Tying A Black Midge Hopper with Davie McPhail

The hopper is a very versatile pattern and can be used in a variety of situations: during a hatch of buzzers, as a searching pattern, or when you are not quite sure what the fish are feeding on. The hopper is also useful when the Daddy Long Legs is around as the legs will tempt Trout to strike.

Fish the hopper static on a floating line and periodically 'twitch' the line to impart some life into the fly. You can also fish a light buzzer or Diawl Bach New Zealand style, underneath the hopper.

All of the materials needed to tie this fly are available from Glasgow Angling Centre as listed below, but as always if you need any help finding materials or substitutes then we'll be happy to help. But now it's time to learn from Davie McPhail. Time to learn how to tie the Black Midge Hopper.



Materials Used:
Hook: Fulling Mill Short Shank Special size 12
Thread: Uni Thread 8/0 - Black
Rib Silver Wire
Body: Black Pheasant Tail Fibres
Legs: Knotted Pheasant Tail Fibres - Black
Hackles: Grey Hen Hackle and Dyed Black Cock
Additional materials: Additionally, Davie made use of some Varnish to finish the fly using a dubbing needle for a more accurate application.

Davie's preferred type of whip finish tool can be found HERE!

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