by Steve Smith
Rivers Wild Flies

Nearly every day it seems the news reports a new product or a new technology.  Electrical engineers are combining the benefits of the Internet with the benefit of cell phones, automotive engineers are combining the benefits of gasoline engines with the benefits of electric engines and even chefs combine different combinations of ingredients.  What do people expect when they cross different species or technologies?

Hopefully, the resultant hybrid exhibits the best qualities of the parents.
It seems there are two basic styles of fly fishermen.  Some fishermen tend to bond with older, proven patterns while other fishermen immediately try every new, exotic material or style.
Let’s see – since the objective of fishing is actually catching fish, it a worthwhile idea to combine proven characteristics with something new to see if we can improve our catch.  I wonder what would happen if we followed modern trends by uniting elements of different fishing flies?
Let’s see – what works?  Since fish feed on the bottom the most, we should improve our catch by hybridizing a new nymph.  We probably ought to have a green color which works so well in the Prince Nymph.  We ought to include some red color which works so well in the Beadhead Copper John nymph.  We ought to include some reddish brown which works so well in the Pheasant Tail nymph.  We ought to have some spiky dubbing which works so well in the Hare’s Ear nymph.  We ought to have some flash which works so well in the many varieties of flash back nymphs.
Let’s see –what is new?  Let’s try one of those colored beads.  Let’s try some of that fancy, colored anodized wire.  Are there any new hooks we could try?  Some of that new dubbing uses non-traditional materials plus it’s also flashy.  I guess we could browse through a catalog to find something we’ve never used before.
Let’s see – how should we tie it?  Let’s tie our new fly in the style of the proven and durable “Skip Nymph”.  Tying this fly is described in the national best seller Fly Tying Made Clear and Simple by Skip Morris.  This excellent book is available at most Sportsman’s Warehouse stores.
Let’s see – our new hybrid doesn’t look like any live critter we’ve ever seen under a stone on the bottom of a stream, so it must be an attractor nymph.  It’s got a lot of red, green, brown and flash like a Christmas tree – that’s as good a name as anything.
Let’s see – will it work?  Let’s get out on our favorite stream (actually it’s our laboratory now) to discover if our catch improves!

Christmas Tree:

Hook: Standard nymph hook, sizes 12, 14, 16

Thread: Green 6/0

Bead: Red Metallic

Tail: pheasant tail fibers

Body: Green Ice Flash Dubbing

Tail: Pheasant tail fibers

Wing Case: Pheasant tail fibers

Ribbing: Small Red Ultra Wire