My Starting Fly Lineup Now

My Starting Fly Lineup Now

I absolutely believe that a fly angler can make a lifetime of memories by fishing ten patterns well, and ten years ago, when Charlie Meyers and I published The Little Red Book of Fly Fishing, we tossed out ten staple patterns. I still believe in those patterns with all my heart. But now, ten years later, with over one million miles traveled, I’d refine that list just a tad. The twelve flies I have in my box now, no matter where I am in the world (to fish trout), are:

• Charlie Craven’s Mole Fly #18
• Pat Dorsey’s Mercury RS2 #20
• Jack Dennis’s Amy’s Ant #12
• John Barr’s Beadhead Copper John #16
• Tim Heng’s Autumn Splendor Streamer #8
• Parachute Adams #14
• Tungsten Bead, Soft-hackle Pheasant Tail #14 (or #16)
• Don Puterbaugh’s Caddis #14
• Mike Mercer’s Missing Link Caddis #16
• Dave Whitlock’s Whit Hopper #10
• Jay Zimmerman’s Backstabber #8 (best carp fly in the world, but under-appreciated for big crawfish eating browns)
• Gold-ribbed Hare’s Ear #14

There are a zillion other cool bugs, and great variations, to be sure. But trust me, you can travel the world, fish in any local season and catch fish anywhere if you carry these patterns in your box. I’ve been traveling and fishing for decades, and these are the patterns that have caught me the most fish, throughout the world.