From The Weekly Fly:
“According to his mother, Dave began fishing with an actual fly while backpacking in Idaho’s Sawtooth Mountains. Such trips were an inspiration for Dave. Returning home, he would scrounge materials and begin tying. This teenage hobby continued after high school as Dave perfected his famous patterns. Teaming with Ken McGee and others, Dave began commercial fly tying in 1977. In addition to owning a Boise fly shop for seventeen years, his efforts and skill earned international awards for his exceptional flies. The accolades continued in another facet of Dave’s involvement with fishing, as he has guided senators, ambassadors, media personnel, entertainers and hundreds of “everyday anglers.” In yet another direction, Dave attended Mel Kreiger’s famous casting school and was certified Fly Fishing Federation Flycasting Instructor. The list goes on: Dave has studied fly casting under Joan Wulff, worked with school districts to develop fishing programs, and mastered single-handed and spey casting. If it involves flies and fish, Dave has done it.
After departing from the retail venue of fly fishing, Dave met and married fellow fly fisherwoman, Rhonda Price, due to popular demand they began their guiding operation, “Dreams on the Fly”. Combining their love of the sport, as well as the passion for sharing the sport with others, they guide people from all over the world on the Grande Ronde, Owyhee and numerous other rivers considered Blue Ribbon waters of the west. Featured in Forbes magazine as one the the premier guides in the Northwest, they primarily guide for steelhead, brown and rainbow trout, and small mouth bass. Dreams on the Fly specializes in daily, 3 and 5 day float trips with an emphasis on offering the customer an experience of a lifetime. “You just need to have your waders and boots and we’ll take care of the rest”.”
Materials list:
Hook: Daiichi #2051
Thread: Orange 8/0 Uni Thread
Body: Pink Wool
Ribbing: Fine Oval Silver Tinsel
Hackle: Hot Orange Schlappen
Throat Hackle: Purple Mallard Flank
Wing: 4 Shrimp Orange Neck Hackles tied back to back
The combination of colors in the Winter Spey, has proven to be a winner on the bright cold days of winter. Fish the Winter Spey close to the bottom in large sizes 3/0 and 1.5.
