Conserving, Restoring and Educating Through Fly Fishing
At the Vise
MATERIALS
THE BLACK RLD Story and photos by Jason Morrison
F
ly-fishing guide Captain Paul Rose sight-fishes to carp from his Bells Bay boat. Long casts in clear, shallow water to tailing and mudding Carolina bonefish are not for the faint of heart. The same skills and tactics needed to catch saltwater bonefish apply to sight-fishing for carp using a fly rod. Long seasons, 30-foot casts and powerful fish are the name of the game. If the opportunity arises, Rose will ask with a grin, “Are you up for the challenge?” Carp will eat virtually anything in their natural environment. Their diet normally includes plants, various beetles, mollusks, larvae, crayfish, mulberries, dragonflies and baitfish. A common carp will reach 4 to 10 pounds over the span of its life, and larger fish are landed as well. “We’ve seen carp that appear to be in excess of 20 pounds but have not landed any that size to prove the point. Excellent presentations are a must, and having the right
pattern doesn’t hurt either,” Rose said. The Black RLD was developed years ago by Carter Nelson, a Callaway Gardens, Georgia, guide and resort fly-fishing manager. RLD is an abbreviation for Rubber-Legged Dragon and was originally designed for bass in stillwater ponds at Callaway Gardens. Since that time it has also earned a reputation for being a deadly carp pattern. The Black Rubber-Legged Dragon is the fly of choice for Rose when sight-fishing to Carolina tailing carp. A tailing carp is an indicator that it’s feeding because its head is down in the mud on the bottom while literally standing on its head. When this occurs, its tail will protrude above or near the waters’ surface, causing a disturbance. Fishing the RLD effectively closely imitates a dragonfly nymph. It is best presented on a weight-forward line with at least a 9-foot leader. For tailing carp, Rose likes to fish the RLD
FLY TIPS The Perfect Big-Fly Case By C. Boyd Pfeiffer Summer fly fishing often shifts from tiny trout flies to larger streamer and baitfish patterns. These large flies are best for largemouth and smallmouth bass, along with pike, for freshwater; and stripers, redfish, trout and blues for saltwater. However, these large flies just don’t easily fit into any standard fly box.
When boat fishing, use sandwich-style bags in a gallonsize ziplock bag or similar small case. A more durable solution is to use a cloth pencil case, storing each fly in a slim, plastic You can easily borrow a spinner-bait case or sleeve and separata kid’s pocket notebook to store our larger ing the color-coded streamer patterns. They are available in a pencil cases by fly range of sizes and configurations at various type. These fit stores in our communities. The number of flies three-ring notean angler can store in one of these cases can books so are easy A simple solution is to easily be increased based on the number of to store in the store them in ziplock “pages” placed in the packet. ringed, spinner-bait plastic bags, separated cases designed for by fly style, or to use bass fishing. Some spinner-bait cases come one of the zippered, three-ring, clear-front with their own ziplock plastic bags and are pencil cases used by schoolchildren in their also good for any large fly that will not fit notebooks. When wading, these cases are into any standard fly box. easily carried in many large vest pockets.
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Flyfisher Summer 2008
Hook: Size 8 to 10, 2X long nymph Thread: Black, 6/0 or 70 denier Eyes: Gold bead chain Tail: Black rabbit fur (may use color of choice) Body: Black chenille Legs: Rubber leg material (color of choice) Hackle: Grizzly, collar style Head: Black dubbing (color of choice)
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Bend the hook in the middle of the shank by placing it in the vise and shaping it with a pair of pliers. Attach the thread behind the eye and lay down a short base of thread. Attach the bead-chain eyes using figure-eight wraps of thread. Adding a drop of Zap-A-Gap will secure them firmly in place. Clip a small bunch of fur from a rabbit strip and attach it to the bend of the hook to form a tail.
aggressively, putting the fly on the “dinner plate” out in front of the fish. For mudding carp, he places the fly 2 or 3 feet out in front of the fish, and the fly is slowly moved into the path of a meandering carp. The RLD requires little angler motion to get it moving in the water. Using a loop knot to attach the RLD to your leader will add lifelike movement to the fly in the water. Paul Rose is a licensed fly-fishing guide and U.S. Coast Guard captain residing in Charlotte, North Carolina. He spends his time guiding and teaching fishing ethics on his area waters. He is a longtime member of the FFF and has 25 years of fly-fishing experience. Rose never wears a watch while out on the water and goes home when his clients are satisfied. His guide service, Carolina Bonefishing, offers a variety of trips catering to both carp and bass on the fly. For more information call 704-616-6662, visit www.carolinabonefishing.com or e-mail him at Paul@carolinabone fishing.com. Bountiful, Utah, author, photographer and fly fisher Jason Morrison likes to divide his time between family activities and quality time on the water. When he is not at a Little League game, he can often be found with a fly rod or camera in his hands.
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Tie in a piece of small chenille behind the eyes and secure it in place at the base of the tail. Tie in the hackle feather behind the bead-chain eyes. Be sure to tie the cupped side of the feather so it is facing the hook.
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Attach the rubber leg material to the hook by anchoring one strand to each side of the shank. Trim the legs so that they are all one-half inch long.
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Wrap the chenille forward, making certain to place one turn between the legs, then tie it off behind the eyes. Trim any remaining chenille.
Wrap the feather two or three turns to form the collar and tie it in place. Trim any excess feather. Apply a thin amount of dubbing to the thread and wrap forward to create the head. Wrap a whip-finish and trim the thread to complete the fly. Paul Rose’s great pattern is effective in a range of sizes or colors. Just let your imagination go run wild!
BT’S ROTARY TYING STATION The Station includes the vise, pedestal/tool base, and seven brass tools.
BT’s Fly Fishing Products 11965 W. Reutzel Dr. • Boise, ID 83709-4414
888-243-3597
(toll free phone & fax) http://www.btsflyfishing.com albeatty2@aol.com Flyfisher Summer 2008
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Conserving, Restoring and Educating Through Fly Fishing
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