The mayfly is the quintessential aquatic insect that is often thought of when people visualize insects and fly fishing. Blue Wing Olive Mayflies are an important hatch that occurs year round, predominantly in spring, summer, and fall. They are an important food source in a trout's diet, and fly fishermen...
Entering a fly shop for the first time can be intimidating. I remember being new to the sport and feeling intimidated when entering fly shops. Although everybody in the fly shop was also once a beginner, too many times there seems to be at least one person who makes you...
What does a hatch mean in fly fishing? When a "hatch" is happening it means that aquatic insects found in the stream, river, lake, or pond are emerging from the water in great abundance. Usually, you'll find insects drifting on or taking flight from the water's surface. Take a look in...
The famed October Caddis is a nationwide gift to anglers. As deciduous trees shed their leaves, signaling the end of growing season, fly anglers should ready themselves to fish the giant tent winged caddisfly. Beginning in September and lasting into November, depending upon your geography, the caddisfly will constitute a major...
Most of the flies in your box can be trimmed, colored, and adjusted to imitate practically anyhatch. Bringing a Sharpie or two and your handy clippers is all you need to take an Adams andcraft it into a spinner. Creativity Your ability to match the hatch depends on your creativity and knowledge...
There are thousands of different fly patterns with dozens of different color combinations to choose from, but which is the right color combination to use and when? Choosing the right fly color for the moment comes down to two factors, your personal tastes and what color shades are naturally occurring in...
Much of our time is spent staring at strike indicators or sighter tippet waiting for the slightest sign of movement, so any chance to throw dry flies is a welcome change of pace! There’s obviously nothing wrong with throwing nymph rigs since they catch so many fish, but there’s something about...
For bug enthusiasts, high summer can be a fairly dull time of year, with terrestrials taking center stage and mayfly activity bottoming out for the year. The seemingly never-ending drought of bug activity ceases with the first sign of the trico hatch! This is no easy trout snack to master, however. ...
Fall is a welcome relief for the trout angler exhausted from the scorching heat and dry conditions of summer. There’s something special about spending the day on a favorite trout stream while the leaves are in full array of their fall colors. While the wet-wading time of summer is a distant...
The truck door slams and the sound of the rushing water gets louder as we hike down the trail towards a favorite stream. Bugs swarm into the air when we push through the bushes that line the bank. Trout can be seen happily rising to the steady hatch and angler excitement...
