Pattern Database

Fran Betters' Adirondack attractor is one of the great regional dry flies. The rusty/orange body and stark white wings are visible in any water, and the wide-hackle float makes it bulletproof in the pocket water of the Ausable River.

The original Hendrickson (Roy Steenrod's tie) imitates the darker female Ephemerella subvaria with its distinctive pinkish-gray body of urine-stained vixen fox fur. The classic Catskill pattern for the first major mayfly hatch of Eastern spring.

A close cousin to the Elk Hair Caddis but tied with deer hair for a darker, lower-riding silhouette. Excellent for evening caddis activity when fish are sipping low and refusing higher-floating patterns.

Al Troth's classic elk hair caddis is one of the most effective adult caddis patterns ever tied. The palmered hackle and buoyant elk hair wing keep it riding high in fast water.

The Goddard Caddis uses spun and clipped deer hair to create a tent-shaped body that is virtually unsinkable. Exceptional in fast, broken water where high flotation matters more than delicacy.

A classic Catskill Variant with an oversized, sparse hackle and stripped quill body. No wing — the high-riding hackle creates the silhouette. Effective during March Brown and Gray Fox hatches when fish are looking up but not locked on a specific pattern.

Hiram Brobst's classic Pennsylvania caddis dry has a distinctive doubled wing — sparse wood duck flank under, deer hair over — and a palmered body. It imitates the Grannom and Spotted Sedge perfectly during spring caddis hatches.

A classic Catskill Variant with oversized hackle, stripped quill body, and paired hackle-tip wings. The stiff, long tail and generous hackle allow the fly to skate and dance on the surface — killing during selective surface activity.

The Humpy is one of the most recognizable Western attractor dry flies. The deer hair hump traps air for unsinkable flotation, making it perfect for rough freestone pocket water. Yellow suggests stoneflies and caddis; red is a general attractor; the Royal Humpy adds the peacock-floss-peacock body of the Royal Coachman.

Pat Barnes' Sofa Pillow improved with a palmered body hackle for extra flotation. One of the premier golden stonefly adult imitations in Western fly fishing — large, buoyant, and visible in heavy current.

Wayne Buszek's California pattern has become a universal caddis attractor. The orange dubbed body and elk hair wing — palmered through with ginger hackle — float high and stay visible in fast runs. An excellent attractor alternative to the Elk Hair Caddis.

The Light Cahill Spinner represents the final stage in the life cycle of Light Cahill mayflies in genus Maccaffertium (formerly Stenonema), when spent insects return to the water to lay eggs. These spinner falls often occur in the evening and can produce some of the most selective trout feeding of the season. Traditional quill-bodied spinner patterns emphasize slender translucence, outstretched wings, and a low-riding profile — all critical elements when trout are sipping spent mayflies from smooth water. The Light Cahill Quill Spinner excels during late spring and early summer hatches on both freestone rivers and tailwaters. Its understated appearance and classic construction make it a staple pattern whenever trout are feeding confidently in low-light conditions. The traditional material selection creates a slender, translucent body with a soft, spent-wing profile — ideal for spinner falls and selective trout.

The classic Catskill March Brown — divided wood duck wings, mixed hackle, and hare's ear body. Theodore Gordon himself fished a version of this during the first great hatch of Eastern spring. A foundational American fly pattern.

The March Brown is a large, sporadic hatch but when it's on, trout eat aggressively. The parachute style is easier to see on riffled freestone water than the traditional Catskill tie.

The Micro Chubby is a modern refinement of Chubby-style attractor dry flies, which trace their lineage back to the iconic Chubby Chernobyl. While the original Chubby was intentionally oversized to imitate stoneflies and hoppers, anglers quickly learned that trout often respond better to a smaller, cleaner silhouette—especially on pressured water. By downsizing the profile while keeping the core elements—foam buoyancy, rubber legs, and a visible body—the Micro Chubby excels as a searching dry fly, a terrestrial imitation, and a highly effective hopper-dropper indicator fly. Its ability to float heavy droppers while remaining subtle enough for selective trout has made it a staple in modern fly boxes.

Harry Murray's classic. An essential attractor dry fly for fast freestone water.

Caddisflies are among the most important insects in trout streams, often emerging in large numbers and skittering across the surface. Effective caddis patterns focus less on exact imitation and more on profile, buoyancy, and movement—qualities that trigger confident strikes. Snowshoe hare foot hair has long been valued in fly tying for its exceptional flotation and natural translucence, while CDC provides subtle motion and a low-riding footprint on the water. This Olive Snowshoe Caddis combines both materials to create a wing that floats high yet breathes naturally, making it especially effective in riffles, seams, and broken water. The olive coloration allows this pattern to cover a wide range of caddis species, functioning as both a hatch match and a versatile searching dry throughout spring and summer. This natural-material recipe produces a highly buoyant, animated dry fly with a clean caddis silhouette—perfect for fishing active caddis hatches or prospecting broken water.

The parachute variation of the Adams offers better visibility and a flush-floating wing silhouette. A go-to when fish are being selective.

The parachute version of the Hendrickson offers a flush-floating wing silhouette that's deadly during the first major dry fly hatch of the Eastern season. The pinkish-gray body exactly matches the natural.

The Mahogany Dun hatch is a fall sleeper — fish that have seen every fly all summer are suddenly willing to rise again. This parachute version is visible in the low autumn light and sits perfectly in the film.

A high-floating, heavily weighted stonefly nymph imitation that excels in rocky, fast freestone streams. The rubber legs provide irresistible action even at drift speed. Standard guide rig anchor fly throughout the West.

Frank Sawyer's deceptively simple nymph is one of the most effective subsurface patterns ever created. The natural pheasant tail fibers perfectly suggest a range of Eastern mayfly nymphs.

Theodore Gordon's legendary pattern for Epeorus pleuralis — the first quality dry-fly hatch of the year. The stripped peacock quill body perfectly captures the segmented look of the natural.

The Rat-Faced McDougal pairs a spun-and-clipped deer hair body with white calf tail wings and ginger hackle. The deer hair body is nearly unsinkable — excellent in fast water where buoyancy beats precision.

The Red Quill imitates the male Hendrickson natural — darker and smaller than the female, with a distinctive reddish-brown segmented body made from a stripped hackle quill. A Catskill classic as important as the Hendrickson itself.

The Royal Humpy combines the buoyant hump body of the Humpy with the Royal Coachman color scheme — peacock herl, red floss, and white wings. The result is a heavy-water attractor that's visible from any angle.

Randall Kaufmann's Stimulator is the king of attractor dry flies for Western-style fast water. Its elk hair wing, palmered hackle, and bold body trigger strikes on everything from trout to steelhead. Yellow imitates Yellow Sallies and small stoneflies; orange targets Golden Stones and Salmonflies; chartreuse and tan serve as general attractors.

The Dirty Blonde is a versatile dry fly designed with subtle blonde tones, making it effective for imitating a variety of mayflies and caddisflies. Whether you're fishing a Pale Morning Dun hatch, a Light Cahill emergence, or general tan caddis activity, this pattern's pale yellow body and light ginger hackle give it broad appeal across seasons and water types.

The Woolly Bugger is one of the most versatile streamers in freshwater fishing. It suggests a leech, sculpin, hellgrammite, baitfish, or simply something alive and edible. Olive and brown match sculpin and leech; black provides maximum silhouette in off-color or low-light water; white imitates baitfish such as shiners and dace.

A sparse, delicate dry fly imitating the little yellow stonefly (Isoperla spp.). One of the most reliable summer dry-fly hatches on freestone streams.

The parachute version of the Yellow Sally dry sits flush and is far easier to track than the standard low-hackle version. The white poly post provides visibility without changing the silhouette that trout key on during Little Yellow Sally hatches.