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sefly.com
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Permit Flies
What Flies are Florida Key Guides |
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There are not many silver
bullets in the world of saltwater fly fishing, that one magical pattern
that transforms a fishery. The one big exception to this statement
has to be the Merkin Crab. Prior to Del Brown's introduction of this pattern, fly fishing for
permit was primarily "cast and strip", and a refusal rates as high as 80 % was
generally expected. With the development of the Merkin, it was now within the realm of reasonable possibilities that a skilled caster could regularly expect to take permit on flies. Looking through saltwater pattern books and retail catalogs, one could easily conclude fly tying techniques have left the simple Merkin fly back in the dark ages. There are indeed a multitude of innovative and very realistic crab patterns available to permit anglers. Which ones should be in your fly box ? Not wishing to prejudice their answers, I asked the guys who are out there day after day, one simple question: " What is your preference in permit fly patterns ? "
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 "Permit
fly design has come a long way but we are still in its infancy. Anglers have had
success with many varied fly patterns most notably the Merkin. I feel that the
Merkin is extremely effective because it has the relative shape of a crab but more
importantly, when dropping to the bottom it resembles a fleeing crab." " It is difficult to discern what quality about a live crab elicits such a predatory response from a permit. I guide fly fishermen exclusively for permit more than 150 days a year. I have only seen a handful of permit get as excited about our flies as they do a live crab. The key ingredient is missing. I have begun to work on flies that have more motion and have even experimented with sound. If we keep toying around with these flies, someone will come up with a more effective fly than the Merkin, but it hasn't happened yet." "A Merkin needs to be tied properly. Many Merkins that I see are far too round and fluffy. A properly tied Merkin looks like an arrow head and sinks like a lawn dart. We need the fly to get down right now and this is also when the fly looks the most like a real crab. " " I have been toying with many ideas on permit flies. Most turn out to be a complete looser or at least not any better than the Merkin. As anglers and tiers, we need to determine what characteristic about a real crab is so attractive to a permit. If we determine without a doubt that the scent of the live crab is the most influential aspect, then we can probably continue to use a standard Merkin with confidence that we are using the best fly. " "If we determine that motion, overall lifelike appearance, or sound is the most important quality, then the creativity of the fly tier will be rewarded. Because it is against the 'rules' to use scent on our flies, no one admits to experimenting with scent. At the risk of being misunderstood, I will state my opinion on this dilemma. I have determined that for the sake of the evolution of our sport and flies, someone must experiment with scent from a purely scientific perspective. Someone would need a month to use scented flies one day and unscented the next with the weather, angler and guide all constant. If at the end of the month, the scented flies accounted for quadruple the number of fish on the unscented flies, then we would have an answer. If it did not seem to help that much, then we get to the vise and try to create a better fly." Capt. Tom Rowland -
Key West
Capt. Andy Brackett -
Cudjoe Key (877) 435-2873 Hookum@hookercharters.com
Capt. Kris Suplee - Key West (305) 395 3314
Capt. Jack Carlson - Marathon
305-743-6253
Capt.Mike Wilber - Key West
 "One fly I've had success with, especially with cruising
permit, is a simple Clouser Minnow. I'm sure you've received many different
crab patterns from other guides, I agree they work well. However, most of my
clients are novice fly fisherman, and few have the restraint to not strip a crab fly.
As I'm sure the input from other guides has told you to let it fall to the
bottom for the most realistic action, with minimal movement. Most of my
clients tend to "strip away" once the fly enters the water. It's the
reason I utilize a Clouser Minnow. The pattern suggests a fish, which needs to be
stripped. One great piece of advice, put the fly close to them, quietly, one fish
length ahead of them. Let the instinct of the fish overshadow the need to
evaluate the fly and you've a better chance of getting the permit to eat."
Capt. Barry Hoffman -
Islamorada (305) 852-6918
Capt. Dave Sutton - Biscayne
Bay
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"Many crab imitations work well. I like Del's Merkin best because of
it's versatility. If you vary the weight of the eyes, color and size, it will cover
almost all situations. For the Keys, I like tan or light brown color the size of a
nickel."
"If
I had to choose one Permit fly day in and day out, I would take a Merkin style crab fly
any time. Permit eat crabs! A Merkin does a great job of imitating crabs. Tie
them with the appropriate weight and color for the flats your fishing. Cast the fly
close and read the fish for the strike."
"The permit that I catch are not on the flats but we still catch them
on fly! We catch them on the Gulf wrecks off Marathon and we use the merkin
crab fly. I do not tie my own because I fish over 300 days a year but I get
them from a commercial guy who ties them for me, he also fishes me too.
Tom Thomas
releases this permit that he caught on a crab fly "
" I refer to the fly as a Tri-Color
Clouser. Tied as simple as the regular one, just utilize three colors.
Start with white for the underbelly (top of the hook) and split the amount of deer hair
below the hook with two stacks of the same color, just vary the shade.
Lighter shade of color in the middle, darker on the bottom of the hook shank. (which will
be the top when fly is in the water) Adds a bit more realism to the
fly. Just an easy fly to tie and lets the angler strip away to his hearts
content. " 
"One
of my favorite permit flies is the Borski's Fur Shrimp. When I tie
these I add a palmered collar thicker than the original ... but with the same colors.
These fished slow and right in front of his nose, can be as effective as any
crab imitation."