Tips for fishing a caddis hatch

[Keith]

I was on fishing creek columbia county this evening and there was a snowstorm of caddis flying upstream probably from a couple feet off the water to upwards of 20 feet with very little surface activity. I didn't see any emerging and very few were on the water. I fished an elk hair caddis with no luck and even tied a light colored spider pattern w/ the egg sack that it look like most had with no luck. Any tips on what would take fish during this time?

 

[LetortAngler]

Probably taking the emerging Pupas under the surface. Sometimes during the "blizzard" caddis hatches trout will jump clean out of the water while following an emerger up to the surface, that is why soft hackles/wet flies on the swing work so well. Also, caddis do not ride the water long like a mayfly, so that might explain you seeing the lack of surface activity. Although the caddis hatch you witnessed might have been masked by a mayfly hatch?. Trout usually will take mayflies over caddis if both are on the water.

 

[Keith]

I did not notice any mayflies nor did I witness seeing them emerge. They just buzzed by in droves upstream and I could count on both hands the number of rises I seen in four hours of fishing from 4-8 pm. I was thinking the rises where to a mayfly I wasn't seeing.

 

[Chaz]

Especially on warm days, most anglers leave the stream before the flies drop on the water. A lot of activity happens once the sun goes below the horizon, trout don't like bright sun. The fact that you only saw a handful of rises tells me that the caddis weren't actually hatching while you were there.

The flight you saw is a mating flight. The caddis would have fallen to the water either just before dark, after you left, or during the evening after dark.

I usually stay an hour after dark if there's bugs out and about.
The bugs don't always drop the same day they hatch, sometimes spending a few days out of the water before the drop.

 

[Keith]

That makes a lot of sense Chaz. I fished until 730. I'll stick it out a bit longer tonight. Many had the egg sacks on them , do they emerge w them ?

 

[troutbert]

The dry fly fishing can be very good to caddis egg laying in late afternoon towards dusk, but it's not going to be good every time.

If you live near there, just go again, and you might hit it right, and see trout rising all over.

If so, fish caddis dry flies with a little twitching action, rather than just dead drift. That can make a big difference.

What size were the caddis? And what was their body color?

 

[Keith]

They where 14-16, in flight they were lighter color but I got ahold of a few and once in hand they were grayish in wing w darker green egg sack.

 

[bigjohn58]

I have also noticed that if mayflies are present during the grannom hatch that they would prefer the mayflies. Often hendricksons hatch during the mass of grannoms and trout will feed only on the hendricksons. There are so many grannoms that a lot of fishermen forget to see what else is hatching.

 

[FarmerDave]

LetortAngler wrote:
Probably taking the emerging Pupas under the surface. Sometimes during the "blizzard" caddis hatches trout will jump clean out of the water while following an emerger up to the surface, that is why soft hackles/wet flies on the swing work so well. Also, caddis do not ride the water long like a mayfly, so that might explain you seeing the lack of surface activity. Although the caddis hatch you witnessed might have been masked by a mayfly hatch?. Trout usually will take mayflies over caddis if both are on the water.

Agreed, but would like to comment on the last part. Understand I'm not disagreeing with you, just adding to it. I've fairly often had success fishing a caddis pattern in the middle of a mayfly hatch. Why would I do something stupid like that? Because I sometimes don't have a fly that would match the mayfly very well or I simply ran out. Sometimes it works, sometimes not.

When you have thousands of the same thing all around, sometimes they will trigger on something different, so why not toss something in there that is totally different? It's the same reason that attractor patterns often work even during a hatch.

 

[DaveS]

One sure sign of a caddis hatch is the presence of pupal husks in the film, particularly in the eddies. No pupa "shucks", then you likely have a mating flight. You think, "oh boy, this should be awesome!' but if they don't egg lay... nada. Stick to nymping.

 

[Bruno]

CDC

 

[JF_]

I experienced exactly the same thing on Fishing Creek several years ago. Swarms of caddis slowly flying upstream, no trout rising, no caddis hatching or egg laying.

DaveS has it right, it's a mating flight, something awesome to see, but no trout are interested.

John

 

[troutbert]

I'm curious to know what kind of caddis these were on Fishing Cr (Columbia Cty).

Did they have charcoal (blackish) bodies?

Or tan bodies? Or something else?

 

[duckfoot]

^ They're definitely size #14 - 16 in the nymphal stage. I've shucked them out from their cocoons.

Very dark brown to black as a nymph in the cocoon, most likely a blue sedge if I had to guess. Muncy Creek just a few miles away is infested with the things.

I'll try to get some fishing in Wed/Thurs night and catch a couple.

 

[Keith]

If I can get a picture tonight troutbert I will....in flight they look very light colored but in hand I would describe them as being more charcoal. Also thank you all for the response. The mating flight makes a lot of sense now.

 

[troutbert]

Keith wrote:
If I can get a picture tonight troutbert I will....in flight they look very light colored but in hand I would describe them as being more charcoal. Also thank you all for the response. The mating flight makes a lot of sense now.

That would be interesting to see, thanks. Try to get a photo of their undersides, so you can see the body color clearly.

 

[JeffK]

One of the great problems of fly fishing. While bugs in the air excite us and give of lots of information, the trout are only interested in bugs in the water. Mating flights, caddis or mayflies, can be frustrating. With all the bugs are flying around something good should happen. But then something else comes up, like the wind or who knows what, that sends the bugs back to the shrubbery. We will be hearing the same complaint in a few weeks with the March Brown spinners. Some late May evenings the sky is filled with spinners the size of hummingbirds and the world looks right when all of a sudden they disappear. However, patience is rewarded because one night those mating insects do have to fall in the water and the trout will be on them.

 

[Chaz]

bigjohn58 wrote:
I have also noticed that if mayflies are present during the grannom hatch that they would prefer the mayflies. Often hendricksons hatch during the mass of grannoms and trout will feed only on the hendricksons. There are so many grannoms that a lot of fishermen forget to see what else is hatching.

A lot of times the hendricksons, or other mayflies drift on the surface whereas, the caddis burst from the surface directly into flight.

 

[Chaz]

I've had success fishing a royal wulff during caddis hatches, it's about the impression the pattern creates.

 

[LetortAngler]

"When you have thousands of the same thing all around, sometimes they will trigger on something different, so why not toss something in there that is totally different? It's the same reason that attractor patterns often work even during a hatch."

Can't argue with that FarmerD, I have been in that situation a few times throwing exact imitations to no avail, while later, out of curiosity put on a attractor and start hookin into a few. Whether they are mistaking the attractor as natural, or they feel like taking something different for no apparent reason to me, Sometimes doesn't make sense, but they often do, and that of course adds to the fun of it.