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The Flytier:
Bob Erickson
of Huntington, VT |
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Bob works for the Defense Department and lives in Vermont
with his wife and son and a chocolate lab named Baxter. Bob
finds plenty of time for fishing and exploring, especially
near his camp in Rangeley,
Maine, where there is great trout and salmon fishing. |
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Be sure to see Bob's other
stories:
Streamers for Labrador
The Maine Event
Sucker Spawn |
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Down toward the bottom
of the dry fly suggestions from Three Rivers Lodge in Labrador
is “Deer Hair Mouse”, size 2 – 6. It is highlighted as a
“highly recommended”. I had heard that the big brook trout
up there will eat just about anything in the brief two to
three months of feeding opportunity. A friend who had fished
in Northern Quebec during a lemming migration told me the
story of brook trout with distended bellies that felt like
golf balls. These were lemming skulls which were the last
items the trout could digest and pass! I was still
skeptical, but felt I should be ready for anything. I found
a couple of patterns that looked good. The only thing I
changed was the tail, I used a zonker strip because it was
soft and subtle and it moves well in the water. I don’t believe
the ears matter to the fish, but I had fun trying to make
these little rodents look real.
My second really big Labrador “red” didn’t
hesitate to grab the mouse I was bouncing across the top.
Although I didn’t catch another trout on the fly, it became
a great way to locate fish. It almost always elicited an
instinctual response; you then could try a different pattern
to induce a strike. I’ve got a bunch tied up for when I head
back up to Labrador in June.
- Bob Erickson
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Deer Hair Mouse |
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Photos by Peter Frailey
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Tying
Sequence:
Hook: TMC 7999, Sizes 2 to 6
Thread: Uni 6/0
Eyes: Bead chain
Tail: Rabbit Zonker strip
Body: Deer hair, spun, packed and trimmed
Ears: Bug Skin
Head: Dubbing |
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