Hook Size: 16/18
The Perfect Fly Winter Stonefly stonefly adult is the fully grown stage of life of the stonefly. It emerges from the nymph on the banks of the stream on rocks that protrude out of the water. The females return to the water late in the day to deposit their eggs and that is when trout dine on the adults. Fish the fly in the early afternoons until late in the day near the same water they emerged from. Floatant should be used on the dry fly.
Sometimes when these stoneflies hatch, the trout will not rise to the surface to
eat the adults. The reason for this is some of the time the adults are depositing
their eggs, the water is too cold for the trout to feed on the surface. If the water
temperature is less than 45 degrees F., they probably won’t feed on the surface.
Sometimes when the Winter Stoneflies are hatching, it is that cold and colder. If
the water warms up some and the stoneflies hatch, then the trout usually feed on
the egg layers on the surface. If you are fishing during the winter, you should
always keep this in mind and you should always be prepared to fish the egg
laying stage of the hatch.
Adult Presentation:
You should fish the dry fly adult only when you observe the stoneflies depositing
their eggs on the surface of the water. This usually occurs during the afternoons.
It doesn’t always occur in riffles. These little stoneflies often deposit their eggs in
slow moving water in pools. It depends on the particular species and the
particular stream.
Just keep your eye out for them to deposit their eggs on the days you find them
crawling around on the banks and rocks. If they have hatched, they are going to
lay their eggs within a few days at the most.
Cold water is extremely clear. Be careful not to spook the trout. Make as long of a
cast as you can make accurately.
