2026 - February Fly Tying

 

Fly Tying Greg Walters    Well, the weather has been one heck of a ride this winter. We had one of the warmest Decembers on record, and January has started off colder and with a nice snowstorm. This has thwarted my 2026 fishing adventures, resulting in me not having a chance to discover new flies that work for the winter. However, I decided to learn how to tie one of the favorites of euro/tightline nymphing, Walt’s Worm. Created by Walt Young in the 1980s to resemble a cranefly larva or “water worm” as Walt called it, thus becoming Walt’s Worm. Since its inception, a tungsten bead was added to provide the perfect point fly for tightline nymphing.

Walt’s Worm Walt’s Worm is a fairly simple fly to tie with only four materials: bead, thread, lead wire, and hare’s ear dubbing. It can be tied in sizes 12 to 18 on a jig-style hook. The size of the bead and lead (or lead-free wire) will depend on the hook size. Here is the recipe: Jig-style hook by your favorite manufacturer in sizes 12 to 18. Slotted tungsten bead in sizes 2.4 to 3mm, depending on the hook size, and either silver or copper. Lead or lead-free wire ranging between .012” (0.3mm) to .020” (~0.4mm), depending on hook size. Olive 6/0 thread. Natural hare’s ear mask dubbing. Place the bead on the hook (slotted part pointed to the hook shank) and add 5 to 10 wraps of lead wire. Push the wire to the bead and add your thread just behind the wire. Wrap the thread forward to the bead and then flatten the thread (counterclockwise spin) and wrap back to the tie-in spot to lock in the wire. Build up a ramp from the hook shank to the wire, allowing a smooth transition for the dubbing. Wrap forward to just behind the bead (leave a small gap behind the bead), as the dubbing will be added starting there. Create a thin noodle of dubbing and start wrapping back to the start of the hook bend and then wrap the dubbing forward to the bead, creating a nice carrot shape. Finish off with two whip-finish wraps of 5 turns each.

Sexy Walt’s Worm A variation of Walt’s Worm is the Sexy Walt’s Worm, with some tinsel wrapped over the dubbing and a bright orange hot spot behind the bead. The recipe is the same with the addition of Sulky Sliver Metallic thread, opalescent or holographic tinsel, and substituting bright/florescent orange thread. Start off the fly the same way as Walt’s Worm with the exception of using the orange thread and bringing the thread back to the hook point. Tie in the Sulky/tinsel, wrapping back to the hook bend, and snip off the excess. Create a thin dubbing noodle and wrap forward over the wire to the bead. Now wrap the Sulky/tinsel forward in spaced-out wraps and secure behind the bead: snip off the excess. Complete the fly with whip finishes to create a nice orange collar behind the bead. Tim Flagler provides a really nice video that covers both flies: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g870d2SviOU&t=203s Tips and Tricks If you are new to fly tying, or even a seasoned tier, I highly recommend watching the Orvis One Minute Fly Tying Tips, hosted by Tim Flagler: https://howtoflyfish.orvis.com/one-minute-fly-tying-tips Tim is one of my favorite fly tiers, as he explains things clearly and occasionally provides some form of technique that will make your life easier. Tim has also teamed up with Brian Flechsig from Mad River Outfitters to demonstrate a number of flies and techniques that will help improve your tying skills. I’ll be tying one of those flies for next month’s newsletter. You can find Tim at his Tightline Video YouTube channel and Brian at his MadRiver Outfitters YouTube channel. Happy Tying, see you next month.