20 Incher 12/05/2025 Photo Album

If you are interested in reading my first post regarding the 20 incher click on this link, 02/06/2014. I have gained confidence in this fly to the point, where it climbed into the upper echelon of my fly choices. The 20 incher is right there among the titans of the fly box.

I began tying this fly after Taylor Edrington of Royal Gorge Anglers introduced me to it on a guided wading trip. In recent years I discovered that it is a great fly to use in a dry/dropper configuration, when getting the fly down and deep quickly is one’s objective. If I am covering promising water, and I am convinced I have the right flies, yet the fish are not responding, I frequently add a 20 incher to my line as the top nymph. The weighted 20 incher sinks rapidly, and it is a solid fish attractor in its own right.

Angled Side View

The 20 incher combined with a blue winged olive seems to be particularly effective in the early season, but I have also experienced success during other times, especially when flows are abundant. During 2025 the 20 incher and olive perdigon were workhorse flies that yielded many trout. Talk about weight! A weighted 20 incher and tungsten bead olive perdigon generate very deep drifts, and this technique is effective in deep pockets behind large boulders and along fast seams. Getting the fly deep and at the level of the trout in these conditions is imperative.

Materials and Seventeen 20 Inchers

Because I used the 20 incher more in 2025 than previously, I registered quite a bit of shrinkage. I found seven damaged nymphs in my restoration canister, and I recovered them to reuse. For the most part I needed to strip them down, but I at least recovered the hook and bead. I approached my vise and tied an additional ten to bring my inventory total to in excess of thirty. Because I fish this weighted fly along the bottom of the stream, I inevitably lose quite a few. Hopefully I am prepared for such losses in the new year.