Peacock Caddis - Fly of the Month

This month's fly is the Peacock Caddis. I first saw this pattern in a book by Al and Gretchen Beatty called Rotary Fly Tying Techniques. Al told a great fishing story about the fly’s success that hooked me into trying it.  I tied some and used them with sports soon after.  One morning I took a couple beginners to the hydro pool on the Magalloway.  After a slow start, I decided to try the new caddis pattern.  When the fly hit the water, a large salmon rocketed up from the bottom, hitting the fly and breaking it off as the fisherman responded with an overly enthusiastic hook set.  That evening I had another sport in the same pool.  He was fishing nymphs and hooked a nice salmon that jumped around and finally came to the net.  When I went to remove the nymph from his mouth, there in his lip was my peacock caddis that was lost earlier in the day.