Gentle Soul, Deadly Flies

Iwas fortunate to have tied with Dave Whitlock on February 12, 1996. Mr. Whitlock was an inspiration to me, his patterns were not just for trout but panfish, bass and saltwater, showing me that the fly is a food source for all predators. Dave to me was a naturalist, and a conservationist. His book Dave Whitlock’s Guide to Aquatic Trout Foods is a reference I still use when teaching others about the sport of fly fishing.

When, on November 25, I told my wife that Dave passed away, her comment summed up how I felt about him: he was such a gentle soul. That day, the fly fishing community lost a legend. In 1972, Dave was an FFI Buz Buszek Memorial Fly Tying Award Recipient. The WhitlockVibert Boxes helped with many conservation efforts. His unique fly tying designs still live on today—not just for trout but for all fish and all waters.

These are my four favorite Dave Whitlock flies…and they are also the flies for the FFI Fly Tying Challenge.

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The Red Fox Squirrel Nymph

This nymph is a perfect imitation which does not represent any specific nymph. When you look at it, it is the same all around because it is tied in the round. The tail is made from the guard hairs of the Red Fox Squirrel. This helps give it action in the water. The abdomen is the belly of the red fox squirrel, with Antron fibers mixed in to give it some life—maybe like a real nymph with air bubbles that reflect light and help attract a trout, bass or panfish. The rib of gold oval tinsel helps give the abdomen a segmented look, plus some flash. The thorax is the dark back-fur of the fox squirrel, and can be tied in a dubbing loop so the guard hairs stick out like legs to give a real buggy look. The partridge hackle wrapped around behind the eye of the hook gives the fly movement and legs. This fly is also tied weighted, with few wraps of lead-free wire underneath the thorax. This also can be tied with a bead.

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Dave’s Hopper

Dave’s Hopper is, in my mind, the perfect grasshopper imitation. It can be tied with or without the legs; there is a tail of red bucktail that could be the red you see on the legs of a grasshopper, and a loop of yellow yarn tied at the bend of the hook. The body is made from yellow yarn and palmer, ribbed with a brown hackle that is trimmed. The legs are knotted partridge tail fibers. The wing is turkey tail treated with Dave’s Fleximent. The collar is spun deer hair tips and the head is spun deer hair, trimmed to shape. This is a high-floating fly which, during warm weather, imitates a hopper trying to get back to shore. Dave’s Hopper can be floated dead drift or popped on the surface. Trout, bass and panfish can’t resist this fly.

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Dave’s Mouse Rat

Three Blind Mice. See how they run. See how this pattern attracts big bass, and night trout! The ears and tail can be tied with leather or foam. The body is stacked deer hair, so are the tips on the top, to imitate the hair of the mouse or rat. Once the ears are tied in, you then tie the head, which is spun deer hair and trimmed to shape. Don’t forget the black eyes—just for looks. Maybe. Pop this fly right along the shoreline or if you’re brave enough, fish it at dark and hold on.

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Whitlock’s Matuka Sculpin

Material List

Thread: Your Choice ( I use 3/0 White for the body and an Olive GSP for the deer hair)

Hook: Salmon 2/0

Thread: Your Choice ( I use 3/0 White for the body and an Olive GSP for the deer hair)

Belly: Pale Yellow or Olive Dubbing

Underbody: 50 Pound Mono on each side of the shank

Weight: Lead Free Wire

Rib: Brass Wire Medium

Tail and Back: 6 Cree and 6 Olive Variant

Throat: Red Dubbing

Head: Deer Hair (Pale Yellow, Black, Olive, Red)

Pectoral Fins: Cock Pheasant Back Feathers

Eyes: Solid Plastic Doll Eyes (or similar)

Tying the Shimmering Minnow

Step 1. Prepare the hook using 50 pound mono on each side of the hook shank. Then, 10 to 15 wraps of .030 Lead Free wire. Coat with a cement such as Zap a Gap or UV Resin.

Step 2. Tie in the medium brass wire at the bend of the hook. I am using a Brassie gold wire thickness. Then dub a tapered body, using either cream, olive, brown or black, to about half the shank of the hook.

Step 3. I am using Hen Back Grizzly feather which has been dyed olive, cree, and light olive. There are six feathers on each side for a total of 12 feathers for the wing back. This will be tied in matuka style.

Step 4. Take two wraps of the brass wire at the bend of the hook, securing the tip of the wing. Next, start separating the back fibers to pass the wire between the feather fibers, trying not to catch any fibers under the wire. If you do, you can use your bodkin to pull them out.

Step 5. Tie in two male pheasant back feathers on each side of the hook. These are the pectoral fins of the sculpin. These are the large fins on the sculpin that also help keep it off the bottom (a sculpin doesn’t have an air bladder). Use red dubbing for the gills. I like to whipfinish and cut the 3/0 monocord thread, switching to an Olive GSP Thread to stack the deer hair.

Step 6. Turn the fly upside down. Take a stack of yellow or pale deer hair and stack the tips. Hold the deer hair in place and pull the thread to secure the hair to the hook. Do not spin the hair, this stacking hair, so different colors are layered.

Step 7. Turn the fly back and stack in the natural deer hair, make sure the tips line up with the underside deer hair. Push the natural deer hair down with you finger, making a cup, and then secure the black deer hair—the tips should line up with the natural hair.

Step 8. Layer a stack of red deer hair and top it off with olive deer hair.

Step 9. Bring the thread in front of the hair that is now stacked, and pack it: press with nail of the thumb and index finger, and pack it tight. Turn the fly upside down and add the second section of deer hair onto the bottom. Tips of the hair are to be cut.

Step 10. Rotate the fly back right side up. Stack the hair without the tips: natural, then black then olive deer hair. Pack the deer hair again; whipfinish.

Step 11. Trim the deer hair with scissors or a razor to shape. Glue doll eyes.

Jerry Coviello

Jerry Coviello is an accomplished fly tier and an FFI Buz Buszek Fly Tying Memorial Award Recipient. Jerry is a past Chair of the FFI Fly Tying Group, a columnist for Fly Tyer Magazine and current President and newsletter editor for Delaware Valley Fly Fishers. He contributes to the FFI Learning Center and develops Fly Tying Workshops for members to learn how to tie flies. He has a YouTube Channel, “Jerry’s Fly Tying Tips,” which has more than 100 fly tying videos.