Monday, February 11, 2013

The Ondawa

The Ondawa

Last Friday night my wife and I settled in on the couch to watch a little TV and pray that our electricity didn't go out.  Winter storm Nemo was in full effect dropping an insane amount of snow with howling winds.  So I decided to do a little fly tying just for fun.  The fly I chose to tie was not the typical tenkara sakasa kebari I love to tie but what's known as heritage wet fly called the Ondawa.  This fly was recently highlighted in the winter 2012 edition of Fly Tyer.


 Sharon E. Wright wrote the article as well as tied the fly.  I met Ms. Wright at the recent Fly Fishing Show in Somerset, NJ and had a good look at the actual fly featured in the article.  I liked it very much, which is no surprise because classic wet flies are among my favorite kinds of flies.  So I picked up a few materials at the show and decided when a chance arose I would tie one.  Seems Nemo provided the right opportunity to try one of these.

The Ondawa-pg 64 Winter 2012 Fly Tyer
 The Ondawa was mentioned in Mary Orvis Marbury's Favorite Flies and Their Histories as a bass fly.  The name comes from the Mohican name for the Battenkill River in Vermont.  I believe the pattern was created in the late 1800's.  I think this is a very striking fly that would indeed land a few respectable bass or trout but I don't see myself using this fly on my tenkara rod any time soon.  I like how my first attempt came out  (Not as clean as Sharon's by a long shot....but respectable) but I think this fly might go into a presentation fly box for a little while. These heritage flies are not only beautiful but also serve as a connection to all of those anglers who have come before us in this great sport.

12 comments:

  1. Not a pattern I've seen before... or at least not one hat I remember ever seeing. It's very handsome. I think yours turned out very well.

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    1. Thanks Jay....I have been thinking since I posted this and I might tie up a few extra and go after some largemouths this sping. I'll post about and see what happens. There are a lot of cool flies like this from years ago that are worth a second look.

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  2. Well done on a classic wet.
    There are some beautiful patterns of classic wets.

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    1. Thanks Brk Trt. They are indeed beautiful but I think your streamers still take the cake.

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  3. Very nicely done. Love classic wets, been tying some today in fact waiting for the roads to clear

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    1. Thanks Mark. I just checked out your post with the Fontinalis Fin...Very well done and prettier in my opinion.

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  4. Nice job! I haven't seen this pattern for years, but you did a really great job with it

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    1. Thanks Midgeman. I plan on doing some more in the future. They are not just good flies for fishing but miniature works of art.

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  5. Beautiful! The historic bass flies that are overdue for a revival. I hope your Ondawa is just the first of many.

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    1. Thanks Chris...I wish more of these flies were around today for all anglers to appreciate. The first time I saw this pattern was in Favorite Flies and Their Histories by Mary Orvis Marbury. But after seeing the article in Fly Tyer I had to tie one.

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  6. Replies
    1. Thanks. Looking back through some old fly fishing books a tier can find some really cool patterns to tie and I'm sure they might work just as well as any of today's flies

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