Notes: This fly is a variation of the Muddler Minnow originated by Don Gapen of Anoka, Minnesota in the late 1930's. Don's Muddler Minnow was publicized in The Practical Fly Fisherman magazine in 1953. The name 'Muddler' is a nickname used in the Midwest for sculpin-type fish and Don Gapen's use of a clipped deer hair head with a deer hair collar has become synonymous for depicting a Muddler pattern. Dan Bailey is credited for creating a dense deer hair head rather than the sparse head that Gapen preferred. The reasoning was that the Muddler used in the West was primarily for hopper imitations rather than sculpins. However, Bailey also marketed this variation using marabou and was weighted to imitate the sculpins in the Yellowstone river system. It became one of his most successful streamers and has become very popular throughout the Western States in Brown, Yellow, and Black colors. The use of a clipped deer hair head gives the fly some floatation qualities, although it is also weighted in order to get the fly down as a streamer using a sinking line. With a retrieve, the fly will bob to and fro. Dan Bailey passed away in 1982 at the age of 78.
This fly is a variation of the Muddler Minnow originated by Don Gapen of Anoka, Minnesota in the late 1930's. Don's Muddler Minnow was publicized in The Practical Fly Fisherman magazine in 1953. The name 'Muddler' is a nickname used in the Midwest for sculpin-type fish and Don Gapen's use of a clipped deer hair head with a deer hair collar has become synonymous for depicting a Muddler pattern. Dan Bailey is credited for creating a dense deer hair head rather than the sparse head that Gapen preferred. The reasoning was that the Muddler used in the West was primarily for hopper imitations rather than sculpins. However, Bailey also marketed this variation using marabou and was weighted to imitate the sculpins in the Yellowstone river system. It became one of his most successful streamers and has become very popular throughout the Western States in Brown, Yellow, and Black colors. The use of a clipped deer hair head gives the fly some floatation qualities, although it is also weighted in order to get the fly down as a streamer using a sinking line. With a retrieve, the fly will bob to and fro. Dan Bailey passed away in 1982 at the age of 78.
