Green Drake hackle colors

[drumat26]

I've been looking to expand my dry fly box for this upcoming year and wanted to start tying drakes. I looked at some patterns online but there are so many differences in hackle color. I was just wondering what color hackles I should be looking to buy to tie some green drakes up. I'm hoping to make my way up to penns this year for the hatch!

 

[lineman]

Most Eastern Green Drake patterns in the Catskill style call for cream badger or olive grizzly (or both mixed) for the hackle. Then if you consider extended body, parachute, or spinner (Coffin Fly), it changes. Comparadun: olive deer or elk hair. Spinner, parachute, and extended body: regular grizzly.

I wouldn't get too hung up on the recipes. If you just have regular grizzly or a grizzly variant, I would use those. There are really not any "rules" in my opinion. Most of the time the practical answer is to make reasonable substitutions, experiment, keep it fun and enjoyable. I don't believe the average trout is as intelligent as we give them credit for.

 

[NickR]

I use dyed yellow grizzly hackle. Works for me.

 

[govtmule]

Nick,
Which brand...spoon feed me here

 

[dryflyguy]

I mix ginger and grizzly, which is what most traditional green drake patterns call for.

Another very nice looking option would be a ginger cree neck. Although they're kinda rare. And if you do find one, it would likely be expensive

 

[Chaz]

I use 1 grizzly and 1 ginger hackle and wind them separately. As for wings I use natural wood duck flanks.

 

[afishinado]

When I first started tying flies, I studied and imitated fly patterns. Now, I look at patterns for ideas, but focus more on the insects themselves.

Below is a pic of a GD dun from Troutnut. You may want to look at the actual insect and tie a fly to imitate it. You have a lot of choices as to what style of fly to use:

Catskill
Comparadun
Parachute
etc.

You may consider an extended body since the GD is such a large mayfly.

I've tied all the above styles above. I probably fish the parachute and comparadun ties most, both traditional body and extended body.

Good luck