I’m taking a trip in mid-September to Laramie, Wyoming. I plan to fish some mountain streams and creeks for a long weekend. Here’s my question… What would you tie? Here’s a hatch chart…
There aren’t any fish there …
I’d tie caddis (CDC & Elk, Chuck’s Caddis Variant, Galloup’s Butch Caddis), parachute Adams, a bunch of attractors (Foam back Convertible, Stimis, Humpies, Purple Haze), hoppers, beetles and ants.
Betty, this is all hypothetical! 
QK,
After looking at your hatch chart I’d be adding a number of flies to my box.
Parachute Adams sizes 14 to 22
Tan Hare’s Ear wet fly in 14-16
Any number of October Caddis dry fly imitations that have been listed on FAOL (think Stimulators in orange, dark wing) size 6-10
Partridge and orange, same sizes on a light wire hook.
Griffit’s Gnat and Black Midges 14-22
Syl’s Midge wet fly 14-20
Elk hair caddis, some with olive body, some tan, 12-14
Peacock and partridge wet fly 12 to 18.
I have all of the wet flies already, just need to add the dries.
REE
I am a little far from there but I love creeks. When I start in “unexplored” waters my fisrst choice is a #16-18 EHC or a Prince nymph.
Hi Zac,
I would tie elk hair caddis, gray Wulff, black stonefly, and on the chance that the hatch is on would certainly have some October caddis patterns and BWOs.
Tie the EHC in the indicated sizes, but concentrate on #14 and #16, with some #18s, less #12s and #20s. I would also carry some deer hair caddis flies for the sedge caddis listed, which have an olive body, dun hackle, and a dun wing of gray deer hair. I have had days when the standard elk hair caddis worked part of the day, and then later in the evening the deer hair caddis was working. This was in New Mexico, but it was in the fall.
The gray Wulff I would tie would run from #14 to #20, and it can fish for a midge or a baetis in a pinch. The callibeatis that I have fished over often have lighter color tails and wings, so I would have some of the gray Wulffs with light color tails and wings, but keep the body muskrat gray. I like quite light elk for the wings on these lighter color ones.
The later in the season it gets, the smaller the baetis get, so #18 and #20 would seem to be the sizes I would concentrate on for the BWOs.
I would definately have a few Griffiths gnats, as I have had more luck with them for midges than with anything else. Still, if you have plenty of time to tie, carry some cream and some very dark (maybe even black) mayfly type patterns in #18 and #20, and in all of the midge and mayfly patterns including the gray Wulffs and BWOs I would leave the wings off of the #18s and #20s, as I don’t think they make much difference, and adding the wings REALLY slows the tying. The combination of gray Wulff, BWO, cream, and black should give you something to try in many different midge situations. For what it’s worth, AK Best recommends that the color for BWO bodies should be the color of split pea soup that is a bit on the light side, rather than the relatively dark olive that you often see.
For the winter stonefly I would carry black stimulators, and carry a few in each of the listed sizes, but would also include some #12s, and would concentrate on the #14s and #16s, with less of the #18s and still less of the #20s.
The October caddis is a huge caddis fly, and if the trout have been taking them, they will be a great choice to try.
I would tie the flies with plenty of hackle, and my mayflies are almost all Wulff style, because quite a bit of the water we have in the west can have quick water, and the floatation is important. Every now and then I will tie a few Catskill style flies just because the look so nice, but mostly I fish Wulffs. Same thing with the elk hair caddis and stimulators, I hackle mine fairly heavily.
Beyond this I would tie a few soft hackles in sizes #14 to #20, just in case. I would also carry pheasant tails and gold ribbed hairs ears, and maybe some stonefly nymphs tied from hairs ear fur, and also a few of each with bead heads. As far as size goes for the nymphs, my short experience is that the trout don’t seem to be as pickly about size on the nynphs as the are with the dries.
If I didn’t know what was going on, I would search with one of the EHCs in size #16, trying both the EHC and the DHC, and also try a #12 or #14 nymph to search with.
Hope you do well and have a great time.
Regards,
Gandolf
In addition to all these good suggestions, I’d add some gray rs2’s in 18 and 20. Good for all kiinds of things.
Wow! Thanks so much for the lengthy answers. I think I was headed in the right direction, just needed some affirmation. So far, I’ve got a bunch of different #12 soft hackles tied up. Next, I think I’ll work on all my caddis flies.
Thanks again, and keep the suggestions coming!
Zac
Hi Zac,
Caddis flies first is indeed a good idea. If I only one dry to try, a #14 or #16 EHC would be it, and a lot of the time I tie mine in a bit lighter tan than the ones tied from hare’s mask. It always seems like there are caddis flies around, they live a long time as adults compared to mayflies, and so the trout seem to take them a lot of the time. Thus for me they are a favorite searcihing pattern.
Be sure to let us know how you do up there.
Regards,
Gandolf
Things along the front range of the Rocky Mountains start to change at that time of the year (mid September). You could even get snow ! All the broods of the smaller mayflies like the baetis will be tiny, like #24 tiny and only on certain rivers with a massive hatch will the fish key on them and become selective. Most all of the insects are about ready to pack it in for winter and serious hatches are for the most part over for the season. Fish will not be overly selective, but their feeding habits will change with the temperature drops and the fish seem to wait for “Bankers Hours” to become active…The good thing is that they will be on the lookout for the opportunity to gobble some food after things warm up a bit, so don’t be overly anxious to start at daybreak and I wouldn’t worry too much about the fly I was using. Make it easy on yourself and pick a fly you can cast well and see well, something about a size # 14.
When it’s dead in the wee hours of the morning you can pick up the occasional fish with a bait-fish imitation and 9 times out of 10 this is going to be a Brown Trout, so have a streamer about 2" long to play with when nothing seems to be active. The streamer doesn’t have to go to the bottom of the stream. It can be fished just below the surface. Cast it to a bank and give it a couple of jerks, let it drift, a few more jerks and drifts, then move on.
The water will be low and clear because the run-off should be over. Try to move in an upstream direction if your fishing small and medium sized water to keep from alarming all the fish in the hole, and make your first casts well back of the bank. Move on if you don’t get the fish to bite on your fly after fishing the length of the hole. Chances are if you spook the fish they will head for cover and wait awhile.I’m giving these ideas for fishing small to medium size rivers, if you go to something like the Platte the game changes. You’ll have to pound the fish up out of a hole and in this case you’ll have to stay put and nymph 'em up…or you can float the river which I don’t think is your question…another game.
My fly is the … for this time of year, but you and others have to be be the judge. So… you get your Pronghorns and have a good trip! Hope you get a few tight lines on the stream.
Having just returned from two weeks in the Snowy Range … Snow pack this year stands at 190% of normal. Many roads are still closed by massive snow drifts. Only a very few campgrounds are open (same reason). Rivers, streams, creeks are running VERY high, and VERY fast. EVERY precaution MUST be used in the area. It’s incredibly beautiful, especially considering it’s late July … except for the mosquitos that are plentiful and HUGE. IF you can get to higher elevations, where the snow is stable, and IF the water isn’t iced over still, the brookies are plentiful.
I’d start with my standby flies: PTN, Hare’s Ears (std and olive), and elk hair caddis. Then I’d throw in some soft hackles (peacock, yellow and orange). Then I’d add some Adams and stims to fill.