Deer Hair Day with Chris Helm
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If you recall, the Ann Arbor Chapter of Trout Unlimited conducted their 3rd annual fundraising banquet this past April. A friend of mine was fortunate to be the winning bidder on a fly tying class generously donated to T.U. by Mr. Chris Helm, proprietor of Whitetail Fly Tying in Toledo, Ohio. Chris is widely recognized as a Master of Deer Hair - as the name of his business indicates, so we configured a full day of instruction all involving different uses and techniques involving Deer hair.
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| How's that for some excellent photography? I patiently wait for our host/instructor to turn his back before capturing the photo. Oh well - the class begins with a close-up video setup and occasional trips to the white board, Chris starts us out with some deer hair spinning techniques. Oh by the way - Chris's shop is extremely well stocked with pretty much everything you would ever need related to fly tying, so there is no fear of ever running out of a critical component. You can check out his on-line catalog at http://www.whitetailflytieing.com |
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Three members of the class hard at work with Stackers. Packers, Razors and Shears - all kind of fun toys for big boys. As usual, Richie is stealing his neighbors work - too bad the Sister Mary Frozen Holy Water isn't there to whack his knuckles with a ruler! |
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| Don't leave out the other side of the table! Al very carefully loads a big hook into the vise - knowing the agony of impalement from prior experiences in close proximity to Richie. |
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We take a slight detour to discuss the proper leader construction to turn a large Bass fly. The size and air resistance of these flies requires a much stiffer leader than typical trout files and Chris did a great job of mapping out the construction and intended results. |
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| Some things never change! Your humble rodmaker still acting up in class - trying to convince Richie to add a little Deer Hair jewelry to complete his fly fishing ensemble. All kidding aside, Chris did an outstanding job (in spite of his unruly students) and took us through a Bass Bug, classic Elk Hair Caddis, Gapen Muddler Minnow and Grey Wulff to round out our experience with many different deer hair techniques. A nice break for a wonderful lunch prepared by Mrs. Helm, even a little casting in the back yard - an all around swell day. |
| Thank You very much Chris for a great day and very generous contribution to Trout Unlimited! |