Tying Instructions for the Top 10 King Flies for Alaska

There are just certain king salmon flies that make the top 10 list for their effectiveness. In no particular order the author’s favorite king salmon flies for Alaska are Intruder, Prom Dress, Bjorn Super Prawn, Articulated Leech, Moal Leech, Jumbo Critter,  Squidro, Popsicle, Boss/Comet and Seapup. He also includes a couple honorable mentions. Here’s how to tie them.

Story & Photos By Mike Lunde

1. INTRUDER

Throughout all realms of freshwater and saltwater fly fishing, the Intruder is considered one of the greatest anadromous flies of all time and the perfect king salmon fly. In the early 1990s, Ed Ward and Scott Howell combined to create the first shank-styled fly. The original Intruder contained a front and rear deer-hair collar coupled with ostrich serving as the Spey hackle. An advantage to the Intruder’s design was it allowed tiers to tie longer flies through the implementation of a stinger hook connected to the sacrificial front hook. As fly-tying technology expanded, the introduction of Waddington shanks minimized the need for cutting off the rear section of the front hook. This content is available for subscribers only.