The Mother’s Day Caddis

The Mother’s Day Caddis: A Hatch Like No Other

There are a few things that make fishing caddis dry flies so unique. Tune into these three things, and you’ll make the most out of one of the best hatch phenomena of the year...

First, when caddisflies land on the water to lay eggs, more often than not, they face upstream and into the current. Fish, for whatever reason, know that. So, a caddis hatch is one of the few times when an upstream-down dry-fly presentation not only works fine, I consider that the preferred way to fish a caddis hatch.

Second, another counterintuitive factor that makes a caddis hatch special is that a little action–like a slight twitch–after your fly hits the water is not only okay, it’s often preferable. Natural caddis dip and dive, and skate on the surface. So, while most of the time when dry fly fishing, we want as “dead” a drift as possible, when caddis are on the menu, a little motion can be the magic potion.

You cannot always tell what bugs a trout is eating by the way it rises, but in the case of caddis, those splashy rises happen because the naturals skitter, and the window of opportunity is shorter than when a mayfly is drying its wings on the surface.

Third, caddisflies come in all shapes, sizes and colors. Which is why there are dozens, if not more, variations of dry fly patterns meant to imitate one type of bug. When it comes to finding the pattern trout are going to want to eat, profile is the number one factor, followed closely by size and then maybe color, in that order. Mix and match your approach until you land on the “money” bug, then stick with that until the fish tell you otherwise.

Happy Mother’s Day to all you moms out there! – Kirk Deeter

Interview: Captain Conway Bowman

Today’s electronics are great, they’re excellent, but one thing they can’t do is teach you how to have an instinct or a “feel” for the ocean. They just get you to the spot. That’s only half the journey. You get to the spot, and it doesn’t look right. If you don’t have the right bird profile or things aren’t lining up, you’re not going to catch any fish. There’s still that element of jazz and collective improvisation: You’ve done it so much, you know how to improv. You know how to feel the water like feeling the music, right? And if it ain’t grooving, I’m moving. So, electronics are great, but you’ll never replace the “time on the water” knowledge a guide has harvested: the observations, the feel and smell of the ocean, the colors of water. If a spot’s happening, it’s probably going to happen, because it’s grooving, right?

Read the entire interview.

Product Buzz

We review the Riversmith River Quiver Fly Rod Carrier, Rocky Talkie 5 Watt Radio, New Zealand Strike Indicator System and the Knog Bilby 400 Headlamp. Skwala, which entered the fly-fishing market a few years ago with waders, jackets and layering, has developed two new lines of wading boots (the RS Boot and Carbon Wading Boot) to make an initial foray into the boot category. From GearJunkie: The Best Fishing Packs of 2025, The Best Fishing Hats of 2025 and the Montana Knife Company Drops Four New Tactical Knives. “The Battle Goat is built for fast access and precise control. It’s compact enough for daily carry but rugged enough to handle serious field use.” From Field & Stream: A Beginner’s Guide to Trout Spey. “Trout Spey fishing is just a smaller, lighter version of the technique Scottish salmon anglers have been using for nearly two centuries.” From Outside: The Price of Outdoor Gear is About to Go Way Up. “​​Brand leaders have been forced to become overnight experts in trade policy, an incredibly nuanced and complicated topic, says Jacylyn Levy, senior director of advocacy and government affairs at Outdoor Industry Association (OIA).”

Fly-fishing News

Check out Tim Romano’s photo series Tailing Loops: Twenty Years of Flipped Boats, Punted Fish, Misfits and Semi-luminaries. It’s awesome. From Skwala: Nine Things Not to Do in a Fly Shop. From Field Mag: The 14 Best Independent Outdoor Magazines to Subscribe To. “The attention economy is competitive, and, we get it, scrolling TikTok is a lot easier than subscribing to monthlies. But there’s hope–in the world of outdoor-and design-oriented storytelling…” From Hatch: How travel to Canada will, and won’t, be affected by the ongoing trade war. “The message for Americans planning to travel to Canada to fish this summer? Travelers should book their flights soon if they haven’t already. There will be fewer to choose from…” From Flylords: Trout Handling Best Practices. Deeter’s report from AFFTA’s “Confluence” event in Boulder. Kevin Costner Talks Conservation and National Parks. “We never thought an ocean could be exhausted, but they’re not fishing for salmon off the coast of California for the first time in 15,000 years. We’re fighting each other, debating things that are right in front of our eyes…”

Recent Press

“Kudos to the recent gear reviews. They’ve got me trying new stuff I hadn’t considered, and really appreciate the focus on cost and value.”  – David, Flylab Fan

“Great writing and love the longer interviews–people still read, so keep them coming.” – Laura, Flylab Fan

“Unsubscribe now–you guys suck.” – Disappointed Reader

Well, you can’t with them all…

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How to Approach The Mother’s Day Caddis

Grannoms have a telltale “dark olive to black abdomen” and slightly grayish-olive wings when they first emerge. Most of your rank and file caddis dry fly patterns are tied with tan to olive body fly recipes, but it’s important to recognize how dark, even black, the naturals can be. There’s also a fair amount of circa fly fishing literature about fishing transitional emergers before the hatch, Lafontaine’s Sparkle Pupas, Edible Emergers etc., which can be productive, I suppose. But isn’t the point of the  “first significant dry fly hatch of the year” to dust off your favorite, soft-action fly rods and a new container of Shimazaki Dry Shake?

Get out of the lead-slinging salt mines for a few months and work on your dry fly game…

Read the entire story.

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