Woolly Bugger

HOOK: 5263, sizes 2-10 THREAD: To match body TAIL: Marabou that matches body. Add 3-5 strands of Krystal Flash. RIB: Gold, silver, or coper wire BODY: Chenille or chenille plus rabbit HACKLE: Palmered black saddle hackle, or color to match body

Uses

Woolly Buggers suggest lots of different trout food: dragonfly nymphs, damselfly nymphs, leeches, baitfish, or just something that might be alive and edible. If you fish lakes, you should have lots of these in your box, with a mix of colors and sizes. They can also be effective in rivers.

Variations

Good body colors include black, green-olive, yellow-olive, brown, maroon, purple, and white. A beadhead can be added, or weight under the body. In lakes where trout grow large and feed on other fish, try putting a strip of flashabou down each side. Another variation is the Krystal Bugger, which uses a body of black Krystal Chenille

How to Fish

Count-down-and-retrieve or slow retrieve. Vary the retrieve until you find what works best at the moment: slow and steady, fast, strip-and-pause, or quick, short two-inch strips. Also, wind-drifting works well in lakes.

 
Fish at all depths until you find the right one, but most of the time you should be fishing somewhere between two to six feet deep.