Big Dry Flies for Big Trout on the Green River
It was mid June on a bright sunny day floating on Utah's Green River when the army arrived.
Not an army of people, but an army of crickets.
Mormon crickets to be exact.
Several thousand crickets had made their way into the river as part of their migratory march.
Trying to get to the other side,the crickets hop in the river and slowly make their way across the the river.
Keep in mind a Mormon cricket is about two inches long and half and inchwide.
They are a very large meal for a trout.
The trout take full advantage!!!Every 30 seconds or so a loud pop can be heard as a large trout slams another cricket.
There is definitely a feeling of excitement in the fishermen I am with.
We quickly pull over and change bugs.
I had tied some bulky crickets on a size 2 streamer hook matching the size of the bugs perfectly.
We looked for a pod of eating fish and floated our flies through.
One of the guys was shaking with excitement.
Then it came, slam, slam!!! Both fishermen had hooked up with fish, but the fishermen were hooked for life.
The stories of days like this are numerous on the Green.
It is not just about using crickets, but many other terrestrial bugs as well.
The Green is famous for the cicada hatches that occur each May and June.
The Green has a few different species of cicadas and several different generations.
Meaning each year there are cicadas in some numbers.
If your lucky enough to be there when there are big numbers you will experience the best dry fly fishing in the world.
50 to 100 fish in a day would not be outof the question.
While they are not the norm,they do happen.
It is not the numbers that create the excitement.
It is watching a fish open its mouth as large as possible and suck it down.
It is hard to describe the experience, but is definitelyeuphoric.
While the cicadas are the most famous there are several other terrestrials that excite the fish.
There are more beetle species to keep track of, ants all over the place, some hoppers out and about, and a bunch of caterpillars that get blown out of the trees.
All of these will trigger the fish into a surface feeding mode.
On a hot gusty summer day I have seen five or six beetles blown into the water at the same time.
Not long after and the beetles disappeared into the mouths of large trout.
This is a common occurrence and creates a habitat where fish can be caught on terrestrials almost year round.
Pine beetles will start showing up in late March and other beetle species will hang around until November.
Rainbow, cutthroat, cuttbow and brown trout key on these big bugs.
It is a necessary part of their diet.
They take them at almost every opportunity.
This gives fly fishermen a great opportunity.
One that they will not forget.
Not an army of people, but an army of crickets.
Mormon crickets to be exact.
Several thousand crickets had made their way into the river as part of their migratory march.
Trying to get to the other side,the crickets hop in the river and slowly make their way across the the river.
Keep in mind a Mormon cricket is about two inches long and half and inchwide.
They are a very large meal for a trout.
The trout take full advantage!!!Every 30 seconds or so a loud pop can be heard as a large trout slams another cricket.
There is definitely a feeling of excitement in the fishermen I am with.
We quickly pull over and change bugs.
I had tied some bulky crickets on a size 2 streamer hook matching the size of the bugs perfectly.
We looked for a pod of eating fish and floated our flies through.
One of the guys was shaking with excitement.
Then it came, slam, slam!!! Both fishermen had hooked up with fish, but the fishermen were hooked for life.
The stories of days like this are numerous on the Green.
It is not just about using crickets, but many other terrestrial bugs as well.
The Green is famous for the cicada hatches that occur each May and June.
The Green has a few different species of cicadas and several different generations.
Meaning each year there are cicadas in some numbers.
If your lucky enough to be there when there are big numbers you will experience the best dry fly fishing in the world.
50 to 100 fish in a day would not be outof the question.
While they are not the norm,they do happen.
It is not the numbers that create the excitement.
It is watching a fish open its mouth as large as possible and suck it down.
It is hard to describe the experience, but is definitelyeuphoric.
While the cicadas are the most famous there are several other terrestrials that excite the fish.
There are more beetle species to keep track of, ants all over the place, some hoppers out and about, and a bunch of caterpillars that get blown out of the trees.
All of these will trigger the fish into a surface feeding mode.
On a hot gusty summer day I have seen five or six beetles blown into the water at the same time.
Not long after and the beetles disappeared into the mouths of large trout.
This is a common occurrence and creates a habitat where fish can be caught on terrestrials almost year round.
Pine beetles will start showing up in late March and other beetle species will hang around until November.
Rainbow, cutthroat, cuttbow and brown trout key on these big bugs.
It is a necessary part of their diet.
They take them at almost every opportunity.
This gives fly fishermen a great opportunity.
One that they will not forget.
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