Did Lefty Kreh “invent” the famous “deceiver” in isolation with no other influences upon his creativity? No, even Lefty, like the rest of us, stood on the shoulders of previous generations of fly fishers to “improve” or “modify” some earlier efforts to lure fish into biting.

As far back as 200 A.D. Aeolian, a Greek author wrote of a speckled fish that would rise when he would “fasten red wool around a hook, and fix on to the wool two feathers that grow under a cock’s wattles, and which are in color like wax.” (The Longest Cast, p. 142.)

Nor was he likely the first to try fly-fishing. But everybody sought to improve upon his red wool and feathers. Countless anglers have toiled at the vise and many have had flies named after them. But to be honest, we all have had silent partners, mentors, coaches, and idea generators. We’ve looked at the pictures in the books and watched masters at the art of fly tying.

Flies, like people, have a lineage. “Killer flies” are a cooperative and cumulative effort. We owe a debt to those who went before us at those early vises. Who among us has not learned to tie an established pattern only to modify it “to our situation” on the next tries?

The good news is that Suncoast Fly Fishers is an incubator for such innovation and adaptation. We swap ideas and flies and talk incessantly about what works best in what sort of water. In the process of sharing and comparing, we rekindle the passion that draws us to water with fly rod in hand.

For those of you visiting our web page, we hope you enjoy what we’ve posted, and invite you to stop by one of our monthly meetings to take part in our wonderful past time!

Ken Hofmeister, President