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Oct 2002
by Rich Johnson
Fly of the Month: Green-butt Skunk
Notes: One day this past summer I discovered something that made me feel very foolish. I was cruising around in the Alaska Flyfishers web site (You know, the one I do the Fly of the Month for.) and discovered the page that has a list of basic Alaskan patterns. To my embarrassment I discovered that I had not tied one of those patterns on the FOM. So please let me introduce the Green-butt Skunk, a variation of the “Skunk” a very popular steelhead pattern. Although no one seems to know the origins of the Skunk, nor can I find a reference as to when a green butt section was added, one can only assume that it is one of those patterns that has come from the fly fishing community in general, most likely distilled and adapted from similar Atlantic hair wing patterns such as the Black Bear and the Conrad. Regardless of its beginnings, the Green-butt Skunk still maintains a loyal following because it catches fish.
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Hook: UTE Salmon
Thread: Black, Danville Plus or 6/0
Weight: several wraps of lead
Tail: Red hackle fibers
Butt: Fluorescent Green chenille
Rib: Silver oval tinsel
Body: Black chenille
Wing: White calf tail, or similar
Hackle: Black saddle hackle, collared, or as a beard |
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1) Weight the center portion of a standard Salmon hook, between the point of the hook and the loop back of the eye. Bind down with tying thread, bringing the thread to a point on the shank just above the point of the barb. |
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2) Tie a bundle of red hackle fibers. |
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3) Tie in the core thread of the chenille and wrap forward to the lead to create the butt section. Tie off and trim the excess. The butt section should fill the space between the point of the barb and the point of the hook. |
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4) Tie in the oval tinsel rib on the far side of the body. Tie in the thread core of the black chenille. |
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5) Wrap the chenille forward, making one wrap off the front of the lead. Tie off and trim the excess.
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6) Spiral the tinsel forward. Try to end the tinsel on the side or bottom of the shank, as this will keep the bulk from interfering with the mounting of the wings. Tie off and trim the excess.
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7) Even up the tips on a bundle of calf tail. I like to keep some taper, but do take out the extra long fibers and all of the short hairs. (Any that are less than two-thirds the length of the entire wing.) Measure to be no longer than the tail and tie down onto the looped metal of the hook eye. (I prefer to put one layer of thread over the looped back metal as a base for the hairs before mounting the wing.)
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8) Tie in a webby saddle hackle and wrap a few turns. Tie off and trim the excess. Collar the hackle back and build a neat head. Whip finish and cement.
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9) The finished fly. Fortunately these old style patterns look good with a larger head, and I’m a fan of a couple of coats of gloss head cement as a finishing touch.
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