Tied by Paul J. Beel
The Martinez Black Nymph was designed by Don Martinez back in the 1940s. It was without a doubt the dominate nymph of the era. Mr. Martinez ran a fly shop in the West Yellowstone area. Pat Barnes worked for Don Martinez after he graduated from college and according to Pat, Don upgraded his skills considerably. Pat had this to say about the Martinez Black Nymph.
“Fishing and fly tying became my hobbies throughout my school days, including college. Like others of that time and place, I primarily tied and fished with standard wet fly patterns: Grey Hackles, Black Gnats, Royal Coachmen, or various streamers.
But after watching a fisherman catch twelve fish in quick succession on a Martinez Nymph, I became a nymph tier. The Martinez Nymph, named after an accomplished fly tier, friend, and West Yellowstone tackle dealer of the late 1930s, is still one of my favorite nymphs.”
The Martinez Black Nymph inspired Pat to design his own effective nymph pattern. You can find out more about that in a previous post here on FrankenFly.
Hook: Mustad 3906B size 12 (between 8-14 will work)
Thread: Veevus black 16/0
Tail: Spirit River Guinea – natural
Rib: copper wire
Thorax: black chenille
Wingcase: Spirit River Swiss Straw – insect green
Body: black dubbing – original was black seal fur
Hackle: Nature’s Spirit Partridge – natural
