7 "Tried and True" Essential Dry Flies for Every Trout Angler

These are the handful of dry flies that I never leave home without.

An Elk Hair Caddis fly. | Photo by Jasper Taback

When I fish a trout river that’s new to me, I often stop into a local fly shop to pick up a few dry flies. Every river has its own special patterns, and I’m a sucker for these. I thought it was a pretty harmless practice until I found myself sifting through a desk full of hundreds of flies – each of which seemed totally essential when I bought it, but most of which look identical to tens of others in the drawer.

I can safely say that most are very slight variations on a classic pattern – so save yourself some money and just fill a fly box with the following classics. 

Parachute Adams

It’ll work about as well during a caddis hatch as it does during a mayfly hatch. Keep a few smaller ones (size 18-22) on hand, and you’ll even be set for a midge hatch. The Parachute Adams is an incredibly versatile pattern that just catches fish. 

Elk Hair Caddis

If you see caddis coming off the water, you’ll never go wrong with an Elk Hair pattern. Super buoyant and easy to see, it’s a ton of fun to fish. It rides high in fast-moving water, so there are really no limitations to where you can drift it. 

Comparadun PMD

If you’re on a trout river in late spring or early summer, odds are pretty good that you’ll get a Pale Morning Dun hatch in the middle of the day. The Comparadun is simple, durable, and is a no-brainer to tie on during a PMD hatch. 

 

Blue Wing Olive Parachute

In the spring and fall – when water temperatures are on the cooler side – afternoon BWO hatches are a regular sight. The parachute wing makes this fly easy to see in the water, and its lightweight design makes it a breeze to cast. 

Griffith’s Gnat

The beauty of the Griffith's Gnat lies in its capacity to imitate a whole bunch of different bugs –  it’s perfect for when you see trout sipping on the surface but can’t pin down what they’re eating. It’s a small fly, so you may want to drift it behind a larger dry fly that you can see a bit easier. 

Chubby Chernobyl 

They’re ugly, but they work. All summer long, trout feast on ants, beetles, and grasshoppers that fall into the water – the Chubby Chernobly does a great job at imitating all three. 

Stimulator 

Another one that’s not going to win any beauty contest, a stimulator is the fly to tie on when you’ve tried every dry fly in your box and nothing’s working. It’s easy to get caught up in fishing delicate flies, but sometimes trout just want to eat a big flashy imitation.