Queen of the Water

[Chris Hulsey]

I am looking for the materials needed to tie this pattern. I have a good friend who said that his grandfather fished with this pattern when he was a kid in Virginia and is looking for some of these flies. I have only found a few references to this pattern on the internet, but nothing with a detail description including what materials are needed.

This is what I have found:
”The historical Queen of the Water is credited to John and James Wilson, who were both professors at Edinburgh University in the 1820s. They are also responsible for the wet fly known as the Professor. Originally, there was little difference between the Professor and the Queen of the Water, but somewhere along the line the two flies became separate patterns. Nowadays, the Professor has a yellow body and no palmered hackle, while the Queen of the Water—which is thought to imitate a hairy caterpillar—features brown hackle palmered over an orange body. Both flies have been fished in American waters for more than a century.” http://www.flyfishingmagazines.com/f...t_winner.shtml

[hawgleg]

Queen of the Waters


This is an old pattern originating in Britain. Later, it became popular on waters of our eastern states. Beginning in the 1990's, Cliff Stringer promoted its use in our area. Cliff fished it on many Idaho streams. He also modified it somewhat, especially by removing the wings and sometimes the tinsel rib, for use as an emerger. The light colors of this pattern tied without wings make it an excellent general use emerger for such as PMD's, slate cream duns, snow flake duns and stenonema species. With winter upon us, you have plenty of time to tie up a supply, winged and wingless, for next season.

Hook: Mustad 94840 or equivalent, sizes 10-16
Thread: 6/0, black
Wing: Gray mallard flank fibers, upright and divided
Tail: Ginger hackle fibers
Rib: Flat gold tinsel followed by ginger hackle
Body: Orange silk floss
Hackle: Ginger

[Chris Hulsey]

Thank you for more information. I am very, very new to fly tying so the more information the better. I was just guessing from the picture I found. Thank you again.

[BLACK KNIGHT]

Oh, I saw the title and thought it was about Flygurl.......or Grey Ghost.

[mchamp]

Just looking at it. Looks to me like Lemon wood duck flank for wings. Ginger or brown hen's neck feather palmered over orange floss. The front hackle looks darker than the rest of the body hackle to me.
RodC