The Sunray Shadow one of the most famous tube flies ever made. Designed by late UK angler Mr. Raymond Brooks in the 60´s – Sunray Shadow is a must-have fly in the fly box for anglers pursuing fresh giant salmon on big river systems.
The Sunray shadow story
The Sunray Shadow or Brooks Sunray Shadow is another mythical fly and a must-have in the salmon fly box. Initially designed by late British salmon angler Mr Raymond Brooks (Ray Brooks)
In the early 60s, Ray travelled through Norway to find the perfect salmon river. He did so with his wife Margit, and they found the rivers in the districts of Møre & Romsdal, where they fished for many years.
Right: Brooks Sunray Shadow how they ones were sold in stores across Europa
Ray and Margit had a timber log cabin built at Hellesylt by the Korsbrekke River. Ray had three different salmon ladders made to let the salmon reach further into the river system.
Every summer, the Brooks would fish the fantastic Årøy (Aaroy) River that yields the biggest average weight of salmon on earth. Still, their favourite river was the majestic Lærdal (Laerdal) River that runs to the Sognefjord. A river that had a historic run of big Atlantic salmon and sea trout.
The Laerdal River, the cradle of the Sunray Shadow fly
The Lærdal (Laerdal) River was known as the Queen of salmon rivers, and Ray Brooks held the lease for the river from 1966 until the mid 90´s when this and other rivers in the region saw a devastating outbreak and infestation of the salmon parasite Gyrodactylus salaries
The Lærdal River is gin clear and of medium size, making it possible to cover the river from the bank.
It is in these fabulous surroundings that Ray Brooks creates the Sunray Shadow fly. The first fly was done in the early 60´s – and the Sunray Shadow soon proved so good that Ray Brooks started a production of the flies.
Tubes designed for the purpose
The flies were tied on tubes designed exclusively for the purpose, consisting of an inner and outer tube, allowing a tube fly hook to rest in the rear part of the tube. Hair from a monkey was used in the design of the wing. The monkey hair came from a carpet a friend and fellow angler had in his living room. Later Ray found a supplier of the hair needed and finally also made a registered pattern on the fly that he named: The Sunray Shadow.
The Sunray Shadow fly was tied commercially for the Brooks family by Danish company Lawcock and later with fly tiers in Singapore.
The Sunray Shadow – Big fish fly
The Sunray Shadow: Ones made with hair from Colobus monkey, today anglers will substitute monkey hair with material like; goat that will work just as well.
Left: Fly shown is made with Kashmir goat hair.
Numerous + 20-kilo salmon has been caught on the Sunray Shadow, among other, a 25 kilo (55 lbs.) giant from the Alta River – A 21 kilo (46 lbs.) fish caught in the Lærdal River by Mark Brooks, the son of Margit and Ray.
Right: The list of big fish caught on the Sunray Shadow fly is long – Here is a photo of another serious giant of an Atlantic salmon caught in Northern Norway by Mr Jens Olav Flekke
Almost half a century has gone by and still today the Sunray Shadow fly stands out as a unique example of fly tying at it´s best – simple and efficient
The Collie Dog fly
Hair from dogs can defiantly be top-notch fly tying material. Still, it is illegal to sell hair from dogs or cats in Europa – so if you can get your hands on some long-haired canines, it is worth your while sweet talking the owner into a bit of trimming. The Collie dog breed comes in many shapes and colours. I prefer to be friendly with these two critters: Border Collie or Rough Collie
Collie Dog and Sunray Shadow are fly patterns closely linked with long-winged flies, and you will find variations of this famous salmon tube fly in fly fishing shops around the world.
The Collie Dog fly is an old Scottish fly pattern designed in the late 19th century. It was probably one of the first, if not the first hair-wing salmon fly ever, to be deployed on a salmon river.
Still today it`s argued whether it is UK or US anglers who rightfully can take the claim for the salmon hair-fly project?
Above a version of the Collie Dog fly tied with hair from a Border Collie
The Collie Dog was originally designed to be tied on double or single hooks – Today, most are tied on tubes – with or without the silver body. As hair from Collie (Border Collie) can be hard to get, most anglers will settle for quality hair from goats like the Kashmir Goat or Artic runner
See hair for Sunray Shadow and Collie Dog Flies in our shop 
Left: Stunning 100 cm, probably 22 lbs salmon caught on the Collie Dog tube fly displayed on the page above. The Collie Dog fished fast (hand lined) square across the fish in fast water – A highly productive way to fish the Collie Dog and Sunray Shadow.
Fishing tube flies with long hair
Tube flies with a long wing like the Sunray Shadow and Collie Dog is unique flies in the world of salmon flies. Flies with a simple expression are favoured on many rivers across the Northern Hemisphere.
With their wavy wing, these flies can have a hypnotic grip on salmon. Presented correctly, the salmon will go to great lengths to intercept a fly like the Sunray Shadow or Collie Dog, often chasing the fly across the river – hitting it in a spectacular manner much in the way they attack a wobbler, spoon or spinner – When fishing keeps your eye on the fly and bring it into the bank…this is one fly that salmon will stay with all the way – and it might hit it the last second.
Big tube flies is often associate with salmon fishing in the witching hour … but they can be used in all kinds of fishing situations.
When fishing close to the surface with long-winged flies, anglers often see the salmon reacting to the fly by splashing or waking, something that can be pretty useful – when you want to find out if the pool holds fish or not. Flies like these are also named: lifters or Reaction flies…
In Iceland, the Sunray Shadow will also be used as an Attention fly, fished over lies that might be unproductive or over-fished – The Sunray Shadow is then replaced with a much smaller pattern and salmon will very often come to the surface.
Right: Nice salmon from Iceland caught by Mr Rasmus Ovesen using Fishmadman Collie Dog tube fly
Speed kills - Fast retreving Sunrays
When summer arrives, and water starts heating – speed seems to be a key element with these long wing flies, and anglers will fish it in different ways to generate speed – This could be done with floating or intermediate line fished straight across the river. By hand-lining the fly back, fast – in long pulls. By mending the fly line downstream to generate a belly, increasing the pull on the fly line and so the speed of the fly.
I have often used this technique during summer/autumn and seen how it may work wonders for a short time – then suddenly lose its effect entirely.
Right: Fish the Sunray Shadow or collie dog fly on a 90 ° angle and pull the fly – in jerks – as fast as you can across the salmon lie – Don´t worry about overdoing speed – the salmon is much faster than you. A good trick is to stop and leave the fly motionless altogether – when you come close to your rod tip – the salmon will often take the fly in a big splash or jump.
Strike when it jumps.
If you see fish jumping in the path of your fly – it will most certainly be the salmon that has grabbed the fly – I always strike when I see the fish jumping – 9 – out of 10 times I hook the fish..and it will go ballistic after such a hooking …so be prepared to clear the line fast out the guides after hooking-up
Pulling the Sunray or other long wing salmon tube flies fast across the river – even having the fly jump through the surface is a highly efficient way of connecting with salmon – And big and small fish may follow the fly trying to grab it in high jumps.
Sometimes I stop pulling in line when salmon chase the fly – I leave it still in the water’s surface – and wait for the salmon to grab it.
My all-time favourite fly for this sport the Speed Sunray Shadow – See the fly in the shop here
Speed Sunray Shadow series
Stripping an Iridescent Sunray Shadow… fast as you can… across the river can in times of fresh running fish be one of the most productive methods you can use – but take care it is yet another all-absorbing form of fly fishing that may take up your time and ruin your sleep.
See flies in our shop
Cold and slow
When fishing in colder water, it is advisable to fish the Sunray Shadow or Collie Dog fly slowly and present it to the fish for a longer time. Use intermediate lines with sink-tip or even full sinking lines to fish productive fast water.
Working with size
Big is not always better and particularly not when it comes to salmon. Concerning this, it is well worth keeping different sizes of these special flies in the box – Although a 2-inch Collie Dog or Sunray Shadow might seem big when other anglers work with tiny #10s – 12s in hot water – it can still be surprisingly efficient to use these flies fished very close to the surface.
Here is a version of the Sunray Shadow tied with hair from Sunray Zebra Shadow ™
We use a selection of flies in the range from 2 – 6 inches. The 3 1/2 inch version is the regular fly on most rivers, and the smaller versions are for low-water summer conditions – The bigger flies are made for early-season fishing and even in low temperatures, 5 – 6 degrees Celsius (41 – 43 degrees Fahrenheit) – salmon will come right to the top to grab them.
We also bring out the big Sunray Shadow flies when summer turns into autumn, in those precious hours when everything starts turning dark… The big Sunray Shadow might be the best choice for those local salmon becoming restless and agitated in the dark.
See other big Sunray Shadows in the E-shop
Dwarf Sunrays for Argentinian Seatrout
We do a line of very small Sunray Shadow flies that we recommend anglers bring for summer conditions and difficult fish – small, simple interpretations of the original tube fly suited for floating lines and light gear.
This is what fly angler Bill (Beatle) Abshagen from Colorado used when fishing Despedida Lodge in Tierra del Fuego, Argentina Fish was eating small Skuds (14 & 16’s), but this fish was hungry and couldn’t resist an appetizing smaller Sun-Ray.
Dwarf-like Sunray Shadow tube flies – Perfect for summer conditions – low water and finicky trout and salmon – Our small Sunrays are also designed to be used as riffling hitch flies. See the small Sunray Shadows in the E-shop
Hooks for long-wing flies
Fishing with these special flies is an action-filled sport, and you will feel fish pulling and hitting the fly during a fishing session – Ever so often, these same fish will have a go at the fly more than one time – as long as they haven’t touched the hook.
We use single, double and treble hooks on these flies and recommend that you set a small blob of glue in the fork of the double and treble hooks. This will to some extent, prevent the hairs from getting seriously entangled in the construction of the hook.
Getting the wing caught up in the bend of the hook is an inevitable part of fishing flies with long soft hair, and to make sure everything is working as intended, one has to check the fly regularly – An annoying hassle -. Still, putting the time into the long-wing project is well worth the effort.
See our range of hooks
Superior Hair for Sunray Shadow and Collie Dog Flies
A fantastic material for modern salmon flies
A fantastic material for modern salmon fliesWe’re always on the lookout for exceptional fly-tying materials, and we didn’t hesitate to say yes to this outstanding hide sourced from Nordic cattle. This premium cowhide features long, flowing hair that’s perfect for creating the elegant, mobile wings needed for salmon and steelhead flies.
Special Abilities
This hair is especially well-suited for patterns like the Sunray Shadow and Collie Dog. Its natural taper, length (typically 2–4 inches), and subtle sheen give it the ability to move convincingly in water—ideal for triggering aggressive takes from fish. It stacks beautifully and is easy to work with at the tying bench.
We use this material extensively in our own fly designs—and now you can too.
Perfect Sunray Shadow hair
Perfect Sunray Shadow hairTop quality Kashmir goat with long shiny hair dyed jet black – Perfect for Sunray Shadow and Collie Dog Flies
The length of the hair can vary from batch to batch – But we will try to keep our promise and get you what you see in the picture.
See it in our shop
Special edition Sunray Shadow hair
See our material for Sunray Shadow flies: Sunray Zebra Shadow ™
See all 11 colours
NEW Sunray Shadow box 
The perfect dimensions – strong and inexpensive