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May 24, 2026
Hey everyone,
Sorry for the delay in getting this out. But here are some pix and patterns for Grey Drakes.
OK, first, I've been practicing my drawing (with all my free time). And while I'm certainly no artist, here is my drawing of a grey drake nymph. Where the things to note are:
Short antennae, setae (or hair) on the inside sides of the cerci (our outer tails). Also note the dark band on the tails. The gills also have a "heart" shaped appearance. Of course, this isn't a great entomological description, but it will be close. And these guys are big - size 10 hook size when they are ready to hatch.
To validate my drawing, here is what an actual critter looks like:
Remember as I mentioned in the episode that it is useful to think about the background on which these nymphs are found. And if you think about it, it makes perfect sense. A light colored nymph on a dark background is going to be trout dinner. Similarly, a dark colored nymph on a light background will be too. Of course, I'm sure the nymphs compensate for this at a certain level by hanging out where they are match this background. But I also believe they can make subtle changes in color to match their background. As noted by the Siphlonurus I saw on the trib to the Swift River.
So, as I mentioned a pheasant tail nymph is a good imitation of any swimmer or minnow like minnow. You all know what that looks like, so no need to post a poorly tied pheasant tail - you can look it up on the internet.
My issue was how do you lighten a pheasant tail nymph to address variation in nymph color. As I mentioned in the podcast, you bleach the feathers. Which I did, following the directions here: https://www.flyfishing.co.uk/threads/bleaching-pheasant-tails.462451/
I did some pheasant tail and some turkey tail.
Where you can see the variations in time I used in bleaching. Honestly, for these particular guys, the 15 minute timeline is what I think matched these guys the best. But my guess is, what I'm advocating is that no matter what you are imitating it is worth having a selection of light, medium and dark nymphs to match what you see.
Anyway - to show you a fly, this is a "pheasant tail" tied with the 15 minute bleach job (and a bead to replace the peacock herl).
Alternatively, I suggested you could use a One Feather Nymph - by Eric Leiser. Which I have to admit, is one of my favorite patterns - mostly because it only takes on material.
Again, I added a bead to get it down. But basically it is:
Hook: Size 10:
Tail: Wood duck flank feathers
Rib: gold wire
Wing case: Wood duck flank feathers
Thorax: fluff from base of a wood duck flank feather
As I look at this, however, I'm less comfortable with the lightness of the fly for imitating this critter. By chance, I happened to pop a male hooded merganser this fall. While not the tastiest bird, the flank feathers are similar but darker than a wood duck. Hence, here is my one feather fly using a hooded merganser flank feather:
Looking back on it, I would tie it with a bead (and a little neater), but I do like the color and pattern.
OK, let's talk about the adults.
Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures of the adults. Nor do I have any a drawing of one (all those veins in the wings intimidate me).
But I do have some patterns. Remember I talked about the how the spinner is of most importance. I did want to show you what the grey drake duns looked like that we got with our first batch of flies at the shop. As I mentioned, they are beautiful (except this is my version), but they don't look anything like the insect!
As I mentioned, the spinner is the guy you want to imitate. So, here you are - a quill gordon trimmed on the top and bottom:
OK, with that I'll leave it off. Next time we'll talk about more details on sex. It will be a good episode.
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