• Hook: TMC 5262 or 5263, size 4-8
• Thread: White 6/0
• Eyes: Orvis Mirage eyes, secured over gold dumbbell eyes with epoxy
• Body: Peacock herl, grey bucktail, clear iceabou, and white bucktail (top to bottom)
• Head: Clear-drying 5 minute epoxy

    The Whitefish Clouser was shown to me by a friend who guides on waters close to Dillon, MT. He tied the fly to be used as both weight and as an attractor when nymphing in waters that held a large whitefish population. After a few months he noticed that most of the large fish his clients were catching had actually eaten the Whitefish Clouser instead of the smaller, more imitative nymph that trailed it. I have had a lot of success with this fly all over the West in both rivers and stillwaters. I am particularly fond of it in high water, either during spring runoff or when fishing a tailwater just after flows have been raised. An added bonus to this fly is that it rides hook point up so it is far less likely to snag the bottom than a fly that rides hook point down. The epoxy head helps the fly sink to the bottom quickly and gives the fly the durability needed to stand up to sharp teeth of numerous big fish. Because of the epoxy head, the fly is best tied on a rotary vise. Try dead drifting a Whitefish Clouser next time you find yourself in a river loaded with whitefish and see if you can entice a large trout to take advantage of an easy meal.

1. Start your thread and secure the gold dumbbell eyes on top of the hook shank 2-3 eye lengths back from the hook eye with several figure 8 wraps.

2.  Wrap your thread behind the eyes and tie in a clump of white bucktail on top of the hook shank. The clump should be about 1/3 as wide as the gape of the hook. Make 1-2 loose wraps of thread over the bucktail and then 1-2 tight wraps so the bucktail flares slightly.
3.  Wrap your thread back securing the bucktail to mid-shank

4.  Rotate your vise 180 degrees and wrap your thread back to just behind the dumbbell eyes
5.  Tie in 6-7 strands of clear Iceabou onto what is now the top of the hook
6.  Tie in a clump of grey bucktail about half the size of the white bucktail clump, in the same way you tied in the white bucktail so the tips of both pieces line up.

7.  Tie in 8-10 strands of peacock herl on top of the grey bucktail and then wrap your thread forward so that it sits in front of the dumbbell eyes.
8.  Whip finish and cut the thread
9.  Mix a small amount of 5 minute epoxy and secure the dazzle eyes on either side of the dumbbell eyes and let them dry for about 5 minutes.
10.  Mix another batch of epoxy and apply to the head with a toothpick or bodkin. If you’re using a rotary vise, rotate the hook around while applying the epoxy and a few times while it is setting up to ensure it dries perfectly round.

Tying Notes

     The width of grey bucktail and peacock herl together should be equal to the width of the white bucktail. Take care to not make the body so thick that it impedes the natural movement of the bucktail in the water. Also, the original recipe for this fly called for the use of Mirage eyes secured onto regular gold dumbbell eyes, so that is the way I have tied it here. However, you can skip this time-consuming step by using dumbbell eyes that already have pupils painted on them such as Real Eyes from Spirit River.