Crazy Paulie

Little did I know what this monstrosity had in store for me

A few years ago, I tied a bunch of bonefish and permit flies for a day or two of fishing during a family vacation to Belize. Tying a ton of flats flies got sort of tedious after a while, so I tied a little "diversion fly" for fun. It was a bonefish fly in form, but tied in the style of a "classic" salmon fly. My former dog, Paulie, was in the room when I tied it. He was a crazy lab x chow mix, so I named the fly after him.

Originally, I planned on tying the fly on when the guide wasn't looking, then showing it to him right before I cast into a school of wary bonefish. You know...just for a few laughs. Unfortunately, cold fronts never made that a reality and bonefishing has pretty much been a bust for me.

This morning, before I left the house to go shad fishing, I put a backup fly box in the car. When I looked in the box, I noticed Crazy Paulie, still pristine and unfished after five years. I did pretty well today, so I thought I'd have a little fun on my last pass through the pool.

Crazy Paulie, in action! 

I tied Crazy Paulie on and caught a shad on my first cast! After landing a small male, I promptly hooked and landed my biggest shad of the day, a 5lb. female. I landed a third in short order, then lost a fourth. What started as a gag turned out to be a great decision. I have a fly box "scrapbook" that, as of tonight, has a new addition!

The original...I sure miss this guy

Crazy Paulie

Hook: Daiichi 2546 (sz. 4)
Eyes: Small bead chain
Tag: Pearl flashabou
Tail: Green macaw
Butt: Orange Berlin wool
Rib: Pearl flashabou
Body: Fluorescent green floss
Underwing: Pearl krystal flash
Wing: Green macaw, bustard, golden pheasant tail and bronze mallard
Sides: Wood duck
Horns: Scarlet macaw
Head: Orange Berlin wool