Getting your bugs in order

Gink & Gasoline

Are you confident in your fly selection, or are you just guessing?

Most anglers open their fly box, look aimlessly at the hundreds (maybe more) of dollars of flies and make their fly selection based on their past experiences or whatever “looks good” in their box.  “I did good on that one last year, guess I’ll try it out.” When is the last time you heard a guide say that?

You don’t, and it’s because they first ask the question, what are the trout eating today?  Once they have a strong, educated decision, they select the fly and begin to catch loads of fish.  The knowledge that helps them select the right fly quickly and more accurately is fly fishing entomology.

This article will help you understand the orders, stages, sizes and colors of 99.99% of all insects you will need to identify on the river. This is the first step in fly fishing entomology. With time you will learn to observe and identify the specific insects, and stages, which are attracting the trout's attention, but for now let’s just familiarize ourselves with the menu.

Read the complete article here.