Skip Morris Searun Cutthroat Flies

The Yellow Raccoon

Skip Morris searun cutthroat flies...



...the Raccoon is Skip's standard choice for searun cutthroat, salmon and steelhead of the Pacific coast.

Searun Cutthroat, Salmon, and Steelhead Attractor Flies

Raccoons

(aka: BH Raccoon)

This is Skip's standard choice for searun cutthroat trout in both the rivers and salt water of the Pacific Coast—yellow is the standard, but the other colors are at times better.

Salmon in saltwater are also quick to grab a Raccoon. More and more Raccoons are fished for steelhead. When silver salmon gather at river mouths to stage before running up to spawn, a Raccoon (for reasons no one understands) can often turn fish when nothing else will.

Colors: Yellow, Pink, Red, Black

Sizes: 8, 6

Raccoon, Yellow

Raccoon, Yellow

Sizes: 8, 6

Raccoon, Pink

Raccoon, Pink

Sizes: 8, 6

Raccoon, Red

Raccoon, Red

Sizes: 8, 6

Raccoon, Black

Raccoon, Black

Sizes: 8, 6

Here's the BH Raccoon fly pattern (from Skip's book, Morris on Tying Flies):

• BEAD: Black, gold, copper, or silver in whatever size you like (I prefer gold and black, 5/8" for size-8 and -6 hooks.)
• HOOK: Heavy wire, 1X long (standard nymph hook), sizes 12 to 6.
• THREAD: Three-ought, 6-0, or 8-0 in the body's color (white thread for a pink body).
• TAIL: Grizzly hen-neck hackle-fibers.
• BODY: Black, red, pink, or yellow dubbing (chartreuse, cream, and orange are under investigation). The dubbing is rabbit blended with Lite Brite or Angel Hair (fine mylar strips) in silver, pearl, and a similar color to that of the rabbit. (Or Arizona Flyfishing's Sparkle Nymph Dubbing.)
• HACKLE: Undyed grizzly (regardless of body color) hen-neck hackle-fibers (Whiting's Soft Hackle is my favorite for large hooks).