Field and Stream's 25 best flies of all time

[Normand]

its a good list but should have included the pheasant tail nymph

the rs2 has been around for about +/- 20 years and has proven its fish catching ability

[Wild One]

I find it very interesting that 4 of the top 5 flies are streamer patterns. That is certainly something to take into consideration when visiting a new body of water, me thinks...

[DShock]

That is a good list! Here are a couple of additions:

http://www.danica.com/flytier/jwoola...efly_nymph.jpg (Image)

http://cmcflyfish.org/images/large/kaufmann_scud_lg.jpg

Doug

[ducksterman]

I find it very interesting that 4 of the top 5 flies are streamer patterns. That is certainly something to take into consideration when visiting a new body of water, me thinks...

I'm wondering if any where it says his order is top to bottom...??????

I'm suspecting it's hard enough to pick top 25 let alone 25 top to bottom....and he has stated his trout bias....

[JeffHamm]

Hi,

I was surprised not to see the pheasant tailed nymph, but also surpised that Greenwell's Glory was not listed. Still, a good list that would do one well.

- Jeff

[Eight Thumbs]

I think that's a pretty good list of flies, with a few glaring omissions, but surely they are not listed in order. 8T

[jdubach]

Hi,

I was surprised not to see the pheasant tailed nymph, but also surpised that Greenwell's Glory was not listed. Still, a good list that would do one well.

- Jeff

What the heck is a Greenwell's Glory? I think people have to have heard of it too, adding notoriety, not just fishing capability.

[DShock]

http://www.flyanglersonline.com/feat...es/part106.php
Doug

[redietz]

What the heck is a Greenwell's Glory? I think people have to have heard of it too, adding notoriety, not just fishing capability.

It's one of the most famous flies in the English speaking world, outside of the US.

In many ways, I've always had a hard time when anybody makes a list of
"the best " X " of all time." What they really mean is "my favorite " X " at the moment."

I'm not saying that the choices he made weren't good ones, just that they're really only the 25 best flies he (they?) could think of, given that they take the greatest number of species of fish in the greatest number of American (fresh) waters in the early 21st century. With those criteria, it's not a bad list.

Like any such list, it's just a starting point for discussion. It's certainly not the same list I'd come up with, but there are reasonable justifications for the inclusion of every fly in the list.

I really don't understand the exclusion of the pheasant tail nymph; it's both hugely popular and a great fish catcher.

One could also argue that he mixed generic types of flies (e.g. Clouser Minnows) with specific patterns (e.g. Adams). If you're going to include "Clouser Minnow" as a pattern, you might just well include "bead head nymph" as a pattern.

My own list would have started "Partridge & Orange", repeated about 20 times, with "Chartreuse Sparkle Grub" thrown in toward the end for when I wanted to fish for warmwater species.

[Big Bad Wulff]

They're missing it if soft hackles and midges aren't on the list!