Jeff “Bear” Andrews may tell you about his biggest fly tying challenge, but it won’t be the 24- or 48-hour charity tie-a-thons he is
known for, events which raise money for conservation causes. If the moment is right next weekend, when the inaugural Celebration of Fly Tying show debuts in Wyoming, the renowned and unassuming Grand Ledge fly tier may share a unique story — that of tying a fly using the hair of his late friend, Frank Smoot, of Maryland. Andrews, a professional fly designer with Umpqua Feather Merchants, was tying a pattern for a memorial fundraiser for Smoot. Both had been active with the Brotherhood of the Junglecock, the non-profit organization that works to get youth out fishing. “Frank’s hair was the hardest material. It was like twisting steel wool,” Andrews said. “We did a fly off his nickname — the Gray Wolf — using Frank’s hair for a body and Junglecock feather for the wings. It didn’t cast very well, but it looked very good.” So it is with professional fly tiers and designers, the unabashed purveyors of piscine dreams. They are yarn spinners. Hope is their foundation. Those who elevate the craft of spinning feather and fur around a hook to an art form often capture the imagination of die-hard anglers and hardened cynics. That’s what organizers plan to show the public next weekend when 30 Midwest fly tiers display their works and demonstrate new tying techniques. “These tiers will be there to just share their skills and the art and lore of fly tying,” said Dennis Potter, a Grand Rapids area fly designer for Rainy’s fly company and one of the event organizers.
Tiers will present patterns using large-screen TVs to show each step in high-definition detail. Show-goers can mix and mingle with them, sit down and learn just how it gets done.