The bugs are back!

We freeze all winter, suffering through less than mediocre fishing days, waiting for this very moment: The day the bugs return! Throughout the winter we see sporadic hatches of Midges and Blue-Winged Olives. It is just enough to let us know that there is something stirring underneath the currents. Over the last couple of weeks things have started to change. Sporadic became expected and the expected is a newcomer. Now, in addition to the Midges and the Blue-Winged Olives, Caddis are showing their wings to us. This is exciting not necessarily because of the bugs themselves, but rather it is a calling from nature. It is like seeing the first Daffodil of the year. You know the season is changing. (Forget about the 10" of snow that fell the other week.) Spring is here!

This year there seems to be more Caddis hatching than years past. It is great fuel for conversation in a fly shop. Customers come in with the typical winter attitudes of "Well I know I am not going to catch anything but I have to fish anyway." Giving them news of any insect activity at all brightens the eye. Mention the word "hatch" and watch their heads turn with disbelief. "Now there is a chance!" A chance is all we need.

There has been a gentleman from Atlanta coming up frequently to fish the Tuckasegee River. It is only a three-hour drive for him. He is humble with his knowledge and skill-a self-proclaimed beginner (very rare in a fly shop). He asks for advice when he is in and it ranges from knots to casting techniques. He asked for fly recommendations for the Tuck and I showed him some caddis pupa. To look at it you think, "Yarn on a hook with a little weight. Big deal." His facial expression actually showed disappointment. I said, "These are caddis pupa and this is the bug that is hatching now. This is its underwater stage of life and over here is the dry imitation. This is what we use to imitate the pupa that has hatched." Quizzically held them in his hand and looked at them. He bought some and went fishing.

About 4 days later he called the store. "Remember me, I am the guy….." I replied of "Of course." And I did. "Will you pull a dozen of those caddis pupa for me. I had a great trip and am coming back this weekend. We saw so many of those things flying around. It seemed to be the only thing we were catching them on."

Many anglers overlook the importance of knowing insects. It surprises me to see so many long-time fly fishermen with very little knowledge and even no knowledge of the trout's diet. The spring reveals itself to us with a symphony of nature. Flowers, warmer temperatures, maybe a foot of snow, and insects are all clues that the season is changing. And in Atlanta, there is a gentleman piecing it all together. He is understanding the seasons in a new way-through bugs.