Fly Friday + A Givaway

    Fall is a time for streamers and what better way to celebrate this special Free Fly Friday than with my all time favorite streamer, THE BLACK-NOSE DACE.  This classic fly created by the legendary fly angler and fly tying expert - Art Flick - around the mid 1940's and is just as deadly today as it was back then.

    I absolutely love this fly.  I can barely remember a day on the trout water where I haven't tied on this fly and hooked into a gill or two.  When given the choice between a bugger and a dace, I will decidedly chose the dace.  It is my go to deer hair hail-marry when the day has been crap.  In my box you will always find the Dace in a place of honor and I suggest it do the same in yours.
    Original Mr. Flick tied this fly with the underlying white hair of a polar bear to match the black bear hair used to mimic the black stripe of the actual fish.  Today the polar bear is protected and fly tiers have found that the white hairs of the buck tail do fine as a substitute.

 
 The Black-Nosed Dace is a fairly easy fly to tie and I usually tie this fly as sparsely as I dare.  I have found that when I use to much hair the fly looses its natural movement through the water, it doesn't sink well, and the fish rarely take it.  In the fly shops I see this fly often over dressed, looking more like an ass end of a deer than the fish it is suppose to mimic.  I have tied these in sizes as large as a long shank #4 down to a small #12 and always find myself drawn to fishing the smaller range of these flies.
    Last year while on a trip to northern Idaho, I tied on a #10 of this black-nose dace pattern and hooked into a beauty of a cutthroat trout.  It also did a number on about a dozen other smaller trout that day and was the top fly of the trip.  I never leave home without it.

 
     The Black-Nose Dace
* Hook   - Long Shank #6-#12
* Thread - Black
* Tail      -Short Red Wool (or Red Marabou)
    (I used a redish pink wool because it was all my wife had in her sewing box and I ran out.)
* Body    -Silver Tinsel wrapped with Oval Tinsel
* Wing    -Three Parts - White Bucktail under Black Bear Hair under Brown Bucktail

The best technique I have found to fish this streamer is short quick strips across stream or fished down river at a 45% angle and stripped near the tail end of a run.  I also have found that you should never give up on this fly to soon.  When I have spotted a fish tailing the Dace I have found that if I slow the retrieve of this fly to soon, the fish will quickly loose interest.

Just like the real dace, your fly should behave erratic and use that darting, quick movement typical of a baitfish trying to escape.  Without that movement the trout tailing the fly will discover your ruse and simply reject the streamer.  Now go tie up a box full and have fun.
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    But here is what you all are waiting for - The FREE part of today's post.  I am giving away this framed painting of a March Brown.  To enter for a chance to win this small - fly tyers bench painting - all you need to is leave a comment on this page indicating that you want in for a chance to win it.  I will select a winner via random number generator next Thursday (11-01-2012) at midnight and the winner will be announced on the next Fly Friday post.  Good luck and don't be greedy - spread the word.