Bruiser Black and Blue, courtesy of The Patient Angler(Ryan Brennecke/Bulletin photo)

There may be no better month than September to take a steelhead on a dry line and a swung fly on the North Umpqua, the Clackamas or the Lower Deschutes. Tie on a Bruiser Black and Blue, which combines a Zonker strip and the Matuka-style of construction for a durable, compelling fly with a large profile and a proven steelhead color.

Fish the Bruiser Black and Blue with a quartering-downstream swing. Let it scribe a perfect arc or “chug” it with 2-inch pulls. When a fish takes, let it pull out 30 inches of line, then lift the rod tip toward the bank to set the hook in the corner of the fish’s mouth.

Tie this pattern on a No. 2. up-eye steelhead hook. Use a black rabbit Zonker strip for the tail, tying it in with black thread, Matuka-style. Build the body with flat silver tinsel, securing the rabbit strip with evenly spaced turns of tinsel. For the over-wing, use four strips of electric blue Krystal Flash. For the hackles, use light blue and black schlappen.

— Gary Lewis, for The Bulletin