The second easiest fly to tie

Basic San Juan Worm

Hook: TMC 2457,

sizes 6-10

Thread: 3/0, color to

match body

Body: Red ultra chenille

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First, the San Juan Worm is the second easiest fly to tie on which I’ve ever consistently caught trout.

The easiest? Years ago, someone told me you could catch Duck Lake trout, through the ice, with just a piece of pipe cleaner wrapped on a treble hook.

Anyway, back to “da Worm.” If you wanna play the “purist card” and look down your snooty nose at those of us who use “da Worm,” just because you don’t consider it a “fly,” fine with me. In the past 10 years, half the trout I’ve fooled on the “Mo” have taken “da Worm.”

And even anglers without fly tying equipment can tie a couple of square knots to secure the ultra chenille to a hook, add small drops of Super Glue and go fishin’.

Ultra chenille, also known as micro chenille or vernille, is smaller and denser than regular chenille. I still prefer red, but other popular colors include tan, pink and green.

And while the basic body is chenille laid over a thread-wrapped hook shank, some tyers wrap the hook with color-matching wire, holographic tinsel or even a bead or two.

And if you think fish will shy away from your blunt-end worm, back the tip close to a lighted match and it will taper.

The most effective way to fish “da Worm” is to allow it to bounce along the bottom of the stream, just like a naturally dislodged worm.

The only negative associated with this fly is that with repeated casting, the chenille “hinges” at both ends of the hook. If the hinge is major, I just strip the hook with a razor blade and tie in new chenille. If the hinging isn’t so bad, I apply a drop of Bish’s Original Tear Mender (available at Jo-Ann Fabrics and Crafts).

A fly that’s cheap, easy to tie, and catches fish. What’s not to like about “da Worm?”