Nothing excites or disappoints a dry fly
fisherman more than a caddis hatch. This is
especially true if the fisherman is using an Elk
Hair Caddis and the hatch isn’t in the right stage
for that fly. However, if the hatch is in the right
stage, the Elk Hair Caddis is the most productive
caddis imitation I’ve found.
So, what’s the right stage of the hatch? Not the
emergence for sure. During emergence, the fish are
concentrating on the thousands of pupa that are
making their way to the surface. The only top-water
patterns that are great at this time are emerging patterns.
We’ll look at those types of flies in a couple of weeks.
After the caddis pupa reaches the water’s surface, it
quickly transforms into adulthood and flies away. It
isn’t like the mayfly which takes a long time to dry its
wings. The caddis emerges quickly and flies off to
spend the rest of the day or several days hanging around
streamside brush, grass or willows. This is the best time
to get a good look at an adult caddis.
Originally published c. May 11, 2008 on Fly Anglers Online by Al Campbell.