Ray's Rabbit Sand Eel
Ray's Rabbit Sand Eels are made by Captain Ray Stachelek, who guides fishing trips out of his Rhode Island base. The Rabbit Sand Eel fly is tied and produced at his base of operations, using mylar tubing and FisHair synthetic fur. In the vice, the fly looks benign but in the water the fly moves much like a pencil slicing through water. Captain Ray prefers using black, purple and white for the colors of the flies but suggests using the colors of the lances in your particular location.
Cowen's Silverside
Cowen's Silverside are designed for East Coast fishing. The fly is made to imitate lake anchovy runs, found throughout the eastern coast from North Carolina to Maine, as reported by Fly Fishermen magazine's website. The fly is made using a #1/0-1 Tiemco 811S hook, Danville monofilament, silver with black pupil prismatic stick-on eyes, olive polar fiber over shrimp polar fiber for the wings and, for the fly's body, a medium natural E-Z body coated with Devcon five-minute epoxy. Use this fly on inshore waters for stripers.
Cowen's Sand Eel
Cowen's Sand Eel is designed for use along the eastern inshore coast, particularly in the north coast areas. The fly imitates the movement of lances and attracts striped bass. Use Silver Flash Gliss-N-Glow on the lateral line, #1/0-1 Tiemco 811S wrapped in fine Danville monofilament line for the hook, silver with black pupil prismatic stick-on eyes, white polar fiber for the underbelly and, for the main portion of the fly, a small natural E-Z body.
Article Written By Eric Cedric
A former Alaskan of 20 years, Eric Cedric now resides in California. He's published in "Outside" and "Backpacker" and has written a book on life in small-town Alaska, "North by Southeast." Cedric was a professional mountain guide and backcountry expedition leader for 18 years. He worked in Russia, Iceland, Greece, Turkey and Belize. Cedric attended Syracuse University and is a private pilot.
