Dry flies and matching the hatch

How to choose and fish dry flies, read rising trout, and match the insects that are hatching, with a seasonal hatch chart.

By the FreeFish team · 3 min read · Updated October 14, 2026

Watching a trout rise and take your dry fly is why many people fly fish. Dry flies float on the surface and imitate adult insects, so they work best when fish are actually feeding on top. The skill is noticing what's happening on the water and matching it.

Read the rise

Splashy rises: fish chasing active insects like caddis. A skated or twitched fly can work.
Gentle sips and rings: fish eating small mayflies or midges. Use small flies and a long, thin tippet.
A back and tail showing, with no bubble: often fish eating emergers just under the surface. Try an emerger or a soft hackle.

Match the hatch, step by step

Look at the water and the air. Catch an insect if you can. Note its size first, then its shape (upright wings = mayfly, tent-shaped wings = caddis, tiny = midge), then its color.
Choose a fly that matches size first. Trout are pickier about size and shape than color.
Get a drag-free drift. A fly that skids across the surface looks wrong. Cast upstream of the fish and mend so the fly floats at current speed.
If fish refuse, go one size smaller, add a longer and thinner tippet, or try an emerger.

Tip: When you can't tell what's hatching, a Parachute Adams in #14–18 imitates many mayflies, and an Elk Hair Caddis in #14–16 covers caddis.

Typical hatch chart

Timing varies with elevation, latitude and weather. Hatches start earlier in the South and later in the North and at altitude. Use this as a starting point, and ask a local fly shop for current reports.

Insect	Months	Where	Fly and size
Midges	All year	Everywhere	Griffith's Gnat #18–24
Blue-winged olives	Mar–May, Sep–Nov	Everywhere	Parachute BWO #18–22 (cloudy days)
Early black stoneflies	Feb–Mar	East, Midwest	Black stonefly #14–18
Hendricksons	Apr–May	East, Midwest	Hendrickson #12–14
Caddis	Apr–Sep	Everywhere	Elk Hair Caddis #14–18
Sulphurs	May–Jul	East, Midwest	Sulphur dun #16–18 (evening)
March browns	May–Jun	East	March Brown #10–12
Pale morning duns	Jun–Aug	West	PMD #16–18
Green drakes	May–Jul	East, West	Green Drake #10–12
Hex (giant mayflies)	Jun–Jul	Midwest	Hex #4–8 (after dark)
Salmonflies and golden stones	Jun–Jul	West	Stonefly dry #4–10
Tricos	Jul–Sep	Everywhere	Trico spinner #20–24 (morning)
Terrestrials	Jul–Sep	Everywhere	Hopper #8–12, ant #16–18, beetle #14
October caddis	Sep–Oct	West	Orange Stimulator #8–10

Weather and dry flies

Cloudy, drizzly days bring the best blue-winged olive hatches. Don't leave when it starts to rain lightly.
Warm, windy summer afternoons blow hoppers, ants and beetles into the water along grassy banks.
Evenings in late spring and summer often bring caddis and sulphur hatches and spinner falls.
Bright, calm midday sun usually means fewer rises. Nymph until the light changes.

Presentation beats pattern

Most refusals come from drag, not the wrong fly. Position yourself downstream and slightly to the side of a rising fish, cast a few feet above it, and let only the leader and tippet float over the fish. A slack-line cast, made by stopping the rod high and letting the line fall in loose curves, buys extra drag-free time. On slow, clear pools, use a 9–12 foot leader with 5X or 6X tippet and make your first cast count: every sloppy cast puts fish down.

Keep your fly floating with a dab of floatant before you start fishing, and dry it with a few false casts or a desiccant powder after a fish. A sunk dry fly can still catch fish, so let the drift finish before you recast.

The hopper-dropper

In summer, a buoyant hopper with a small nymph tied 18–24 inches below it covers the surface and the water column at once. The hopper also works as an indicator: if it dips, set the hook.

FreeFish's Hatch watch on Today shows the typical hatches for your region this month when you choose Fly fishing. For subsurface fishing, read nymphing for trout.