Description
As featured in California Fly Fishers Magazine this is the “infamous” Huck Hopper I modeled after the great Charlie Craven’s “Charlie Boy Hopper”. This is one of those “guide flies” that looks dramatically better from below (the way the fish see it) than above in the fly box at the fly shop. Its deer hair wing is huge to support floating and the big appearance of a splayed grasshopper wing. This fly can function as your indicator all day because it has been designed for durability and floatability. It is my cornerstone for dry dropper fishing. i have fished the Huck-Hopper all over the world for many different species with great success.
This fly is made from the best materials, is super durable to the point where you will start to notice bite marks from trout attacks. It’s buoyant so you can fish it all day….even if it gets beat up with bite marks.
FYI:
- This is the fly I kill with on the Upper Kern River
- The Huck-Hopper also works great for Large Mouth, small mouth and shoal Bass.
my guidance for the Upper Kern:
My color preferences in this order:
- Tan (matches a huge amount of the grasshopper species there)
- Black (you always need black in the mountains to match most of the terrestrials)
- Grey (matches a huge amount of the grasshopper species there)
- Purple (the last color seen underwater in the spectrum. Ideal for murky or deep conditions)
- Yellow (there are a number of yellow-bodied and yellow-winged grasshoppers there, and they stick out like a sore thumb.)
- Brown (I I have no idea why this works, but it does.)
So, being that said, a size 4 tan Huckaby hopper is the perfect hopper in a hopper dropper scenario where you drop two heavy perdagons below it. They’re like battleships and they float all day. Be generous with the length of the dropper. Those deep runs will provide for you if you go three to four feet below the hopper.
Black in a size 12 is a must, either fishing it alone or in a double hopper scenario with a bigger one in front of it.
Everything else in sizes 8 and 10 without a dropper works great.
You can drop a single fly from any size 6.
Ronnie Swafford –
The Huck Hopper has become a legendary fly in Colorado and I always carry them with me regardless of the season. I use a Huck Hopper as an indicator in the winter on the Arkansas and have had fish hit it even in the dead of winter. There’s no better hopper for spring, summer and fall fishing and I often pair it with a Huck Rainbow Warrior and a Huck Midge when I’m prospecting for fish. The biggest rainbow I’ve ever seen took a Huck Hopper on the Blue River in Colorado and added to the legend! You’re gonna want to have a half dozen of these with you when you’re fishing the rivers in Colorado. There’s nothing quite like it!
Warren “Bo” Jones (verified owner) –
I’ve purchased and used Huckaby flies for the last 2 years. They work. Huckaby flies have transformed me from a beginner to an intermediate fly fisherman. These flies attract fish even with my questionable casts and weak drifts. These flies are excellently made, contain excellent materials and are extremely durable.
Craig Keshishian –
The Huck Hopper needs to be patented. A thing of beauty!