Flash-A-Buggers

Kathy Bushnell at Rocky Ridge Ranch

There are many "wormy" looking creatures that live in aquatic environments. Most lakes and weedy streams have dense populations of leeches and aquatic worms. During much of the time they are buried in the substrate or bottom vegetation. However during low light conditions they often forage about where they are exposed to patrolling game fish. Trout and bass seek out these tender morsels and eat them like candy. This is especially true early in the spring before weeds start to grow. Flash-A-Buggers are your most important early season lake flies. If the water temperature is cold, they are most effective when fished slowly along the bottom with a sinking fly line. Flash-A-Buggers are also very important flies for fishing the steep, fast moving streams west of the Cascades.
Flash-a-Buggers simulate a number of game fish foods including large nymphs, leeches, crayfish and bait fish. They might be termed big "yummies". If you have the right size and color of Flash-a-Bugger, you can probably catch nearly every specie of fresh water predator-fish with it. Black, Peacock and Olive Flash-a-Buggers are the staple flies for early season lake fishing. As the water warms Brown and Maroon become equally effective. Black, Brown and Olive Flash-a-Buggers are productive for trout and Small Mouth Bass in all rivers, all year. They have proven most effective when fished deep with a sinking tip line. Possibly the single most effective summer steelhead fly on either side of the Cascades is the Purple Flash-a-Bugger.

Flash-A-Bugger, Black	Flash-A-Bugger, Olive	Flash-A-Bugger, Purple
Flash-A-Bugger, Blk/Olive		Flash-A-Bugger, Root Beer
Flash-A-Bugger, Maroon	Flash-A-Bugger, Peacock	Flash-A-Bugger, White

Rainbow Trout

The development of the Flash-A-Bugger can be traced to anglers such as Izaak Walton and Charles Cotton, who presented flies with palmered chicken hackle to fish in the rivers of 17th century Britain. Izaak Walton specifically mentions the Soldier Palmer in his well known book The Complete Angler, published 1653. In the modern era, palmered wet flies such as the Woolly Worm became very popular. In the 1960's & 70's nearly every fly fisher had several wooly worms in their fly box. When we opened our store in 1981, we carried wooly worms in four colors. Now the Wooly Worm has been replaced by the Wooly Bugger or the even more popular Flash-A-Bugger.

The Woolly Bugger is attributed to Russell Blessing of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, who added a marabou tail to a Wooly Worm to represent a Dobsonfly larva. The probable date is around 1967.

In the 1980's, Umpqua Feather Merchants started marketing a variation of the Wooly Bugger called the Flash-A-Bugger. This fly has a lateral line of Flashabou tied along the sides of the body and extending down the sides of the marabou tail. The Flash-A-Bugger has virtually replaced the Wooly Bugger in nearly everyone's fly collection. It is is tied in many colors and sizes.

The Flash-A-Bugger is one of the most popular streamers in use today to represent a wide range of aquatic organisms such as, leeches, baitfish, tadpoles, damselfly larvae, dragonfly larvae and crayfish. It has been used on a wide variety of fresh water fish such as, trout, bass, panfish, pike, steelhead and salmon. It has also caught bonefish and tarpon.

Flash-A-Bugger, Black This is the number one early season fly for most lakes. It is proven productive for both trout and bass. It is also a very good option for summer steelhead, especially during low water periods
Item	Description	Size	Price	To Top
11800-04	Flash-A-Bugger, Black	4	3 for $5.25	Sale Over
11800-06	Flash-A-Bugger, Black	6	3 for $5.25	Sale Over
11800-08	Flash-A-Bugger, Black	8	3 for $5.25	Sale Over
11800-10	Flash-A-Bugger, Black	10	3 for $5.25	Sale Over

Flash-A-Bugger, Black/Olive This may be the number two most proven lake fly and can be number one at times. It can be fished fast or slow. Vary your retrieve until you find the magic formula.
Item	Description	Size	Price	To Top
11802-04	Flash-A-Bugger, Black/Olive	4	3 for $5.25	Sale Over
11802-08	Flash-A-Bugger, Black/Olive	8	3 for $5.25	Sale Over

Flash-A-Bugger, Maroon The blood leech may exist only in angler's fantasies, but this is still a very productive fly in many kinds of lakes and ponds. It is often very productive if fished very slowly with a floating line and very long leader so that the fly hovers just above the bottom.
Item	Description	Size	Price	To Top
11804-04	Flash-A-Bugger, Maroon	4	3 for $5.25	Sale Over
11804-06	Flash-A-Bugger, Maroon	6	3 for $5.25	Sale Over
11804-08	Flash-A-Bugger, Maroon	8	3 for $5.25	Sale Over

Flash-A-Bugger, Olive A wise man once said that if you want to catch trout from alkaline lakes your best fly would be an inch long & green. In some lakes and rivers an inch and a half long and green is an even better option. This is a must have fly no mater where you fish in fresh water.
Item	Description	Size	Price	To Top
11888-04	Flash-A-Bugger, Olive	4	3 for $5.25	Sale Over Sale Over
11888-06	Flash-A-Bugger, Olive	6	3 for $5.25	Sale Over
11888-08	Flash-A-Bugger, Olive	8	3 for $5.25	Sale Over
11888-10	Flash-A-Bugger, Olive	10	3 for $5.25	Sale Over

Flash-A-Bugger, Peacock This is a very good early season fly for many lakes which contain trout or large mouth bass. Troll is slowly across the bottom.
Item	Description	Size	Price	To Top
11899-04	Flash-A-Bugger, Peacock	4	3 for $5.25	Sale Over
11899-06	Flash-A-Bugger, Peacock	6	3 for $5.25	Sale Over
11899-08	Flash-A-Bugger, Peacock	8	3 for $5.25	Sale Over

Flash-A-Bugger, Purple Possibly the single most effective summer steelhead fly on either side of the Cascades is the Purple Flash-a-Bugger. It is best when fished deep with a sinking tip line.
Item	Description	Size	Price	To Top
11900-04	Flash-A-Bugger, Purple	4	3 for $5.25	Sale Over
11900-06	Flash-A-Bugger, Purple	6	3 for $5.25	Sale Over
11900-08	Flash-A-Bugger, Purple	8	3 for $5.25	Sale Over

Flash-A-Bugger, Root Beer This color is very productive in both lakes and streams. Many alkaline lakes have dense populations of leeches that are this color. They seem to be most active as the water begins to warm in the spring. This is also productive in rivers where trout eat Sculpins and crayfish
Item	Description	Size	Price	To Top
11905-04	Flash-A-Bugger, Root Beer	4	3 for $5.25	Sale Over
11905-06	Flash-A-Bugger, Root Beer	6	3 for $5.25	Sale Over
11905-08	Flash-A-Bugger, Root Beer	8	3 for $5.25	Sale Over
11905-10	Flash-A-Bugger, Root Beer	10	3 for $5.25	Sale Over

Flash-A-Bugger, White This is a deadly fly anywhere predator fish eat minnows. Trout, land locked salmon, bass and crappies are a few of the fresh water fish that are regularly caught with this fly. It is often best when retrieved at high speed.
Item	Description	Size	Price	To Top
11906-06	Flash-A-Bugger, White	6	3 for $5.25	Sale Over

Bass aren't the only fish that eat Flash-a-buggers...

The weather doesn't always cooperate. Everyone else had quit fishing. They were huddled in small groups behind the van or in the pontoon boat trailer to get out of the ferocious wind that turned the center of the lake into white-caps. Dust blew and weeds flew. Fishing from a float tube was out of the question. No one could kick and hold themselves against this wind. Determined to beat the odds, I found it easy to wade the shallow edge of the lake and roll cast down wind. My third cast enticed a nice bass to inhale the fly, a size eight Damsel Bugger presented with a short stout leader attached to the end of a five-weight floating line. The slow deliberate coverage of a hundred yards of shoreline brought several more very nice largemouths to the hand, but only between the major gusts. When the surface was bouncing around, the bass sulked. It took twenty

shots into a tiny cove in a shore-line grass-bed to produce the best one. You know it was watching the fly every cast, but struck when the water surface calmed. Largemouth bass can be moody any time, but especially in foul weather.
Bead Head Damsel Buggers are a universal on most any lakes. I suppose the originator thought they might look like a damsel fly nymph. However damsel fly nymphs are skinny. This fly is fairly robust and looks more like a dragon fly nymph. maybe it should have been called a Dragon Bugger.

Patty was in the water first and was clear to the other side of the lake when I finally got organized. She called me on her walky-talky, exclaiming that she had a really nice trout. A couple more fell for her #10 Bead Head Black Wooly Bugger before she reached the other end of the lake. That was while the wind was only fifteen to twenty miles per hour. I tried her tactic, and several bass were seduced by it before the wind made us park our boats. Using the same line and same flies, she caught only trout, I caught only bass.

		Bead Head Flash-A-Bugger, Black If you had only one fly pattern for all freshwater species in North America it might be this one in the sizes listed here. We know that rainbow trout, cutthroat trout, red band trout, brown trout, brook trout, dolly varden, steelhead, coho, chinooks, large mouth bass, small mouth bass and rocky mountain white fish have all been taken on this fly pattern.
Item	Description	Size	Price	To Top
9002-04	Bead Head Flash-A-Bugger, Black	4	3 for $5.25	Sale Over
9002-06	Bead Head Flash-A-Bugger, Black	6	3 for $5.25	Sale Over
9002-08	Bead Head Flash-A-Bugger, Black	8	3 for $5.25	Sale Over
9002-10	Bead Head Flash-A-Bugger, Black	10	3 for $5.25	Sale Over

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Flash-A-Buggers	Bead Head Flash-A-Buggers	Bead Head Krystal Buggers
Bead Head Leeches	Rattle Buggers	SLF Leeches

Bead Head Damsel Bugger	Bead Head Flash-A-Bugger, Olive
Bead Head Flash-A-Bugger, Black	Bead Head Flash-A-Bugger, Orange
Bead Head Flash-A-Bugger, Brown	Flash-A-Bugger, Red & Hot Pink
Flash-A-Bugger, Chartreuse & Fushia	Bead Head Flash-A-Bugger, Purple

Model	#1	#1.5	#2	#3	#4
Width (spool):	.90"	.90"	.95"	1.00"	1.10"
Diameter:	3.00"	3.125"	3.25"	3.50"	3.75"
Weight:	4.5 oz.	4.6 oz.	4.7 oz.	5.2 oz.	6.0 oz.
Line Weight:	2-4wt.	3-5wt.	4-6wt.	5-7wt.	7-9wt.
Capacity:	WF3+75	WF4+100	WF5+125	WF6+175	WF8+200
Reel price:	$245.00	$255.00	$265.00	$285.00	$305.00
Spool price:	$130.00	$135.00	$140.00	$150.00	$160.00
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		Bead Head Damsel Bugger If you had only one wet fly pattern to fish weedy bottom lakes, this could be it. It is the same general color and shape of many aquatic trout foods including damsel fly nymphs, dragon fly nymphs and leeches. It is also the general coloration of several species of small fish, including baby bass. Very slow retrieves are proven when the water is cold. During warm water periods try a faster jerky retrieve.
Item	Description	Size	Price	To Top
99303-08	Bead Head Damsel Bugger	8	3 for $5.25	Sale Over
99303-12	Bead Head Damsel Bugger	12	3 for $5.25	Sale Over

		Bead Head Flash-A-Bugger, Brown This has been a very successful pattern for mud bottom reservoirs, but also is very productive in weedy rivers and lakes. Brown can be a good color for early spring fishing in lakes before aquatic weeds start to grow.
Item	Description	Size	Price	To Top
9003-06	Bead Head Flash-A-Bugger, Brown	6	3 for $5.25	Sale Over
9003-10	Bead Head Flash-A-Bugger, Brown	10	3 for $5.25	Sale Over

		Bead Head Flash-A-Bugger, Chartreuse & Fushia Bright colors are often the ticket for roe eating anadromous fish. Pacific salmon, steelhead and char will often attack brightly colored flies. Bright colors can be most productive way to go during cold water periods. This fly has accounted for winter and summer steelhead.
Item	Description	Size	Price	To Top
9004-04	Bead Head Flash-A-Bugger, Chartreuse & Fushia	4	3 for $5.25	Sale Over

		Bead Head Flash-A-Bugger, Olive A universal fly that has caught a wide variety of fresh water game fish (Worldwide?). This is a favorite starting fly for many lake fishermen and also works well in rivers. Some experienced lake anglers say any fly is good as long as it is an inch long & green & moved slowly along the bottom.
Item	Description	Size	Price	To Top
9005-04	Bead Head Flash-A-Bugger, Olive	4	3 for $5.25	Sale Over
9005-08	Bead Head Flash-A-Bugger, Olive	8	3 for $5.25	Sale Over
9005-10	Bead Head Flash-A-Bugger, Olive	10	3 for $5.25	Sale Over

		Bead Head Flash-A-Bugger, Orange Orange flies are very effective for steelhead throughout their geographic range. This color seems most successful during winter months.
Item	Description	Size	Price	To Top
9006-04	Bead Head Flash-A-Bugger, Orange	4	3 for $5.25	Sale Over

		Bead Head Flash-A-Bugger, Red & Hot Pink Red is often the most reliable color for steelhead in bright sun and clear water conditions.
Item	Description	Size	Price	To Top
9010-04	Bead Head Flash-A-Bugger, Red & Hot Pink	4	3 for $5.25	Sale Over

		Bead Head Flash-A-Bugger, Purple Universal steelhead fly. Most proven during summer months east of the Cascade Mountains.
Item	Description	Size	Price	To Top
9012-04	Bead Head Flash-A-Bugger, Purple	4	3 for $5.25	Sale Over