Fly of the Month: Christmas Tree

Video Description:

Follow the step-by-step guide with TFF Editor Steve Cullen and tie The Christmas Tree

The Christmas Tree lure is certainly aptly named – just look at it! It is well thought out, though, combining three key, very popular fly dressing colours of black, red and, finally, that lovely fluorescent green. This wonderful concoction of colours and materials has proved itself through the years, especially at venues like Rutland Water. The guys credited with bringing the fly to the masses were the Dunns, a father and son duo from Chesterfield. Steve Parton was also a big fan of the fly but in a tandem version – a big, bulky fly that had a great profile and was quite a hit with the trout in the Midlands’ reservoirs.

This really is the epitome of the modern stillwater lure, even though it uses quite old materials – certainly in dressing terms – but the floss, chenille and marabou marry together well to produce a very deadly lure. It can be fished on a variety of sinking lines; use a jerky retrieve to get the marabou pulsing.