GNRL PRCTNR - Between the Fraser River and Salish Sea

Like many cool things that I come across, my first exposure was on Instagram.  I started following Adam Solomonian, a.k.a. gnrl_prctnr, awhile back and have been sharing his work on Stories.  I reached out to him to see if he'd share his fly tying story and a few favorite flies that he's tied.

Slow scroll and enjoy.  Adam has a real knack with the photography to show off his vise work...

 

 
Adam wrote...  "I discovered fly fishing about five years ago and took the plunge into fly tying just over three years ago. I can’t remember what peaked my interest in fishing, having rarely done it as a kid, but it quickly became the focus of most of my free time. With a 10 month old baby now crawling around, it has been a while since I have stood in a river, but tying flies keeps me connected.

Most of the focus of my fishing is steelhead here in British Columbia and the majority of flies I tie are for that purpose.  I learned the basics of fly tying on shanks with intruder-style flies, but shifted to more “traditional” styles relatively quickly. The beauty of not only the patterns, but the materials and hooks, is such a captivating thing. I honestly think hooks are perhaps my favourite aspect. Finding the right hook as a platform is so very important, I don’t always succeed.

The neo-classic featherwing speys of the PNW steelhead tradition were my first real obsession, then their Scottish ancestors as well as their Dee-style strip wing cousins. From there it was a not-too-slow slippage into fumbling through Victorian classic salmon patterns.

All of this is still a learning process and I enjoy tying a diverse array of styles and flies. My current obsessions have shifted to classic Irish salmon flies and styles (mostly Blacker and Rogan), and I have an ongoing affection for the classic North Country trout flies of Yorkshire. I also like to recreate unique patterns based off of antique examples shared by collectors, and I continue to return to the Speys and Dees that introduced me to tying classics, they are endlessly adaptable. And I always make sure to tie plenty of General Practitioners, the greatest fly of them all…"

Want to see more of Adam's vise work?  Follow him on Instagram.  I do.