River Pattern Guide

Best Flies for Delaware River West Branch

The West Branch of the Delaware River is widely recognized as the finest wild brown trout fishery in New York State and one of the premier tailwater trout rivers in the eastern United States. Fed by c...

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11 recommended patterns

Nymph

Frenchie

The Euro nymphing gateway drug.

Sizes 12–20

Dry Fly

X-Caddis

Craig Mathews' X-Caddis omits the hackle of an Elk Hair Caddis, creating a lower-riding fly that han

Sizes 14–18

Dry Fly

Green Drake

The Green Drake is the biggest mayfly hatch of the year in many western rivers. This large, heavily

Sizes 10–12

Dry Fly

Sulphur Dun

The Sulphur Dun imitates Ephemerella dorothea and E. invaria, the signature evening hatch on eastern

Sizes 14–18

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

Lightning Bug

The Lightning Bug is a flashy attractor nymph with a pearl tinsel body and tungsten bead that catche

Sizes 14–18

Nymph

Micro Mayfly

A tiny, sparse nymph tied on a barbless jig hook that imitates the smallest mayfly nymphs in the dri

Sizes 18–24

Nymph

Partridge and Orange

The Partridge and Orange is a traditional soft-hackle wet fly dating back centuries on English river

Sizes 12–16

Emerger

Snowshoe Emerger

The Snowshoe Emerger uses snowshoe rabbit foot hair as a wing material, providing exceptional floata

Sizes 16–22

Wet Fly

March Brown Wet

The wet fly version of the March Brown is a classic swing pattern for early season fishing. Its mott

Sizes 12–14

Wet Fly

Partridge and Green

The green silk-bodied companion to the Partridge and Orange, this soft hackle wet fly imitates emerg

Sizes 12–16