Artistic view of a Male Pteronarcys californica (Pteronarcyidae) (Giant Salmonfly) Stonefly Adult from the Gallatin River in Montana

Salmonflies
Pteronarcys californica

The giant Salmonflies of the Western mountains are legendary for their proclivity to elicit consistent dry-fly action and ferocious strikes.

Firehole River Sunset

From the Firehole River in Wyoming

Stream photos

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Amphizoa Beetle Larva Amphizoa Beetle Larva

Dorsal view of a Amphizoa (Amphizoidae) Beetle Larva from Sears Creek in Washington

This is the first of it's family I've seen, collected from a tiny, fishless stream in the Cascades. The three species of this genus all live in the Northwest and are predators that primarily eat stonefly nymphs Merritt R.W., Cummins, K.W., and Berg, M.B. (2019).

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27" brown trout, my largest ever. It was the sub-dominant fish in its pool. After this, I hooked the bigger one, but I couldn't land it.

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Trout fishing, Cheat River, WV - fly selection?

Paul123
Paul Balserak

Posts: 2

Paul123 on Jul 3, 2009July 3rd, 2009, 12:40 pm EDT

In a week I'll be on the Cheat River trying to catch some trout. I'm relatively new to fly fishing, how do I know what the best flies to try are?

Paul Balserak

CaseyP

Arlington, VA/ Mercersburg, PA

Posts: 653

CaseyP on Jul 4, 2009July 4th, 2009, 6:57 am EDT

Paul, welcome to the board.

this time of year ants, beetles, and grasshoppers are popular menu items for trout. ants are hard to see, so i tie one on behind a grasshopper. after a while the ant gets wet and sinks and sometimes that makes it better. the tiny flies called tricos are worth a try; they hatch early in the morning on a lot of rivers in July and August.

as far as other hatches, you could do worse than call or visit the nearest fly shop. that old-fashioned advice is getting harder to follow since so many shops have closed, but sometimes you'll find a "web presence" that will compensate.

"You can observe a lot by watching." Yogi Berra

Martinlf

Moderator
Palmyra PA

Posts: 3047

Martinlf on Jul 4, 2009July 4th, 2009, 6:58 am EDT

Paul, find some fly shops near the Cheat, and spend some time talking with the guys there. They'll know what's best for this time of year, and can not only provide you with good flies, they may be able to suggest some good spots to fish. Good luck.

"He spread them a yard and a half. 'And every one that got away is this big.'"

--Fred Chappell

Paul123
Paul Balserak

Posts: 2

Paul123 on Jul 18, 2009July 18th, 2009, 9:02 am EDT

Thanks for the replies to my question! Just got back. I had some good time fishing ... not as much as I'd have liked. Caught a few of what looked like Perch on a micro mayfly. Perhaps best was my 7 yr old caught a fish! He was dancing on the water he was so happy.

Paul

Paul Balserak

DocWet
Erie, PA

Posts: 15

DocWet on Jul 21, 2009July 21st, 2009, 2:26 am EDT

I thought the Cheat River was polluted by mine acid drainage.

My favorite trout stream picture; below, shows what a first class trout river looks like. The lack of stream gradient means that this river is not subject to the roaring scouring floods so common here in PA. that wipe out everything in the river.

DocWet
Erie, PA

Posts: 15

DocWet on Aug 6, 2009August 6th, 2009, 5:13 am EDT

Those are small yellow perch all right. I have talked to others who have caught the same fish. Apparently, there are lots of them.