Fly Tying: Landon Mayer's Mini-Leech

Landon Mayer has made a living out of catching big tailwater trout, so when a fly bears his name, you might want to pay attention. Such is the case with his Mini-Leech, tied in the video below by Tim Flagler.

While a lot of Mayer's angling success comes from rivers below dams where food sources are plentiful and fish are big and fat (and can be very selective), this pattern falls under the "searching" category, and while it might match small leeches that can be found below some dams, it's not a really specific imitation of typical tailwater trout fare. I'd use it here in eastern Idaho early in the season during higher water on our local trout streams, particularly for native cutthroats that move into the our smaller waters in the spring to spawn, and then hang out into summer to recover before heading back to big water. 

As a bonus, it's really easy to tie. 

— Chris Hunt