Rane Olsen's streamer project

93 Carrie Stevens streamers!

Rane Olsen

I was about five or six years old when my uncle and his cousin took me with them for an overnight fishing trip. They used spinning rods and I fished with hook and worm. It happened very quickly, I was hooked.

I also got

the biggest catch that time. My fishing soon evolved and I got my own spinning rod and reel and much lures. I remember spending almost whole summer holidays just fishing. I cannot remember how I got to know about fly fishing, perhaps it was some of my school mates. Very soon I got my first fly vice and started tying my own flies.
I used a weighted bobber on my spinning rod and a three fly rig and fished mainly for grayling and trout. Then I got my first summer job at age 13 and decided to spend my hard earned money on fly fishing gear.
My mother wasn't very happy about that.

My mother wasn't very happy about that.

Artula	Golden Witch
Green Drake	Green Hornet
Lakewood	Morning Glory
Pink Beauty	Red Streak
White Ghost	Witch
Wizard	Yellow Witch

Rane Olsen

I started

with very good gear: Sage rod, Orvis reel etc.
At the same time I also tied flies for my workmates, and all the extra money was very welcome for a novice fly fisher. There was no Internet back then, so all the information was in the books and magazines. As the first fly fisher in my village I got a "certain" reputation, but soon my friends followed and bought gear of their own.

Time went

by and then I got married and a couple of kids emerged out of nowhere. I had a very long pause from all kinds of fishing and fly tying.
In 2009 I got back on track again and bought some rods, reels, lines and a fly tying vice and lots of materials. It was a relief to notice that most of the basic skills were still there, but some I had to re-learn. The learning curve wasn't steep, mainly due the fact that I tied every day.
Luckily my wife has been very patient and understanding.

Some call me

"A man of many projects". Well, that's not completely untrue.
My first BIG project was to tie all the 234 wet flies from Don Bastian presented here. It took some time, but I made it. My collection can be found on my web site.

My latest

and the most important project was to tie all the Carrie Stevens patterns presented in Hilyard's book (Carrie G. Stevens: Maker of Rangeley Favorite Trout and Salmon Flies). There are 93 patterns in that book, which meant that I had zero problems with how to use my free time.

First I had

to decide what hooks to use. I picked Partridge CS15 in sizes #2 and #4 for the main hook. I also used Mustad R79 in same sizes in some of the patterns.

The second thing

was to go through the material list and get all the hackles needed. Worst was the lavender, then the claret hackle. To get some decent hackles I ordered a pack of 100-200 feathers from eBay and was lucky enough to get about three pairs of both colors. All the rest was easy-peasy. Some of my fellow tiers even sent me some hard-to-get materials. Much appreciated!

I started tying

the flies in alphabetical order, and have to say I enjoyed it very much compared to the Ray Bergman series.
The whole series and materials lists can be found on my web site.

I don't have

that many patterns of my own, but here's couple:

Under a Violet Moon

Rane Olsen

- Under a Violet Moon -

Hook: Partridge CS15 #2
Thread: White first, then black
Tag & Rib: Embossed silver tinsel
Body: Violet silk
Belly: White bucktail
Throat: Violet hackle fibers then claret hackle fibers
Underwing: six strands of peacock herl
Wing: two pink hackles under, over them one violet Cock de Leon hackle (6 feathers, 3 per side)
Shoulder: Golden pheasant red feather
Sides or Eye: Jungle cock
Head: Black with Fl. pink band
The main wing & shoulders & sides are glued together with Elmer's Rubber Cement before tying in.

I was tying a freestyle Rangeley-style fly and listened to Blackmore's Night, hence the name. Fish with this in the evening.

Reino

Rane Olsen

- Reino -

Hook: Mustad L87 #4
Thread: White, then black
Tag & Ribbing: Flat gold tinsel
Body: Golden brown floss
Underbelly: White bucktail
Throat: Lemon woodduck or Mallard dyed woodduck fibers
Wing: Two brown hackles flanked on each side by one Light Pardo Cock de Leon hackle
Shoulders: Jungle cock back feather
Head: Black, use band if you like, I have used red and copper bands sometimes

I tied this fly for the memory of my late father in law, Reino. The original fly has been given to my mother in law.