Yes, you can actually tie flies using leftover wild game materials. Here’s how

Already, you might be thinking: Why on Earth would I want to try tying my own flies when I can go down to my local fly shop and pick up a dozen for pennies on the dollar? Hey, you’re not wrong. Afterall, pretty much any sporting goods store or mom-and-pop tackle shop are going to have more flies than a county landfill.

But, that’s not the point of this story.

While rummaging through the trays and trays of pre-tied midges, caddis, wooly buggers, and stimulators might be a stress-free way to fill your fly box and maximize your time on the water, I want to explore alternative ways to source our flies, take advantage of the winter lull, and perhaps become a keener fly angler.

Quality-ish, not quantity

First things first. Your first attempts probably won’t be pretty. Fly tying is a true artform, and it takes time and practice to become proficient, so simply skimming this article and maybe a YouTube video isn’t going to help you cut in that line.

Second, before you start filling up your Amazon cart or cutting up your bear rug for tying materials, I want to be clear. We’re not going to tie award-winning elk hair caddises today, or take out a second mortgage buying every fly-tying tool known to man. The point is simply to have fun, dabble in a new hobby, and (if we’re lucky) catch a few fish.

Our flies may be ugly. Our patience, maybe thin. Our eyes, squinty and clouded. But, at the end of the day, there will be one fly—maybe even more than one fly—nestled in our fly box, made using leftover wild game materials, that we can be proud of. 

Here’s what you’ll need

Now that we got that out of the way, it’s time to put together a modest shopping list. Emphasis on modest. Like most art forms, fly tying can be as simple or extravagant as you want to make it and can lead you down an overwhelming road. For the sake of tying a couple homely flies made from the scraps of hunting season, let’s take baby steps.

First and foremost, you will need a vise (and probably, advice). As the name implies, a vise clamps the hook while you wrap it with material. Vises can come in a variety of styles, including C-clamp and pedestal-mounted vises, but all pretty much do the same thing. Once you have a suitable space picked out at home, like a desk or well-lit table, make the call on a vise that best fits that space and doesn’t break the bank.

Next up, you’ll need a few tools:

• A quality pair of scissors made for fly tying
• A bobbin—which holds the thread while you wrap the hook
• A hair stacker—a small device that quickly aligns the tips of hair, such as deer and elk
• And a whip finisher—which will help you “finish” off the fly by tying the final knot

You can also spring for a starter kit for fly tying with all the basic tools and some tying materials for about $50. With your toolbelt metaphorically tied around your waist, it’s time to shop around for materials to lay the foundation for your first fly.

Just like with regular old bait and reel fishing, hooks come in a plethora of options. Our flies are going to be simple, so the hooks should be, too. For the sake of these bare bones, wild game flies, pick up several nymph hooks (size 16), dry fly hooks (size 14), and a couple streamer hooks (size 4 or 6) for that wooly bugger.

Thread is also going to be a must-have for your beginner fly tying station. If nothing else, a hook wrapped in some colorful yarn, wire, or thread stands a pretty good chance of attaching itself to a curious fish’s lip. Thread is by far the cheapest option on this list, which gives you all the reason you need to pick out a dozen or so colors if you so choose. Chances are, they’ll get used eventually. 

However, if you want to continue the theme of keeping this endeavor close to the ground, it’s recommended to have common colors including black, red, brown, olive green, whites and grays, and tan in stock.

Last but not least, you may want to scoop up a couple of bead heads, especially for those chunky woolies. Bead heads are weighted little spheres that slip over the point of the hook and sit behind the eye. Bead heads give the fly a little added heft to get the fly down in the water column and can add some flash to attract a strike.

Last year’s hunt, this year’s fly

It’s that point in the training video where we finally get to do the thing we’ve been talking about doing—tying flies. And there’s no better feeling than catching a fish on a homemade fly made from some animal you harvested back in the day. And if a couple of buddies are around to see you do it, even sweeter.

And let’s get real for a moment. Those beautifully tied dry flies or streamers that look like feathered sculptures are certainly eye-catching to the angler; however, many fish are caught on sparse, drab, simple flies that resemble a bug enough to whet their appetites and trigger a strike.

Even the most beginner of fly anglers will have heard of such classic flies as a hare’s ear or the elk hair caddis or the pheasant tail nymph. They are tried and true, have fooled millions of fish, and have long, rich histories being crafted from the same critters that give them their names.

Elk hair, for instance, is sturdy and durable and doesn’t flair out like lighter materials such as feathers or deer hair. The thick hair makes great tails and wings on certain flies, particularly caddis and mayflies.

Pheasants, on the other hand, are like the rodeo clowns of the upland bird rodeo. They’re some of the most colorful game birds found in Idaho, giving a fly-tier a broad palette to choose from. The first pheasant tail nymphs were tied back in the 1950s to imitate mayflies found commonly in English streams. The version we’ve all come to love here in the States stemmed from a Montana man named Al Troth, who also happened to be renowned for his elk hair caddis.

For some of you, sourcing deer or elk hair, pheasant or chukar feathers, or duck and goose down might be the sticking point. There are plenty of anglers out there who don’t hunt, and that’s perfectly okay. Talk to your buddies that do hunt and see if they have any tanned hides or feathers left over or have been holding on to for years, unable to make do with them.

Three flies you can tie at home

Now, describing to someone who’s never tied a fly every minute step via written story would be as monotonous as John Roebling describing how he built the Brooklyn Bridge. And considering the author of this story has never once tied a fly a day in his life, it would be selling you, the reader, a bill of goods.

The good news is we live in an age where activities like fly tying are widely accessible and have a wide network. Online diagrams and videos, dusty old library books, and even classes hosted by your local fly shop can all be valuable resources available in a moment’s time. Anyone who’s ever enrolled in the University of YouTube knows this to be true. Even a quick Google search yields dozens, if not hundreds, of webpages dedicated to tying EHCs and pheasant tails—you might have to do a little more digging, though, to find black bear wooly buggers. 

Tying your own flies doesn’t just have to be that thing you’ll maybe try in retirement. In a modern world that seems to be spinning faster than we’d like it to at times, sitting down at the fly desk to tie a few meticulous little bugs of thread and hair might be just what the doctor ordered, too. 

Again, not to sound like a broken record here, just have fun with it. And start easy. Remember, we don’t jack knife into a prime fishing hole; we tip-toe out into the shallows at first. Then, if all seems right, we throw some flies.

Maybe even some ugly, homemade ones.