Alder Fly

This week’s Throw Back Thursday Fly is the Alder Fly.

Alder Fly | www.johnkreft.com

This fly is an old English fly pattern that is hundreds of years old. In fact, some quick Internet research suggests it may have been developed around 1496 when it was included in Dame Juliana Berners first fly fishing book Fysshe and Fysshynge.

I wonder if there is a similar fly in one of my Antique Fly Wallets. Other old fly wallets can be found at Antique Fly Wallets Revisited. I’ll have to check.

I have to be honest. I’ve never fished this fly. Found it and if I were to fish if, I’d do so during a caddis hatch.

I think it would catch fish!

Similar Posts

  • Quigley Cripple PMD

    This week’s Throw Back Thursday Fly is the Quigley Cripple PMD version. The Quigley Cripple was developed by Bob Quigley in the late 1970’s for Northern California’s Fall River. As the story goes, Bob was fishing a Humpy and catching fish with it. The wing got chewed up and he caught many more fish with…

  • Wilson Ant

    This week’s Throw Back Thursday Fly is the Wilson Ant. I haven’t tied a Ray Bergman fly recently, so I thought I’d pull out his book Trout (1938) and the Wilson Ant spoke to me. You’ll find this fly on Plate No. 9, page 254. I like the elegance and simplicity of a Ray Bergman wet fly. I’ve…

  • Bailey’s Dark Cahill

    This week’s Throw Back Thursday Fly is Bailey’s Dark Cahill. Notice how this fly is tied with dun colored hackle and tail, a deviation of the standard brown that is usually used for both. This fly pictured above was from a collection of flies tied by Dan Bailey. I was fortunate to be able to…

  • Buz’s Float N Fool Multi-Color

    This week’s Throw Back Thursday Fly is Buz’s Float N Fool Multi-Color. The Float N Fool Multi-Color (AKA – Flot’N Fool Multi-Color, Float-n-Fool, Float N Fool, even Flot-N-Fool) is a parachute fly tied with calf tail for the tail and wing post, a peacock herl body, and a hackle that varied in color from Adams…

  • Lawson’s E-Z Caddis

    This week’s Throw Back Thursday Fly is Lawson’s E-Z Caddis, developed by Mike Lawson from Last Chance, ID. I bought this fly a several years ago in Maupin, OR for a fly fishing trip with friends on the Deschutes River. I really liked the profile of the fly and the under and overwing made of…

2 Comments

  1. Hi John,

    The Alder Fly tied as a wet fly and also as a streamer has long been a favorite. Al’s largest river trout (in his life) was taken on an Alder Fly wet-style pattern from the Clark Fork River in north Idaho in 1988. We like to tie the streamer version with a brown or white calf tail wing. Take care & …
    Tight Lines – (Gretchen &) Al Beatty

    Reply

    1. Thanks for the comment Al!

      Your comment is EXACTLY why I enjoy posting older flies. It seems to strike chords/memories in fly fishers and I’m the recipient of their stories! I really enjoy them.

      Thanks again.

      John

      Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *