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.

I spent more than an hour casting to several rising trout in this pool and caught only two. Its clear water and tricky currents harbor dozens of free-rising, usually very hard-to-catch fish.

From Enfield Creek in New York

Stream photos

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Female Skwala (Large Springfly) Stonefly Adult Female Skwala (Large Springfly) Stonefly Adult

Lateral view of a Female Skwala (Perlodidae) (Large Springfly) Stonefly Adult from Mystery Creek #308 in Washington

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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.

Troutnut is a project started in 2003 by salmonid ecologist Jason "Troutnut" Neuswanger to help anglers and fly tyers unabashedly embrace the entomological side of the sport. Learn more about Troutnut or support the project for an enhanced experience here.

Just in case we missed it...

Oldredbarn

Novi, MI

Posts: 2600

Oldredbarn on Mar 5, 2013March 5th, 2013, 11:13 am EST

I just received a catalog from Dillon Montana...Al Troth passed away last August 3rd...The creator of the Elk Hair Caddis, probably rivalling the Adams for world wide fame and his "western" version of the PT Nymph...

The EHC was one of the first flies I ever tied...When I headed west in 95 to fish my boxes were filled with them.

Spence

"Even when my best efforts fail it's a satisfying challenge, and that, after all, is the essence of fly fishing." -Chauncy Lively

"Envy not the man who lives beside the river, but the man the river flows through." Joseph T Heywood

Crepuscular

Boiling Springs, PA

Posts: 920

Crepuscular on Mar 5, 2013March 5th, 2013, 12:57 pm EST

Yeah I saw that last fall. I just threw some away that had to be at least 20 years old.

Jmd123

Oscoda, MI

Posts: 2474

Jmd123 on Mar 6, 2013March 6th, 2013, 10:05 am EST

RIP, Al Troth. The Elkhair Caddis is one of my all-time best flies, not just for trout either. Down in San Marcos, TX the big colorful redbreast sunnies would suck them in just like brookies or browns do. What a wonderful pattern, so easy to tie and make endless variants of.

Jonathon

No matter how big the one you just caught is, there's always a bigger one out there somewhere...

Sayfu
Posts: 560

Sayfu on Mar 8, 2013March 8th, 2013, 6:02 am EST

Love the Elkhair Caddis, BUT..the only feature of Al's pattern that I couldn't accept was the long hackle that extended well below the gape of the hook. Somebody very knowledgeable regarding Al, and his Elkhair Caddis told me why it was favorable to do so, and I forgot why.