Attach this little ball to the end of the leader, and it's ready to be snelled onto your favorite steelhead hook. I typically use either Honer or Gamakatsu octopus-style hooks, ranging in size from No. 4 to 1/0.

Attach the yarn fly to your hook of choice with a standard egg loop that leaves the yarn fly attached firmly to the hook, directly above the bend.

That's it! The fly is ready to fish.

ADDING WEIGHT
Because much of my guiding involves fly-fishing trips, I add some weight to my Bullet Bugs with barbell eyes. I put them on the hooks with fly-tying thread, just ahead of the ball of McFly Foam yarn.

To further increase its resemblance to salmon or steelhead roe, I also add tufts of white marabou or small amounts of light-colored rabbit strips. These refinements make for a more realistic egg fly and let my fly-fishing clients get their offerings down deep to winter steelhead.

If you're not a flyfishermen, use these bugs like any other drift-bait lure. Place a slinky weight on your mainline. Attach a barrel swivel to the end of your mainline. The other end of the barrel swivel receives the end of your leader.

You're ready to fish!

ADD SCENT
Many Northwest anglers don't fish for winter steelhead with confidence until they've added scent to their offering. Bullet Bugs are perfectly suited for scents. Shrimp oil is probably the favorite of most knowledgeable anglers. But others such as anise, krill paste or Pautzke egg juice-type scents also work extremely well.

Since a Bullet Bug is attached to the hook with an egg loop, you can also add a small cluster of eggs or piece of shrimp or prawn meat to the fly, for devastating results.

You'll find that these Bugs are best fished on a dead drift, either from a stationary position along the bank or side-drifting from a boat. The aim is to get the bug to the bottom and keep it there while as it drifts as drag-free as possible.

I've found that when steelhead pick up a Bug, they'll often keep it in their mouths longer than they do with hard baits such as Corkies or birdie drifters.

Also, unlike any other bait, the McFly Foam has a unique quality that makes it "stick" in the fishes' teeth. This stickiness makes the Bullet Bug an ideal bait for novice drift-fishermen or side-drifters because once the bait is in their mouths, the fish have a hard time expelling it. That gives an angler more time to feel the bite and set the hook.

Several times over the past winter steelhead seasons, my clients would be side-drifting Bullet Bugs from my jet boat when a fish would grab the bug and start seriously chewing on the fly. For whatever reason, the fish wouldn't get hooked.

The drift would begin again. Moments later, the bug would be getting mauled again! I could only imagine that several steelhead were fighting to get hold of this fly at the same time!

It's a pretty exciting way to spend a winter's day chasing steelhead.

This season, take some time to add to your yarn-fly collection and re-load your own arsenal of Bullet Bugs.

Whether you fish it on a fly rod or with conventional tackle, you'll find winter steelhead more than willing to bite the Bullet. l

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Dean Finnerty is a freelance writer and outdoor photographer who lives in Cottage Grove, Ore. He owns and operates 5 Rivers Guide Service and North Umpqua Fly Fishing Adventures.