Umpqua Hochner's Perminator Crab Fly

Overview

The Perminator, short for Permit Terminator, is a crab pattern from Umpqua signature tyer Lex Hochner. Hochner has been designing and tying flies for close to 50 years, and this is his answer to one of the hardest fish in saltwater fly fishing. Permit feed heavily on crabs, but they inspect a fly closely and refuse anything that lands or sinks wrong.

A crab caught in the open does one thing: it dives for the bottom and tries to hide. A good crab fly is fished the same way. You put it in the path of a cruising or tailing fish, let it drop, and the fish tips down to eat it. Redfish and other flats fish that root for crabs eat crab patterns too, so the Perminator earns a spot in any flats box, not only a permit box.

How to Fish It

• Lead the fish: cast well ahead of a cruising permit so the fly lands softly and has time to sink into its path. A fly that lands on a fish's head usually spooks it.
• Let it drop: once the fish sees the fly and turns toward it, stop moving it. A crab sinking or sitting still on the bottom looks like a crab trying to hide.
• Tailing fish: put the fly close to a tailing fish and keep it still, or give it one short strip to get its attention.
• Strip-set: when the line tightens or the fish tips down and stops, set the hook with a long, firm strip instead of lifting the rod.
• Leader: a 9 to 12 foot leader with 16 to 20 lb fluorocarbon tippet is a common starting point for permit.

Choosing Color and Size

Match the crab to the water you are fishing. Blue Crab imitates the blue crabs common along many coasts and the Gulf, and it is a strong choice for redfish as well as permit. Mud Crab is named for the small mud crabs that live on soft bottom and around grass and oyster beds, so reach for it on darker, softer flats.

Both colors are tied on a size 2 hook, a standard size for permit crab flies.