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About The Observer. (La Grande, Or.) 1968-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 20, 2019)
B Friday, December 20, 2019 The Observer & Baker City Herald S. John Collins / Baker City Herald Henry Spivey, 86, has been tying fl ies since he was 12 years old. He spends his cold winter months at his fl y-tying bench and good weather fi shing. The assortment behind Spivey is a small sample of his inventory and skill. S. John Collins / Baker City Herald Bold and color- ful spey fl ies are used for big wa- ter and big fi sh like steelhead. Not tired of tying ■ Henry Spivey has been tying fishing flies for 74 years By Lisa Britton For the EO Media Group Henry Spivey clamps a bare fi sh hook in a tiny vise and starts wrap- ping bright orange thread around the metal. Then comes a S. John Collins / Baker City Herald lime green feather, The golden pheasant plume is used sparingly and for some of and a fi nishing Spivey's special ties. wrap of red che- nille yarn. He unclamps the creation “Pretty fl ies catch people. Ugly fl ies catch fi sh.” and holds up the newest lure — Henry Spivey in his collection. “And that crappie jig is he gets. made,” he said. Meadowbrook Place. “Sometimes seven days a Spivey, 86, chuckles when There are speckled feath- week,” he said. asked how long he’s been ers from chickens, blue On a recent weekend he fi shing. features from peacocks, and “Since I was 2,” he said. a golden pheasant plume in fi shed at Malheur Reservoir south of Bridgeport, his fa- “The church took us to Snake sunshine yellow. “One chicken is worth 250 vorite place to toss a line. River.” “That lake is fi ve miles dollars,” he said of the feath- He pauses, then: long,” he said. “It was starting ers. “I was tickled to death to to freeze over, but we found Another drawer is full of get out of church.” some open water.” animal hair — deer, coyote, That excursion sparked He’s catching fi sh more moose. a life-long love of fi shing. “A lot of fl ies call for moose than eating them, so he often Spivey tied his fi rst fl y at age releases his catch (unless it’s hair,” he said. “They fl oat 12. halibut). Mostly, it seems, On his wall are two frames pretty good.” Spivey relishes the task of Although Spivey has al- fi lled with fl ies of all sizes ways fi shed, he didn’t get into tying fl ies. and hues — tiny ones that “For the pleasure — it’s mimic mosquitoes and sturdy tying fl ies until he retired. He grew up in Baker City, a bonus if I catch a fi sh,” he hooks designed to lure, and and worked for the highway said. hold, steelhead. He takes 150 fl ies when he department in far-fl ung areas His fl ies are for sale at York’s in Baker City and the of Oregon — near McDermitt goes fi shing. Hitchin’ Post in Richland. “I change fl ies pretty at the Nevada border and Spivey has books about fl y later in Kinzua in Central often,” he said with a smile. tying but he doesn’t always “I do a lot of experimenting. Oregon. He retired in Pend- follow the patterns. I know what they bite — I leton. “When I start one fl y it want to know what they always turns into something Always ready to go won’t bite.” fi shing else,” he said. Spivey can tie up to 25 Tying fl ies fi lls Spivey’s He has a treasure trove of fl ies in an hour. supplies organized in plastic time when he isn’t fi shing — But some are more compli- which he does every chance bins at his apartment at cated with layers of thread and feathers and fl uff. “Some take fi ve days to make one fl y,” he said. His favorite is the Royal Coachman. “It’s the number one fl y for me,” he said. He also has a wide variety of spey fl ies. He points to his boards of fl ies where hot pink lures hang next to jigs in various shades of brown. “Pretty fl ies catch people. Ugly fl ies catch fi sh,” he said. He’s cast a line for all types of fi sh, but he’s not too keen on trout. That aversion goes back to his youth, when he and his dad were fi shing near Izee, in Grant County. Spivey caught a 24-inch trout — but then an 18-inch rattlesnake slithered out of the fi sh’s mouth. “He’d just swallowed that S. John Collins / Baker City Herald Pheasant wings offer various colors and design possi- bilities. snake,” Spivey said, still cringing a bit at the memory. But snakes won’t keep him away from his favorite fi sh- ing holes. “I love to be outside,” he said. “I’d live there if I could — huckleberrying, mush- rooming, fi shing.” He doesn’t ice fi sh. So this winter he will continue tying fl ies to try out next spring. “As soon as the ice melts,” he said. “You want to be at the reservoir as soon as the ice melts.” S. John Collins / Baker City Herald S. John Collins / Baker City Herald The Royal Coachman is Spivey's favorite fl y. Spivey demonstrates his technique and speed at tying one of a wide variety of crap- pie jigs.
