Green Highlander Francis Dress

About the Green Highlander Francis Fly Fishing Gifts

This Dress Fly comes included with our Fish4Flies display box, making it an ideal gift for fisherman alike.

Originally known as "The Highlander" in Francis but there was no green in the Francis "Highlander", later there was "The Green Highlander" listed in Kelson's book. Also the olive green mohair of Francis developed into the green Seal's fur in Major Grant pattern (1860) in Kelson. This dressing requires green swan in the wing. The modern version of the famous fully dressed pattern uses hair-wing. It mixes colours of the bucktail to form the wing rather than the feathers of the now endangered exotic birds of the original. There are and have been very few green classic salmon flies, green flies never became popular in Great Britain in times past unlike today.

Expert Tip:

The pure act of breathing at such times seems glorious. People talk of being a child of nature, and moments such as these are times when it is possible to feel so; to know the full joy of animal life - to desire nothing beyond. There are times when I have stood still for joy of it all, on my way through the wild freedom of a Highland moor, and felt the wind, and looked upon the mountains and water and light and sky, till I felt conscious only of the strength of a mighty current of life, which swept away all conciousness of self, and made me a part of all that I beheld.
Sir Edward Grey (1862 - 1933) Viscount Grey of Fallodon

Product Specifications

• Tag : Round silver tinsel
• Tail : A topping and barred summer duck in strands
• Butt : Black ostrich herl
• Body : First quarter, golden yellow floss, remained bright green floss, or seal's fur
• Ribs : Oval silver tinsel
• Throat : Dyed lemon hackle
• Wings : Mixed - Tippet in strands "married" strands of yellow, orange, and green swan, florican, peacock wing, and golden pheasant tail, "married" narrow strips of teal and barred summer duck, narrow strips of brown mallard over, a topping over all
• Sides : Jungle cock
• Cheeks : Indian crow
• Head : Black varnish

In Francis the dressing is as follows: Tag: silver twist and gold floss; Tail: a topping; Butt: black ostrich; Body: gold-coloured floss, nearly half up the body for a small fly; if large, a few turns of silk, and then yellow pig's wool, above this dirty olive-green mohair; Ribs: silver tinsel; Hackle: pea-green hackle from tail to head, blue jay at shoulder; Wings: sprigs of tippet gold pheasant tail and mallard, with pintail over, double jungle cock on either side, and overall a topping; Head: black.