As humans, leeches are far from our favorite thing to find swimming in a lake or stream or worse, latched on to your leg sucking the life out of you. They’re nasty. But anywhere they are found, leeches are a staple of the trout diet—a year round source of protein that pulse and writhe through the water column in a way that attracts predatory strikes.
Our version of the classic leech pattern combines a little bit of flash from the Mirage Tinsel body, some necessary weight with the Tungsten bead, and just the right amount of natural action from the Pine Squirrel Strip. Often tied in purple, black, or olive, the Little Leech is incredibly useful when dead drifted in a river or stripped below an indicator or dry fly on open stillwater.
