"Soon after I embraced the sport of angling I became convinced that I should never be able to enjoy it if I had to rely on the cooperation of the fish"- Sparse Grey Hackle
All it takes is two days where the temperature breaks 50 and then you will see them: The little stoneflies will be everywhere along your nearest trout stream. I live on the banks of the Mill River in Northampton and these little critters are all over my back deck and windows. How they survived the two day warm spell is anyone's guess. That two day warm spell came with a lot of rain which broke up some serious ice jams that caused some spots to overflow. Those little stones crawled to the shore and against those odds made it to safety.
I've never had luck imitating the little stones on my favorite freestones but the upper portion of the Swift (Y Pool, Bubbler Run) has been ok because of it's controlled flow.
As I write this I can hear a few Spring time bird songs outside. The season is changing!!!
Thanks for the fly orders. Keep them coming!!!!
Ken
5 comments:
Ken,
It's 12 degrees here right now. Those little stones may be frozen solid.
Anonymous,
Same temperature here and now the Mill River behind my house is totally iced over. The Stoneflies are hardy and they will survive.
Ken
Ken- If your looking for a great little black stonefly dry fly pattern, check out Tim Flagler's pattern. Simple to tie and works if you come across trout feeding on them in mid/late March.
what size hook would it take to imitate these little guys? are they around a 16-18?
any recommended patterns?
Andrew,
Size 18
Ken
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