Winter flies that work dependably often don’t look like anything found naturally in the water. For instance, I do really well using a size 12 Prince Nymph here in eastern Idaho, where winter fishing is doable on a few local rivers, like the Bear and the Henry’s Fork.
I suppose the Prince might be a passable imitation of a stonefly nymph, but it’s quite a bit more gaudy than anything naturally found in the water.
Speaking of gaudy, check out Tim Flagler’s Icy Hot Jig. In the video above, Tim notes that, for whatever reason, this blue and orange creation seems to work really well in the winter—and it certainly doesn’t imitate anything found in the water.
It’s also a fun fly to tie, what the ice dubbing and the orange thread. I’m not sure I’m sold on the fly as an imitator, but Tim knows his stuff when it comes to crafting attractor patterns.
Check it out and see what you think.