Callibaetis Soft Hackle

Cheech - October 31, 2016

There is truly something special about fishing high elevation lakes that take a bit more effort to reach. These lakes are typically off the beaten path just enough to keep a lot of the other anglers away, and most of the time there are maybe only a handful of people around. Low fishing pressure mixed with a healthy population of fish usually means that the fishing is fast, furious, and simple. I wish it were that easy, but at some of our favorite spots the fish have really become snobs about what they will and will not put into their mouths. I'm constantly searching for a new wonder bug most of the time when we go fish these places, and then I'll look over at friggin' Curtis and he's got yet another fish on guess what... Yeah. The stupid Chimera. I say it's stupid because it's usually the culprit for me being out-fished, and it's not because I don't have them in my box... It's also not because Curtis doesn't offer to share. I'm just stubborn.

The only reason that I'm sharing this whole "fake" hatred of the Chimera (which is actually one of the most effective patterns that we use), is that I finally found a bug that hung in there and gave the chimera a full on beat down. Granted there was an insane callibaetis hatch going, but it still wrecked em' nonetheless. This pattern was used over two different trips, and it performed equally well on both trips while many other patterns were tried with much less success. I wish I knew what the secret was for this fly, but the fish really preferred it so much that I ended up throwing two of them at a time (Check out the videos below.)

As far as the construction of the fly, it's really nothing groundbreaking in regards to materials and it's really kind of just a mashup of an AP Emerger and a Hare's Ear Soft Hackle. A couple of keys to the fly that are maybe a bit unique are the "veil" of ice dub that adds just a tiny bit of flash, and the bead placement that makes the soft hackle flare out a bit more than normal.

~ Cheech

P.S. - A few notes regarding the materials I chose. I really prefer to use the partridge that you get right off the skin because you can get the size that you want, and the feathers are in great shape with few broken ends. I used a skin from Nature's Spirit, but the skins that we have from Hareline are also excellent quality. I have listed the other options below. Also, I used Snowshoe Rabbit's Foot Dubbing on this fly, but you could also get away with hare's mask dubbing that I have listed as well. I also used the HMH Spartan vise on this bug just for fun. It's the first time I had ever tied on one, and it's a very nice piece of equipment!

Material List
  • Hook: TMC Tiemco 9300 Dry & Wet Hook - 14
  • Thread: 8/0 UNI-Thread Waxed Midge - Camel
  • Thread (Alternate): Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0 - Brown
  • Bead: Plummeting Tungsten Beads - Classic Colors - 7/64" (2.8mm) - Copper
  • Bead (Alternate 1): Plummeting Tungsten Beads - Classic Colors - 7/64" (2.8mm) - Gold
  • Bead (Alternate 2): Firehole Stones Plated Tungsten Beads - Sterling Silver - 3.0mm (1/8")
  • Tail/Hackle: Hareline #1 Hungarian Partridge Skin Natural
  • Tail/Hackle (Alternate 1): Nature's Spirit Premium Hungarian Partridge Skin
  • Tail/Hackle (Alternate 2): Nature's Spirit Select Partridge Skin, Natural
  • Rib: UTC Ultra Wire - Small - Copper
  • Body: Hareline Dubbin - Hare's Ear
  • Body (Alternate): Nature's Spirit Snowshoe Rabbit Foot Dubbing - Hare's Ear
  • Thorax: Ice Dub - UV Brown
  • Thorax (Alternate): Hends Spectra Dubbing - Dark Brown
  • Tool: Stonfo Comb & Brush Tool
  • Materials & Alternate Materials Listed Below
    Ice Dub
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    Ice Dub
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    Ice Dub
    Ice Dub
    Ice Dub
    Ice Dub
    Ice Dub
    Ice Dub
    Ice Dub
    Ice Dub
    Ice Dub
    Ice Dub

    Ice Dub

    $3.50
    UTC Ultra Wire
    UTC Ultra Wire

    UTC Ultra Wire - Small

    $2.49
    Plummeting Tungsten Beads - Classic Colors
    Plummeting Tungsten Beads - Classic Colors

    Plummeting Tungsten Beads - Classic Colors

    $7.80
    8/0 UNI-Thread Waxed Midge
    8/0 UNI-Thread Waxed Midge
    8/0 UNI-Thread Waxed Midge
    8/0 UNI-Thread Waxed Midge
    8/0 UNI-Thread Waxed Midge
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    8/0 UNI-Thread Waxed Midge
    8/0 UNI-Thread Waxed Midge
    8/0 UNI-Thread Waxed Midge
    8/0 UNI-Thread Waxed Midge
    8/0 UNI-Thread Waxed Midge
    8/0 UNI-Thread Waxed Midge

    8/0 UNI-Thread Waxed Midge

    $3.50
    Fulling Mill Tungsten Beads
    Fulling Mill Tungsten Beads
    Fulling Mill Tungsten Beads
    Fulling Mill Tungsten Beads
    Fulling Mill Tungsten Beads
    Fulling Mill Tungsten Beads
    Fulling Mill Tungsten Beads
    Fulling Mill Tungsten Beads
    Fulling Mill Tungsten Beads

    Fulling Mill Tungsten Beads

    $7.25
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0
    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0

    Semperfli Classic Waxed Thread - 8/0

    $3.50
    Stonfo Comb & Brush Tool
    Stonfo Comb & Brush Tool

    Stonfo Comb & Brush Tool

    $9.99
    Firehole Stones Plated Tungsten Beads
    Firehole Stones Plated Tungsten Beads
    Firehole Stones Plated Tungsten Beads
    Firehole Stones Plated Tungsten Beads
    Firehole Stones Plated Tungsten Beads
    Firehole Stones Plated Tungsten Beads
    Firehole Stones Plated Tungsten Beads
    Firehole Stones Plated Tungsten Beads
    Firehole Stones Plated Tungsten Beads
    Firehole Stones Plated Tungsten Beads

    Firehole Stones Plated Tungsten Beads

    $8.65
    Hareline Dubbin
    Hareline Dubbin
    Hareline Dubbin
    Hareline Dubbin
    Hareline Dubbin
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    Hareline Dubbin
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    Hareline Dubbin
    Hareline Dubbin
    Hareline Dubbin
    Hareline Dubbin
    Hareline Dubbin
    Hareline Dubbin

    Hareline Dubbin

    $2.99
    Nature's Spirit Snowshoe Rabbit Foot Dubbing
    Nature's Spirit Snowshoe Rabbit Foot Dubbing
    Nature's Spirit Snowshoe Rabbit Foot Dubbing

    Nature's Spirit Snowshoe Rabbit Foot Dubbing

    $3.50
    Hends Spectra Dubbing
    Hends Spectra Dubbing
    Hends Spectra Dubbing
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    Hends Spectra Dubbing

    $2.99
    Hends UV Ice Dubbing
    Hends UV Ice Dubbing
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    $2.99