There is a period of time each fall, usually 2 to 3 weeks in duration, where declining water temps and increasing steelhead numbers meet to induce a terrific and aggressive feeding binge. It is at this time where I love to throw streamers, and patterns that resemble chunks of decaying salmon flesh are often the top producers.

This pattern is a typical Alaskan Marabou ("Alaskabou" if you may) that does the job quit handily. I have found that since nothing in nature is monotone, adding a contrasting color, usually peach or orange, will really improve your success. I like to use the contrast color in the tail, which is ultimately hidden, but still visible when wet, and in the collar. Another options are to use the flesh color in the tail and color and use the contrast in the body of the wing. Whichever you desire, the flesh color should predominate. Remember, the flesh is decaying, so the paled-out rotting color will be tinged with more normal highlight-not the other way around.

Notice that I tie the material to the front portion of the hook only. If you try to envelope the entire hook, you will need a few marabou feathers, you'll lose a lot of action, and buoyancy will be too great to overcome.

This pattern is best fished on a slow swing in shallow, fast water or high in the column at the heads of pools. If I want to fish deeper water, I'll opt for a weighted rabbit fur counterpart of the same coloration.

MATERIALS

Hook: Mustad 36890 #4 - #8

Thread: Orange

Flash: Gold Krystal Flash at tail and before accent collar

Tail: Peach Marabou under Tan Marabou

Wing: Tan Marabou followed by Peach Marabou

Seat the debarbed hook well into your vise jaws, and lay a base of thread that begins just to the rear of the return loop and ends just short of the 1/2 point of the shank.

Return the thread forward.

Select some strung blood marabou dyed peach or orange.

From that batch select a feather with long barbs and a very small center quill that does not extend fully to the tips.

Gather the barbs from one side in your fingertips and, with your other hand, pull the tip quickly toward your chest.

The tips should strip cleanly from the stem with the tips aligned as you grasped them. Place the rest of the feather to the side as you'll need it later.

Switch hands, and measure the tips to be roughly equal to the length of the hook shank.

Secure the tips to the hook where you ended the thread.

Bind the rest forward to the return loop and clip the excess. Take your thread back to the rear as shown.

Select a bunch of strung marabou dyed tan or ginger. Select a quality feather with thin barbs and a thin stem.

Expose the tip by gently stroking down the barbs as you hold the tip. You want the exposed tip section to equal the tail you just tied.

Place the tip on top of the tail, with the rest of the feather facing the hook eye, and secure it with two tight wraps.

Gently fold the feather to the rear and advance the thread forward.

Holding the tan marabou feather by the very end, begin to wrap it forward. It will be a bit brittle so go easy.

Prior to each turn, take your non-bobbin hand and stroke all the barbs to the rear. You will need to do this in between each wrap.

Keep wrapping forward in rather open turns until you reach your standing thread.

Two tight wraps will secure the marabou. Clip the excess.

Add in two pieces and fold them around the thread.

Make a turn of thread to lock the flash to the shank.

Divide the strands so that half are on opposite side of the hook shank.

Secure them down both sides of the tan wing using just a few thread wraps to encourage them to the rear.

Clip the flash strands to be just a bit longer than the wing.

Get the peach marabou feather you used for the tail.

Tie it in at the front of the tan wing so that the tip lies on top of the wing facing the rear and the rest of the feather is over the front of the hook--with the side you stripped facing away from you. You want to secure it by the stem--not just the tips of the barbs, this is why we allow the tips to lay over the wing a bit. If you wish you can clip off the tip section after the feather is secured with a few tight wraps, but I usually just leave it in tact.

Fold the rest of the feather to the rear and advance the thread forward a wee bit.

Begin wrapping the feather forward as before, making sure that you are wrapping the naked side of the stem against the hook. Keep in mind that you have 1/2 the barbs now. Be sure to hold the feather by the very end and that you do not inadvertently grasp some of the barbs or you'll end up binding everything into a ball. If your thread wants to get in the way, simply pull out about 6 inches of length. The added length will create a cushion so that you can push against the thread to keep it out of the way without forcing it off the eye.

Continue wrapping, being sure that no barbs get trapped in the process. Since the stem has been stripped on one side you will not need to force them to the rear between each wrap. It is perfectly OK to allow them to stand perpendicular to the hook as you wrap--just be sure that you do not trap any with your fingers as you wrap or they will bind all the others in the process.

Once you get to the thread position, retract your thread if you extended the length, tie off the marabou feather with 2 tight wraps.

Pull back all the marabou to expose the head area.

Form a very neat and small head of thread which will force the marabou to the rear and create a nice termination of the fly. Whip finish and clip the thread then apply a few coats of cement.

A finished Marabou Flesh Fly!