5 Best Flies for Trout in Oregon

The Deschutes River's evening caddis hatches are among the most famous in American fly fishing, and the Elk Hair Caddis is the fly that anglers have trusted on this river for decades. From late May through September, massive emergences of tan and olive caddis bring wild redband rainbows to the surface in explosive, feeding sessions that can last for hours after sunset.

Tan in #14–16 is the Deschutes standard. Olive works better on the McKenzie and Rogue where different caddis species are present. The fly's elk hair wing gives it exceptional buoyancy in the Deschutes' fast water and makes it easy to spot in low light - both critical qualities for evening fishing on this river.

The Deschutes has two important stonefly events that call for the Stimulator. In early spring (March–April), the Skwala stonefly emerges - a medium-sized olive stonefly that triggers some of the Deschutes' best early-season dry-fly fishing before the river gets crowded. A #10 olive Stimulator is the standard Skwala imitation.

Through summer, Golden Stoneflies replace the Skwala and call for larger yellow Stimulators in #6–8. Both hatches produce exceptional fishing on the Deschutes canyon stretches, where large redbands cruise the bankside seams looking for stoneflies that have fallen into the water.

On the Metolius and McKenzie, where the water is clear and the fish can be selective, the Parachute Adams earns its keep as a searching dry and a legitimate mayfly imitation. The Metolius has good PMD hatches in summer, and a #16 Parachute Adams is a close-enough match to bring fish up when the naturals are on the water.

The McKenzie's swift currents and foam lines call for a high-floating, visible dry fly, and the Parachute Adams' white post makes it trackable through the fast water. It's the right fly when you're not sure what's hatching and don't want to overthink your approach.

Across all of Oregon's trout rivers, the Pheasant Tail Nymph is the subsurface pattern that produces most consistently. The Deschutes has excellent Baetis populations, and a #16–18 PT Nymph fished deep in the runs produces fish throughout the day when surface activity is slow. On the Metolius, where fish feed primarily on subsurface insects, nymphing with a PT is often more productive than waiting for a hatch.

The bead-head version handles the Deschutes' faster water efficiently, while an unweighted PT fished in the surface film during Baetis hatches on slower sections of the McKenzie can be devastatingly effective.

The John Day River's wild redband trout are one of Oregon's great under-fished resources, and the Woolly Bugger is the fly that unlocks the river's biggest fish. The John Day's lower canyon holds large redbands in deep pools and undercut banks - fish that respond to streamers stripped with aggressive retrieves or swung on a tight line through the tailouts.

On the Deschutes and Rogue, a Woolly Bugger fished in the early morning before surface activity begins is an excellent way to locate and move the river's bigger fish. Olive in #6 is the most versatile color across Oregon water.