This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2011, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
The cricket, although often overlooked as a go-to terrestrial pattern, actually becomes a common food source for trout, panfish and bass in many waters. Very rarely will you find areas not inhabited by crickets, as evidenced by their recognizable chirping.
So as with other land-born insects that happen to fall or get blown into the water, crickets often experience a similar fate, allowing you to fish a cricket pattern with great success. And not only does a pattern like this qualify as a dead ringer for a cricket, it can also pass as a cicada or even a dark grasshopper.
As with other foam patterns I've featured, this fly incorporates foam cut using the cutting tools from River Road Creations. You can purchase the cutters through Hareline dealers or from River Road Creations' website http://www.riverroadcreations.com.
Imitation • Cricket
When to use • Summer/fall
Where • Most streams and rivers
How to fish it • Fish as dry fly on a floating line. Splashy casts are sometimes a necessity.
Hook • Mustad C49S #6
Thread • UTC Ultra thread 70 Denier Black
Tail • Brown Goose Biots
Body • 4-mm Rainy's Crosslink Foam Black, 2mm Rainy's Crosslink Foam Tan
Hind legs • 2-mm Rainy's Crosslink Foam Black
Front legs • Black round rubber
Antenna • Black round rubber
Wings • Md. Dun Speckled River Foam Material
Pronotum • 1-mm Rainy's Crosslink Foam Black
Indicator • Orange Poly Yarn
Tying Instructions
Using the foam cutters, cut the various foam body pieces. Use 4-mm black and 2-mm tan for the body using the medium Beavertail cutter. Use 2-mm black for the legs, using the grasshopper leg cutter and 1-mm black for the pronotum, using the pronotum cutter. The wings are cut using the salmon fly wing cutter. Attach thread at the end of the extended body tool pin. Tie on the two goose biots at the end of the pin, forming an "X." Then bring the black and tan body pieces together and tie them onto the pin at the point where the biots are tied.
Form the body by tying in five segments. See the video tutorial for a better example of how this is accomplished. Once the body is completed, tie it onto the hook by impaling the tan piece of foam through the eye of the hook and sliding it back to the bend of the hook, such that the eye of the hook slightly protrudes beyond the end of the foam body. You may want to use a small amount of super glue to ensure the body stays on the hook.
Next, slightly singe the foam legs with a lighter and gently pinch the ends of the legs to form a nice tapered look. Tie on the legs to the body at the point where the body is attached to the hook. Advance the thread to the last segment of foam and tie the foam to the hook. Attach the wings, legs and antenna. Tie in the pronotum and some poly yarn for an indicator. Whip finish and trim the indicator and any legs to length.
Curtis Fry lives in Orem and ties flies "for pure necessity and as a creative outlet. I don't fool myself into thinking it is a cheaper alternative to buying flies. It's an addiction I am forced to abide." —
Online See how to tie the fly
Curtis Fry provides a tutorial at YouTube.
More videos • youtube.com/user/frycdf