On Apr 15, 11:58 am, "mdk77" wrote:
This is my first year of fly fishing. I've read some books about
patterns for trout, and I've talked with local fishermen about some
good patterns. I'm curious if you guys would mind sharing about a few
patterns that are your absolute favorites. Thanks in advance!!!

It lacks originality, but...

Dry: parachute Adams or EHC. This might explain why I don't catch a
lot of fish on Penns. :-)*

Wet: over the past year I have been fishing a big Royal Coachman
streamer that I tie with a calf tail wing. It has been VERY fun to
fish and I've taken some pretty decent fish on it. Even got a first-
cast fish at the OH-MA-ha! micro clave (at the Secret Spot) on that
fly.

Wm

*Since this is your first year of fly fishing, I will explain. Penns
Creek in central Pennsylvania is one of THE finest pieces of water on
the planet for trout fishing. Some of us have been known to gravitate
there, like lemmings headed for the cliff, each spring, the call of
the water and the smell of venison stew too much for our feverish
brains. At Penns, I have seen more mayflies hatch- simultaneously,
within an hour, and of larger size- than on any other piece of water I
have fished. Those who have success there know these hatches and are
able to match them. Those of us who don't match them... have less
success. But not necessarily less fun, mind you. So these two flies
I mention (all three, actually) are not flies that represent specific
insects, but rather attempt to look, in a general way, buggy or
somehow otherwise tasty to the trout. As others have noted, these
patters will do well for you on most waters, regardless of location.
Except on Penns at 9:30 on a mild May evening, when you've forgotten
your headlamp, the fish are gulping all around you, and you are pretty
sure that last splash you heard may welll have been Frank.**

**Frank being ROFF's own Frank Reid. Google "Full Reid" for more
information.