The Legend Golden Stone AKA Deep Throat “He didn’t eat it”, is not what you want to hear as a guide or fly tier. Yet there it was, out there for all to hear. It was a good fish to, just over 20 inches I’d guessed. I tried to come back with something witty and contradictory, but I couldn’t. My client was right. He made a great cast that produced a good drift and the big brown rose from the depths, followed the fly and refused. Then, to add insult to injury, he eagerly turned and inhaled a natural Stonefly that drifted three feet out of his feeding lane. “He doesn’t like this fly” is the next hard hitting narrative from the front of the boat. Which of course was followed right up with “Maybe we should try something different”? Those are the kind of words and situations that can crush the fragile psyche of most guides I know, as well as breed an angler’s false confidence in a guide’s ability. In short, a situation that is best avoided in my line of work. The need for a better imitation was obvious. As a veteran tier and guide I can appreciate the beauty and complexities of the realistic fly tying movement. Many of the modern realistic bugs are nearly impossible to distinguish from the real thing, other than the hook running through them. However, as the fly tying instructor at Idaho State University, I have found many realistic flies to be very complicated and timely to tie. Not to mention that most are better placed in a shadow box than at the end of a fly line. With this in mind, I have spent the last few years trying to develop a series of flies intended to be very realistic as well as functional for everyday guiding and fishing. The evolution of the “Legend Golden Stone” has been an ongoing battle for supremacy on the high seas of the South Fork. After all it is one of the two rivers that are home to the Jackson Hole One Fly event. A charity event held every year, for the last twenty five, to raise money for the regions blue ribbon fisheries and cutthroat trout. The event takes place over two days on both Wyoming’s Snake River and Idaho’s South Fork of the Snake River. Participants must choose only one fly for an entire days fishing and the right pattern becomes paramount. Imagine traveling hundreds of miles to a fishing destination with only one fly in your box. And if that’s not enough, that single fly needs to hold up to a days worth of masticating fish and overhanging vegetation? In short, a given fly must be tuff, realistic and functional to excel in the event. The competition is held in early September when our second wave of Golden Stones (Claassenia Sabulosa) are hatching and the trout have become exceptionally wary of many imitations. Crystal clear water conditions and Indian summer’s blue bird days allow for complete inspection of each drift. The question becomes how detailed must a fly be to fool these seasoned trout? After much experimentation at the vise, the Legend Golden Stone has become a blend of both natural and synthetic materials with traditional as well as experimental tying techniques. Several of the aspects of realistic fly tying are incorporated into this functional, resilient artificial. The fly is relatively simple to tie and utilizes both existing, as well as, easy to obtain materials in its construction. The fly doesn’t take several days or even hours to complete and from my professional experience, out fishes other traditional and commercially tied Golden’s on my home rivers. By using the curved shank Orvis 122J bead head hook or similar, I could create the proper profile and posture of the natural. Many times, after their emergence, these insects skitter and scramble on the waters surface looking for love or depositing eggs. During these times their abdomen is slightly curved down or hanging in the surface film. The 122J’s medium wire and 2X long curved shank not only provide the perfect platform for the Legend Stone, but also provides a fairly large gap and ample strength for hooking and fighting large fish. Golden Stones have a much lighter under body in contrast to their dark brown backs and for this reason I decided to use 2mm closed cell foam for the top and bottom of the fly. The foam comes in many colors and of floats like a cork. I like to slightly stretch the foam strips before the tying process to make it a bit thinner. By tying the foam onto the hook facing backwards and then folding the foam forward to create the body segments, I could not only get the proper segmentation, but also the taper of the abdomen and thorax that I wanted. Another detail that stands out on the realistic bugs is the size, position and angle of the legs. By utilizing the bristles of common cleaning and scrub brushes, I could get the size and length of leg required to give the realistic look of more elaborate patterns. Once again by pulling the segmented foam towards the rear of the fly and out of the way, the legs can be positioned and spaced equally in the thorax area. Once the legs are positioned and secured with thread wraps, a small drop of Zap-A-Gap or Superglue added to each set of legs will keep them in place forever and ensures that they stay set at the desired angle. One aspect that a lot of realistic tiers incorporate into their patterns is that of the insect’s gills. They are clearly visible on the natural nymphs and defiantly would add some realism and life to the otherwise smooth bodied adult. I choose Ostrich herl for this application because of its appearance as well as ease of tying. I wind the material around the hook shank to provide the bulk and make several wraps around the base of each leg to give the effect of flowing gills in the thorax area. When it comes to the wings, I wanted to give the illusion of the Stonefly’s classic flat wings extending beyond the rear of the fly. The first set of wings creates the realistic profile of the natural and the second set provides buoyancy for the fly. Medallion wing sheeting works well for the first set of wings but can be tuff to trim exact, however, any clear to semi-clear thin sheeting materials such as thin packaging foam, craft ribbons and foils work quit well and may be substituted. As for the second set of wings, I already had a product in mind. In the late 70’s and early 80’s my parents ran a craft store out of our basement. My Mom was a Macramé artist and my Dad did the ceramics. I spent many evenings cleaning ceramics before they were fired and eventually tried to incorporate almost every item in that shop into a fly of some sort. Most of the merchandise was useless for tying flies except for one, the Macramé yarn. I remember an older gentleman coming into the store one day asking for a particular color and type of Macramé cord. He was tying Salmon flies, the Giant Stonefly ( pteronacrys California), and showed me how he made the extended orange body of the fly by threading the hook through it and melting the end. He claimed the colors matched the large insect perfectly and the Macramé cord made the fly float exceptionally well. The game was on! I was in fly tying heaven. I began combing the twisted cord with a dog brush and had an endless supply of wing material that floated like a cork at my disposal. I’ve been using the stuff for years and still have yet to find a better floating synthetic substitute. However, there are many poly or antron yarns available at most fly shops that will provide decent buoyancy for this pattern as well. I have even used natural deer, elk, bear and snowshoe rabbit for the wing with satisfying results. By observing specimens collected from the river I noticed that the antennae as well as the eyes of the naturals were both dominant features of the insects head. I like to use Micro-fibbets or Russian boar guard hairs for the antennae. They both seem to be the right size and stand up not only to multiple fish, but a few trees and bushes as well. A simple dot made with a black Sharpe pen will work for the eyes, but a little drop of five minute epoxy applied over the dot will really set them off and add that “jump out of the box” look. To finish the Golden Stone, leave the fly in the vise and use a pair of needle nose pliers or forceps to gauge where the legs will be bent. It’s a good idea to have a specimen or image of a real insect to use as a guide. I squeeze the individual leg so that the point I want the leg to bend is on the outside of the pliers or forceps jaws. Then I use the index finger of my left hand to bend the leg to the angle I want. After the initial bend has been made I release the grip and place the joint in the jaws of the pliers and pinch the two sides together. This will create a 90 degree or greater bend in the material and you can then adjust with you fingers to the desired angle. The pinch will also ensure that the legs stay bent throughout the fly’s carrier. To add even more realism to the fly I like to use different shades of brown Sharpie markers to band the legs, tails and antennae. To fish the Guides Choice Golden Stone, dress the second wing with you favorite silicone floatant. Don’t worry about dressing the body, the closed cell foam will provide plenty of buoyancy. I like to keep a small wire brush from a gun cleaning kit in my gear bag or vest to comb out the wing if it gets matted from fishing. I also keep my Sharpe pens around in case we need to apply a little more make-up. I carry a variety of Hybrids to fish from #10’s for the small male Golden Stones up to the huge #4 orange and black Salmon Flies. You can easily match any Stonefly hatch by changing the color of the foam body material and bristle legs. I have fished this pattern in tan and substituted knotted rubber legs for the back legs and fooled plenty of trout during hopper season as well. Look for brushes in you’re favorite department, home improvement or dollars stores. There are lots of different colors and sizes depending on the type of brush and nearly all varieties are indestructible. Industrial sizes brushes such as those found in the concrete section of your home improvement store tend to have the best bristles for bigger bugs, while small flies may require bristles from toilet cleaning brushes or even a tooth brush. This brings up the point of avoiding used brushes in your tying. Not only will your wife be mad that you cut up her toothbrush but any flies tied using an old toilet brush could contaminate an entire fly box. I have found there are three different types of bristles commonly found. Some brushes have bristles that are strait and others have curved or wavy fibers. I find the strait brushes work the best for most tying applications. However, fish don’t seem to mind the wavy legged artificials either. What you want to try and avoid is the bristles from brooms or any brushes that have fibers that fray or split. These are very un-uniform and tend to break as often as they bend in the tying process. “The customer is always right” is a phrase more likely to be heard at Wal Mart than on the river, but this time it applied. After the big fish’s refusal and my client’s lack of confidence in our fly selection, I rowed back up for another try at the scholarly trout. However, this time I tied on the Legend Golden and the cast was made. The wing of the artificial bobbed along like a cork on the surface of the mighty Snake. The eagle eyed brown torpedoed six feet from his holding spot to engulf the offering without hesitation. My client stuck the fish and after an electric battle the trout came to hand. “I knew we needed a different bug” exclaimed the elated fishermen as we released the 22 incher. Your where right, I responded, the only problem is we only have one! Trying new ideas with common house hold items has not only helped bridge the gap between traditional and modern realistic flies. It has opened the door for many other possibilities in the semi-realistic tying arena. I have incorporated many of the materials and techniques used in the creation of the Golden Stone while tying beetles, ants and even mayflies. In summation, the Legend Golden Stone has become my “One Fly” for wary trout as well as helped prevent the overwhelming feeling I get when I hear “he didn’t eat it”, and this is good for a guide’s fragile psyche.