dry
Parachute Adams
The Parachute Adams is arguably the most effective all-around dry fly in existence. Its gray body and mixed grizzly-brown hackle suggest a wide range of mayflies, making it a go-to searching pattern on any trout stream. The white parachute post provides excellent visibility in broken water and low light.
Originated by Leonard Halladay, 1922 (parachute variation, 1970s)
Recipe
- HookStandard dry fly hook (TMC 100, Daiichi 1180) · Tiemco
- ThreadGray tying thread 8/0 or 70 denier · Semperfli
- TailBrown & grizzly hackle fibers
- WingWhite calf body or poly yarn
- BodyAdams gray dubbing · Hareline
- HackleGrizzly dry-fly hackle
History
The original Adams was created by Leonard Halladay in 1922 for his friend Charles Adams on the Boardman River in Michigan. The parachute variation emerged in the 1970s, adding a horizontal hackle wrap around a white post for improved floatation and a more natural profile sitting in the surface film.
Tying overview
Tie a split-tail of moose body hair, dub a slim gray body, post white calf body hair, and wrap grizzly and brown hackle parachute-style around the base of the post.
Fishing tips
Dead drift the Parachute Adams in riffles, seams, and eddy lines. It works as a prospecting fly when no hatch is visible, and during mayfly hatches it passes for BWOs, PMDs, and Callibaetis. Size down to #18-20 for pressured water.