Fly tying: Barr's Meat Whistle

For streamer junkies who chase big trout in big water, Barr's Meat Whistle is a fly-box staple. Below, Tim Flagler takes a few liberties from John Barr's orginal pattern, but the outcome is generally the same—an agressive-looking fly that has all the bells and whistles big trout love. 

The Meat Whistle is a very flexible pattern. Tied in pink or purple, it's a great fly for steelhead and salmon. Tied in black, it's a reasonable leech imitation, and is excellent for bass and pike. I tied several last spring in chartreusse, and caught bowfin on the Meat Whistle in the Okefenokee Swamp of south Georgia. 

But, of course, the fly's intended target has likely always been big browns, and tied in shades of brown and olive, this fly looks like anything from a smaller trout to a sculpin, and browns do, indeed, love it. 

— Chris Hunt