Hidden from View

• Tie the knot on the top of the Clay Hopper so that the knot does not show. On the underside of the incognito grasshopper/cricket, there is an 8- to 12-size Mustad steamer hook used to catch the fish once it has been tempted in by the fake meal. When the fish attempts to take a bite, the hook will snag the fish. The knot must not interfere with this hook nor can it be seen by the fish.
  
  

Steps

• Wrap thread into the bend of the hook and tie on six to eight hackle fibers. Then tie on two contrasting colors of embroidery thread. Combine these elements and weave them using the overhand knot method all the way up to just past the halfway mark on the shank of the hook.
  
  

How to Tie a Clay Hopper Knot

• Apply some dubbing just behind the eye of the hook. Then cut a small isosceles triangle out of some craft foam and tie it on to form the upper half of the grasshopper/cricket's body. Continue to tie forward of the upper half of the body, whip finish, and then apply cement for the head. Tie in both the medium and small centipede legs to resemble the legs of a grasshopper/cricket. Using a tool called a bodkin, puncture a hole in some area of the upper head and thread some centipede material through to make the antennae. Apply Super Glue to make the fly completely stable.