Published Nov 12. 2007 - 16 years ago
Updated or edited Apr 13. 2018

Kai's Green Terror

If one day you should lie on the bank pounding your fists into the sand in frustration over the lack of fish and someone sneaks around the corner offering you a chartreuse coloured fly, perhaps it's German Kai Nolting who brings you the fly that will save your day:

Kai's Green Terror

It was late October 2004. Two of my friends stayed with me on Fyn, a small island in the middle of Denmark. We had a week full of fly-fishing ahead of us and were keen on doing the first casts. The weather was warm; the sun was shining from a clear blue sky and the wind was almost calm.

We stayed in the area near Bogense in the north of Fyn, in a comfortable house. Everything was nearly like we had expected it.

Everything except the fish.

Especially their behaviour regarding taking the fly - or unfortunately not taking the fly.
We saw sea trout splashing and saw their dorsal fins and tails close to the edge of the water.

We fished large flies and small flies. We were retrieving the line in fast strips and in slow strips. We were changing places and tried every tactic we could think of, but couldn't get a single take at all.

Terror regime - Hooked in the upper lip
Terror regime - Another trout liked the green and red fly
Terror regime - Another stiff upper lip
Terror regime - A green mouthful
Terror regime - In the net ready to be released... and yes that green sheen is a Green Terror fly.
Terror regime
Kai Nolting
Step 1 - thread

Step 2 - tail

Step 3 - hackle

Step 4 - varnish

Step 5 - chenille

Step 6 - body

Step 7 - final wraps

Step 8 - trim chenille

Step 9 - trim the tail

Step 10 - brush chenille

Step 11 - trim body

Step 12 - body shape

Step 13 - wind the hackle

Step 14 - trim hackle

Step 15 - glue hackle

Step 16 - whip finish

After two fruitless days I felt a strong resignation. With a sobbing sound I fell to my knees close to the water and pounded my fists into the sand.
After 10 minutes lying there in pure desperation, something from deep down in my weary angler's head told me to consult my fly box one last time.
After a coffee break I followed this miraculous inspiration out of nowhere and found two unbelievable ugly flies - bright green body, orange tail and a grizzly-hackle tied around the body.

After storing my wet handkerchief in my pocket, I took a closer look on the illuminating flies and swore to do good for every desperate angler I'd meet, if these flies caught me a fish.

Making sure no one saw me, I tied the forbidden fly on.

With a feeling of "if I'm in guilty I will pay" I entered the water, made a few casts and - immediately caught my first sea trout!

Not a big one, but a fish!

Happy as rarely before I climbed out of the water to find my friends. Free from tears and frustration I stumbled around the next cliff and saw my good friend Rüdiger lying on the ground, pounding his fists into the sand. After an infusion of a good amount of coffee a gave him a green fly...

Since that day I've caught so many fish on this green fly, which Martin has called "Kai's Green Terror", that I always carry a good amount of these flies in my fly box.

So, if one day you should lie on the bank pounding your fists into the sand in frustration and someone sneaks around the corner offering you a chartreuse coloured fly, perhaps it's me.

But if you would like to tie some of these flies yourself (since I can't hang around the world's waters all the time), please read the instructions in this article.

Kai's Green Terror
Pattern type: 
Cold saltwater fly
Originator: 
Kai Nolting
Species: 
Materials: 
Hook
Stinger hook, size 2-6
Thread
Green
Tail
Red or orange yarn
Body
Green flash chenille
Hackle
Grizzly
Head
Thread
Skill level/difficulty: 
Easy
Instruction: 
  1. As usual – start your thread on the hook shank
  2. Tie in a patch of orange or red yarn for the tail
  3. Now position a single grizzly hackle.
  4. Protect the the hook shank with a layer of varnish. Necessary or not?
  5. Tie in the chartreuse body material.
  6. Wind the body material forward in very close turns
  7. Leave enough space for the head
  8. Cut the body material after having secured it with the thread
  9. Now cut the tail off
    In my experience it has proven very well to:
    - let the body material end in the position of the hook point
    - and end with the bobtail where the arch is
    Following this instruction you get a rather small fly in comparison to the size of the hook. But as long as I fish these flies I got more hook-ups and lost quite less fish then before. And on the other hand it seams to me, that a larger hook doesn’t bother the fish at all
  10. Comb the body material with a brush.
  11. Normally I gave the body a torpedo like shape
  12. Now wind the hackle round the hook
  13. Again, leave enough space for the head knot
  14. This is crucial! Secure the hackle separately with a good amount of glue; otherwise it will obviously come lose within a few takes
  15. Make the whipfinish knot
  16. Secure all again with glue

Kai himself

Comments

In the united states...

In the united states we call this fly a wooly worm,one of the first flies I learned to tye " holds a warm spot in my heart",caught a lot of different species of fish on every color you can think of,My first stellie was caught on a # 10 pink wooly worm with a red tail over 20 years ago, good to see the simple flies still catch fish,I use everything from flash chenille,cotton chenille,dubbing,and yarn for the body to yarn or hackle fibers for the tail weighted or not you can't go wrong with a wooly worm,add a marabou tail a "wala" wooly bugger how simple is that.

Finally a website th...

Finally a website that finally gives step by step instructions for fly tying with good quality close-up pics.
I hope to tie Kai's Green Terror and try it salmon fishing.

Here in the U.S.A. w...

Here in the U.S.A. we call this a wooly worm and tie them without trimming the hackle. Also weighted and unweighted. The longer hackle has a lot of movement in the water. It can be fished wet or dry

Very similar to the ...

Very similar to the one I use here in eastern Canada. Works very well with brook trout in rivers and brooks. I also tie them weighted.

Kai Nolting's picture

Hi guys, Sorry fo...

Hi guys,

Sorry for my late responds, but a bad flu brought me down.

Normally I fish the fly wet, directly under the surface, because of no weight.
But one time, during my summer holidays in Denmark 07 in the very early morning, I saw rainbows cruising around just under the surface and try to fish it dry – and it worked properly.
But I think this was a quit an unusual behaviour.
When fishing the fly wet, I retrieve it in small strips and from time to time I diversify the speed from low to medium low.
Until now I’ve got very low experience with fishing the fly in rivers and lakes, so perhaps it’s up to you to help with some practise and please let me know of your results.

Kind regards

Kai

It hooks steelhead a...

It hooks steelhead aswell, caught a 6lber last weekend

It hooks steelhead a...

It hooks steelhead aswell! caught a 6lber on it last weekend

Thanks for the fly! ...

Thanks for the fly!
Few question: what is the way of fishing this fly? Was it tried in salt water only? What about lakes or rivers?
Thanks in advance!
Andriy

Do you fish it also ...

Do you fish it also as a dry fly?

Agree with the name ...

Agree with the name of the fly. I had a chance to hook couple of fish :)

cheers

Roolis

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