Tim Heng is a fixture on the Colorado fly-fishing scene for a quarter century, having founded Roaring Fork Anglers before moving on to manage Taylor Creek Fly Shop. He invented the Autumn Splendor early in his career after watching a client fish a doll-eyed bass fly and move a lot of fish. The problem was that the fish didn’t end up eating the pattern. So Heng sat down at his vise and concocted a trout version of that bass fly. In the twenty-plus years since, the Autumn Splendor has become a go-to streamer for anglers around the country.
In this week’s video, Tim Flagler of from Tightline Productions takes a few liberties with Heng’s pattern, but the result is clearly the child of the father. I love the way that Tim arranges the materials on the hook to ensure that all the materials work together and stay in place. With fall streamer season kicking into high gear, this is a great pattern to have in your arsenal.
Autumn Splendor
Hook: 4X-long streamer hook (here a Dai-Riki #700), sizes 2-10.
Head: Gold cone, 4.5 mm.
Weight: 16 turns of lead-free round wire, .020.
Thread: Yellow, 6/0 or 140-denier.
Tail: Yellow marabou.
Flash: Gold Krystal Flash.
Body: Yellow pearl chenille.
Legs: Yellow round rubber legs, medium.
Hackle: Orange grizzly.
Adhesive: Head cement.
