Tim Mead is a professional outdoor writer.
Fly fishing for pike has become much more popular in the last decade or so. When I began trying to catch pike, one of Michigan's favorite game fish, on my fly rod, there were very few folks doing it. And most of the flies we used were merely over-sized trout flies or bass bugs. Now, however, there are lots of flies designed for pike.
My favorite pike fly is what I call the "black bunny". It's a simple fly. Black zonker strips on a hook. Zonker strips are narrow pieces of rabbit fur, died in various colors. Fishing salmon in Alaska last fall, we used flies tied with pink zonker strips to simulate pieces of dead salmon drifting down the stream. While the black bunny is not the only fly I carry in my pike fly box, it is often the one tied on at the end of the day. It's my "go to" pike fly.
In addition to tying the traditional "black bunny", on a single hook, in the last year or so I have begun tying an articulated version of the fly. The articulated fly is hinged in the middle. The hinge lets the fly swing to-and-fro with a more natural swimming motion than does a fly tied on a single hook. And it's easy to tie. What you'll need is: (See Photo 1): 1)Black zonker strips. I like the 1/8th inch strips cut diagonally across the fur called cross cut. With the fly I tied for this demonstration, I also used orange zonker strips. 2) Top quality, fairly light wire hooks. Here I have used Gamakatsu B10S, #1. 3) Fine lead wire. 4) Braided line, here Spiderwire Ultracast, 50 pound test. 5) Some Flashabou or
To start (See Photo 2), fasten a hook in the vise and lay down tying thread over the length of the hook. Tie in a 3- or 4-inch strip of black zonker at the tail. At each stage, I apply head cement or Zap-A-Gap. Tie another zonker strip ahead of the tail (See Photo 3) and wrap it Palmer-style to the head. Mom bought me J. Edson Leonard’s book Flies in the 1950's when I was in high school. That's where I learned the Palmer-style.
Make a loop of the braided line (See Photo 4) and attach the loop to the hook you just tied. Leave 5- or 6-inches dangling. Take the first hook out of the vise and replace it with another. Over a thread-wrap base (See Photo 4), with some head cement, extend the braided line the length of the second hook, and wrap it securely with thread. Cut the excess braided line. Now (See Photo 5), at the bend of the hook tie in a zonker strip. Here I have used an orange zonker strip. Note the lead wire wrap on the hook as well. I like my pike flies to sink and fine lead wire, a cone head or dumbbell eyes are all means of causing the fly to dive head first. Black and orange is a classic pike combination. All black or black and white are also great pike colors. Palmer wrap near the head and tie off.
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| Photo 4 - Braided line attached to first portion. | Photo 5 - Tie in the orange zonker. |
For a little visual attraction, though I do not know that this results in any more pike, tie in a few strands of silver flash. Finally, tie in a little flashy head (this is really an extra and I doubt it catches any more pike), whip finish and that's it. Simple to tie, but it is deadly for northern pike. Please look at the top of the page for the finished product.And that's it.
Click the mailbox to e-mail. Last updated on ... April 26, 2008
