Guide Series: Pine Squirrel Streamer

Producer: tightlinevideo

This Pine Squirrel Streamer is about as simple as it gets, quite literally one material, well maybe some weight, if that’s the way you get down. It’s got movement, fine dark markings, pushes a bit of water – really all the things a hungry trout finds irresistible.

The fly starts with a size 8 or 10 Lightning Strike SN3, 3X long streamer hook. For thread, UTC 140 in dark brown is a good choice. I like a fair bit of thread tension when I’m tying this one. Get the thread started on the hook shank, leaving about two eye-lengths behind the back edge of the hook eye. After a dozen or so rearward wraps, snip off the excess tag.

Weight is up to you and .02 round lead-free wire works well. I personally prefer this fly weightless and rely on sink tip lines or sinking leaders to get it down to where trout like to be. If I choose to weight the fly, I’ll get hold of the bitter end of the wire with the spool in hand, then anchor the wire to the top of the hook shank with tight thread wraps. Wrapping rearward behind your tying thread keeps the wire wraps sandwiched close together. This also makes it so, after 10 or 12 turns, your tying thread is right there to anchor, then break off, the wire. It’s a good idea to go back over the wire wraps to make sure they’re completely locked down. End with your tying thread at the start of the hook bend.

Zonked pine squirrel, here in sculpin olive, is really the only material used in this fly. This stuff ain’t cheap so I don’t like to waste a millimeter of it. Measure to form a tail a full hook in length. This makes it so you don’t have to trim it to length later. While keeping that measurement, wet the fur and create a little space on the hide. Give your bobbin a good clockwise spin, as if you’re looking down on it, to cord up, thin and strengthen your tying thread. Taking 2 wraps over top of the material, then 2 wraps around just the shank, then 2 more over top helps to keep the hide from slipping around the hook shank. With the strip well-anchored, pull the forward-pointing portion back and relocate your tying thread up the shank to the back edge of the hook eye.

Begin palmering the pine squirrel zonker up the shank with touching wraps of hide. When you reach your tying thread, use it to anchor the hide well, then carefully snip the excess off nice and close – being careful not to nick your tying thread in the process. Preen the fur back to expose the hook eye and take tight thread wraps rearward to form a neat little head on the fly. End with your tying thread at the back edge of the head.

Pick up your whip finish tool and use it to do a 4 or 5 turn, back to front whip finish, seat the knot well and snip or cut your tying thread free. You certainly don’t want the Zonker strip coming loose from these thread wraps so it’s a really good idea to apply an ample drop of your favorite head cement to the wraps and let it soak in. Check to make sure the eye is clear as well.

Who cares whether it looks like a leech, a baitfish or a crayfish? These things straight up work. I know some of you are going to want to tie this with a conehead, but to me, they just add expense and more time at the tying bench.