3 Top Flies for Fall Fly Fishing
Miller Watson on Sep 30th 2021
Take confidence to the water on your next trip with our 3 Top Fly Patterns for Fall Fly Fishing and the materials that you'll need to whip up your own.
The Stimulator is a great attractor and searching pattern to entice picky trout with the burnt orange color matching the many caddis species during Fall. The buggy characteristics and large profile of the Stimulator make it an excellent fly to mimic a large variety of flies we find in Southern Appalachian streams including stoneflies, mayflies, caddis, and even the occasional terrestrial. The large collection of natural materials used to tie this fly make it incredibly buoyant leading to it being a great fly to pair up with bead head nymphs when fished as a dry-dropper rig. This is a must have pattern for the Fall and many anglers consider it a go to year round.
Materials List:
Hook: Tiemco TMC 200R or Umpqua U203 sizes 16-10
Thread: Uni Products Uni Fire Orange 6/0
Tail: Wapsi Elk Body Hair Natural or Nature's Spirit Select Cow Elk
Abdomen: Wapsi Antron Dubbing Fluorescent Orange or Wapsi Antron Yarn Burnt Orange
Thorax: 50/50 blend of Wapsi Antron Dubbing Bright Yellow and Wapsi Superfine Dubbing Pale Morning Dun
Body Hackle: Whiting Farms High & Dry Hackle Cape Brown sized to hook gap
Ribbing: UTC Ultra Wire Gold Sz. Small
Wing: Wapsi Elk Body Hair Natural or Nature's Spirit Select Cow Elk
Hackle: Whiting Farms High & Dry Hackle Cape Grizzly sized a little larger than Body Hackle
Solitude Fly Tungsten Bead Head Hare's Ear
The Bead Head Hare's Ear is a great multi-purpose pattern for the nymphs of caddis, stonefly, and mayflies that we find as water temperatures begin to fall. The hare dubbing and tungsten bead make the fly drop quickly into the zones where hungry trout anxiously await their next meal. As an iconic pattern, the history of this fly alone proves its' worth. The stiff hare fibers from the hare's mask and hare's ear dubbing create a strong imitation of the legs of various aquatic insects.
Materials List:
Hook: Tiemco TMC 5262 or Umpqua U103
Bead: Wapsi Tungsten Bomb Beads or Wapsi Cyclops Beads (for a lighter version)
Thread: Uni Products Uni Red 6/0
Tail: Wapsi Hare's Mask
Abdomen: Hareline Dubbing Hare's Ear
Thorax: Hareline Dubbing Hare's Ear or Blended Guard Hairs from Wapsi Hare's Mask
Ribbing: UTC Flat Mylar Tinsel Gold
Solitude Fly Bead Head Ascending Caddis
The Ascending Caddis is perhaps the most ideal match for emerging caddis. The color and profile of this pattern make it the perfect fly to catch trout searching for caddis in the transitional phase between larva and pupa that we see during October. This phase between larva and pupa is perhaps the most vulnerable stage for caddis and hungry trout will be sure to take advantage of this phase in the life cycle.
Materials List:
Hook: Tiemco TMC 2457, Tiemco TMC 2487 or Umpqua U202
Bead: Wapsi Tungsten Bomb Beads or Wapsi Cyclops Beads (for a lighter version)
Thread: Uni Products Uni 6/0 Tan
Tail: Uni Products Uni Floss Orange
Abdomen: Hareline Dubbing Hare's Ear With Uni Products Uni Floss Orange for Back
Thorax: Hareline Dubbing Hare's Ear
Collar: Trout Hunter Premium Dyed CDC Medium Dun
Ribbing: UTC Ultra Wire Gold Sz. Small