This week’s Throw Back Thursday Fly is the Hatchmaster, a fly pattern developed in the 1930s.
Originally known as the Two-Feather Fly, it was created by Harry Darbee for a fisherman named Terrell Moore to solve a problem of getting large mayflies to land on the water softly and eliminate the bulk and weight. Some people called it the “Darbee”.
Doug Andres, the Riverkeeper from the Purdy Ranch on Silver Creek in Idaho, taught this fly last week at our COF Winter Fly Tying class. He stated Dick Alf brought the fly to Silver Creek in the 1960s.
As with many fly patterns, there is something elegant in the simplicity of the fly. A single feather is used to create the tail and body from the fibers pulled backwards and tied down.
The fly I tied was to imitate a Callibaetis adult.
I think I’ll give it a try at East Lake this summer!
Enjoy…go fish!
PS – I’ll add the fly pattern sheet in the near future. (Updated: fly pattern sheet can be found HERE)
Hey John congratulations on your recognition as the COF fly fisherman of the year. That award is well deserved! , Max