The Light Cahill is a classic Catskill dry fly imitating the cream and yellow mayflies that blanket streams in late spring and early summer. Its wood duck wing and ginger hackle are unmistakable.
1. Thread base — Attach cream thread behind the eye and build a base to the bend.
2. Wings — At the 2/3 point, tie in two matched wood duck flank feather sections upright and divided with figure-eight wraps.
3. Tail — Tie in a sparse bunch of ginger hackle fibers at the bend, one hook-gap in length.
4. Body — Dub a smooth, lightly tapered cream body from the bend to just behind the wings. Keep the body neat and uniform.
5. Hackle — Tie in a ginger hackle directly behind the wings. Wind 3–4 close turns through the thorax area. Tie off and trim.
6. Head — Build a small, neat head. Whip finish and apply head cement.
Seasons
Water conditions
hook
thread
wing
tail
body
hackle
Ephemerella dorothea / invaria
Stenacron / Stenonema spp.
