Your Best 12 Trout Flies?

[tidewaterfly 0]

I'm putting this in the tying section as I want as many replies as possible.

 

If you had to compile a list of the best dozen trout fly patterns, no matter the type, what would they be? I know that's a wide open question, but I want it to be. I know there will be many, but if you had to only choose a dozen? Also, when giving answers, please qualify it for what general area you would be fishing them. Thanks!

I fished mostly on MD streams so my list is:

Elk Hair Caddis, natural tan
Elk Hair Caddis, black
Adams Parachute
Adams Dry Fly
Pheasant Tail Nymph
Hares Ear Nymph, black
Bead Head Hare's Ear Nymph, olive
White, Fox Fur Clouser
My Stonefly Nymph, black olive
Black Foam Beetle
Green Weenie
Triple Decker (foam hopper pattern) green

 

[redietz 0]

I fish mostly MD streams, so of course my list is completely different. In no particular order and subject to change daily:

 

1) Partridge and Orange

2) Pheasant tail soft hackle

3) March Brown Flymph

4) Greenwell's Spider

5) Renegade

6) Parachute Black Ant

7) Grouse & Herl

8) Waterhen Bloa

9) Dark Hendrickson (wet)

10) Light Hendrickson (dry)

11) Little Marryat wet

12) Light Spanish Needle

[Flat Rock native 0]

This is a great topic as it caused me to trip down memory lane to come up with a best list, which for me covers the most consistent and productive flies that I have tied and used. I have fished mostly lakes, ponds and large-water impoundments in the Rocky Mountain region of the United States: As redietz notes, this could change daily based upon site specific information.

 

1 Smurf Emerger (Baetis) John Smeraglio inspired #14-18

 

2 Bead Head Prince Nymph #10-18

 

3 Peacock and Black Wooly Bugger #4-12

 

4 Vanilla Wooly Bugger- Mark Boname style #4-12

 

5 Krystal Flash Diving Caddis - Black&Green Jim Schollmeyer inspired #12-20

 

6 Quigley Cripple -Olive #14-18

 

7 Krystal Flash Nymphs - Jim Schollmeyer inspired #12-20, usually Black and Green but wide spectrum of colors #10-20

 

8. CrackleBack Wooly Worm- Tan, pearl flash, Rusty Hackle, Ed Story inspired #14-20

 

9 Hare's Ear Nymph tied Whitlock style (squirrel) #10-20

 

10 Barr Emerger , PMD, Baetis colors #16-20

 

11 Quick Tie Caddis -Green -Brett Clark inspired #14-18

 

12 Olive Grey Scud #12-18

 

Have to put in two bonus selections for "best" due to special fish I caught on a week-long horse pack trip into the Wind River range; Yellow Humpy #8-14 which enabled me to catch several cutthroat-golden trout hybrids in the South Fork of the Little Wind River below Washakie Lake- most beautiful fish ever; and a Joe's Hopper #12, on which I caught my first ever, pure Golden Trout, from an unnamed glacial lake, far above the timberline, where no insects, let alone hoppers were observed within miles of that spot. Thus proving that luck is often WAY better than skill, in trout-catching endeavors.

[flytire 0]

in no particular order of favoritism

 

tan thread midge

brassie

san juan midge

wd40

pheasant tail nymph

gold ribbed hares ear nymph

elk hair caddis

olive comparadun

parachute adams

royal wulff

h&l variant

rio grand king (trude)

[mikechell 0]

No trout in my area ... no flies for trout in my arsenal.

[atxdiscgolfer 0]

Rainbow Warrior size 18-22

Johnny Flash size 18-22

Red Disco Midge size 18-22

SAN Juan Midge size 22

Prince of Darkness size 16

Wooley Bugger size 12

Trico Spinner size 22

Mercury Midge size 20

March Brown size 14

Pheasant Tail size 18

Purple and Starling size 16

Red Ass size 16

[Poopdeck 0]

I don't fish enough for trout to have 12 but here's my list in order of confidence. These are pretty much all I take and I really have no reason to carry more.

 

1) bead head hares ear

2) Hares ear

3) elk hair caddis

4) prince nymph

5) Griffiths gnat

6) Green Weenie

7) black midge with silver bead head

8) Al's rat

9) foam ant/beetle

10) ?

11) ?

12) ?

[notenuftoys 0]

I'm a trout bum living in a bass world, so I don't get to trout fish very often. Here's my favorites in terms of confidence on the couple of streams I fish most often (less than 12):

 

1. Black tungsten zebra midge #18-20

2. Rust tungsten zebra midge #18-22

3. Red tungsten bead copper john #16-18

4. Yellow/partridge soft hackle #16-18

5. Craven's Poison Tung, wine/silver #16-18

6. Craven's Poison Tung, rust/silver #16-18

7. Black cone head wooly bugger #12-14

8. Frenchie in pink or orange #14-18

9. Any rubber leg hopper #12

[rstaight 0]

Most of my trout fishing is in the Driftless Area in Wisconsin. This is what I have in my flybox.

 

1) Adams

2) BWO

3) Sulfar

4) Elk Hair Caddis (tan)

5) Partridge and Orange

6) Partridge and Green

7) Partridge and Brown

8) Zebra Midge

9) Gold Ribbed Hairs Ear

10) Some no name bead head nymph tied with peacock dubbing

[Dave G. 0]

No order and 12 doesn't quite cover the list, there are variations and colors and flies just not on the list lol:

 

1. Elk Hair Caddis ( dry, both traditional and parachute, small and large)

2. Elk Hair Caddis emerger

3. Royal Wulff ( dry, both traditional and parachute, small and large)

4. Rabbit tailed Woolie Bugger ( small, size 12 or so)

5. Woolie Bugger ( traditional and also peacock herl body but standard marabou tail)

6. Red Bodied Woolie Worm ( as well as black but the "red body" is specific and small like size 14)

7. Griffiths Gnat ( from size 20-12)

8. Black Chironamid pupa ( and other midge pupa)

9. Hornberg ( size 12 and 14)

10. Peacock and Partridge or natural hen.

11. Jade Caddis Wet ( as well as some traditional wets)

12. Streamers ( like the Grey Ghost and Muddler Minnow and Black Nosed Dace).

 

As I said the list goes on, depends where I'm fishing, this list doesn't cover some favorites to specific waters.

[vicrider 0]

I need to go to my past to really pretend I was a trout fisherman once. In recent years with guides I've used their tiny nymphs even though I have my own, soft hackles and wooly buggers.

 

Going back to the days I fished streams that were primarily brook trout with some mix of stocker rainbows and native browns I used two streamers almost exclusively.

 

Royal Coachman streamer

Mickey Finn streamer

 

Same two in larger sizes off mouths of rivers running Lake Superior in WI.

 

Royal Coachman wet

Royal Coachman dry These three were used in the stocked rainbow/splake/brookie lakes with the Muddler mainly used dry in the evening, wet during day to imitate the little crayfish

Muddler Minnow

 

 

Other than those in lakes and streams we used yarn flies in the Lake Superior tribs up to first barrier for steelhead, salmon, lake trout, coasters, and even walleyes. We either snelled hooks, tucked clashing color pieces of yarn (mostly orange/chartreuse), then trimmed. I also tied up a bunch like this and trimmed to have ready to tie on quicker than messing with loose yarn.

[Bob Sc 0]

Westside of the central Sierra's in Ca. In no particular order

1. Parachute Adams

2. Black flying ant

3. Stimulator

4. My caddis nymph, size 16 with a 3/32 tungsten bead

5. Partridge and yellow

6. PMD dry

7. Olive, brown or black wooly bugger in 12.

8. Humpy

9. Copper john in the various colors

9. Red tungsten zebra midge

10. Conehead woolly bugger in an 8.

11. Elk hair caddis

12. Hi viz generic parachute, post of flour. orange, yellow, or white.

 

Bob

[Jokey 0]

I fish Western Canadian trout lakes more than anything else so this is what I tie on most often (in no particular order):

 

 

Balanced Leech (black or maroon)

Chronie (black and gold with black BH)

Epoxy Minnow (floating)

Hollow Bloodworm

Micro Seal Leech (olive or black)

Booby (black or chartreuse)

Epoxy Back Scud (tan)

Wiggle Damsel

Big Eye Damsel

Balanced Dragon

Poly Midge Emerger (black and white)

Foam Boatman

 

 

J

[Bryon Anderson 0]

I do my trout fishing in Michigan (until I can retire and move someplace with mountains, anyway ) . There are good insect hatches here, but they tend to be sporadic and unpredictable (compared to hatches in the American West, anyway). Most of our streams have sand/silt/clay bottoms with some gravel, and the bottoms are littered with hundreds of years' worth of deadfall and logging debris, so the habitat is more conducive to prey other than bugs--notably baitfish, leeches and crayfish. I define my "best" flies as the ones that will most reliably get the attention of trout 12" or longer, and I don't include nymphs because, while they do work, I hate fishing them. So with all of the above in mind, here are my picks:

 

1. Woolly Bugger variations (beadhead/conehead bugger, Woolly Sculpin, Bugger/Zonker hybrid, etc.)

2. Streamers that incorporate rabbit strips (Zonker, Meal Ticket, Meat Whistle, Double Bunny, etc.)

3. Matuka (original and variations)

4. Whitlock's Near 'Nuff Scupin

5. Whitlock's Near 'Nuff Crayfish

6. Terrestrials (ants, beetles, crickets, hoppers)

7. Parachute Adams

8. Adams Wulff

9. Humpy (Yellow or Olive)

10. Hex (Hexagenia limbata) -- numerous different patterns in season.

11. Morrish Mouse/Gurgler variations

12. Madam X

[Meeshka 0]

I fish Alberta lakes and rivers mostly and some BC rivers

 

1) Pheasant Tail Nymph (Black, rred, green, yellow, and natural)

2) San Juan Worm

3) Bow River Bugger (Many colors)

4) Caddis Pupae

5) Goddards Caddis

6) Elk hair Caddis

7) Leach Patterns

8) Backswimmer (a favorite fall pattern)

9) Carrie Special

10) Doc Spratley

11) Chronomids - a variety of Brian Chan and Phil Rowley designs

12) Golden Stone Nymph