River Pattern Guide

Best Flies for Pecos River

The Pecos River begins its life as a cold, spring-fed stream tumbling down from the high spruce-fir forests of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains near Santa Fe, New Mexico. In its upper reaches within the...

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11 recommended patterns

Emerger

Klinkhammer Special

The curved-shank emerger that hangs in the film like the real thing.

Sizes 12–18

Dry Fly

Sparkle Dun

Craig Mathews' Sparkle Dun combines a deer hair fan wing with a Z-lon trailing shuck, bridging the g

Sizes 14–20

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

Nymph

Twenty Incher

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

Sizes 4–8

Nymph

Beadhead Caddis Pupa

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

Sizes 12–18

Nymph

Sow Bug

The Sow Bug (or aquatic isopod) imitation is a flat-profiled, segmented nymph that imitates the tiny

Sizes 14–18

Terrestrial

Chernobyl Ant

The Chernobyl Ant is an oversized foam terrestrial pattern with rubber legs that creates a massive d

Sizes 6–12

Terrestrial

Foam Beetle

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

Sizes 12–18

Terrestrial

Parachute Hopper

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

Sizes 8–12

Nymph

Tungsten Jig Hares Ear

The classic Hares Ear profile reimagined on a modern jig hook with a heavy tungsten bead for Euro ny

Sizes #12–#18

Wet Fly

Black Spider

W.C. Stewart popularized this minimalist spider pattern in the 1850s, and it remains one of the most

Sizes #12–#18