It’s October, and I can’t help but notice how quickly the days are passing. Soon, my favorite river will settle into winter, and the opportunities for dry fly fishing will become fewer and farther between. There are still a few hatches to look forward to during those long winter months, but they don’t compare to what we have right now.
October is one of my favorite months to fish the Metolius. The insects are changing and I never know exactly what I’ll find on the water. The Baetis above is one I found recently floating down the river.
I noticed a few PMDs too. Here is one.
And what I’m calling a “mess of PMDs.”
I captured these insects with my net and a paint strainer stretched over it as they floated downstream. It makes a handy little collection device when I want to take a closer look at what’s drifting past.
Notice the difference in the eyes between the males and females. As I recall, the larger eyes are the males, but I may have that backward. If you know for certain, feel free to correct me in the comments below.
Definitely not my best image of a Green Drake, but this one wouldn’t hold still. I was constantly rotating my net, trying to position my camera parallel to the insect so I could get the entire body in focus. Honestly, I haven’t seen many, so I was finally happy to capture one and take a quick photo.
This is one of my favorite images of a Drunella flavilinea (Flav) I shared a few posts ago, but I’m still seeing a several on the water.
The other olive Mayfly has been a Caudatella.
Little Olive Stones are the other olive-colored insect still available to trout. They are generally size 16. Here is one from a few weeks ago. I’m still finding them on the river and along the streamside vegetation.
We noticed several October Caddis flying over the river and a couple laying eggs. While I didn’t take this recently, here is what they look like.
That is quite an assortment of insects available to fish. And those are only the ones I captured and documented. I know others are around…a variety of Caddis and other Mayflies. Probably more Stoneflies too.
That’s one of the reasons finding success on the Metolius River is so difficult, but rewarding.
We met a group of fly fishers in the parking lot on Friday. They were just finishing their day and, I believe, their trip. They had traveled all the way from Georgia to fish the river.
Like most fly fishers, we struck up a conversation after the usual, “Catch any fish?” questions.
I shared that I had three fish come to my fly that day. I broke one off, missed another hookup or maybe the fish simply missed my fly. I finally landed the last one, a very dark, chunky rainbow.
One of the group shared a Sparkle Dun they had tried, so I pulled out a couple of my fly boxes and shared what had been working for me of late.
As I thought about the flies I had shown them, I realized they represented something I’ve learned over many years of fly fishing and fly tying.
I have a lot of flies.
But I don’t fish a lot of different flies.
When I’m actually on the river, I carry lots of patterns, but only fish a relatively small selection. These aren’t necessarily the “best” October flies, and I’m not suggesting everyone should carry the same flies. They are simply the patterns I have confidence in, the flies I actually use.
That’s what I want to share today, the flies I carry in October.
Sparkle Dun
The Sparkle Dun is one of the first Mayfly patterns I reach for when I’m seeing Mayflies. I probably use it 75% of the time to imitate any Mayfly I find on the water.
I like its simple profile and the way it sits in the surface film. It’s also a pattern I’ve tied and fished in a variety of sizes and colors over the years.
RiverKeeper Soft Hackle Cripple
This is one of my own patterns, and it’s another fly I actually fish.
The RiverKeeper Soft Hackle Cripple represents a Mayfly caught in the surface film. I generally treat it with a little Frogs Fanny so it rides high enough for me to see.
I’ve settled on using Mallard covert feathers for the wing. Waterfowl feathers naturally repel water, which helps this dry fly float.
Improved F Fly
The Improved F Fly tied in the colors below has been an effective pattern the last few weeks to imitate the #16 Little Olive Stone fluttering across the waters surface. We began using this fly in a tan color on our Fly Fishing Road Trips. It was especially effective on the Madison River, Montana.
I continue to marvel at how effective this simple fly is for catching fish after experimenting with different colors of CDC for the wing.
IOBO Humpy
I continue to marvel at how effective this simple IOBO Humpy is for catching fish. A small #18 fly has worked when rising fish won’t take any other fly pattern.
I’ve said this many times…I don’t understand how the fish like and eat this fly.
October Caddis
Of course, October wouldn’t be October without carrying a few October Caddis patterns.
These are large flies, and when the naturals are around, they’re hard to miss.
I generally don’t fish October Caddis fly patterns, but decided to tie a Morrish October Caddis the other day. Two fish rose to my fly, but didn’t hook up. I’m changing my mind about how often to try October Caddis patterns!
There are other flies in my fly boxes, of course. I carry different sizes and colors, and I’ll add patterns depending on where I’m fishing and what I’ve been seeing.
But these are the flies I have confidence in.
I’ve tied a lot of flies over the years. Some were created because I wanted to learn a particular technique. Others came from a customer request. Some were historical patterns I wanted to tie and photograph. And a few simply looked interesting.
That doesn’t mean they all belong in my fishing box.
When I’m actually standing along the river, I want flies I know and trust.
Flies I’ve fished and have caught fish.
That’s one of the benefits of spending years tying and fishing flies. Eventually, you figure out which patterns you reach for without thinking.
My fly box doesn’t need to contain every pattern ever created.
It just needs to contain the flies I actually use.
As I’ve said many times…”You can use whatever you want, but this is what I use.”
Enjoy…go fish!
