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Streamside Imitations by J Deshefy Jr, Hunterdon County, NJ (2026)

05/27/2026

Just uploaded the full tying video for the “Steak, Eggs, and Legs” to YouTube, a pattern that really represents modern Great Lakes steelhead fly design by combining multiple trigger points into one highly effective fly.

While it carries the profile of a stonefly nymph, it also incorporates the attraction of an egg pattern along with the constant movement of rubber legs and soft materials that come alive in the current. Rather than perfectly imitating one food source, this fly fishes more as a suggestive attractor, something steelhead instinctively react to especially throughout the Fall and Winter months on systems like the Salmon River.

For this particular tie, I used a TMC 7999, one of the classic salmon and steelhead hooks that has remained a staple for larger nymphs and attractor patterns for years. Modern alternatives like the Daiichi 2451 and Alec Jackson Steelhead Iron also work extremely well, while older classics like the Mustad 9672 and vintage Partridge salmon irons still fish beautifully for flies like this.

Blue and pink have always been one of my confidence combinations because it creates strong contrast while still maintaining that egg-trigger effect, but purple, chartreuse, orange, blue, and red variations can all be extremely productive depending on water conditions and light levels.

At the end of the day, this fly isn’t about elegance, it is about movement, visibility, profile, and triggering reactions from winter steelhead.

And it flat-out works! 🎣

05/26/2026

Going in a little different direction lately just to break up the daily routine and challenge myself to tie at least one new pattern a day.

This one was inspired by the classic peacock-bodied wet flies and spiders of England and Scotland, patterns designed less around exact imitation and more around movement, silhouette, and life in the water.

Tied on a vintage Mustad 9672 size 14 with peacock herl, small oval French gold tinsel, and a speckled brown hackle used for both the tail and collar. Simple materials, but definitely not a simple fly to tie correctly.

The more I work with these traditional wet flies, the more I realize how much they expose proportions and technique. There’s nowhere to hide with sparse patterns like this. It took me several attempts before I finally tied one that felt balanced and presentable.

Honestly, it’s been a refreshing change of pace from production tying, slowing down, studying older patterns and appreciating how effective simplicity can really be.

Fun fact… Many years ago when I traveled for work, I landed in EWR and on my way to baggage claim, I met Vincent(Alice Cooper) and we chatted for a few minutes. A very down to earth man.

05/25/2026

Today I took a little time away from production tying to reset and refocus. I’m currently working through a pretty large order for a buddy heading to Alaska this Summer and sometimes the best thing you can do is step away for a minute and challenge yourself with something completely outside your comfort zone.

For me, dry flies have always been that challenge.

I picked up Pheasant Tail Simplicity and tied the Mayfly Spinner on page 117 using a vintage Mustad 94859 in a size 16 just to make things a little more interesting.

Super simple materials, but honestly this was more about slowing down and focusing on proportions, hackle control, thread management, and not crowding the eye. The more I tie these styles of flies, the more I realize how much precision really matters.

Definitely seeing areas where I can improve already, but that’s the whole point. There’s always another level to chase in fly tying, and I’m looking forward to going down this rabbit hole a lot deeper.

Be safe out there today! 🇺🇸

05/24/2026

It’s been a long time since I’ve really sat down and worked with deer hair, and when I say a long time… I mean a long time. So with this one, I’m giving myself a little grace while also critiquing it honestly as a tier.

This X-Caddis was inspired by the pattern featured in Pheasant Tail Simplicity, and after seeing what unfolded on the river last night, I figured it was time to revisit it.

The hatch was incredible. Sulphurs, March Browns, caddis and everything in between from big size 10 bugs down to tiny size 22s dancing over the water. Fish weren’t really committing on top though. Most of the feeding was happening in the film and just underneath it. Emerger game.

I cycled through a few patterns before tying on the X-Caddis… and that’s when the night changed for the better.

That’s what makes the X-Caddis such a deadly fly this time of year. It rides low in the surface film, imitating vulnerable emerging caddis adults that haven’t fully escaped the water yet. Fish key in on that helpless transition stage hard during spring and early summer hatches.

One thing I’ve always appreciated about the pattern is its simplicity:
• sparse trailing shuck,
• dubbed body,
• deer or elk hair wing,
• and just enough silhouette to suggest life.

Color variations can be as simple as:
• tan,
• olive,
• amber,
• sulfur yellow,
• even darker gray or brown tones depending on local hatches.

Sometimes the simplest flies end up being the most effective.

Definitely room for refinement on this tie, but after watching fish respond to it last night, I remembered very quickly why the X-Caddis earned its reputation. 🎣

05/19/2026

One of the aspects of fly fishing and fly tying that keeps me endlessly fascinated is studying the river beyond just catching fish. Throughout the year I collect and document aquatic insect specimens — photographing them, preserving them, labeling them by season and watershed, and returning year after year to observe how the ecosystem changes over time.

These images feature a mix of golden stoneflies, stripetail/perlodid-type stoneflies, smaller winter stonefly varieties, and even a free-living green caddis larva — all important components of a healthy river system and all insects that influence the flies I tie at the vise. Some are predators, some are crawlers, some are seasonal indicators, but all of them help tell the story of the water.

Entomology has always been a major part of fly fishing and fly tying for me. To what degree someone chooses to study it is personal preference, but understanding aquatic insects and their behavior adds an entirely different level of appreciation to the sport. I’m constantly learning through field observation, books, references, and time spent on the water studying these insects firsthand.

The more time spent observing life beneath the surface, the more creativity and realism finds its way into the patterns at the vise.

For me, this is just as much a part of fly fishing as the cast itself.

Stay cool out there today!

05/18/2026

The heat has officially arrived here in Western New Jersey. It was warm yesterday, even hotter today, and the next couple days are looking well above normal. Water temps are climbing, flows are dropping, and for me that means putting trout fishing on hold for now.

One of my favorite local rivers is running super low. The water is still cool, but it’s definitely starting to warm up. So instead of fishing, I decided to spend some time exploring the river and checking in on the trout food. The river was loaded with life, all kinds of subsurface trout candy tucked into the rocks and riffles.

Honestly, this stuff is just as important as the fishing itself. Seeing the insects firsthand tells the story of the river, what’s healthy, what’s hatching, and what the trout are really keyed in on when conditions improve again.

Hopefully the forecast sticks and we actually get some considerable rain Thursday into the upcoming weekend. Around here it always seems to show up in the forecast and then fizzle out before it ever arrives. The good news is that cooler temperatures are finally on the horizon, so we’ll see what happens. For now, observation mode feels like the right move.

05/18/2026

Tonight’s tie was a little departure from my standard Iron Mike.

The Iron Mike is one of those underrated modern utility streamers that grew out of the steelhead and migratory trout scene, designed more around movement, durability, and triggering reaction strikes than strict imitation. Unlike classics such as the Mickey Finn or the Blacknose Dace, the Iron Mike is a simple but highly effective pattern that fishes well in rivers, lakes, ponds, reservoirs, and bigger systems alike.

For larger water like the Delaware River and the Salmon River, I usually tie them in size 4’s,6’s and 8’s (always in 3 sizes) my local trout streams get 8s and 10s depending on flow and conditions.

Tonight I wanted to experiment a little while keeping the traditional Iron Mike foundation intact, so I tied this one in a rainbow trout-inspired color scheme using light olive mallard flank and subtle flash for extra movement and life in the water. Tied on a vintage Mustad & Son 3399A sproat hook size 7.

One of the best things about patterns like this is they don’t need to be complicated to be effective. Durable, adaptable, easy to tie, and they flat-out catch fish.

05/17/2026

Been a pretty solid week on the water and around the fly fishing community. For the last month or so, I’ve been tracking a bald eagle along the river on my daily hike hoping to eventually capture the moment it swoops down and takes a trout. Yesterday was probably the closest I’ve gotten as trout were actively rising, the eagle was perched above the river locked in on them and everything looked lined up perfectly… then my phone battery died. 😥 Looks like an external power source is officially getting added to the pack for future hikes. Still, it was incredible just watching that eagle sitting high above the river, eyeing the trout below. Nature doesn’t get much better than that!

Today was also Trout Fest in California, NJ, and absolutely knocked it out of the park once again! Had the chance to talk with a ton of younger anglers getting into fly fishing and fly tying, young adults diving deeper into the sport, and even a few conventional anglers making the jump to a fly rod. That’s always great to see.

I shared a table with Tom from the Trout Unlimited North Jersey chapter and had some really good conversations throughout the day about fly fishing, fly tying, conservation, and everything in between. Great crowd, perfect weather, and another successful year all around. Huge hats off to everyone involved!

05/15/2026

A few nights ago while I was fly fishing at Round Valley Reservoir, a place where 99 out of 100 anglers are usually throwing conventional gear, a guy walked over curious about what I was using. I was the oddball out there with a fly rod, but I was into fish consistently enough that it caught his attention.

We got talking, and he said he’d honestly never really considered bringing a fly rod to Round Valley before, but after seeing the action, he was starting to rethink that. He asked if I could tie him up something in a color combination he’s always had confidence in: dark olive and orange.

I told him right away, “Easy, I’ll tie you a Mega Prince in that color scheme.” Deal made.

Truthfully, I don’t think you can go wrong with a dark olive and orange combination for either largemouth or smallmouth this time of year. It has that perfect mix of natural tone and trigger color. With the water warming up and the bass becoming more active along structure and transition zones, it feels like the right time for him to give the fly rod a real shot out there

05/14/2026

What a year it has been. Yesterday officially marked the end of PT, my last session after one solid year of rehab. What started with left distal bicep tendon surgery turned into recovering from a full right shoulder reconstruction and bicep tendon repair as well. A long road filled with pain, setbacks, frustration, and a whole lot of work, but also a reminder of what persistence can do.

So tonight I did what felt right to celebrate, headed to the Bermuda Triangle of New Jersey, Round Valley Reservoir, to keep the rehab going the best way I know how,
in the water with a fly rod in hand.
What a year it has been. Yesterday officially marked the end of PT — my last session after one solid year of rehab. What started with left distal bicep tendon surgery turned into recovering from a full right shoulder reconstruction and bicep tendon repair as well. A long road filled with pain, setbacks, frustration, and a whole lot of work, but also a reminder of what persistence can do.

So tonight I did what felt right to celebrate — headed to the Bermuda Triangle of New Jersey, Round Valley Reservoir, to keep the rehab going the best way I know how, hitting the water with a fly rod in hand.

There’s something fitting about recovery happening outdoors. After a year of rebuilding strength and mobility, being able to cast again, feel comfortable under the weight of a rod, and simply enjoy being out there is something I don’t take for granted. Some victories don’t look huge from the outside, but they mean everything when you know what it took to get there.

05/08/2026

Decided to hit the water for a couple hours this evening and brought both the 5-weight and 8-weight to the Bermuda Triangle of New Jersey, aka Round Valley Reservoir. This was my third trip there this week. Sometimes you just feel like casting a fly rod at a reservoir, and tonight it paid off.

Brought a beautiful rainbow trout to hand on the Mega Prince that I recently uploaded to the YouTube channel. I swear that fly can catch just about any species anywhere.

Also had a great conversation with Officer O’Connolly tonight. Really glad to see the park rangers not only checking licenses, but actually taking the time to talk with people and be present around the reservoir.

Overall, just a really good night, and the shoulder is handling the double hauls and Belgium casting well while presenting a variety of different fly patterns and retrieves

Streamside Imitations by J Deshefy Jr

05/27/2026

05/26/2026

05/25/2026

05/24/2026

05/19/2026

05/18/2026

05/18/2026

05/17/2026

05/15/2026

05/14/2026

05/08/2026

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