Okay, the name is strange. I agree, but I can't change it. The fly was designed and named by my son who was seven at the time. As I was tying up some soft hackles and hot butt nymphs for a anticipated Hendrickson hatch my local trout stream, he sat down beside me and wanted to try his hand at fly tying. Away went the drab olives and browns and out came the flashy steelhead dubbing. Bright yellows, greens, purples and blues. When we were done it looked like kaleidoscope broke open on the tying desk. Out of that colorful mess one fly stood out. I tucked it into one of my panfish fly boxes and forgot about it.

The next spring while out on a local farm pond, I rediscovered the pattern tucked away in a box of experimental patterns. I grinned as I tied the fly to the leader, recalling that winter afternoon watching my son whipping up some of the most outrageous looking flies I ever laid eyes on. On it's maiden voyage it connected with a fish, then another and another. After a half a dozen crappie in just about as many casts I clipped the fly off and tucked it back into the fly box. I did not want to risk losing it before getting the chance to replicate it.

My son is thirteen years old now, so that means I have been fishing this pattern for nearly 7 years It works as good today as it did on the first spring afternoon when I found it tucked into the corner of my fly box.

Cold weather fly fishing for bluegills and other sunfish is often a tough proposition. Fish leave their shallow water haunts and will typically move to deeper water near structure to find the most comfortable temperature. As many an ice fisherman will attest to, they do continue to feed throughout the winter months, but not with the same voracity that they do during warmer weather. Bluegills will move into shallow water on clear warmer days if the sun can warm the water temperature by a few degrees. Most of the time however it will be a deepwater game. The good news is if you find one fish you likely to catch others in very close proximity. In cold water bluegills will gather in dense schools, often with other fish species.

Presentations need to be slow and takes may be difficult to detect. I have the best success with small streamers, nymphs, soft hackles and wet flies. Soft hackles probably account for more fish due to the alluring movement of the feathers during the painfully slow retrieves.

Cover as much water as possible, searching for fish. Once you detect a strike or catch a fish thoroughly fish that area. Once you locate a single fish you are likely to connect with more in the immediate area. Experiment with the speed and depth of your retrieve until you dial in on an effective presentation.

To be honest, I much prefer fishing for bluegills during the warm weather of spring and summer (notice the lack of fish pictures in this post). But when a mild winter day comes along and there is open water to fish, it beats sitting around the house suffering from cabin fever.