Net Spinning Caddis, Caddis Flies, TFO Clouser Rods

Brian Silvey is a popular local fly fishing guide. Here is what Brian says about these caddis pupas:
Anglers fishing in the Rockies may not be as in tune with caddis because they have more options of food sources that trout focus on.  That gives these anglers the luxury of fishing attractor patterns, terrestrial patterns, mayfly patterns and stone fly patterns.  On the Deschutes the primary food source day in and day out for reside trout are caddis.  As a guide on this river it means I must have effective patterns that can imitate every stage of the caddis life cycle that fish will focus on to insure my clients are successful.

My Edible Emerger and Primetime Pupa are designed to target emerging caddis close to the surface or right in the surface film.  The above mentioned patterns can be fished deep for effective results but were not specifically designed to do so. 

I wanted to have a caddis emerger pattern specifically designed to be fished deeper and to get deep fast.  The result of this need is the Silvey’s Beadhead Pupa.  For weight I used a bead.  I chose pearl core braid as a quick sinking material for the body.  The pearl core braid is the same size as the bead and allows me to create a seamless taper from bead to end of body closely mimicking the tapered look of the natural.  The result is a pattern that has weight to get it down quick, materials that don’t float (and are not bulky) aiding in sinking the fly. These materials do not lose their caddis shape.  And like my other pupas the use of marabou created natural movement as the pattern is fished.

Silvey’s Primetime Pupa

This fly is an extension of the Silvey's Edible Emerger only designed to be fished deeper.  There is no deer hair on the fly to keep it on or in the surface film. 

For the Edible Emerger I created a body that was slim and tapered at the end similar to the naturals.   I added marabou to add movement to the pattern, a material none of the existing patterns use.  Fish key on movement and marabou is one of the materials that have the most life like qualities when wet.

The Primetime Pupa can be fished in a number of ways.

Dropper – Drop this fly off of an easily visible caddis dry when fishing during caddis hatches.  Don’t forget to let the fly swing into shore at the end of your dry fly drift.

Nymphing Plus - Primetime Pupa can be nymphed but make sure it is the upper nymph on a 2 fly rig so it floats higher in the water column.  If you see a fish rise while fishing this way cut off your 2^nd nymph and take any weight off the rig.  Cast it at the rise without having to completely re-rig.

Dropper – Drop this fly off of an easily visible caddis dry when fishing during caddis hatches.  Don’t forget to let the fly swing into shore at the end of your dry fly drift.

Dry – Grease the head / deer hair only.  You want the body of the fly to be fishing in the film or just under the surface. Wet the body with your fingers.  Fish the fly upstream as you would any other dry but let it swing to the bank on a tight line on the end of your drift.

Nymphing Plus -  The Edible Emerger can be nymphed but make sure it is the upper nymph on a 2 fly rig so it floats higher in the water column.  If you see a fish rise while fishing this way cut off your 2^nd nymph and take any weight off the rig.  Cast it at the rise without having to completely re-rig.

Silvey’s Sub-merger Caddis

The development of the Sub-merger Caddis came out of observing my clients while I was guiding.  There were swarms of Caddis every where but not many fish working the surface.  My clients where fishing Elk Hair Caddis in riffles and having fish come up and refuse the fly.  The few fish we hooked all came at the end of the drift when the fly sank.

That night I went home and designed a Diving Caddis pattern to take advantage of my days observations.  I needed weight to get the fly down so I added a bead in front of the dubbed body.  The fly required movement to replicate the swimming action that the natural diving caddis would have so I included Hungarian Partridge in the wing along with a sparse amount of elk hair.  There is also a little bit of flash in the wing to give the illusion of movement or air bubbles trailing off the pupae.

Diving Caddis patterns are some of the most effective fly patterns on the market but hardly fished by the general public.  I believe this is because most people don’t know how or when to use them. Fish them before, during and after caddis hatches.  They fish well as a dropper during times when no hatches are going on.

The Sub-merger Caddis can be fished in a number of ways.

Dropper – The most common way to fish this fly.  Drop it off any dry fly.

Tight Line Swing – Cast the fly as if you were casting across the river into the current.  Mend the line and let the fly swing all the way to shore or into the shallows.  The takes on this method of fishing are heart stopping.

Nymphed – If fishing a two nymph rig make sure the Sub-merger is floating higher in the water column.

Dry Fly Presentation – Cast the fly upstream as you would any dry fly.  Once the fly hits the water, slowly strip the fly back to you giving the fly an up and down diving motion.  It is deadly after refusals.  If I get a fish that comes up and refuses a caddis dry I put the Diving Caddis on and its “fish on” nine times out of ten.