Here is the fly pattern for the East Lake Chironomid.

Materials
Hook:
Dai Riki 135, #12 – 16
Thread:
Danville 6/0 – black
Bead:
Spirit River Hot Bead – Pearl white 2.8 mm
Rib:
Flashabou – red holographic
Coating:
Hard as Hull or UV Resin
Thorax:
Peacock herl
Directions
- Apply thread to hook starting at eye and working back to the bend. On a curved hook it can be hard to tell, but stop the thread about even with the barb on the hook.
- Tie in one strand of red holographic flashabou at the bend of the hook. Blue flash is also a very good color and was hot last spring, where the red is my favorite color all season throughout the summer.
- Build up a slightly tapered body with the black tying thread.
- Wrap 6 or 7 turns of flashabou through the body. Tie off and trim excess.
- Tie in 2 or 3 strands of peacock herl for the thorax. At this point I like to wrap the herl around the tying thread and then wrap the thread/herl “rope” together to form the thorax. This will add significant durability to the fly. Tie off and trim excess herl (hint: you may need to unwrap some herl form the thread).
- Whip finish and cement the head.
Note: The East Lake Chironomid is an effective fly pattern taught to me by Jeff Perin, owner of The Fly Fisher’s Place in Sisters, Oregon. Try a different variation by using a blue rib over the black body.
For more East Lake flies, go to the East Lake Fly Box.