FLYMPH FORUM

These two patterns accounted for maybe 25, to 30 trout for me this morning. They were head-to-head as far as fish count goes. I honestly do not know which did best. I do know that my beloved Partridge and Yellow did not hook one fish in the three-fly set up. I was swinging them across and down

The top fly is a Squirrel, Hot Spot SH. This is the pattern I was thinking of submitting in the "Pretty in Pink" swap. It is a good producer for me, but terribly ugly. I had already decided to submit a pretty but unproven pattern into the swap before I had to pull out.
Even I would have been disappointed to receive such a homely pattern in a swap.

The bottom fly is a beaded caddis pupa, with Swiss Straw wings. It is very basic, and simple to tie. I started using it at the end of caddis season last year. This year I got a chance to float the Roaring Fork river . The caddis were active, but the hatch was not spectacular. The pupa did well for me, as it did today.

I think both patterns did well holding up to the toothy attacks by my local Brown Trout.


The pupa pattern before being fished. I have fished this pattern in colors Gray and Brown, and a combination of both. Gold and Silver brass beads are used. This afternoon I tied a version with a chartreuse abdomen and muskrat thorax. I will test it tomorrow or the next day.

Awesome patterns Wayne! Thank you for sharing them with us. Nice to see “producers” like these. Good stuff!

There is a stretch on Warm Spring Creek outside Mackey, Idaho I call The Flat Of A Thousand Rainbows. Give me either of those “ugly” flies as a dropper off an Olive dun and I’ll stand there and catch those 15-18 inch rainbows (with a few Kokanee thrown in) til the cows come home.

Doug, thanks for this (not to snub your other stuff, always great...). I'm posting on this terrific pupa fly because I've not (yet) ever had success with my own limited experiments with swiss straw, so I must be doing something wrong with it... Any tips for using swiss straw successfully, and maybe when not to use it? Or maybe I just need to tie and fish more and better.

I'm tying up some trico rs2 style flies a little later today, maybe fish them tomorrow morning, was thinking of swiss straw for the wing bud?