The warm weather gravy train keeps on rollin’. Once again, we have another long-range forecast that shows nothing but mid-Fall like temps, with the warm afternoons and cool evenings. The fish are content and have been happily feasting on our flies. We have a little rain in the forecast, which will help, if it arrives. As you know, the forecast is worthless once you look past the 3-day mark.
I don’t know of any stocked or wild trout waters that aren’t fishing well. The big story these days is the amazing dry fly action we’ve been so thoroughly enjoying. Granted, the trout are crushing dries, but the “catch” is the size of the flies necessary to fool them. Midges and/or tiny Blue Winged Olive mayflies are what’s on the menu. These guys do not have the body mass that March Browns or Hendricksons carry around. The BWO’s may have a similar appearance to the big boys, but you practically need a microscope to identify them. Having an exact representation is not as important as having the right size. Having some flies that are olive or any shade of gray in size 18-22 will work just fine.
Good dry and emerger flies for this week are pretty much the same as last week.
Dry Flies-
#16-20 Olive Parachute Adams
#16-20 Thunderhead (if you can find them or tie them)
#16-22 Griffith’s Gnat
#18-20 Adult Blue Winged Olive
#18-20 Adams Irresistible
Emergers-
#20-24 Olive Jujubees
#20-24 Top Secret Midge (black, gray, red, or olive)
#18-22 RS2 (olive or gray)
#18-22 CDC Loop Wing Emerger (you see where the color scheme is going)
#20-24 Mercury Midge
Fishing these tiny flies will require some finesse, both in casting and the fight. Extra finesse during the fight. Break out your flimsiest noodle rod and hang on! Long leaders that terminate in 6x or 7x tippet is pretty much a requirement. Dropper lines should consist of the same, but going down to 8x, if you can manage it, is even better. With the lack of rain we’ve had, the water is gin clear and really low. You need your flies to perform as naturally as possible, and your leader needs to vanish when it’s in the water.
A few variables you can take advantage of-
- Drop an emerger or two off of your dry fly. Many times, the fish will hit the emerger, so your dry will also act as a strike indicator.
- Fish your Griffith’s Gnats as dry flies or hit them with some Henry’s Sinket and they’ll get clobbered subsurface, as well.
- Addendum to the last suggestion- if you fish a dry followed by two emergers- Keep the dry on the surface. Leave the first emerger untouched, as in, no floatant or anything. Use the Henry’s Sinket on the bottom one to have the entire emergent cycle complete. One on the surface, one just below, and one that rides about 6” deep.
These tips are exactly what we’re using right now on our guided trips and our personal fun fishing trips. I hope this helps you catch more trout on dries this winter. We’re always ready to take you out and show you in person, so book some time on the water with us and we’ll get you tuned in and turned on.
Thank you for being here with us.
Josh Whorton
