Royal Blue Chickabou Body Marabou Patch

Royal Blue Ewing Chickabou Marabou Body Patch

Royal Blue is a deep, saturated blue, and it does something most colors can’t: it stays visible in dark water. That’s why bass anglers have been throwing black-and-blue jigs for decades, and why night striper anglers keep blue in the box.

Royal Blue Ewing Chickabou gives you rich blue fibers to pair with black for a high-contrast silhouette, or to use alone as a night and muddy-water color.

Largemouth, smallmouth, striped bass, snook, tarpon and steelhead.

Recipe 1: Royal Blue Chickabou Black-and-Blue Bass Jig

• Hook: 60-degree jig hook, #1–#4, with a mono weed guard
• Head: 1/16–1/8 oz tungsten jig head or large slotted bead, black
• Thread: Black 140-denier
• Tail: Black chickabou with Royal Blue Ewing Chickabou on top, plus 2 strands blue flash
• Skirt: Black and blue silicone legs, 8–10 strands
• Collar: Royal Blue chickabou, 2 turns

Tying: Mix the black and blue in the tail so you get both colors moving together. The blue collar behind the head is the hot spot fish key on.

How to fish: Pitch it to docks, laydowns and weed edges. Let it fall on a slack line and watch the line for a twitch. Then hop it once or twice along the bottom. In muddy water after a rain, black-and-blue is the first thing I tie on.

Recipe 2: Royal Blue Chickabou Night Striper Flatwing

• Hook: Saltwater long-shank, 1/0–2/0
• Thread: Black 140-denier
• Tail: One long black saddle tied flat, Royal Blue Ewing Chickabou on top
• Flash: 4 strands blue and black Flashabou
• Body: Black Ice Dub or Mylar
• Wing: Black bucktail, sparse, topped with royal blue chickabou
• Head: Black thread, coated

Tying: The flatwing saddle swims side to side. The royal blue chickabou on top adds bulk and pulse without stiffness.

How to fish: At night on a slow tide, cast across the current near jetties, bridges or sandbars. Swing it like a steelhead fly with very slow strips. Night stripers feed by silhouette, so dark flies with blue accents show up best against the night sky.