Fly of the Week with @anna_on_the_fly | Micro Golden Stonefly

@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.

March 26th 2023

FLY OF THE MONTH!! March has been an amazing month for fly fishing and it feels like Spring is in the air! I have been starting to see a plethora of larger bugs including crane fly larvae, bright green caddis larvae, cases caddis, larger mayfly nymphs but the one I am most excited about is one of my favorite bugs to see, GOLDEN STONEFLIES!! This month is a highly anticipated time for me as I eagerly wait each March for the Golden Stonefly “molt” that crawls up one of my favorite rivers, it is undoubtedly one of the most exciting times on the river, similar to hitting the Salmonfly hatch just right. That being said there are hundreds of stonefly patterns out there and hitting a specific “molt” can be hard so after studying the Stonefly lifecycle, shuffling through different flies and a lot of hours on the water I can confidently say the fly that has been the most productive golden stonefly nymph imitation for me is the “Micro Golden Stonefly” also referred to as the “Biot Golden Stone”.

This fly is created by Mike Mercer – a legend in fly fishing and particularly in the fly-tying world. This is one of his “Hall of Fame” flies and a tough one to beat when it comes to realism, attraction, color and effectiveness. Really understanding the life cycle of stoneflies is what will make or break a day so I would suggest doing some research but hopefully with this fly and a few tips I am about to tell you if you see any stonefly activity you will DEFINITLEY not be disappointed that you have some of these in your box!