Willy’s Pip (Easy Midge Pupa) Fly Tying Video

Posted on March 4th, 2021 in Fly Tying Videos

Intro to the Willy’s Pip, an Easy Midge Pupa

This simple midge is one of my (Walter’s) favorite flies when I go back to fish the Ozarks tailwaters and spring creeks between November and April. The extended furled body creates a profile similar to the classic Brassie, but with a great deal of movement and a different “look.” The first two-foot trout I ever caught came on one of these, on upper Lake Taneycomo in Missouri (it’s really a river there).

In addition to working well as an easy midge pupa, the technique used to create the abdomen is also good for caddis pupae, extended body stonefly dries like my Prom Queen, and even leech tails. Any relatively straight, limp fiber, yarn, or braid can work with this technique.

Recipe

Hook: Scud, #18-22

Bead: Tiny brass or tungsten, if desired. I usually do not include one.

Thread: 8/0 or smaller black or to match abdomen.

Abdomen: Red Uni-Thread, furled. Other good colors include cream, olive, tan, black, or one of the various flashy “midge threads.”

Thorax/Head: Peacock herl or Ice Dub.