“I have always been fascinated by the process of designing flies based on imitating “what the fish sees.” One of my earliest forays in fly design is based on this premise. Years of guiding and fishing on my own taught me how much trout love that vulnerable stage of insect emergence between nymph and adult. With mayflies, one of the most striking features is the darkening of the wing case. A drop of epoxy coating the surface of a dark turkey tail slip and the POXYBACK series was born. Trout climbed all over these new nymphs with reckless abandon. They still do to this day!”
Mike Mercer Umpqua Signature Tyer
