Pheasant Tails

I've always loved hitting the Poudre with Pheasant Tail nymphs.  I seem to have great success with them, which is probably why I've never taken the time to try and learn how to tie them.

In keeping with my pledge for the season to fish only the flies that I tie myself, I bit the bullet and stopped by St. Pete's for some supplies and some advice.  The gracious folks there were generous with both, and wished me luck as I headed home after work.

I'm happy to report that I think it's a fly I can master with some practice.  I can see from the photo that I probably went overboard on the thorax with the peacock fibers, and there's probably too many fibers for the tail, but I'm reasonably happy with it.  I used some red wire rather than copper - I like the way it looks - but otherwise it's a standard pattern.

Despite the waters running so heavy right now, I don't see myself being able to stay landlocked for too long.  If I can drag one of these down deep and get the drift right, hopefully I can avoid the runoff doldrums.

UPDATE, 5/20/10:

OK, hopefully we're getting closer on these.