Fountains of Youth – Classic trout flies that have withstood the test of time … flies that remain “forever young”
by Rusty Dunn
Have your children ever been so completely costumed that you no longer recognized them? Frank Sawyer, originator of the legendary Pheasant Tail Nymph, probably wouldn’t recognize many of his “children” today. Sawyer’s original Pheasant Tail is a model of simplicity, but the modified, substituted, customized, and dolled-up variants today often bear little resemblance to their stately ancestor.
Frank Sawyer (1906-1980) was a gentle and observant Englishman who gave us one of the greatest trout flies of all time. His two books, Keeper of the Stream (1952) and Nymphs and the Trout (1958) are rich in thoughtful observation and practical advice about trout, trout streams, and angling. Sawyer was river keeper, water bailiff, and chief steward for 52 years of the Officer’s Fishing Association, a private club owning 6.5 premier miles of the fabled River Avon in Wiltshire. Sawyer spent his lifetime studying intricacies of both the river and its trout.
Sawyer was a pioneering environmentalist and conservationist, one who learned stream ecology standing hip-deep in his laboratory. He developed techniques for cleansing polluted waters with powdered limestone, pioneered use of tributary spring ponds as protected habitat for juvenile trout, established insect hatcheries with which to repopulate degraded streams, and invented a humane trap to control vermin. Sawyer was especially concerned about human impacts on trout habitat. His books articulate major concepts of stream management, including the importance of bank stabilization, rock diversions, erosion control, removal of organic debris, storm water management, and nutrient excess. Sound familiar? The needs of a healthy trout have never changed.
Sawyer’s most famous legacy is his Pheasant Tail Nymph. Sawyer learned fly tying and fishing by first studying nymphs and emergers in excruciating detail.
He was initially obsessed with making exact copies of each species and stage of growth, but angling experience taught Sawyer that exact imitation is not essential:
“I found that there was no need for any exact likeness of one or another [insect] and that if most of the details and characteristics of several could be incorporated … fish could be taken consistently on them“.
Like anglers before and since, Sawyer learned that size, shape, and approximate color are far more important for success than precise imitation. Presentation, not imitation, catches trout. Sawyer’s books describe only five fly patterns, but he caught trout, salmon, grayling, and char throughout the world on them. His Pheasant Tail imitates darkly colored mayfly nymphs, and his Grey Goose imitates lighter varieties.
“Simplicity is an aim to be desired” Sawyer wrote, and his fly patterns reflect that principle. The Pheasant Tail Nymph contains but two materials besides a hook: pheasant tail fibers and fine copper wire. That’s it! No thread … no thorax of herl … no dangling legs … no flashback of tinsel … just pheasant and wire. Many mayfly nymphs tuck their legs tightly against the body when swimming, and Sawyer’s flies have no legs. Their streamlined profile and underbody of wire sink the fly quickly, which is often important for success. Al Troth of Dillon, MT modified Sawyer’s design by adding a thorax of peacock herl and fashioning legs from the tips of pheasant tail fibers. Troth’s Pheasant Tail, published in The Masters on the Nymph (1979), is arguably the most popular of all Pheasant Tail Nymphs today.
Add weight to your leader and fish a Pheasant Tail Nymph near the stream bottom during non-hatch periods. It is excellent when trailed behind a larger weighted nymph (e.g., scud, Hare’s Ear) as part of a two-nymph tandem. Or grease your leader and fish Pheasant Tail Nymphs just under the surface to rising or bulging fish during a mayfly hatch. Either way, you’ll fish one of history’s greatest-ever trout flies.
Copyright 2022, Rusty Dunn
Sawyer Pheasant Tail Nymph
| Hook: |
Wet fly / nymph, #10 – #20 |
| Thread: |
None; fine copper wire only |
| Tail: |
Center tail feather barbs of a rooster pheasant |
| Abdomen: |
Pheasant feather barbs used for the tail |
| Ribbing: |
Fine copper wire |
| Thorax: |
Underbody of copper wire overwrapped with the butt ends of the pheasant feather barbs used for the body |
Sawyer Pheasant Tail Nymph
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Last Updated: September 6, 2022 by Drew Kasel
by Rusty Dunn
Have your children ever been so completely costumed that you no longer recognized them? Frank Sawyer, originator of the legendary Pheasant Tail Nymph, probably wouldn’t recognize many of his “children” today. Sawyer’s original Pheasant Tail is a model of simplicity, but the modified, substituted, customized, and dolled-up variants today often bear little resemblance to their stately ancestor.
Frank Sawyer (1906-1980) was a gentle and observant Englishman who gave us one of the greatest trout flies of all time. His two books, Keeper of the Stream (1952) and Nymphs and the Trout (1958) are rich in thoughtful observation and practical advice about trout, trout streams, and angling. Sawyer was river keeper, water bailiff, and chief steward for 52 years of the Officer’s Fishing Association, a private club owning 6.5 premier miles of the fabled River Avon in Wiltshire. Sawyer spent his lifetime studying intricacies of both the river and its trout.
Sawyer was a pioneering environmentalist and conservationist, one who learned stream ecology standing hip-deep in his laboratory. He developed techniques for cleansing polluted waters with powdered limestone, pioneered use of tributary spring ponds as protected habitat for juvenile trout, established insect hatcheries with which to repopulate degraded streams, and invented a humane trap to control vermin. Sawyer was especially concerned about human impacts on trout habitat. His books articulate major concepts of stream management, including the importance of bank stabilization, rock diversions, erosion control, removal of organic debris, storm water management, and nutrient excess. Sound familiar? The needs of a healthy trout have never changed.
Sawyer’s most famous legacy is his Pheasant Tail Nymph. Sawyer learned fly tying and fishing by first studying nymphs and emergers in excruciating detail.
He was initially obsessed with making exact copies of each species and stage of growth, but angling experience taught Sawyer that exact imitation is not essential:
“I found that there was no need for any exact likeness of one or another [insect] and that if most of the details and characteristics of several could be incorporated … fish could be taken consistently on them“.
Like anglers before and since, Sawyer learned that size, shape, and approximate color are far more important for success than precise imitation. Presentation, not imitation, catches trout. Sawyer’s books describe only five fly patterns, but he caught trout, salmon, grayling, and char throughout the world on them. His Pheasant Tail imitates darkly colored mayfly nymphs, and his Grey Goose imitates lighter varieties.
“Simplicity is an aim to be desired” Sawyer wrote, and his fly patterns reflect that principle. The Pheasant Tail Nymph contains but two materials besides a hook: pheasant tail fibers and fine copper wire. That’s it! No thread … no thorax of herl … no dangling legs … no flashback of tinsel … just pheasant and wire. Many mayfly nymphs tuck their legs tightly against the body when swimming, and Sawyer’s flies have no legs. Their streamlined profile and underbody of wire sink the fly quickly, which is often important for success. Al Troth of Dillon, MT modified Sawyer’s design by adding a thorax of peacock herl and fashioning legs from the tips of pheasant tail fibers. Troth’s Pheasant Tail, published in The Masters on the Nymph (1979), is arguably the most popular of all Pheasant Tail Nymphs today.
Add weight to your leader and fish a Pheasant Tail Nymph near the stream bottom during non-hatch periods. It is excellent when trailed behind a larger weighted nymph (e.g., scud, Hare’s Ear) as part of a two-nymph tandem. Or grease your leader and fish Pheasant Tail Nymphs just under the surface to rising or bulging fish during a mayfly hatch. Either way, you’ll fish one of history’s greatest-ever trout flies.
Copyright 2022, Rusty Dunn
Sawyer Pheasant Tail Nymph
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