Alaska Trout Flies Session 2: How To Tie A Smolt Pattern

The next fly I'm going to tie as I get myself ready for the upcoming season is a smolt pattern. The smolt pattern is an early season trout fly. In late spring the juvenile salmon (smolt) leave their nesting areas in large schools to follow the same path their parents did to the saltwater where they will grow to adults and then make the return trip to spawn and die. A life cycle that is usually 3 to 5 years. To make it to the sea, the schools of smolt have to survive the assault from winter hungry trout. If you are lucky to catch this early season smolt migration it is good to have some smolt patterns in your fly box. I am going to share my favorite smolt pattern with you but really this pattern is a universal bait fish pattern. It is quick and simple.

Materials list: 1. Gamakatsu BS10 stinger hooks size 4 or 2
                     2. Danville's 210 thread in white
                     3. Fish Skull head medium size
                     4. Enrico Puglisi EP-Fibers white
                     5. Enrico Puglisi EP-Fibers 3-D ocean blue
                     6. DNA's Holo Fusion silver grey
                     7. Krystal Flash
                     8. DNA's Holo Fusion red
                     9. Super glue

1. Run the thread about mid way down the hook shank and tie in a section of the white Enrico Puglisi EP-Fiber about a quarter of an inch think and two and a half inches long. Make half a dozen raps of thread to secure it in place.

2. Next tie in a nice finger full group of DNA's Holo Fusion silver grey to match the length of the EP-Fibers. Secure it with half a dozen thread raps.

3. Take a piece of Krystal Flash twice the length of the existing fly and tie it in at the halfway point of the Krystal Flash. Make three raps and then fold the remaining half of the Krystal Flash down towards the tail section and make half a dozen raps or so to secure into place.

4. Tie in a section of the ocean blue EP-Fibers less than a quarter inch thick or not as thick as the white section of EP-Fibers; make it just a little longer than all the fibers you have tied in. Make a dozen raps or so, flip the fly over and tie in a half a dozen DNA's Holo Fusion in red, secure with lots of raps and whip finish. This gives the fly a gill plate flash and the impression of a bleeding or injured smolt making it an easy target.

5. Glue the Fish Skull head into place (I like to glue the eyes on prior to gluing the head into place but you can do it either way). I fill the gaps behind the head with a clear cure goo but you don't have to. The final step is to make a thread damn at the front of head so that it doesn't slide off. Make enough thread raps so that it forms a large enough thread damn to secure the head into place then whip finish and cut the thread. All done.