Hot High Water Flies

Dave Jolie May 8th 2017

With warmer Spring and early Summer weather comes high water in many rivers and streams. This definitely presents a challenge, but that by no means should inhibit you from getting a line wet! Here are a few of my favorites and some techniques for fishing them in high water:

Tungsten Bead Hot Wired Prince Nymph

The added weight of wire and bead will help you to get this fly down in swift currents. I like to fish it both as a dropper and under an indicator in slower pockets along shorelines and behind boulders. Frankly, anything tungsten should be on the menu here.

Olive and Orange Blossom Specials

This is a fantastic overall bug, for any time really. This flashy streamer in both colors is a deadly pattern for high water. Fish it with or against the current in slower water where fish congregate to escape the heavy currents of runoff. The conehead gets it down fast!

Madam X's

As the high water of runoff begins to stabilize and clear sometimes you can entice a fish to rise. It just so happens that this is when the stoneflies start coming out. Whether its the Skwalla's, Goldens, or Salmonflies...trout cue in on these protein packed bugs. Because of its buoyancy, it is also a perfect dry fly to use with heavy tungsten bead droppers.