Northwest Fishing Reports

Many of us have heard of the venerable Squimp, a heavily weighted bonefish fly. To those that haven't it is essentially a shrimp pattern fly with weighted eyes and certain features that give it a pretty realistic look.

Obviously this is Washington, not the Florida Keys... and we have no bonefish here. What we do have is droves of shrimp eating saltwater fishes that will pounce on this type of offering on a whim. I'm mainly referring to Sea-Run Cutthroat and Resident Coho here, but also to be included are Bull Trout and various salmon species. Many people know that SRC's and Rezzies key in on baitfish such as chum and humpy fry when available. But, during times of the year such as the winter when such food sources are scarce, these fish turn largely on shrimp and other similar creatures to form the bulk of their diet. They still will eat these offerings alongside salmon fry, too.

Shrimp remain an important food source year round and certainly are worth hucking alongside various saltwater patterns.

So, enter the Sea-Run Squimp. Yes, there's plenty of shrimp patterns out there, but this one I really like. It looks great, has a ton of motion underwater, is easy and fun to tie, and of course is a design of my own which I take pride in. It maintains characteristics very similar to the original squimp but with some additions being made. Most notably, I remove the lead eyes and instead weigh the flies with lead free heavy wire. Tying:
Hook: Daiichi Saltwater, Size 6-10 (I prefer 8)
Feelers/Antennae: Bucktail/Deadly Dazzle
Claws: Rubber Legs
Underbody/Legs: Saddle Hackle
Shell/Carapace: Cut Rabbit fur or Marabou + some deadly dazzle sometimes
Weight: Heavy Wire

Have Fun!

I'll bet they work. Most of the shrimp patterns I've used have been a lot less, very spartan. Big bulging eyes slim body and a tiny bit trailing for the tail. I do like those, they just look a little bit dry.

Ian, what is the reason for removing the dumbbell eyes? If it is weight, a short 30 or 40lb mono can be heated at the tips with a bic lighter. Balls will form that cam be colored with a permanent black ink marker. Adds literally no weight but has great effect for a shrimp or squimp pattern.

I do like using bead chain for the shrimp eyes, enough weight to turn the hook upside down in the water, but not add as much weight as dumbbell eyes would.

Are your flies catching fish?

These flies have not been tested actually. I haven't been able to go and get them in front of cutts yet (yay for school), but seeing patterns like Carey's, Borden Specials and other similar shrimp i'll bet they do. As for the "dry" aspect... yes, they are fluffy and have hackle. I counter this by using generous amounts of heavy lead free wire. 8-10 turns along the shank of the hook, and they sink very well, almost as if lead eyes were attached. As for the eyes, yeah, I include them on some patterns using a similar method described. I honestly don't think it makes a huge difference: Cutts will hit anything that looks vaguely like their target prey. I don't know why I didn't include one with eyes in the picture, but I have several. Thanks for the questions and feedback everyone!

I'm sure Cutts in the salt are like any trout in still water, it's more the size and color than the pattern.