Olive Shuttlecock Emerger Fly

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Olive Shuttlecock Emerger Fly Pattern
Mayfly | Chironomid | Caddis

Groundhog day doesn’t hold much weight up here in the North East corner of B.C. We really don’t care if some Eastern, flea ridden, rodent comes out of its den, dressed in a smoking jacket and does a jig.

Nothing will change the fact that, no matter what, we will have at least another six weeks of winter! No for us much more scrutiny is given to the old saying about March. “ In like a lion out like a lamb” or “ In like a lamb and out like a lion.” The old timers seemed to hit that one on the head. So it was that I awoke this morning (March 1) to see minus 32 degrees with a wind chill of 40 below. ROAR. It actually put a smile on my face and to celebrate I decided to head downstairs and tie up a batch of the Olive  Shuttlecock Emerger Fly …

I’ve been tying a bunch of European nymphs to fill a river box and what I noticed was a lot of bodies were constructed with “Polish Quills.”   These are just small peacock feathers, stripped and dyed various colours. I’m sure they will make it into the market over here but finding a supply in Canada turned out to be a bit of a chore. I finally found a place in Ontario (Flymart) that carried them so I ordered in a bunch to try out. This fly I’m tying today is a shuttlecock style used in British still waters and also in the rivers all over Europe. It’s designed to ride in the film with the body sub-surface. Perfect for those cruising sippers looking for emerging chironomid, mayfly & caddis.

Olive Shuttlecock Emerger Fly | Material List:

• HOOK:       Kamasan B160 size 12 – 18
• THREAD:   Veevus 12/0 olive/brown
• BODY:        Veniard peacock quill golden olive
• THORAX:   Dubbing olive/green/yellow mix
• WING:       CDC puffs dark olive

Olive Shuttlecock Emerger Fly | Tying Instructions:

#1 Tie a quill down and around the bend of the hook trim off excess.

… when tying in the quill you will notice that one side has a dark strip tie this side down along the top and it will be facing out when you wrap.

#2  Wrap quill forward in touching wraps. Secure and trim excess. Coat in Clear Cure Goo or Bug Bond to bullet proof the body.

… I find I just have enough quill for a Size 12 body any larger and you will run out before the body is complete.

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#3 Tie in your CDC facing forward and cover the stems with thread.

#4 Split your thread or make a dubbing loop and apply a small amount of dubbing. Make a small thorax behind the CDC. Secure and trim excess.

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#5 Move the thread in front of the CDC make a small head and whip finish.

The olive shuttlecock emerger fly is a perfect mayfly emerger pattern. Once I tied a few olive patterns it became clear I needed to try a red quill for a classic black and red Chironomid emerger fly …….

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And I’m sure a rusty/tan died quill would be perfect to imitate the the many variations of small caddis sedges that the big bows luv to sip as they struggle to break free of the surface water tension!

hmmm, only 5 weeks 6 days to go 😕

Gord … Stay Calm, Fish On!

*** if you’re interested in custom tied, time tested & proven effective BC Interior fly patterns, but would rather buy than tie, please Contact us for details!

*** for more effective BC stillwater fly fishing patterns be sure to check out all of flies on our BCs best fly patterns index page!

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