Tying the Huge Caddis Fly: The Grandis

In this fly tying article, Swedish fly tyer and fly fisherman, Håkan Karsnäser, shows you how to tie a big and buoyant caddis fly – and along the way he explains what to pay particular attention to when tying and fishing with caddis flies.

By HÅKAN KARSNÄSER

The Grandis

Hook: Ahrex FW 570, size 6. Thread: Black GSP. Body: Brown seal’s fur, natural and sand colored CDC. Wing: Natural CDC and varnished partridge feather. Head/thorax: Deer hair.

Caddis are important food items for both brown trout, grayling, and rainbow trout. To us fly fishermen this means that imitations of the different stages in their lifecycles shouldn’t escape our attention and that we need to reserve some space in our fly boxes for them. When it comes to adult caddis flies, good floatation is key. Being able to skate the fly on the surface is essential. However, the fly mustn’t float too high. It’s important that it can be dragged under the surface and rise back up again.

For this particular purpose, I began combining CDC and deer hair some years ago for my caddis imitations. I’ve arrived at a design that fulfills all the functional parameters I look for in my caddis imitations. CDC for the body and wing provides good floatation, a fine silhouette and a nice footprint on the surface. The wing of varnished feathers adds further to the profile. The fly is simple to tie and can be tied in most sizes to imitate all hatches. And it’s an extremely durable fly too.

Learn how to ties the Grandis here: https://youtu.be/_3RR1P0LEsI