Do fish really eat Crane Flies? 

Thanks Karl! No fishing for me this weekend. Too much to do around the house with the family. But it'll be a great weekend. You have a good one too my friend!

Well I'm glad you enjoyed it! There are plenty of others on this channel that might be just as interesting. Stay safe my friend. :-)

Ha!! Thanks Bill. This is definitely one of those unique patterns that you might want to hide away in the corner of one of your fly boxes. And after six hours on the river of getting skunked, when you're at the point of trying anything, you pull it out and bam. It works. :-)

Ha! A Texas mosquito. That's funny Edward. Have a great weekend my friend. :-)

Thanks Frank! I'll try to do a couple more before the summer is over. :-)

Thanks John and you too my friend! And I'm the same way... I didn't have near as much interest in bugs until I really got into trout fishing. It's just one of the things that make this sport more fun. :-)

Well thank you! And you have a great weekend my friend. :-)

Thanks Dave! I'm thinking the first time I try this out might be on a local warmwater pond. I'd say it might be more effective against the less finicky panfish. :-)

Exactly right Todd! That's how I did it when I tied them a bunch at a time while still on the feather. And after you get in a groove, you can make quite a few of them in about 30 minutes. :-)

Thanks Ed! It is definitely a unique pattern. I appreciate you watching my friend. :-)

Ha! It sure is a big lanky fly. But was definitely fun to tie. Have a great weekend my friend. :-)

Thanks Jeff! I appreciate you watching my friend. :-)

@@SavageFlies you are very welcome

Thanks Bob! This reminds me that I've often wondered what kind of memories fish have. If you think about it, grasshoppers work in the summer because the fish have probably seen some, and eaten some recently. But how often do they actually see them? You'd think any given fish might see one once a week or so, at the most. But by September they get rarer and rarer. And by November, they probably haven't seen one in a couple of months. Have they now forgotten that they're food? And if you drifted a big green hopper across a fish in January, has he totally forgotten that a grasshopper is food? So a pattern like this makes me wonder. Why would a fly like this crane fly ever work, when the chances are that any given fish may have never seen one of these on the water? If it's just some innate trait in their brain that tells them what looks like food, then why wouldn't hoppers or beetles work in January? Anyway, I'm rambling but these are the kinds of questions I ask myself sometimes. :-)

You're welcome Glen! I appreciate you watching my friend.

Thanks Chad and you too my friend!

You bet Jim! I agree, it's hard to get a foam body that's going to be nearly as thin as the real bug.

Thanks Lee! This was the smallest latch hook I could find on Amazon. I might have to try a specialty sewing store to see if I can find a smaller one. I think it would make it a bit easier.

@@SavageFlies most of the rug latchhoooks are. Made for 2 strands of 4 ply yard, I made some of those in the 80's. The small crochet hooks are made for thread to create lace.

Definitely worth having Layton. Making the knotted legs is always the biggest pain with some hopper patterns. If you take one pheasant tail feather, you can spend a half hour and make enough legs to last you the season. :-)

Appreciate it Jim! You have a great weekend my friend. :-)

It's interesting that you mention their larva. I do see a few fly patterns of them but I was wondering why as these aren't aquatic insects. Their larva live in the dirt!

Well thank you Howard! I do get a small percentage of any purchases on Amazon through these links. It doesn't add up to much, but an extra $30-40 a month does help me give away another book or two. :-)

I think they would Chris! Thanks for the note my friend.

You too Mike! I appreciate the note my friend. :-)

Thanks Dave and you too my friend!

I haven't seen that one Clyde; I'll have to check it out!

Thanks John! It was fun to tie; I appreciate you prompting me to. :-)

Thanks Jim!

Great comment Graham, and that's exactly what Mike Dawes said too... don't set the hook until you're sure they've taken it. But I have to admit I'm terrible at that. It takes every bit of patience I can muster to not strike the instant I see what I think is a take. :-)

Oh my Joe, so you're one of the twelve people who watched that old video of a crane fly I did? That had to have been one of my very first ties on the channel. I'd be scared to go back and watch that. I'm glad you mentioned seam rippers... I definitely need one of those. I bought some kind of fur garment at a flea market and it had some kind of material trim on the underside. Funny thing, I can't tell if it's rabbit or fox. But it was $2 so I couldn't pass it up. As far as the spotted lantern fly, Sean Holsinger has a video of that on his channel. I actually talked to him at a shoe in November when he was tying it. It really looks cool, but you've got to have a dyed red hen saddle and that thing takes forever to tie. I'm looking at his video now and it's almost 20 minutes long! It could be a fun one to tie though. And BTW, my 9-wt rod arrived today. I took it out in the backyard and holy cow the difference between that and my 3-wt (in exact same rod model) is like two different sports. But imagine yanking a 15-lb snakehead out of the weeds in two feet of water. Oh man, I can't wait to get out there and try that. :-)

Definitely let me know and send some pictures! I just sent you a picture of my latest rod. I can't believe I now own a 9-wt. Holy cow this thing is beefy. And my kayak is going to be here next week. The snakeheads of Maryland better watch out. :-)

@@SavageFlies it’s late I just seen everything will email ya👍

Appreciate it Joe!

Thanks Dave! A crochet hook is a great idea. Have a great weekend my friend. :-)

Thanks Howard! And go for it my friend. :-)

PS You’re not kidding about turkey feathers not floating. My son once shot a wild turkey that flopped into a nearby stream. It sank like a rock and we were unable to retrieve it. High spring runoff and snow on the banks made it impossible.

Thanks Mark! And yeah, I was surprised they asked me to do their Fly of the Month. I felt quite honored. :-)

Thank you Garrett!

Go for it! It is a pretty fun one to make, albeit not one I'll probably fish very often. Thanks for watching!

Appreciate it Charlie! Have a great weekend my friend. :-)

Definitely Bruce! If you have more than two, this thing might need its own box. :-)

Ha! Thanks Marty. Have a great weekend my friend. :-)

Thanks John! I appreciate the note my friend. :-)

Well thank you for the note! We don't actually see a lot of them around water here, but apparently there are enough that some folks fish with them. :-)

Thanks for watching!

Thanks for the info Colin!

Oh man, what fun it would have been if you had a few of these in your box!

@SavageFlies that's exactly why I found your video! I was standing there like dang it, I gotta tie some of those!

Exactly right Tom! These things are mosquito exterminators. :-)

Cool to know Sean!

Cool to hear! I can't stand horse flies. If I go out in the summer without a hat, they zero in on my bald head. :-)

I'm kind of the same way. I've only sporadically seen these and it's now while I'm out fishing! I guess they do occasionally fall into the water though.

Interesting! I've never fished with one, or don't even recall seeing any near the water. But I do see them all over my barn. :-)

I'm sure some fish might think this thing looks tasty. :-)