WOMEN IN WADERS On the vice with Denise Denise van Wyk

Who started your tying journey?

That trout that took my malformed first attempt of a “White Death”. A few years later, I joined Jacaranda Fly Fishing Club and learned so much in a few months. Today I am proud to give back the knowledge I gained to new fly tyers at the club, running the fly tying event at the club twice a month. What inspires you to tie your own flies?

Catching a fish, any fish, with my own tied and sometimes own designed flies. What forums do you tie for and why?

I don’t tie for a specific forum but I do share some photos of my tied flies on Facebook from time to time. I also wrote a few Step by

Steps for Fly Fishing newsletters and magazines. Is it okay to tie a fly using synthetic materials entirely, and if we do, at what point does a fly become a lure in your view?

Over the years synthetic materials have become more popular than tying with natural materials. Lure makers also started moving towards using natural material like feathers and fibers. This created a very big “grey area” defining what is a lure and what is a fly. For instance, a Perdigon fly being covered in resin or a Squirmy Wormy being made with mostly rubber. Those are still flies but they employ the building methods of a lure. So, where does one draw the line?

I have many favourite patterns for different applications. But if I had to choose one, the good old fashioned PTN, Pheasant Tail Nymph, with a few tweaks of course.

What is your favourite tying material?

At this time, definitely CDC. It is one of the most versatile materials one can add to most flies.

What is the one tip that you have learnt that tyers of all skills should be employing?

Less is more. Use less material on your flies to enhance so many things, like movement, sink rate, floating ability etc.

If you could sit down and learn from any fly tyer in the world, who would it be and why? If I can be so privileged to have an opportunity like that, it would definitely be with Davie McPhail. He can make a very complicated fly look super easy to tie. I watch videos and read articles of a few fly tyers all over the world. They all have different methods for different fly types, depending on the application. One can never stop learning and there is always room for improvement.

Do you fish with your flies only or are there some invaders in your fly boxes?

Well, dare I say yes? There are some “invader” DDD‘s in one of my fly boxes because Michiel van Rooy, my fly fishing and fly tying buddy, ties a killer DDD! The first dry fly I caught a trout on and now I’m hooked on those DDD’s.

I get super excited when women join the fly tying at the club. I wish more women, wives or girlfriends would join. I call fly tying time fly fishing away from the water. Our fly fishing women should not be intimidated by this element of fly fishing. If you learn the correct methods from the beginning, it can become a very enjoyable and relaxing hobby. And yes ladies, nothing beats the feeling of catching fish with your own tied flies. It can even become family time, tying flies for the next fly fishing outing if your significant other and kids also fly fish. If we can get local communities (and particularly the women) of the waters we enjoy fishing, such as the Blyde River, Mooi River and Bushman’s River involved in fly tying, they could play an active part in contributing to the maintenance of an important tourist activity. This could contribute to the economy of their local community, and also keep this remarkable activity alive. If you are keen on learning more about this great way to add to your fly fishing experience, you are welcome to contact me and I will get you started on your fly tying journey.

My flyboxes

We had the pleasure of meeting and experiencing Denise Van Wyk’s generosity in Dullstroom last year. Your infectious smile and passion for fly fishing is inspiring.

Keep inspiring and “TYING” the flag for us gals – WE JUST LOVE YOU!

Short Bio on Denise van Wyk

I always wanted to do fly fishing. In my early twenties, I bought one of those fly fishing kits, the ones with a rod and reel, fly line and a small box of flies. I remember looking at the flies and thought to myself, one day I’m going to make my own flies.

Years later, one of our suppliers invited me and a colleague to an event which included an intro to fly fishing. I was ecstatic! I was finally going to get introduced to something I was looking forward doing for such a long time. After that day, experiencing my first fly fishing moment, I booked a weekend fly fishing in Dullstroom and have since made it a yearly outing.

After a few trips, the urge to tie my own flies grew more and more. One day, on my way to Dullstroom, I stopped at a small fly fishing shop in Belfast to buy some flies. There was a secondhand vice set at the counter and the lady behind the counter showed me some fly tying kits one can buy. I bought a White Death and Cats Whiskers kit. Got to the venue and instead of unpacking my fly rod to hit the water, I unpacked the vice set and started tying a White Death. It was a very frustrating first tie. The feathers didn’t want to stay on top of the hook and the poor White Death ended up with a massive head with all the thread wraps. Nonetheless, the next day I caught a beautiful trout with my malformed fly. From that moment, I knew fly tying would become one of the things I wanted to master.