It’s pretty hard to find a flyfisherman on the New England coast or any other coastal waters for that matter than don’t have an arsenal of these two style of flies. They are my *meat and potato* flies and I use them probably more than any other patterns for striped bass. My favorite clouser is really a flashtail clouser in yellow with heavy gold flashabou and rootbeer crystal flash. I always extend my flash an inch to and inch and a half behind the tips of the winging material which is usually bucktail. This gives the fly added movement and enhances its vulnerability. Your flies may foul more but I believe it is well worth it due to the added hookups. Just take a pocket comb with you and after each fish comb the flash back out. Other favorite clousers are my long yak clousers tyed with white yak and topped with kelly green bozo hair which is topped with peacock. These are super on the backside beach and I tye mine on 2/0-3/0 hooks and tye them 5-6 inches long. Other favorites are all chartreuse with gold flash and tan and white with pearlescent flash.

Striped bass flies are known to be tyed sparsely. I tye my deceivers fairly sparse and use 4 hackles for the tail instead of the norm of 6-8. I also tye many of my deceivers flat wing style. Nite time deceivers are tyed heavier to push more water. My favorite color combo is the upper right on the plate. White/olive with gold flash and tyed flat wing style with gray/white/blue feathers. Other favorites are white/black with silver flash. All yellow with a little ostrich mixed in the upper wing also. As you can see color combos are endless.

Besides striped bass I have caught fluke/windowpanes/skates /bluefish/ trout/largemouth bass/crappie/smallmouths/jacks/weakfish and probably a few more on clousers. A few years back I tyed some small deceivers in white and blue for crappie fishing on San Carlos Lake Arizona. Needless to say they helped me win my annual TU banquet outing for the most crappie caught during the trip…When asked what fly I was using I replied "some of my salt flies I use on Cape Cod". You can imagine the responses I got and the *yeah right* blips…hahah….try em wherever and whenever you go fishing for whatever what and they will more than likely work for you….Jeff