I fished a caddis hatch at dusk along the banks of a tough fishing river a few weeks ago. In the past, I’ve never done well fishing caddis hatches. An Elk Hair Caddis fly has never worked for me, and the other patterns I have tried only produced sporadic fish. This time I decided to target a different stage of the hatch. I opened up my caddis box and selected a green LaFontaine Emergent Sparkle Pupa fly in size 16. The pattern is shown here:
http://www.flyanglersonline.com/flytying/fotw2/011402fotw.php
A few years ago, I really got interested in tying Gary LaFontaine’s caddis flies, so I tracked down the needed materials and I consulted his book for the most effective colors, and then I tied up a bunch of them. I read a post on the internet about a fly swap that Gary LaFontaine conducted, and after the swap, he remarked that although the flies he received were well tied, no one was using the correct materials for his patterns–regular antron would not do. He used a special type of antron yarn that was a mix of both colored fibers and clear fibers, and after the swap he sent everyone who participated in the swap a collection of his materials. I remember that I had some difficulty locating the correct materials, but as a result I had a complete stock of Deep Sparkle Pupa flies and Emergent Sparkle Pupa flies tied in the recommended colors and with the “correct” material.
During this caddis hatch, I used an Emergent Sparkle Pupa fly without any floatant, and I fished it like a dry fly with about a 13-15 foot leader ending in 5x tippet. I cast the fly towards the bank high above a V shaped tailing of water and let the leader pile up on itself. The eddy then took over and skittered the fly to and fro.
On the second or third cast, I hooked up with an 18 inch fish I had seen lazily jump straight up out of the water while chasing a caddis fly. After getting dragged down stream 30 yards and landing the fish, I returned to the same feeding channel. Gusts of wind began concentrating the caddis flies along the banks, and I could now see fish rising all over the river.
But it was getting so dark, I was having trouble seeing my fly on the water. I had to cast two or three times before I could spot where my fly landed on the water. When I was unable to see where my fly landed on the water, I retrieved my line and cast again. Once I spotted my fly on the water, I would let it drift down stream and then wham! a fish would rise and chomp it.
For 45 minutes, it seemed like I hooked up with a fish on almost every cast that I let drift through the feeding channel. That included two fish that I foul hooked even though it appeared that they had taken my fly. Ufortunately, it takes a long time to land a foul hooked 18 inch fish. 
I lost the size 16 green LaFontaine Emergent Sparkle Pupa to a 10 inch fish that wouldn’t stop wriggling when I was trying to get the hook out of its mouth. The telltale pig’s tail at the end of my tippet indicated a badly tied clinch knot. Since it was so dark, I tied on a bigger, more visible, size 12 LaFontaine Emergent Sparkle Pupa. This one had a brown inner underbody, tan overbody, brown head, and blond wing. I wondered if the new color or the larger size would have any adverse affect. Nope. I continued to hook up on almost every cast that I let drift through the feeding lane I was fishing. I had the whole river to myself, and I was catching one fish after another.
Finally I said enough! I still had a 45 minute hike to get back to my car, and it was getting too dangerous to negotiate the current and rocks in the darkness. So I reeled in my line and waded out of the river. I looked for the riverside trail, but along that section of the river, the trail was up on a bluff, so I had to scramble over the rocks at the river’s edge and head down river for a bit before I could gain the trail. As I was clambering over the rocks along the edge of the river, in the near darkness I saw a ring on the water left by a fish rising in deeper, faster water. I wondered if the LaFontaine Emergent Sparkle Pupa would work on that fish too. So I unfurled my line, and I cast two or three times to the spot where I saw the ring on the water. On the third cast, the fish gently sipped my fly off the surface. I set the hook and then wedged myself between two rocks that bordered the fast, dark water, and within a few minutes I landed another 18 inch fish.
Thanks to the late Gary LaFontaine for providing me with some fast and furious fishing action!