Fl. Pink Straggle String

Fl. Pink Semperfli Straggle String Micro Chenille

Fl. Pink belongs on the flats as much as on a trout stream. Bonefish, permit, and redfish all eat pink shrimp, and a slim, sparkling body sinks fast and quietly. On trout water, a single collar of Fl. Pink on a soft hackle is a proven trigger in Iceland, Patagonia, and the Rockies alike. Wind it together with Dark Pink for a two-tone shrimp body.

Recipe 1: Straggle Gotcha

• Hook: Saltwater hook, size 4 to 8 (Gamakatsu SL11-3H or similar)
• Eyes: Bead chain for skinny water, small lead eyes for deeper flats
• Thread: Semperfli Nano Silk or 6/0, fluorescent pink
• Tail: Pink Krystal Flash or pink Antron, short
• Body: Fl. Pink Straggle String
• Wing: Tan or white craft fur, with 4 strands of pearl Krystal Flash

Tying: Tie the eyes on top of the shank a quarter shank behind the eye, so the fly rides hook-up. Tie in a short tail at the bend. Wrap the Straggle String body forward to the eyes, figure-eight once around them, and tie off. Flip the hook and tie the wing on the hook-point side, just long enough to cover the bend.

How to fish it: The Gotcha is the bonefish fly everyone carries. Lead the fish by 3 to 6 feet, let the fly settle to the bottom, and strip with short 4 to 6 inch pulls. When the fish tails on it, strip-set, don’t lift the rod. In softer water, slow the strips down. It takes redfish on Gulf flats and in Florida backcountry too.

Recipe 2: Pink Hot Collar Soft Hackle

• Hook: Wet fly or nymph hook, size 12 to 16
• Bead (optional): Gold brass, 2.5 mm
• Thread: Semperfli Nano Silk, tan
• Body: Hare’s ear dubbing, thin, ribbed with fine gold wire
• Collar: Fl. Pink Straggle String, 2 wraps
• Hackle: Gray partridge or brown hen, 2 turns

Tying: Dub a slim, tapered body two-thirds of the way up the shank and rib it. Wind 2 wraps of Fl. Pink Straggle String as a collar. Tie in the partridge by the tip, take 2 sparse turns in front of the collar, and whip finish.

How to fish it: Cast across and slightly downstream, then let it swing on a tight line. At the end of the swing, let it hang and lift slowly, like a caddis rising to hatch. It works in Iceland for brown trout and arctic char, and on any Montana river during evening caddis. Fish it as a dropper behind a dry for a two-for-one rig.