Fly Bible: Hopper Pattern

Hook: Daiichi Size 8 No. 2220 hook
Thread: Black ultra thread
Materials: 3 two inch pieces of craft foam (2 brown, 1 Black), 4 centipede legs, natural deer hair, natural pheasant tail, glue on eyes, hard as hull head cement
Tools: Bobbin, scissors, whip finish tool

This is a great hopper pattern that can be fished for all species that consume grass hoppers. I would recommend that liquid and powder floatant. First apply the liquid floatant to the deer hair and then dust the powder floatant onto the deer hair. This pattern can be fished alone, with a nymph dropper, or another dry fly trailer fly. I would recommend fishing this pattern with a dead drift to get the best results. This pattern can be tied in other colors that best imitate the coloration of the grass hoppers in the area being fished. Hopper patterns can be very affective in late summer and early fall, and I always make sure there are at least a few in my box.

Step 1: Glue strips of craft foam together. After they are glued together use scissors to trim to the shape of the body.

Step 2: Wrap a base of thread on the hook shank. Tie the body down by making 3 wraps around the body and hook shank.

Step 3: Tie an overhand knot into 4 centipede legs. After the knot is tied cut all but one tag end.

Step 4: Tie in the centipede legs in the same place that the body is secured. (tie the legs in so that the part with 4 legs is closest to the body). After legs are tied in clip the 4 tag ends leaving the section that has the overhand knot is remaining. Do the same on the other side of the body.

Step 5: wrap the thread around the hook shank until the thread is about 1/8 " from where the legs were tied in and secure the body there with 3 wraps

Step 6: Where the body is secured for the second time tie in a pinch of deer hair. (the deer hair will imitate wings).

Step 7: Wrap the thread up the hook shank again until it is 1/8" from where the deer hair was tied in and secure the body by wrapping the thread around the foam and hook shank 3 times.

Step 8: Take 2 pinches of pheasant tail and tie them in in the same place where the body was secured. (the two pinches of pheasant tail should form a "V" when tied in). The pheasant tail will imitate the wing casing.