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The Best Anglers Never Stop Learning

The Best Anglers Never Stop Learning

Dry

Indicator Mayfly

Insect Species Icon Midges, Quill Gordon, Blue Wing Olive and 10 others
Difficulty Icon Medium - 5-7 Min
Water Category Icon Coldwater

Tying Video

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Tying Recipe
  • Hook: Down-eye dry fly hook size #12
  • Thread: Veevus GSP 50d or UTC 70 denier white
  • Tail: Coq de Leon
  • Body: Turkey biot quill light cahill
  • Wire: Ultra wire small silver
  • Thorax: UV hare dubbing plus white/cream
  • Post: Antron yarn yellow and red
  • Hackle: Dry fly hackle white
  • Hook: Use your favorite dry fly hook, straight eye or down eye.
  • Thread: Use thinner thread, anything over 8/0 or 70 denier might be too thick. Use a color that matches the body of your fly.
  • Tail: If you don’t have Coq de Leon, consider using pheasant tail, mallard flank or wood duck flank fibers.
  • Body: Turkey biots will give your fly a bit of a more natural look, but dubbing is a perfectly good body material.
  • Wire: Wire can be taken out of this, but extra small is the best for dry flies.
  • Thorax: Any dubbing can be used on this fly. Match the color to the body.
  • Post: McFlyon parachute post or polypropylene are great substitutes. Make sure to get yellow and red.
  • Hackle: Use the dry fly hackle of your choice. For a darker fly use darker colors and vice versa.

The main point of this fly is the indicating yarn as the parachute post. As long as you get that step in, any standard parachute dry fly can be transformed into an indicator parachute dry. Tie up simple parachute adams or BWOs for a great day on the water that isn’t too hard on the eyes!

If you ever have struggled to see your fly against the glare of the sun on the surface of the water, lost your fly in the middle of whitewater, or have struggle to pick your fly out against the hundreds of actual bugs beside it, this fly is for you. The yellow and red parachute post will stick out like a sore thumb against anything that will inhibit your vision. Tie this fly in any flavor that suits your local water and go for it!

Fish this like you would any normal parachute. Fish it as a single dry, hang a dropper off of it, or use it as either the lead or the trailing fly on a double dry rig. Float it up and give it a toss in your favorite waters!

Blue Wing Olive

Regional Hatch Chart Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Region: West
Blue Wing Olive
Sizes: #16 - #24
Region: Northwest
Blue Wing Olive
Sizes: #16 - #24
Region: East
Blue Wing Olive
Sizes: #16 - #24
Region: Southeast
Blue Wing Olive
Sizes: #16 - #24
Region: Midwest
Blue Wing Olive
Sizes: #16 - #24

Brown Drake

Regional Hatch Chart Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Region: West
Brown Drake
Sizes: #10 - #14
Region: Northwest
Brown Drake
Sizes: #10 - #14
Region: East
Brown Drake
Sizes: #10 - #14
Region: Midwest
Brown Drake
Sizes: #10 - #14

Callibaetis

Regional Hatch Chart Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Region: West
Callibaetis
Sizes: #12 - #18
Region: Northwest
Callibaetis
Sizes: #12 - #18
Region: East
Callibaetis
Sizes: #12 - #18
Region: Midwest
Callibaetis
Sizes: #12 - #18

Green Drake

Regional Hatch Chart Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Region: West, Northwest, Midwest
Green Drake
Sizes: #8 - #14
Region: East
Green Drake
Sizes: #8 - #14

Hendrickson

Regional Hatch Chart Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Region: East, Midwest
Hendrickson
Sizes: #10 - #16

Isonychia

Regional Hatch Chart Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Region: East
Isonychia
Sizes: #12 - #18
Region: Southeast
Isonychia
Sizes: #12 - #18
Region: Midwest
Isonychia
Sizes: #12 - #18

Light Cahill

Regional Hatch Chart Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Region: East
Light Cahill
Sizes: #12 - #20
Region: Midwest
Light Cahill
Sizes: #12 - #20
Region: Northwest
Light Cahill
Sizes: #12 - #20

Mahogany Dun

Regional Hatch Chart Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Region: West, Northwest
Mahogany Dun
Sizes: #14 - #20
Region: East, Midwest
Mahogany Dun
Sizes: #14 - #20

March Brown

Regional Hatch Chart Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Region: West, East
March Brown
Sizes: #10 - #14
Region: Northwest
March Brown
Sizes: #10 - #14
Region: Midwest
March Brown
Sizes: #10 - #14

Midges

Regional Hatch Chart Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Region: West, Northwest, East, Southeast, Midwest
Midges
Sizes: #14 - #26

PMD

Regional Hatch Chart Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Region: West, Northwest, East, Southeast, Midwest
PMD
Sizes: #14 - #20

Quill Gordon

Regional Hatch Chart Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Region: East, Southeast
Quill Gordon
Sizes: #12 - #16

Trico

Regional Hatch Chart Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Region: West, Northwest
Trico
Sizes: #18 - #26
Region: East, Southeast, Midwest
Trico
Sizes: #18 - #26

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