The Gurgler

By Jack Gartside, tied by Mike Hawkins

The Gartside Gurgler is a very effective fly, easy for a beginner to learn. The “Gurgler” is truly the Woolley Bugger of top water bugs - it has been tied in so many variations it is hard to keep up with. I have seen it tied with buck tail, craft fur, marabou, and zonker strips for the tail; ice chenille, dubbing, hackle feathers, etc. for the body; with eyes, without eyes, with and without rubber legs. I have tied the gurgler as a very effective bass fly (if you can keep the big bream off them) for years. This is my version, but the new FFI Salt Water Manual has a really good, easy to follow recipe.

The one consistent material is the foam strip. Normally it is tied with a strip of two millimeter foam. The foam can be hand cut, but I definitely prefer a die cutter for consistency, ease and speed of punching out several foam backs at one time. In my opinion, the best system for foam cutters is made by River Road Creations in Montana. The gurgler “kit” comes with five sizes to choose from, allowing you to tie the gurgler in sizes from bream to red fish. 

Materials 

Hook: Size 1

Thread: 3/0 color to match foam or contrasting color

Tail: White Bucktail, Flash, Green Craft Fur

Body: Ice Chenille 

Overbody: Die Cut 2mm Foam

Thread base

White Bucktail with a couple of strands of flash

Green craft fur tied in over the bucktail - the stiffer bucktail helps the craft fur from fouling around the hook

Tie in the ice chenille and the foam

Tie down the foam just behind the hook eye

Finished fly

Another view of finished fly

River Roads Creations Die Cut Stamps

Test run with the fly, it works!