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CDC&Elk

Every fly fisherman has to believe in something. For me, enticing fish to take a fly hinges on the concept of triggers. Offer a fish the appropriate positive triggers and it is more likely to think "food!"

Based on this philosophy, I designed the CDC&Elk in 1992 and it has become my staple dry fly. In this pattern, I combine the proven wing silhouette and buoyancy of Al Troth's Elk-hair Caddis with the lifelike qualities of a Type 1 CDC feather wrapped around the hook shank. The CDC body and the straggling filaments suggest anything from sprawling insect legs to trailing nymphal shucks to crippled wings.

Over the past decade, the CDC&Elk has taken fish consistently on many waters and several continents. It is a pattern deceptive in its simplicity and versatility. From its beginning as a modified Elk-hair Caddis, it slipped into the slot as my go-to fly for a multitude of mayfly hatches, a general search pattern to cover hatchless periods, an emerger pattern, and a wet fly. [Click here for a 5-minute Windows Media video (12 MB) by Hans Weilenmann showing step-by-step how to tie the CDC&Elk. You must have Windows Media installed and have a broadband connection to the Internet to view this video. The Editor.]

Click to enlarge	Step 1: Select a properly sized (Type 1) CDC feather. The longest barbs should be approximately two times the hook shank length. Hold the butt of the CDC feather with the fingers/thumb of your left hand, and draw the feather between thumb and index finger of your right hand toward the tip, bunching the tips together. Tie in the bunch, butt pointing backwards over the hook bend. Tie the feather down with two tight turns of thread, then slip a third turn under the tips to force them upward and follow with a fourth turn over the tips, just forward of the third turn, to lock the CDC barbs in place. Spiral-wrap the thread forward to eye, then wrap back one touching turn away from the hook eye.
Click to enlarge	Step 2: Clamp the feather butt with hackle pliers and wind the CDC feather toward the eye in touching turns. The rear half of the body resembles a dubbed body, but as you progress toward the eye more and more free barbs will stand out. Stroke these back with each turn. With a little practice, you will learn to arrive at the hook eye with only the bare part of the stem left. Tie off the CDC feather with one or two tight turns of thread and unclip the hackle pliers. Do not trim yet. Tighten with another two turns of thread. The CDC butt will move with the thread, tightening further at the tie-off point. Trim the CDC butt.
Click to enlarge Best Deer Hair for CDC&Elk Uniform length, with straight, even tips Minimal underfur Short hair length, no more than twice the length of the section used for the wing Slight crinkle in the lower half of the hair is a good indicator of a choice! Finely pointed, undamaged tips Fairly steep taper to the hair, which allows me to produce the distinct, rounded head on the CDC&Elk Dark tip, with a light-colored band further down. A consistently excellent deer hair for this fly is available from Rocky Mountain Dubbing.	Step 3: Take a small amount of straight, fine-tipped mule deer hair. I look for undamaged tips with distinct coloration (dark tips with a lighter colored band further down the hair) and a fairly steep taper to the hair, which allows me to produce the distinct, rounded head on my CDC&Elk. Even the hair tips in a stacker. Position the bunch of hair on top of the hook parallel to the hook shank. Measure the tips so the wing will be long enough to just reach the back of the hook. Trim the butts square (perpendicular to the strands) with the front of the hook eye prior to tying in the wing. Tie down the wing with two tight wraps of thread over the hair stubs. Make a third wrap with the thread, through the stubs, at a 45 degree angle. A fourth wrap goes under the stubs. Complete the fly with a whip-finish under the stubs and a little varnish. Aim for a neatly rounded head.

Hans Weilenmann lives in the Netherlands, but visits the U.S. often for fly-tying demonstrations and shows. His website is www.danica.com/flytier/.

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