With summer flows coming into shape and big bugs on the menu, I dug deep into my decades-old collection of salmonfly patterns to prep for an upcoming June float. Over the course of 30 years of fishing and guiding, I’d built up a fly box that was bursting at the seams - like an overgrown forest badly in need of a good thinning.
This time, I was aiming for a light and tight setup: just the essential, high-confidence salmonfly patterns. As I sorted through the chaos, I unearthed an old Sofa Pillow (one I tied back when I was 20). The thing was gaudy and heavy, tied on a #2 hook with a thick wing of elk hair I harvested during a rough outing in the Wallowas. It was meant to hit the water with a satisfying splat, ideal for coaxing big trout out from under the alders on Oregon’s lower Deschutes. A nostalgic find, but not quite what I needed for today’s float.
Modern trout can be a bit more selective, and this trip called for something different. We’d be drifting a rough, high-volume freestone river in western Montana. In these conditions, you need dry flies that ride high, stay visible, and float for a hundred feet through heavy wave trains. A few of my own stacked-foam creations made the cut. So did some commercial patterns, including a timeless favorite: the Rogue Foam.
I paused to admire it. The Rogue Foam has remained a staple pattern for salmonfly season - whether you're wading or floating, it flat-out gets eaten. After all these years, it’s still capable of fooling even the most seasoned brown trout. That’s when the idea hit me: this fly deserves to be enshrined. So does every salmonfly pattern that consistently produces, year after year.
Here it is - my Salmonfly Hall of Fame. If you're fly fishing for trout on freestone or tailwater rivers this summer, these are the dry flies that should be in your box:
Rogue Foam
A true classic. Fish it in burnt orange or yellow to mimic both Salmonflies and Golden Stones. The segmented foam body, combined with a bullet-head elk hair wing, gives it a natural profile and excellent floatation.
Stimulator
Old-school and all-natural. Built with chicken feathers and elk or deer hair, the Stimulator remains one of the best salmonfly imitations for both floating and wading low- to mid-gradient streams.
Clark’s Stone
A reliable standby. Similar in profile to the Stimulator, Clark’s Stone adds a poly underwing for extra visibility and float. It’s been catching fish for decades (and still does).
Chubby Chernobyl
Now commonly called just the “Chubby,” this fly changed the dry-dropper game when it first hit the water nearly 20 years ago. Fish have wised up to it a bit, but trimming the wing or using a Sharpie to darken the color can breathe new life into this fly’s effectiveness.
Water Walker
A rising star. The Water Walker has earned its HOF status thanks to its realistic look, excellent durability, and low-riding profile. It’s a go-to pattern when fish are feeding tight to the surface.
Whether you’re hiking into remote trout water or floating a big-name Western river, these proven dry fly patterns should be your first pick when salmonflies start flying. Pack smart, fish confidently, and let the Hall of Famers do what they’ve always done: bring big fish to the surface.
