Sniper Baetis 03/06/2026 Photo Album

I am a fan of Juan Ramirez and a follower of @hopperjuan_fly_fishing on Instagram, and I recently saw a post of Juan’s sniper baetis. I watched the tying video and determined that it was a fairly straightforward tie, so I added it to my list. I reached the end of my list of all the standard flies that I tie based on my many years of fly fishing. It was now time to try a new fly.

Slim Baetis

My go to baetis nymph flies are RS2’s. Juan posted a photo of his sniper baetis next to some natural nymphs, and I concluded that his imitation possessed a slimmer profile and, thus, a more precise imitation of a baetis nymph.

Left Side Angled

Juan’s example was a brown version of the sniper, but he suggested they could be tied in brown, olive and gray. I decided to go with olive. I did not have the requisite fine black wire, so I substituted silver, and I made the tail from brown ring neck pheasant body feathers. For the legs and wing case, I used gray fluoro fiber. Juan’s fly did not include a bead, so I followed suit in that regard.

Background Materials

I tested the sniper baetis on my first outing on the Arkansas River, but it did not yield results, although I gave up on it after twenty minutes. I plan to give it more trials, before I draw any conclusions. If I tie more, I will probably elect to use a darker olive thread for the body. The naturals in Juan’s photo were quite dark.

Sunken Tricos 03/01/2026 Photo Album

As I prepared to write this blog post on sunken tricos, I searched for and found my oldest previous post on this fly. The story behind my introduction to sunken tricos was well documented, and I enjoyed refreshing my memory. A materials table was also present, although I failed to use it to tie new sunken tricos.

Lovely

I had quite a bit of success on the North Platte River with the sunken tricos that I purchased; however, I must admit that I have not repeated that magical day. I am convinced, however, that an opportunity during a dense trico hatch would make my ownership of sunken tricos pay off.

Angled Head On

I counted my inventory, and I decided to tie three additional tiny versions to increase my supply to a nice round number. The output from my effort now resides in my small fly canister, and I am prepared for a trico hatch in 2026.

Materials in the Background

Damsel Nymph 02/28/2028 Photo Album

For a description of my early experimentation with damsel nymphs, check out my post of 12/04/2011. This marked the advent of the wiggle damsel in my fly box. My most memorable experience with the wiggle damsel occurred on Lago Fonck in Argentina, when I pulled out a wiggle damsel without my guide’s advice, and it performed in amazing fashion.

Humped

Unfortunately my other interactions with this fly have not been as momentous. I have had some sporadic success, but perhaps the larger problem has been finding damsel nymph emergences. Apparently timing is everything.

Articulated

The wiggle damsel is another example of a fly that I maintain adequate quantities of, so I skipped additional tying. Maybe this is the year, when I hit a thick damsel emergence.

Crystal Stone 01/13/2026 Photo Album

My history with the crystal stone is documented on my post of 03/06/2021. This may be the only fly that I created on my own. Most of my creations are simply modifications of existing flies. The 03/06/2021 post contains a materials table and tying steps.

Small Black Stonefly Nymph

I wish I could take credit for creating a new killer fly, but I must confess that this fly has not been a top producer. I have managed a fish or two here and there, but it is not among my top flies. I suspect that part of the problem is my failure to knot it to my line on a consistent basis. I often read about anglers achieving success with a black pheasant tail, and I suspect my crystal stone is a viable substitute.

Side View

Nevertheless, I like to maintain some of these in my fleece wallet, so I took stock and concluded that my supply of the crystal stone was adequate. Of course, this is a sure sign of my reluctance to deploy it, since I suffered no shrinkage.

Pat’s Rubber Legs 01/12/2026 Photo Album

My first introduction to Pat’s rubber legs was through Royal Gorge Anglers and a yellow/green version to imitate the golden stoneflies, when they molt in early spring. My post of 01/17/2016 is a solid read to understand this phase of my rubber legs evolution.

Arkansas Rubber Legs

As time passed I became acquainted with additional color combinations of Pat’s rubber legs. My post of 01/10/2020 provides a nice update and a materials table. I have experienced mixed results with the rubber legs, but one day on the Arkansas River stands out, when the flows remained on the high side after run off. During this outing I could barely keep the trout off the fly.

Olive/Black

My guide from Cutthroat Angers, Reed, is a huge proponent of the fly; and, thus, I use it in a dry/dropper set up, when I float Colorado Rivers with him. Most recently it work on a late June day on the Eagle River.

Coffee/Black

As was the case with scuds, I counted my supply of rubber legs of varying colors, and I concluded that I was adequately supplied. I carry the yellow/orange/light green version for stonefly molt time, and then I also possess a black/olive color scheme and a black/coffee version. I do not use beads but instead weight them while tying.

Scuds 01/12/2026 Photo Album

For a nice summary of my experience with scuds, check out my post of 12/20/2019. I went quite a few years simply living off my supply of orange scuds without a shell back, but by 2019 I was convinced to add this body part.

Gray Scud

Every season I experiment with a scud, primarily orange, and occasionally the offering nets me a fish or two. The South Platte River is my location of choice for scud presentation, as the river is loaded with aquatic growth, and scuds frequent this type of vegetation.

Orange Scud

I counted my quantities of gray, orange and olive scuds, and I concluded that I can live off of past efforts; and, thus, I produced no additional scuds. I like to keep them on my list; however, in case I experience success that leads to depletion.

Olive Scud

Black Zebra Midge 01/12/2026 Photo Album

For more information on the zebra midge check out my post of 01/24/2014. As is usually the case, when I arrive at the zebra midge in my production tying mode, I lament my avoidance of this productive fly. I usually select larger flies to prospect, but on rare occasions, when I opt for a zebra midge, I have been impressed with the results. How do I overcome this “too small” paradigm?

Tag End Tail

If you read the 01/24/2014 post, you will note that I mention a silver wire; however, I actually prefer fine copper. I counted my black and olive zebra midges, and I concluded that I had adequate quantities of olive, but a few additional blacks would be advisable. I cranked out two black size 22 midge larva with copper wire in a matter of minutes. Maybe this will be the year, when I discover hot midge fishing.

Two New Zebra Midges and Materials

Soft Hackle Emerger 01/11/2026 Photo Album

I found this fly in my Charlie’s Fly Box fly tying book, and I began tying them in 2012. My post of 01/19/2012 provides a bit of background and a materials table. You can find the tying steps on the Charlie’s Fly Box website.

Size 20

For several years I used this fly with a bead instead of an RS2, and I had some success, but it never outperformed the classic RS2. In recent years I used beadless soft hackle emergers, and I found them to be much more effective. In the spring, dense blue wing olive hatches are accompanied by wind and bad weather. My favorite BWO imitation is a CDC blue wing olive, but it tends to get ignored during windy and cold conditions. I began fishing the beadless soft hackle emerger with floatant applied to the body like a dry fly, and frequently this fools the fish. I suspect that the fish key on movement during these conditions. Also, I believe that the wind knocks the flies back in the water and creates an abundant quantity of cripples. The soft hackles of the soft hackle emerger create an illusion of wings and legs struggling to lift off, and the swept back fluoro wing imitates a cripple.

Out of Focus a Bit

The low riding fly is difficult to track, so I like to utilize it behind a large fly such as a hippie stomper with an eighteen inch extension to the soft hackle emerger. If I can manage, I like to position myself above feeding fish, and then I make casts across and feed out line for a downstream presentation with the soft hackle emerger as the first fly to enter the feeding trout’s window. An additional tactic that sometimes prompts a strike is to twitch the fly, as it comes into the trout’s viewing window. This imitates life and often prompts a strike.

Six and Materials

I counted my supply of soft hackle emergers, and I determined that I was only slightly under my target levels. I tied six additional flies with three being size 20 and three size 22. I already had around ten size 24’s in my box. Just discussing this gets me excited for BWO hatches in the spring of 2026.

Sparkle Wing RS2 01/04/2026 Photo Album

As I mentioned in my last RS2 post, I also tie other versions of baetis nymphs, and one such variation is the sparkle wing RS2. I am not sure that they outperform the classic RS2, but I bought into the hype and produced a fair quantity.

Narrow Profile

Both flies possess a gray muskrat body, but that is the only similarity. The sparkle wing tail is made of white fluoro fiber, and the emerging wing is constructed with crystal flash. These two substitutions create a fly with more flash than the classic RS2. My post of 01/17/2019 was one of my earliest regarding the sparkle wing.

Left Side View

In order to refresh my memory on tying the relatively simple sparkle wing, I searched the fly on YouTube, and I ended up selecting the instructions provided by Charlie Craven. Charlie’s version incorporates a crystal flash (he actually uses something different but similar) loop wing. I liked the look of the sparkling wing, so I adopted the practice for the five new sparkle wings that I produced. These flies boosted my supply to twenty-five for the 2026 season. I suspect that I use the sparkle wing in equal proportion to the classic RS2. In either case the key to attracting interest from trout with these flies is jigging and lifting the flies to simulate the motion of baetis nymphs before they hatch.

Flies and Materials on a Muskrat Patch

RS2 01/03/2025 Photo Album

My earliest post on the RS2 appears to be from 01/21/2011. It contains a materials table and good information about how I use the RS2. Year in and year out, the RS2 continues to be my go to fly before, during and after baetis hatches. Quite a few spinoffs exist, and I carry some of them, but the good old classic seems to perform as well as any.

A Size 20 Classic RS2

I counted my supply of RS2’s in my fleece wallet, boat box and plastic container; and I arrived at a quantity two below my target level. I checked my damaged fly canister, and, surprisingly no RS2’s were present, so I constructed two new ones from scratch. These are exceptionally quick ties, with the most challenging aspect being that of threading the tiny silver bead on a size 20 or 22 hook.

Another Angle

I tied two size 20 RS2’s on a scud hook. Using the curved hook and a bead creates a body length roughly equivalent to a size 22. These flies will definitely see action in the near future, as blue wing olives are one of the first insects to hatch in the spring.

Materials and RS2’s