Fly of the Week with @anna_on_the_fly | Beadhead Breadcrust

@anna_on_the_fly is on the water constantly. She is constantly trying new things -- new flies, new techniques, and new gear. We are grateful that she's an Ambassador for DiscountFlies. And, we're grateful that she shares her knowledge and adventures with us here in the "Fly of the Week" (or month during the "off" season) Column.

August 4^th 2022

FLY OF THE WEEK! I have had a bunch of beadhead “Breadcrust” flies in my box for probably 2 years now and have never used them until past last week. Let me tell you - I think this is one of the most underrated flies out there!!

I was in the middle of a big caddis hatch near the Continental Divide and Helen had a soft hackle hares ears on, which is a one of my go-tos but I like to throw different flies to give the fish another fly to look at. That being said I opened all my boxes, staring into the abyss of flies trying to decide what to tie on when suddenly my eye was drawn to the Breadcrust👀. I decided to tie it on as the middle fly off a hopper with a larva trailing. And I’m happy I did because it was like trout crack, FIRST CAST - FISH ON!! And it didn’t slow up one bit, we had a lights out day, nearly every fish I caught was on the Breadcrust!

I decided to use this fly as my middle fly the rest of the week and it didn’t let up, it continued to grab the attention of fish and created some intense eats! The fish pictured absolutely hammered this fly on the swing 😍

It’s a versatile fly that can imitate free-living caddis, net spinners, and cased caddis. The grizzly soft hackle collar does a great job of imitating dangling legs or emerging wings on the caddis nymph and pushes the water which caused some fish to turn and chase it a foot or so down stream! It is also another testament to the quality flies @discountflies makes. The Breadcrust seems like it would fall apart after a few fish but it held up very well and I only switched it out when I needed to change the size 👍🏼

I’d recommend fishing this pattern in sizes 14-18 depending on the river and the hatch. Fish it on the dead-drift as a middle fly or trailer and allow the flies to swing at the end of the drift which imitates an emerging pupa. Tip: remember to allow the flies to drift parallel to you and always set the hook at the end of the drift, you would be surprised how many fish you pick up unexpectedly.

This fly is also made without a beadhead for the when you find yourself in some slower water and need a more natural drift 👌🏼