Egg Patterns — When the Spawn Is On, This Is What's Eating Trout
Egg patterns rule the South Platte during brown spawn (Oct–Nov) and rainbow spawn (Mar–Apr). Otter's Egg, Y2K, dead-egg variants, and how to fish ethically.
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13 posts tagged "fly patterns".
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San Juan Worm — The Pattern That Isn't Pretty But Catches South Platte Fish
The San Juan Worm is the unglamorous workhorse of South Platte tailwater nymphing. Red, pink, purple — when and why it earns the point spot on Deckers.
Building a Fly Box for the South Platte — What's Actually in Mine
Most fly boxes are graveyards of flies that never get tied on. Here's what actually lives in mine — by section, by size, by why it earns the space.
The Duracell Jig: Red Wire, Silver Bead, and Why It Runs the South Platte in Winter
Craig McDonald's Scottish jig nymph — red wire rib, UV brown body, silver bead. Named after the battery. Why it dominates Deckers and Cheesman all winter.
The Frenchie: Lance Egan's Competition Jig That Never Left the Guide Box
Lance Egan's UV pink hotspot Pheasant Tail jig: competition-bred, guide-proven. Why it works year-round on Deckers and Cheesman when standard PTs fade.
Mayer's Mini Leech Jig: The Small Dead-Drift Leech That Out-Catches Streamers
Landon Mayer's pine squirrel mini leech on a jig hook. Dead-drift, jig-style — why this small pattern out-fishes swung streamers on South Platte tailwaters.
Olsen's Blowtorch: My Favorite Fly and the Variations I Tie
My favorite fly. Devin Olsen's competition jig with a hot-tag and opalescent rib. Why I tie the Blowtorch in orange and green, and how to fish it tight-line.
The Perdigon: Why the Fastest-Sinking Nymph on the South Platte Works
Spanish competition nymph with a UV resin body that sinks 40% faster than traditional patterns. The anchor fly that gets your rig to depth before the current.
The RS2: Rim Chung's South Platte Emerger That Defined a Tailwater
Rim Chung tied the RS2 in the 1970s for the South Platte. Fifty years later it's still the most-fished emerger on Deckers, the Dream Stream, and Cheesman.
Walt's Worm: The Pennsylvania Nymph That Belongs in Every South Platte Box
Walt Young's 1984 Pennsylvania limestone nymph — buggy hare's ear body, cigar profile — imitates scuds, cased caddis, and crane fly larvae all at once.
The Wooly Bugger: The Most Copied Fly in History and Why It Still Works
Russell Blessing's 1967 Pennsylvania pattern is the most-tied fly in fly fishing. Why the Wooly Bugger still earns its place for fall browns and high water.
Barr's Emerger: The PMD Pattern Every South Platte Angler Needs
John Barr's classic emerger imitates mayflies stuck mid-hatch. Recipe, rigging, and when to fish the PMD and BWO versions on Deckers and the Dream Stream.
Mercury Midge: Pat Dorsey's South Platte Staple
Recipe, tying notes, and how to fish Pat Dorsey's Mercury Midge — one of the most consistent midge patterns on pressured tailwaters.