River Pattern Guide

Best Flies for Blue River

The Blue River flowing out of Dillon Reservoir below Silverthorne is one of Colorado's premier tailwater fisheries — a technically demanding, year-round trout stream that holds extraordinary densities...

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12 recommended patterns

Nymph

Pheasant Tail Nymph

The universal nymph — fooling trout since 1958.

Sizes 12–20

Nymph

Iron Lotus

A modern Czech nymph with a woven body, tungsten bead, and hot spot collar. Built for heavy Euro nym

Sizes 12–16

Nymph

Walt's Worm

Walt Young's deceptively simple nymph uses hare's ear dubbing on a curved hook to imitate caddis lar

Sizes 12–16

Nymph

Flashback Hare's Ear

The Flashback variant adds a strip of pearl tinsel over the wing case of the classic Hare's Ear, pro

Sizes 12–18

Nymph

Quasimodo Pheasant Tail

A Czech-style Pheasant Tail variation tied on a curved scud hook with a pronounced hump-back profile

Sizes 12–18

Nymph

Two Bit Hooker

A hot-collared jig nymph that combines a wire body with a fluorescent dubbing collar for a slim, fas

Sizes 14–18

Nymph

Sexy Walt's Worm

A modernized version of Walt's Worm with a UV dubbing body and a glass bead for subtle weight and tr

Sizes 12–16

Nymph

Scud

The Scud imitates Gammarus and Hyalella amphipods — crustaceans that thrive in weed beds on tailwate

Sizes 12–18

Wet Fly

Soft Hackle Pheasant Tail

A marriage of the Pheasant Tail Nymph and soft hackle tradition, this pattern fishes brilliantly on

Sizes 14–18

Nymph

Surveyor

A modern Euro nymphing staple that blends the best elements of the Pheasant Tail and Frenchie into o

Sizes #14–#18

Nymph

CDC Pheasant Tail

A refined variation of the Pheasant Tail Nymph that replaces the wing case with a CDC feather puff f

Sizes #16–#20

Nymph

Czech Nymph

The pattern that launched the tight-line nymphing revolution. Developed by Czech competition anglers

Sizes #8–#14