Wes Wada wrote:
Hi VFBees,
I was on the Deschutes yesterday afternoon fishing the salmonfly hatch. Action was slow, but I managed to get one nice 16" redside rainbow and had a couple of splashy strikes that were not hookups. I had the feeling that the hatch has not progressed far enough along in the area I was fishing, which is the last in the river upstream to get the big 2" bugs. It takes a while for the big fish to key on these. The prehistoric-looking critters hanging around the bushes were thick, so I think from here on out until the activity quits altogether will be the best time.
While fishing the various stonefly dry imitations next to the live bugs thrashing around on the water, it was obvious that one thing all the dry stonefly patterns lack is an illusion of a bug in motion, flapping its wings and desperately struggling to get airborne or back to shore. The thrashing around of these bugs put caddisflies to shame. With so many bugs available on the water throughout the day, any movement of your fly becomes a trigger that separates "real" from "artificial".
I would like to create a dry stonefly pattern that has a maximum illusion of motion. Rubber legs would be used, of course, and probably rubber antennae and anal projections. The problem is the winging. I need to use sparkly, mobile winging material that floats well and sheds water immediately upon false casting. Any material on the fly that does not get wet upon landing in the water should flutter in the wind. The material would need to be stiff enough to be realistic and mobile enough to be an attractor. If the color were greyish or mottled, all the better.
Suggestions? Any patterns you know that match that description?
Wes Wada Bend, Oregon
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