the shank and, then, back to the 1/3 position. This is where you will attach the wing.
Step One
2. Choose two hen hackle tips which are about the twice the hook gap in width. Try to select hackles that have a squared tip rather than a narrow taper. The length of the wings should be from the eye to the bend of the hook.
Step Two
3. Sweep the barbs back from the hackle to the desired length. Place the two hackles back to back with the curve of the hackles opposing each other. Keep the wing tips even. Place the two hackles on top of the shank with the clean quill, exposed from the swept barbs, directly over the tie down position. Apply two pinch wraps to secure the hackle to the tie down position.
Step Three
4. Add a couple of tight wraps and trim off the butt ends.
Step Four
5. Wrap the thread forward and hold the hackle tips back while building thread wraps in front of the hackle. This will allow the hackle to stand upright. Step Five
6. Utilize some "x" wraps to divide the hackle tips.
Step Six
7. Wrap the thread back to the tail tie-in position.
Step Seven
8. Select some tailing fibers from a spade hackle keeping the tips even. Measure the tailing fibers so that they are equal to the hook shank.
Step Eight
9. Place the tailing bundle against the hook shank and let the thread tension bring the bundle to the top of the shank. Secure with two to three additional wraps.
Step Nine
10. Wrap the thread forward securing the tail bundle to the top of the hook shank. Near the base of the wing, lift the tag end of the tail fibers and trim off. Wrap the thread covering all of the tail fibers.
Step Ten
11. Bring the thread back towards the tail tie in position and apply a small amount of dubbing to the thread. Wrap back to the tail tie in position so that the dubbing will just start at that position.
Step Eleven
12. Wrap the dubbing forward for a tapered body stopping just behind the wings.
Step Twelve
13. Bring the thread in front of the wind. Attach a sized hackle with the butt end in front of the wing. The quill of the hackle should face you. Secure the butts with thread wraps in front of the wings.
Step Thirteen
14. Bring the hackle back to crease the quill in front of the wing. Then wrap the hackle in front of the wing and behind it. Wrap the hackle back forwards with wraps behind and in front of the wing. Lift the hackle to secure with a couple of thread wraps.
Step Fourteen
15. Clip off the hackle tag end and cover with thread wraps. Create a small head and whip finish.
Step Fifteen

©2023 Steve Schalla
This page is not to be copied without my explicit permission.