Yes, it’s that time of year. It’s time to pull out your hopper fly patterns and start fishing them. What are your favorite patterns? My favorite hopper fly patterns have changed over the years as creative fly designers started using foam in their creations. I used to fish hoppers tied with deer hair and heavily…
Here’s a little twist for Throw Back Thursday. I’m doing it with older flies. Why not? This fly is a Tied Down Caddis. It’s one of the first flies I used over 40 years ago.
Do you remember the first flies you used when you began fly fishing? I remember some of my first flies. Oh my, that was years ago! Let’s see…there were the Woolly Worm, Zug Bug, and Hare’s Ear. Those are names I remember. How about the flies in this picture? That must be my early attempt at an…
One inch long and green. What? Yup, if there’s any question about what lake flies to use, a friend of mine always says “Try something one inch long and green.” Dennys Stillwater Nymph I like simple flies for a variety of reasons, but even that recommendation is a little too simple for me. It’s like saying…
Have you ever fished with adult damsel flies? Talk about exciting! These bugs are quick, so when a fish takes your fly, it’s more like a toilet bowl flushing…a big ring from the fish taking the fly with gusto! At times, there can be massive hatches or swarms. Here is a recent picture of a…
Callibaetis mayflies are a staple of lake fishing. I fished East Lake last weekend with Central Oregon Project Healing Waters. It was my first time this year on a lake and I’d heard the Callibaetis mayflies were out. So I checked the “provider box” (that’s what my wife calls it) to see what Callibaetis mayflies I…
Are you fly fishing with beetle patterns? You should. Why do fish eat beetles? Who cares. All I know is my wife and I have caught some of our biggest trout recently with Beetle Bailey. We were sitting along the river bank waiting for the Green Drake hatch a couple of weeks ago and started reminiscing about…
Are you new to fly fishing? If so, you may be like some of my friends who ask “what flies should I use?” I enjoy teaching people things. Maybe that’s why I volunteer for fly fishing related activities. I like to make things simple so people can enjoy the activity. When you are new to…
Pale Morning Duns, otherwise known as PMDs, are an important hatch for fly fishers. These flies are a size 16 -18. The hatch begins in late May and will continue through September. Generally, they will hatch in the afternoon. Mayflies in general spend much of their life as a nymph, rummaging around the rocky stream…
Golden Stoneflies were out in force along the Lower Deschutes River when I floated from Warm Springs to Trout Creek last week. Goldens are a very important part of a trout’s diet. A couple species are lumped under the heading “Golden Stonefly” – the Hesperoperla pacifica and Calineuria californica. Who cares what the scientific names are,…
