Category: Blog Post

Summer is finally here and I for one am so excited to start fishing again. And now I can say I survived a nother school year! I hope you all have/having a amazing summer.Thank, you all so much for Bing a part of fly vault and I hope you catch some big fish!!!!

Hello and welcome to my weekly blog, my favorite spot for all things fly tying and fishing. I’m beyond thrilled to have you here and to be here myself, whether you’re an old pro with a trusty vise or a curious newbie ready to cast your first fly.

Before we dive into the colorful world of hooks, feathers, and fur, I want to share a bit about why this journey means so much to me—and why it might just mean something to you too.

You see, I’m not just a fly tyer or an angler; I’m a two-time combat wounded veteran. Life has thrown some pretty tough battles my way, but fly tying and fishing have been constants—my anchors, my therapy, and my joy in the chaos. Every feather tied, every gentle cast into the water is more than just a hobby. It’s a lifeline.

Fly tying is more than a craft. It’s a meditation. When I’m sitting at my vise, carefully selecting just the right materials to mimic nature’s finest insects, all the noise and stress from the battlefield fades away. The rhythm of the thread wrapping, the colors blending—it’s a kind of magic that puts me in a place where healing begins.

This journey led me to a remarkable milestone: serving as the Program Lead for Project Healing Waters in West Palm Beach, Florida. For those who might not know, Project Healing Waters is a nonprofit dedicated to the physical and emotional rehabilitation of disabled active military personnel and veterans through fly fishing and fly tying.

Leading this program has been one of the most rewarding chapters in my life. To see veterans, many of whom carry wounds you can’t see, find peace, purpose, and even camaraderie through fly tying and fishing—it’s nothing short of inspiring. We’re not just tying flies; we’re tying together stories, strength, and a shared love for the outdoors.

At FlyVault, you’ll find fly tying tutorials, recipes and advice all infused with the spirit of resilience and passion. Whether you’ve been tying for years or just starting to explore this craft, my hope is that FlyVault becomes a community—a vault of knowledge, inspiration, and friendship.

So stick around, tie a few flies with me, share your stories, and maybe even cast a line or two. Because here at FlyVault, every fly tells a story, and every story is worth sharing.

Tight lines and happy tying!

— Nic Young

Testing blog post functionality.

CJ

The easiest way to measure hackle is to fold the feather over the hook shank. Before you tie anything on your hook, grab your hackle feather by the tip in one hand and the butt in the other. Bend your feather over your hook pulling up on both the tip and the butt. The barbs will stick out away from the hook shank and you will be able to see how long they are. Kind of as a general rule, especially for a beginner, you want the length of the barbs to be one to one and a half times the width of the hook gap/gape. The gap is the distance between the point of the hook and hook shank directly above it. Sometimes wooly buggers have the hackle tied in at the head and wrapped back to the bend and then a wire rib wrapped over it to hold it in place. For a beginner, I would recommend tying the hackle feather in at the bend of the hook before tying in the body material (chenille, peacock herl) by the tip and then spiral wrapping the hackle feather to the eye (or in your case the bead) and tying it off with thread. A wooly bugger does not need a wire rib. When you tie in by the tip and wrap toward the eye, you will get a natural tapper because the barbs at the tip are generally shorter and the barbs at the but a little longer. That way your longer barbs are further away from the hook gap and less likely to crowd the gap.

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