How to Tie Higa’s Olive SOS

Producer: Fly Fish Food

Spencer Higa of Fly Fish Food in Orem, Utah, teaches you how to tie an olive version of his signature nymph. According to Spencer, a friend was the one who unlocked the secret of bead color:

The Olive SOS really came alive on a trip to the Green River in Utah. I started playing with different colors shortly after I’d tied the original black version of the SOS. I used the black and olive together on a normal nymph rig bouncing along the bottom. I picked up fish on both nymphs, but the olive seemed to produce more, especially during the Baetis hatch. The final version, tied with a gold bead, came about on a separate trip to the Green with a good friend who had tied his Olive SOS with a god bead. He was out-fishing me three-to-one, and the only difference was mine had the silver bead. As soon as I switched to the gold bead, the fish couldn’t resist it!

     Higa’s Olive SOS
     Hook: TMC 2487 Emerger Hook , size 16.
     Bead: Gold tungsten, 3/32-inch.
     Thread: Medium olive, 8/0.
     Tail: Natural pheasant tail.
     Rib: Silver wire, small.
     Wingcase: Red floss.
     Legs: Olive Krystal Flash.
     Thorax: Olive SLF Squirrel Spikey Dubbing.

Click here for links to all the materials.


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