Want to use the same fly's we do on our guided trips.... Let our proven steelhead patterns change yur luck.

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Call 330-565-5457 

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Realistics Taxidermy

 

 

John Nagy has updated his book on Lake Erie steelheading. A great read on the subject..!!

 

A neat new concept in fly fishing floats

Online Fly Shop

Want to use the same productive fly patterns we do on our guided trips?    We have selected 12 of our most productive patterns to sell here. During our day to day guiding operations we go thru a whole lot of flies. I stock these patterns by the hundred's of dozen.  Let our volume buying on these 12 deadly patterns save you some money.  We will sell these flies by the whole dozen only with no exceptions. The patterns are in our most productive sizes and colors listed below.  Sorry but we can't change sizes or colors.  All flies are bargain priced at $15 a dozen.  Standard shipping is free. Regardless of order size. We accept checks and money orders only sorry no credit card orders.

TO PLACE A ORDER CALL

Don Mathews at 330-565-5457

or e-mail us at  dfishinfool@aol.com

Send Check or Money order to:

Don Mathews

8185 South Park

Garrettsville, Ohio 44231

**Ohio Sales Tax is included in price

Don's Deadly Dozen.

Below are 12 of the most effective Steelhead Patterns I know of. Some of the best steelhead fishermen alive shared these patterns with me.  I would confidently guide on "Steelhead Alley" year round with just these twelve patterns in my fly box. In my years of guiding I have found that  small well tied fly's are what it takes too pay the bills. Big gaudy flies are great for show and magazine articles but they seldom catch fish.  If you have ever been on a guide trip with me I'm sure you will recognize these patterns. I USE THEM EVERY DAY BECAUSE THEY WORK..!!

Crystal Minnow -  #10 streamer

Colors Available = Olive Shiner, Blood Red, Rainbow Fry

Over the years I have caught more steelhead on Crystal Minnows than any other fly. I was showed this pattern years ago by a fellow at a fly tying class at the TMF Orvis shop in Ravenna, Ohio.  Sorry but I can't remember his name but I will never forget his pattern. He called it the Crystal Minnow.  It imitates the Lake Erie Emerald shiner. It quickly became my favorite fly.  Shiner's are the steelheads preferred food source in the Lake.  This pattern is deadly on fresh run fish. It can be effectively fished by dead drifting or fished on the swing. It resembles a clouser but it doesn't use bucktail.  Instead it is tied with kid Goat hair. This makes it supple and life like in the water. We keep the profile very thin just like our Lake Erie shiner's.

Dfishinfools Stone- #12 Bead Head

Colors Available = Grey, Black

A great nymph for active fish. Almost every fly shop on the Alley sells a version of this fly now. I started tying this pattern in 1993. First I tied it in Grey but have found the Black Version to be effective also.  Lake Erie Steelhead can go hot on Grey.  At times Grey is the only color they want.  I notice that they seem to go on this Grey binge more in the fall months. I like to run this as my dropper fly on a egg-nymph two fly rig. I have landed hundreds and hundreds of fish on this fly.

Nulph's Golden Nugget - bead head #12

Fellow Guide and Lake Erie Charter Captain Kenny Nulph  showed me this pattern one day on the Grand River.  I have been hooked ever since.  The more I fish Gold the more I like Gold.  It is my go to color in off colored water.  Especially in the winter months.  The bead head and wire abdomen give it enough weight to get it down quick without a lot of fish spooking shot.  Steelhead feed heavily during the summer on Mayfly Nymphs.  They tend to have a Golden sheen to them in Lake Erie's waters. Quite possibly this is why they like gold so much in the stream. One thing I know for sure is that this fly works.

Mathews Fools Gold - articulated #12

Having realized how effective the Golden Nugget was.  I set out to try to improve it. I kept the exact same color scheme but I came up with this articulated version. I added black eyes for realism.  I added six biot's wings to help catch water and add to the motion of the fly in the current.  It also gave it more of a pointed buggy look. I use quick descent dubbing for the thorax and wire for the abdomen.  This helps it to get down quick even without a bead head. It is a deadly pattern and I can't get enough of them.  It works well dead drifted under a float.   It is also deadly on the swing.

Weixlmann's Catt Nymph - bead head #12

Good friend and local Erie Pennsylvania guide, Karl Weixlmann, (flyfisherie) showed me this fly years ago.  He came up with it for fishing the Green Water of the Catt in Western NY.  The Catt is a bug factory and the fish there hit this nymph better than any other.  Not only is it a good fly in NY it catches fish everywhere I go.  It was my best pattern out on the Olympic Peninsula in Washington State.  I catch fish Fall, Winter and Spring with it. The Hungarian Partridge hackle breathes life in the water.  The wire wrap makes it very durable and the bead head gets it down quick. A must have pattern on "Steelhead Alley"

  Biot Nymph (Pitts version) - bead head #12

The most difficult pattern I tie. I have 15 or 20 minutes in each one even when I'm not drinking. Grinning..!! Expert Great Lakes Fly tier and guide  Lenny Pitts showed me this one. It is a natural fly and uses only turkey biot's and a Hungarian partridge hackle. It gets finished off with a drop of clear epoxy for the wing case.  It is a very realistic imitation of the March Brown nymph.  When its 20 degrees outside and the fish are stacked in the deepest part of the run.  This is the nymph I will have tied on my line. When we are indicator fishing and the drift is slow the fish get a long time to look at the fly. On these days a well tied biot nymph is what it takes to trick these fish into striking. It is also a great stonefly pattern for trout.  I have caught trout all over the west on this fly.

Jay's Skein fly (Jason Gregory)- #14

Colors available = Pink, Orange, White

At first glance there is nothing special about this fly.  To really appreciate  skein fly you have to get it wet.  Guide Jason Gregory (www.megasteelhead.com) came up with this pattern.  It is tied with glo bug yarn.  Different colors of yarn are twisted together giving it a translucent look in the water. It is tied on a strong #14 hook.  Jeff used them last year on the Kings in Canada.  If the hook holds up to a 30 lb king you can bet it will not straighten out on your steelhead of a lifetime. It is tied loop style much like a Sucker Spawn.  The loose yarn makes it a excellent candidate to put a couple of drops of scent on.  It is more often than not the point fly on our two fly rigs.

Wooly Bugger  - #10 bead head

Colors Available = White

I have heard many times that more fish are caught on wooly buggers than any other fly.  I believe this to be fact.  The wooly bugger doesn't imitate any creature I have ever seen in the stream but it does imitate life.  The marabou tail and body hackle make it come alive in the water.  Fish don't know what it is but they just can't resist it.  It can be tied in many different colors but I like white the best.  Guide Larry Rummel is famous for his barred olive version and Guide Tom Eakin ties it in orange and white and calls it a skein bugger.  I have caught fish on black, brown, blue and chartreuse versions as well.  Steelhead like wooly buggers. I like mine tied with a bead head and wire wrapped for durability.  I offer them in white only with a bead head.  This is a favorite fly of mine when the fish are on gravel. Don't be afraid to goop it up with scent.

Tellico (Novak's Version) - #10 bead head

Guide Jeff Novak (www.extremesteelheading.com) showed me his version of the Tellico one sunny winter afternoon on Elk Creek.  We were fishing a hole under a leaning pine tree and the snow was melting.  Debris was falling from the clay banks into the stream.  Jeff was hooking up on every single cast while I struggled to catch a couple. Finally he let me have one of his magic nymphs. We took turns working the hole.  Jeff would cast then instantly hook up.  He would then walk the fish below while I cast and hooked up. We repeated this scenario for a couple of hours.  I would bet we landed fifty fish that afternoon. From that day forward I always have a few Tellico's in my box.  Jeff's version uses a long Hungarian partridge hackle for a collar.  It is tied on a short shank nymph hook giving it a rather short thick profile. 

Sucker Spawn (Eakin's Version)- angora locally tied #14

Colors Available = Orange, Pink, White

Good friend and fellow Steelhead Guide Tom Eakin (wetwaterguideservice) has mastered the Sucker Spawn.  On steelhead Alley ask any three guys what a Sucker spawn is and your likely to see three different patterns. In my opinion the way Tom showed me how to tie them is the best.  To tie a good sucker spawn one must first get his hands on some quality three strand Angora yarn in pastel colors (white, peach, pink, and Orange) . This can be very difficult to find.  Some of the better fly shops buy the yarn from New Zealand and hand dye it to the correct colors.   You can find quality dyed Angora online at www.fishusa.com  or you can get it at Folly's End Fly Shop or Poor Richards near Erie Pa.  To tie the sucker spawn first the strands of angora have to be carefully separated. The angora is then tied in loops on the hook shank.  A #14 Sucker Spawn should have 12-15 loops of angora. Some people are lazy and don't separate the angora strands.  This is a big mistake. You want as many loops as possible. The sucker spawn loops tangle in the fishes teeth.  This makes it hard for the fish to spit the hook. On a side note the more ragged and beat up looking it gets. The better it seems to work.  The Angora also holds scent very well.

Wiggle Stone (Senyo's Version)  articulated #14

Greg Senyo from Toledo Ohio showed me this version of the articulated nymph.  It is a life like version of the miniature black stones found in our streams. I like the blue thorax version best.  Another must have fly.  This is a great fly to fish under a indicator.  Ripples on the river cause the fly to dance seductively. Fish just can' resist it. Adding motion to our flies is like finding the missing link.  Give it a try.

Kayday's Crystal Meth  -  #12

Colors Available = Orange, Chartreuse, Pearl

This fly was developed by Todd Kayday from North East Pennsylvania. One winter afternoon it was fish after fish on Twenty mile creek.  He Commented to Karl W on how addictive this fly was to the fish and the Crystal Meth name came to be. I haven't seen Todd in years but his awesome fly is always in my box.  Todd added a Crystal flash tail to his original. On my version I have eliminated the tail because it was always in the way while tying the dropper fly off of the hook bend. I find the fly is plenty flashy enough without the Crystal Flash tail.  This fly has put a lot of fish in my net over the years.  It is another egg imitating loop pattern like the sucker spawn.  If visibility is low it is a great attractor pattern.  I typically run it as the point fly on a two fly rig.  In stained water keep your dropper short,  One foot or less. Some anglers go to big flies in off color water. Instead I prefer to stay relatively small and brighten things up with flashy pattern like the Crystal Meth.

Ready to go fly box

  I sell a stocked fly box. It comes with 3 of each of the above patterns (36 flies) and a fly box for $50 delivered. They make a nice gift.  Larger boxes available on request.

As a service to traveling anglers who do not have time to visit a local fly shop.  I sell some of the specialized terminal tackle we use on our guide trips. Please support our local fly shops.  There price is better than mine.

Hand tied Knotted Fluorocarbon leaders

I am now offering hand tied knotted leaders. These are the same leaders we run on all of our fly outfits.  My leaders are built out of 100% Seaguar fluorocarbon.  They are 9' long including a 18" section of 3x tippet at the end.  I personally hand build each leader and tie all of the knots. It will have a loop on the end for attaching to your fly line.  Simply loop it to the fly line, tie on a fly, and your ready to fish.  This leader will turn over our two fly rigs better than any tapered leader out there.  I sell them in packs of three for $10 delivered.

Strike Indicators    ( AKA: Fly fishing Bobbers )

I'm a firm believer in K.I.S.S. keep it simple stupid..!!  That's why I like my plain old white tooth pick Indicators. They never fly off the line.  They don't cause tangles and they don't scare the fish. My Indicators are pegged on the line with a toothpick. You leave the toothpick loose enough that the float easily slides up and down the leader for quick depth adjustments. They are white so they DO NOT SPOOK FISH.. We have a name for the guys using the bright red floats.  Spectators.. Seriously, at times our hard pressured steelhead are very color shy.  They are used to white bubbles passing overhead and they don't associate white with danger.  This is why we only use white floats on our guide trips. My floats are slit down the side so they can be put on the line without cutting and retying. My Indicators are pear shaped.  By watching the direction the float faces you can tell where your flies are in relationship to the float. BUT the main reason I like my style of float is that they are inline to your leader.  They DO NOT put a 90% right angle kink in your leader like many fly fishing indicators do.  Talk about throwing aerodynamics out the window.  By keeping your float inline you will get way less wind knots and tangles.  Trust me..!! Give our Indicators a try and you will be a fan of K.I.S.S. too..!!

I sell the floats in three different sizes 1/2"  5/8"  and 3/4" in White only

Each pack contains four floats  $3 delivered

Blackbird Shot

I like dull black color split shot.  Bright shinney silver shot spooks the fish.  The second requirement is you need a soft lead shot that will hold on your tippet well without slipping.  Over crimp a hard shot and it will weaken the tippet. A drop of super glue is better than over crimping your shot.  Forget about shot with ears on it.  It causes too many snags. There is every size shot imaginable but in our streams I use just a few.  As a matter of fact when fly-fishing, 95% of the time I use just size BB1 in Blackbird Brand.  I add one, two or three shot depending on flow and depth. I have them in bags of appx 100 in size BB#1.

$4.50 per bag delivered

Lake Erie Spawn Scent

I have had so many people over the years call from all over the country and beg for a bottle of the MAGIC scent that I have decided to sell it here.  Don't ask me what's in it because I don't know.  The rumor around Erie is that the guy jacks off in the bottle. It works so good I don't care what is in it.  This stuff really works.  Especially when the water temperature is above 40 degrees.  We even add it to fresh egg sacks when bait fishing.  I can't tell you how many times I have added it to a fly when the action was slow and it resulted in a instant hook up.  I sell individual bottles of the scent for $5 each delivered.

Let's Go Fishin..!!

Save Time and buy your fishing license online.  Please check with your guide on what state you will be fishing.

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