Confidence Flies of Euro-Nymphing Experts

This stunning brown trout was caught on a dry-dropper rig in fast water; the dry fly never moved, but the fish flashed as it ate the Blowtorch Nymph, then the game was on! Photo: Mats Ole Herz

Excerpted from Tim Cammisa’s Tying Euro Nymphs and Other Competition Favorites (Stackpole Books, 2025).

Let’s talk about a critical component of fly fishing with Euro nymphs: confidence. This was something so many of the anglers I interviewed spoke of—their ability to select a fly they know fish will eat, then execute with it on the water. How do they know the fish will eat it? These anglers have caught thousands of trout on it prior, so there’s no doubt in their minds that it will work. That guarantee shifts the focus to other important parts, like deciding on the type of water to fish, analyzing the water structure, choosing an effective fishing technique, figuring out if the fish want a dead-drift or jigging motion, etc.

Knowing this is a fly-tying book that focuses on materials, techniques, and ways to fish the flies, the actual patterns don’t matter, right? Of course they matter! But even more so, it’s determining which of the patterns matter to you. Once you’ve determined your own set of confidence flies, you’ll have success with them no matter where you fish (assuming there are fish where you’re fishing!). By having confidence in the flies you fish, you remove second-guessing the pattern, and you remove doubt. When someone is fishing a fly and lacks confidence in it, the focus transitions to believing that the fish are looking for that perfect fly, the panacea, as Luboš Roza calls it. That fly doesn’t exist.

In 2015, as a member of Fly Fishing Team USA, Devin finished with the individual bronze medal and was part of the squad that won the first team medal (a silver) for the United States at the World Fly Fishing Championship in Bosnia. Photo: Devin Olsen Collection

CONFIDENCE FLIES: Devin Olsen

These five, plus a worm pattern, cover most of the bases of what I fish. Within each category, it’s just variations that separate the patterns, giving me all the sink rate and imitation or attraction characteristics I’m looking for in flies. I opt for a variety of weights and sizes, then focus on differences in leader and presentation to adjust to different water types to make up the difference that the flies don’t make up.

1. Perdigon
2. Mop Fly
3. Blowtorch Nymph
4. Walt’s Worm
5. Pheasant Tail Nymph

CONFIDENCE FLIES: Tim Cammisa

This stunning brown trout was caught on a dry-dropper rig in fast water; the dry fly never moved, but the fish flashed as it ate the Blowtorch Nymph, then the game was on!

1. France Fly
2. CDC Walt’s Worm
3. Perdigon
4. Blowtorch Nymph
5. Junk!

No matter where I’m fishing in the world, you’ll find these in my box. The France Fly and CDC Walt’s Worm are generic patterns that represent mayflies, caddisflies, and so much more; I tie both in a variety of sizes and colors. Perdigons are perfect for a fast sink rate, and I fish two versions, flashy and subtle. The Blowtorch always seems to get it done, especially in places with cased caddis in the waters. Finally, who doesn’t love a few junk flies? Eggs, worms, Mops, Pat’s Rubber Legs—these are slow-sinking patterns that fish can’t resist. The fly selection goes hand-in- hand with the nymphing technique for that section of water.

To drive this point home, here’s the question I asked every angler interviewed for this book: “If you are fishing moving water for the first time, steep through low gradient, what are the top five nymphs you’re fishing?” This question removed the idea that “one fly” catches all the fish, encouraging the anglers to go through their selection process and share the nymphs they have confidence in. There was little time wasted as the anglers rattled off the flies; they knew which ones they reach for on a regular basis. And my biggest takeaway: No two lists were the same.

Take that as a positive, knowing that you haven’t been fishing the “wrong” flies. Yet also take each list as simply that, a list. Just like us, no angler is limited to five flies, and they build an arsenal accordingly based on their location in the world, whether fishing spring creeks, freestone rivers, or tailwaters. They also factor in the size and profile of natural insects where they fish, flies their friends or teammates have success with, plus previous patterns they’ve caught fish on. Now that we have access to these lists, my takeaways include:

• Simplicity: Since many of the anglers fish in competitions, a goal is to crank out many flies in a short amount of time. Most flies are tied with few materials and tying steps.
• Bead Head Pheasant Tail: This fly is on most lists because it looks like many insects found in the water. When I asked Grégoire Juglaret for his confidence list, he replied, “Only one, the Pheasant Tail.” Fish the PT Nymph with confidence.
• BWO imitations: Since Baetis are found in so many rivers across the United States, almost every list had some type of pattern to represent this prolific mayfly nymph.
• Perdigons: Their thin profile gets these flies deep in a hurry, and many anglers shared that this is a go-to fly, especially in sizes 18 and 20.
• Tag nymphs: Featuring a hot spot tail, anglers find value in a fly that grabs the attention of fish.
• Junk flies: Mop flies, eggs, and worms were a topic that frequently came up, with most anglers sharing their use, especially when fishing high or off-colored water.

 
Finally, keep in mind that when the anglers shared their confidence-fly list, they were limited to five patterns. That’s not reality, and no matter how few flies some anglers may carry, they have access to lots more. Confidence flies for anglers are dynamic, always changing based on water type and clarity, situation, location, and many more factors. Even when I put together my own list, I thought about my other favorites—I left the Pheasant Tail off my list! It is a go-to pattern with multiple versions in my box, and I reach for them in so many situations. But the rules were simple: What five flies would you use anywhere? As you can guess, no list disappointed.

Tim Cammisa, creator of Trout and Feather, has been a leading voice in fly tying and fly fishing for years. A featured presenter at major fly-fishing events, he shares his passion for fly tying and angling across the country. He is also the author of Fly Tying for Everyone (Stackpole, 2021).