This fly was developed initially by the famed fly tier Charlie Craven and is now tied commercially by Umpqua. Whether you are on a small spring creek, high alpine lake, small freestone stream, or near the brushy banks of a large river, the Fat Angie is a fly that will not disappoint. The fly comes in two distinct sizes “standard” and “big“. This is one of those flies that is truly irresistible to trout; I’ve caught countless trout in many states on this fly and even have caught a rogue largemouth on it. This article will cover the fly’s design, why we like it in the shop, and how we like to fish it.
One of the most important aspects of this fly lies in the hook it is tied on. The fly is built on a curved hook, this allows the rear end of the fly to sit in the water. This is suggestive of a natural insect struggling to stay afloat. Dropping the rear of a fly into the water can be especially helpful when fooling fish in spring creeks or high lakes. These fish have more time to inspect your offering before deciding whether or not they want to eat it. The body of this fly is made up of dubbing and foam and is tied slim in its profile. This stands in stark contrast to its large synthetic wing which it gets the bulk of its buoyancy from. Below that big wing the abdomen of the fly will sit naturally in the film, and the rubber legs will highlight the fact that this insect is indeed struggling on the surface. A few wraps of hackle towards the head help provide additional buoyancy; it is clipped on the bottom to help the fly ride lower. The Big Fat Angie has a second wing making it an awesome dry for summer dry-dropper setups.
Although this fly is an attractor at heart, I consider this fly more of a terrestrial pattern. It could be a cricket, an ant, a beetle, or a young grasshopper. Last year around the small spring creeks of the Driftless area in the Midwest, there were loads of tan young grasshoppers. When I was visiting, the Cinnamon Fat Angie in a 14 was perfect, and it was one of my favorite single searching flies there. The large wing is also plenty buoyant to allow you to run a small nymph below this fly. On smaller streams in the summer, a large portion of trout’s diets consist of land based “terrestrial” insects. When fishing the upper stretches of the Werner Basin for the Werner Basin Redband Trout, this fly was irresistible to those fish whose favorite snacks are stray ants, beetles, crickets, and small hoppers that end up in the creek. On streams like these is where the Fat Angie really excels. It also can replace virtually any attractor style fly as long as fish are looking up.
When fishing this fly on a spring creek, I will cast it towards the brushy bank with the seam on it. Ideally, I will have the fly land along the bank, or just in the grass. One small strip will have the Fat Angie falling off streamside foliage just like a real insect. Below is a picture of a brown trout that was fooled by a #14 Purple Fat Angie in just that fashion. On high lakes, look for logs or other structure that insects might fall off of into the lake. When using this fly to search on small freestone streams, I like to present it with a small splash in likely holding water. This again will drive the point home that the insect accidentally fell into the water. The Fat Angie with its large wing does a great job of making a natural looking wake when it falls. Tiny strips too can mimic the insect attempting to fly off the surface as the Angie’s large wing pushes small ripples of water. When searching larger rivers where fish are keyed in on top, try tagging a small Fat Angie behind a large attractor fly, this will help you keep track of it. Also searching with a Big Fat Angie and a nymph dropped below is a great way to search on the surface and underwater simultaneously.
This fly has been a big hit in past years and already this summer in the shop. For me personally this fly smashed last month all around Northern California on the Upper Sacramento and Mccloud. I’ve fished this fly locally on our home waters the Willamette and Mckenzie, and this fly has served me well up in Washington and on spring creeks in Wisconsin. Long story short, I always have a few in my box! We have a wide variety of Fat Angies to choose from, and know you can find one to fit your needs. Our Standard Fat Angies are size 14 and come in purple, black, and cinnamon. The Big Fat Angies are size #8 and come in black and purple. Swing by the shop and check them out, or shop online for them here.
Have fun out there,
-Simon
