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Carey Special
Carey Special
Tying Instructions
1. Attach the thread a lay a thread base to the bend of the hook.
2. Tie in a Pheasant Rump feather by the tips. The tips serve as the tail which should extend less than 3/4 shank length from the bend.
3. Trim the rump feather and save it (you can use it for the hackle collar). At the base of the tail, attach the ribbing and 3-4 peacock herls by their tips.
4. Strengthen the herl by wrapping it around the thread forming a chenille.
5. Wrap the herl chenille forward to about 1-2 eye lengths behind the eye, depending upon how much hackling you prefer.
6. Reverse wind the ribbing forward with evenly spaced spiral wraps. This will help prevent herl breakage.
7. Tie is the rump hackle, again by the tip just in front of the body.
8. Wrap the hackle 1-2 times for a collar.
9. Use your thread to wrap the hackles back in a sweep. Create a head and whip finish.
| Materials
to Order Material, click the link |
|
|---|---|
| Hook | TMC 5263 size #6-10 |
| Thread | Danville 6/0 Black |
| Body | Dark Olive Chenille |
| Tail | Pheasant rump feather barbs |
| Collar | Pheasant rump feather, 1-2 turns |
| Ribbing | Small Gold wire |
Carey Special
Originally called the “Monkey-faced Louise”, until receiving the name Carey Special. It was aptly named the Carey Special from its originator, Colonel (Tom) Carey of Quesnal, BC. Colonel Carey served in the British Army during WW I and fought in Tripoli. After the war, Col. Carey migrated to British Columbia, primarily for the fishing.
Doctor Lloyd Day of Kelowna found a groundhog on his fishing trip to Arthur Lake in the late 1930’s and asked Colonel Carey to tie a fly from the hairs. It was designed as a dragonfly nymph or an emerging sedge pupa which would be slowly retrieved through stillwaters. The original version used the Groundhog hairs for the tail and body. The body was ribbed in reverse with black silk thread. The collar was of two Chinese Pheasant Rump feathers with several turns each giving a thick collar that swept past the tail.
Monkey-faced Louise
Carey’s design was inspired by an earlier fly pattern known as the “Monkey Faced Louise“, that was tied by a local First Nation fly fisher in the area. Carey adapted this pattern with the Yorkshire technique of wrapping the soft-hackle collar in front of the body behind the eye. Carey’s variation became such a success with the BC anglers that it received it’s own name, the Carey Special.
Variations
Today, the Carey Special is usually tied with pheasant rump rather than groundhog for the tail. Many body colors are added to the Carey style using chenille, floss, peacock, and various dubbings for the body along with ribbings. Commercially-tied Careys will often have the collar hackle rarely longer than the tail. Most modern Careys will also have a more sparsely wrapped collar hackle of one or two turns. The tails of many modern Carey’s will also use Marabou rather than the traditional Pheasant Rump tips. The “Self Bodied” Carey uses only the pheasant rump for both the body and the hackle. The Black Carey represents the dark dragonfly nymphs within stillwaters and the Olive Carey will represent both dragonfly nymphs and olive sedges.
Dragonfly Nymph??
A Carey Special can simulate many insects, including dragonfly nymphs, caddis nymphs, mayfly nymphs, and leeches. By wrapping the collar hackle sparsely, it makes an excellent damselfly nymph imitation. The Carey is by far one of the most popular lake fishing patterns in British Columbia. It is an exceptional trolling fly, and a great searching pattern.
The most common way to fish the Carey in Sierran lakes, is to troll the fly on or near the bottom with a full sink line. At other times, success can be found while trolling the fly at intermediate depths, or near the surface. Often variations in the retrieve will elicit strikes. Short tugs of about 2 to 3 inches, or long slow pulls of about 8 to 12 inches, followed by a pause should be tried.
Variations
“Self-Bodied” Carey
| Hook | TMC 5263 size #6-10 |
| Thread | Danville 6/0 Black |
| Body | Pheasant rump feather |
| Tail | Pheasant rump feather barbs |
| Collar | Pheasant rump feather, 1-2 turns |
| Ribbing | Small Gold wire |
Olive Carey
| Hook | TMC 5263 size #6-10 |
| Thread | Danville 6/0 Black |
| Body | Olive Floss |
| Tail | Olive Marabou |
| Collar | Golden Pheasant rump feather |
| Ribbing | Small Silver wire |
Black Carey
| Hook | TMC 5263 size #6-10 |
| Thread | Danville 6/0 Black |
| Body | Medium Black Chenille |
| Tail | Grey Ostrich Herl |
| Collar | Golden Pheasant rump feather |
| Ribbing | Medium Copper wire |