Skagit minnow recipie with instructions

[hedburner]

Looking for this with somewhat detailed instuctions. Any help or a link?

[Les Johnson]

There is an old Skagit Minnow designed by the late, great Ken McLeod in the 1950s that was an effective attractor minnow for cutthroat and bull trout. I still use it. The recipe is:
Thread black
Hook: Any wet fly hook in sizes 6 and 8.
Body: Silver tinsel or diamond braid slightly tapered to the front
Back: Several strands of peacock herl. Tie in the tips slightly longer than hook length for a tail and pull the rest over the back and tie off at the front.
Head: A couple of turns of small, black chenille

There may be other Skagit Minnow patterns that I don't know about. This one however remains pretty effective.
Good Tying,
Les Johnson

[Davy]

I think that if you can visit All About The Fly in Monroe when Mike Kinney is there he will demostarte how to dress it. I believe this is the fly you are asking about.

[Willie Bodger]

Yeah, what he said. However, isn't it mainly 2 grizzly hackles, flash and marabou (doubled over and palmered) on the stinger hook then more marabou doubled and palmered on the front hook topped off with a few strands of flashabou and then a collar in an accent collar? Just in case you can't get in to see Mike...

[hedburner]

Thanks Les, I've used that fly a lot. Couple of years ago got into some cutts in a small north sound river in march. Lots of outgoing chum smolts in the river at the time luckily I had some of those in a box. Really don't know if they where just coming in or if they where fish that wintered over in the upper river. But they were nice fat bright fish not too big around 10 inches to alittle over a foot but it was fun catching those until the river closed.
The one I am looking for is the one described by Davy and Willy, I have found a recipie but still looking for more detailed instructions. But since I'm not going anywhere today since work called earlier and I have a snow day I'll play around with it and see what I can do.

Thanks for the help.

[Preston]

Les,
The "new" Skagit Minnow is a steelhead fly (someone correct me if I'm wrong, but I think it's a Mike Kinney pattern. Personally, out of respect for Ken McLeod's fly, I think it should have been given another name.

[Willie Bodger]

Yes, it is. And I agree on the naming, though I did not know of the earlier fly.

[Les Johnson]

I stand corrected gentlemen. I thank you for prompting my old memory back into service. Mikes' is the new Skagit Minnow. So, I guess if we follow Roy Patrick's old system from his "Northwest Fly Patterns" we should number them 1 and 2.
Now that I think of it, we sold some of Mike's Skagit Minnows in black and purple at Orvis last winter. Anything designed by Mike is usually a pretty darned good pattern.
Good Fishing,
Les

[Davy]

well, it may not be Mike's way, but the way I tye a similar fly is;;;

I lay in a small ball of dubbing at the rear followed by 4 or 5 turns of cock hackle the lay in the grizzly hackles on each side. The turns of cock hackle help support the grizzly hackle tips. Then I pretty much finish the rest of the fly as a standard wrapped marabou pattern similar to Aids original. Some but , not alot, of flash can be tyed in between wraps of marabou. Collars can be your choice of materials . I like peacock breast, or dyed schlappen to match desired color scheme.

[Will Atlas]

just tie an articulated marabou with grizzly hackles coming out the back and a stinger. I've seen some with dumbell eyes, and others without. I dunno, but it seems to me coining a name for a marabou with hackle tips coming out the back is a little silly. All the same, I fish articulated marabous all the time and have good luck with them.
The way I tie mine I start with just the back hook, a #2 winter steelhead hook of your choice. Tie in the stinger hook attached with 20lb maxima first. What I like to do for these is tie a knot in the maxima and tie the not in about half way up the shank of the lead fly, this way the stinger hook wont slip off when you hookup. Once you've secured the stinger, tie in your hackle tips (most folks prefer girzzly or some dyed grizz) so they come out the back over the top of the stinger hook and swim nicely when the fly swings. Now tie whatever color marabou you want onto the hook, using a palmering techinique like one would do for any marabou steelhead fly.

Then connect the back section via dachron loop to look to another #2 winter steelhead hook. Use the same technique, tie a knot about halfway up the dachron and tie it down to avoid slippage. You now have a singer hook attached to the back half of an articulated fly with grizzly hackles coming out the back. Now tie your marabou to the front hook just as on the last, although I generally use two colors of marabou on the front and only one color on the back its up to you. Finish the fly by tying in the eyes (or not) and wrapping on a collar, gadwall, guinea or I think mike actually uses schlappen. Anyway, I know the instructions are a little unorthodox but its a super easy tie and it catches fish.
Will

[Davy]

I think coining a name for a fly pattern or even naming a fly such as something tyed from marabou or such, even more so if it's a simple color alternative or scheme,, is way beyond silly.

As I remember it, most of ALL these spun marabou patterns come from Bob Aid, but do we really ever see his name mentioned? Those of you with annual back dated NW fly pattern manuals can research this as well.

Having said that , Mike is if not THE , then certainly one of the best fishers of these searun fish around here I have ever known or known about. I also believe others "named" or "coined" the fly for Mike, not Mike himself. Maybe I am wrong too.

I wrote all this knowing this thread is about to take a turn for the worse , why I try to avoid this crap.

[Matt Burke]

I was out at AATF yesterday after trying to fish and talked with Mike. He said someone had come in and asked about tying the Skagit minnow. Was that you Headburner? Anyway, we talked about the visibility, fluorescence and how some dyes were not really fluorescent even if they said they were, Skagit style, some of the threads popping up on the site, tying on marabou, weighted lead wrapped flies, variations of GP’s, guides and wannabe guides, UV and a bottle of $2 fingernail polish vs $6 head cement. So, all said and done and Mike hands me the fly he was tying. Not even knowing what it was, I was just grateful and thanked him. Then I read this thread and realized it was a Skagit minnow. Wasn’t thinking too much about it as it was so very similar to a lot of what I’ve been tying, mine have more rabbit and marabou tied in like a hackle at the head. No flash or grizzly. So I search for images and came up with these. Since it is way too cold to fish (at these temps, lines freeze to guides to quickly to even play a fish) and then there is trying to get around all the idiots on the road, I’ll be staying home and tie more flies.
http://alaskawest.com/alaskawest/Flies/Skagit%20minnow%202.jpghttp://alaskawest.com/alaskawest/Flies/Black%20minnow%202.jpghttp://alaskawest.com/alaskawest/Flies/Chart.%20minnow%204.jpg
http://alaskawest.com/alaskawest/Flies/Popsicle%205.jpghttp://www.theflyshop.com/images/pfly21/271f.jpghttp://www.tightlinesflyshop.com/ProductImages/steel_flies/thumb_SkagitMinnowKennyPurp&%20Or.jpg

[hedburner]

Looks like a lot of variation in this pattern so whatever I come up with should be good to fish. I'll try the articulation type and what Davy tied and go from there. I did spend hours last night looking for one no complete instructions but the ones Matt had posted I found, and I found a lot of places that were new to me.

Just for curiosity here, is Mike a great big dude with a beard who's always spey fishing up on the Skagit? I think I might have talked to him up at Swift creek a couple of years ago.

But again thanks for all the feedback, much appreciated.

[Matt Burke]

Just for curiosity here, is Mike a great big dude with a beard who's always spey fishing up on the Skagit?
Not tall big, but that sounds like him. Every Monday at All About The Fly.
Matt

[hedburner]

Don't get down to Monroe that often. Nice shop went there once, next time I need a bunch of stuff I'll head down there maybe. Cept' really hate the traffic past Marysville.

[James Mello]

Looks like a lot of variation in this pattern so whatever I come up with should be good to fish. I'll try the articulation type and what Davy tied and go from there. I did spend hours last night looking for one no complete instructions but the ones Matt had posted I found, and I found a lot of places that were new to me.

Just for curiosity here, is Mike a great big dude with a beard who's always spey fishing up on the Skagit? I think I might have talked to him up at Swift creek a couple of years ago.

But again thanks for all the feedback, much appreciated.

That was probably him. I'd avoid him, as he's a great big jerk! ;) ;) ;) All he wants to do is fish for steel and help you out!

In all seriousness, definately a great guy, and definately a fun guy to fish with. If you ever get the dough together to hire him as a guide, do so.... Well worth the money, well worth the time.

-- Cheers
-- James

[Bestbuilder]

Hey, I'm new to all of this but I have a 1970 copy of "Pacific NW Fly Patterns" from Patricks fly shop- the "Skagit Minnow" recipe is as follows-
[#6-8 wet
Tip - Silver tinsel, narrow
Tail - Peacock soward, see note.
Body - Silver tinsel, medium
Shellcase - Peacock sword, 6-8 fibres
Head - Black chenille, small, 2 turns
Note: Wrap tip first, then bunch 8-10 peacock sword fibres over bend of hook for tail, tie off with tying silk. Make silver body, then arch rest of peacock sword over back of body. Tie off. 2 truns chenille at head then finish fly. When starting fly tie short piece of black silk at bend so tail portion may be made on fly.
A very, very good fly in early season. Imitates "humpy" fry on downstream migration.]
I hope this is helpful. I don't understand the part about the "short piece of black silk at the bend so tail portion may be made". Maybe I overthinking it.

[Preston]

The "short piece of black silk" (silk was all we had to tie with in those days) is to tie down the peacock sword fibers at the beginning of the hook bend. The fibers should lie arched slightly along the hook shank from behind the eye to the beginning of the bend where they are tied down with just the tips projecting to form a short tail.

This is the "old" Ken McLeod pattern referred to above.

[slippery_whippet]

So maybe I missed something, but I've looked through this thread and I still don't see an actual recipe for the Skagit Minnow (Mike Kinney's version). Anyone have a set of explicit instructions for a newbie fly tier with two left thumbs. Thanks.

[hedburner]

At some spey fishing board, which I think is called the spey pages, ( I found a recipie tied up by someone called voodoofly or voodoo something). Don't have it bookmarked on this computer or I would post the link. Tied some of those up for a swap. Time consuming, but very catchy looking. Pretty fly, though.

[hedburner]

Been thinking about how I tied em' so here's how I did it.

Stinger hook, size 1 Owner all purpose bait hook. These are really nice hooks, the best I've used for stingers.

If you can get em' tie the body on a waddington shank, but since you are from Wooley, you allready know you live in a fly-shop challenged area. Drive 60 miles south through a traffic mess, or you use what I used 1|0 Mustad salmon hook (after your'e done whack the curved pointy part off with a pair of dekes.

Do the stinger hooks first, more efficent this way.

I dubbed a little bump of purple lite brite on the end. Then tie in two super grizzly hackle tips, about two and a half inches long, shiny side out. That little bump of purple stuff keeps the tips separated somewhat. Now dubb a thin body of purple lite brite up the shank leave enough room to tie in a piece of crosscutt bunny. Wrap the bunny once, like you would a hackle collar, tie off and whip finish and cement. Finish tying some more like this and put aside once you think you have enough.

The body.

Take about 6 inches of 20 or 30lb Berkley fireline. Fold in half and push the folded end through the eye of the stinger. Now pull the folded loop over the stinger and around below the barb and cinch up tight with the eye. Do this with the rest of your stingers.

Now put a 1\0 or shank in your vise and take your completed stinger with the fire line and measure it so the marabou tips will just hang over the front of the stinger you don't want to completly cover the stinger and as well you don't want to have to much of the line hanging past the marabou tips. After you have the length you want lay the end of the line over the shank, start at the back above the hook bend and tightly wrap the thread to the front of the shank now fold the line back to the back and wrap the thread to the back, snip off any left over line, and put a drop of zap a gap on the threads, you don't need more than the drop that comes out spread that over the threads wrap back to the front and tie in some lead barbell eyes. About the medium size ones bigger if you want to really dredge or smaller or not at all. Repeat this until you have enough to match the stingers. Doing them all at once allows tht glue to dry.

Put a completed shank with stinger back in the vise and take a few strands of the lite brite and tie on the end so the ends will trail over the line to the front of the stinger. Now tie in a marabou by the tip and wind to the front, I used three black marabou hackles for the body leave enough room for one purple marabou and take only maybe three wraps until you get to the barbell. Dub on a little of the purple lite brite and wrap that around the barbell make a head whip finish cement and your'e done.

I tied em' up with black bunny on the stinger, and black with purple marabou on the front of
of the body, but whatever color combo you like would be fine. Popsicle colored ones would be nice or pink and white or whatever colors you like.

[hedburner]

Forgot after you get em' done whack off the body's hook point above the bend but below the end of the stuff you tied on. Pinch bard too on the stinger

[slippery_whippet]

Hey Thanks, I'll give it a try

[hedburner]

Forgot about one more option. After I finished tying the black marabou, put a couple of silver and purple flashabou strips on each side before you finish off with the purple marabou.