River Pattern Guide

Best Flies for Nantahala River

Tucked deep within the dramatic Nantahala Gorge in western North Carolina, the Nantahala River is one of the Southeast's most unique and productive tailwaters. The name itself is Cherokee for "land of...

View full river guide →

11 recommended patterns

Perdigon fly pattern
Nymph

Perdigon

The fast-sinking competition nymph that changed Euro nymphing forever.

Sizes 14–22

Adams fly pattern
Dry Fly

Adams

The original Adams dry fly is the foundation of American mayfly fishing. Its mixed grizzly and brown

Sizes 12–20

Henry's Fork Hopper fly pattern
Dry Fly

Henry's Fork Hopper

Mike Lawson's Henry's Fork Hopper is the standard foam-body grasshopper pattern for slick water. Unl

Sizes 8–12

Olive Thorax Dun fly pattern
Dry Fly

Olive Thorax Dun

Vince Marinaro's Thorax Dun design places the hackle at the center of the body rather than the head,

Sizes 16–20

Twenty Incher fly pattern
Nymph

Twenty Incher

The Twenty Incher is a large, heavily weighted stonefly nymph with rubber legs and a chenille body.

Sizes 4–8

Beadhead Caddis Pupa fly pattern
Nymph

Beadhead Caddis Pupa

This simple caddis pupa imitation features a dubbed body with a contrasting thorax and a soft hackle

Sizes 12–18

Last Chance Cripple fly pattern
Emerger

Last Chance Cripple

René Harrop's Last Chance Cripple imitates a mayfly that failed to fully emerge, trapped half-in, ha

Sizes 14–20

Quigley Cripple fly pattern
Emerger

Quigley Cripple

Bob Quigley's Cripple is a hybrid emerger with a nymph body below the film and a hackle-tip wing abo

Sizes 14–20

Foam Beetle fly pattern
Terrestrial

Foam Beetle

The Foam Beetle is a simple but devastatingly effective terrestrial pattern. A piece of black foam f

Sizes 12–18

Parachute Hopper fly pattern
Terrestrial

Parachute Hopper

A foam-bodied grasshopper with a parachute post that provides visibility in choppy water and doubles

Sizes 8–12

Blue Dun fly pattern
Dry Fly

Blue Dun

One of the oldest and most storied dry fly patterns in the history of fly fishing, dating back centu

Sizes #14–#18