Flying Ants - the flies you don't need until you do.

[Dave Westburg]

I do 90% of my lake fishing with wet flies. But I always keep a few flying ant dries in my lake box along some callibaetis and some caddis. An ant fall brings every fish to the top of the lake and they are pretty selective. I've had some amazing May days fishing black flying ants during ant falls on Prices Lake and Cascade Lake in WA and on Glimpse Lake in BC. I've seen the biggest ant falls in May but sometimes they swarm in the fall as well.

Flying ants are easy to imitate. I use Steve Raymond's pattern. Two balls of black polypro dubbing on a size 10-12 hook and a sparse deer hair wing. Put floatant on the wing and the fly floats flush in the surface just like the real thing. I also tuck a few flying termites into my box. They have a dubbed amber polypro body. The patterns below have deer hair wings with the exception of the top fly which has a cul de canard wing.



Anyone else fish flying ants?

 

[Zak]

My boss in Montpelier, VT was an avid angler. When either of us saw flying ants bumbling around in town, we would grab the other, take the rest of the day off, and have some great dry fly fishing in the Winooski! Flying ant hatches sure make the trout look up!

 

[Paul_]

My best day ever was during an epic termite fall in September. The fish absolutely lost their minds and were hammering anything that hit the water.

I’ve also been on a lake a day after an epic termite fall. The fish were so stuffed from the previous day, I didn’t get a sniff.

A cdc termite is one of my favorite patterns to fish-

 

[bennysbuddy]

I had a memorable week fishing Three creeks lake a few years back, after I got clued into fishing ant patterns on the top

 

[Old406Kid]

I got caught with my pants down once, a big winged carpenter ant hatch came off with fish slashing at them and nary an ant pattern in my box.
In a moment of desperation I found some gel floatant and greased up a black pine squirrel leech plus a few feet of my leader.
That combo saved the day and definitely taught me a valuable lesson going forward.

 

[IHFISH]

I remember talking about the anabatic winds chapter in Gary Lafontaine's "Flyfishing the Mountain Lakes" on our way up to those two lakes we fished in early July last year. Involuntary flying ants...

 

[John Svahn]

I use a Wright’s Royal for ants. Seems to work well but it may be more because it is usually what i tie on. When the big size 10 ones are around i seem to need a trailing wet fly-the fish come up but seem a little less likely to grab the dry.

 

[Richard Olmstead]

First day on a remote stretch of a well-known Idaho river several years ago, fish were rising, but not taking anything I had to offer. There was no evident hatch. Taking a break during the hot part of the afternoon, my buddy (and fellow forum member) said he had picked up a few on a small black caddis. It was about then that I realized I had been sweeping flying ants off the picnic table just moments before. Eventually, I put two and two together and put on a flying ant pattern and started catching fish.

 

[Stonedfish]

I got caught with my pants down once, a big winged carpenter ant hatch came off with fish slashing at them and nary an ant pattern in my box.
In a moment of desperation I found some gel floatant and greased up a black pine squirrel leech plus a few feet of my leader.
That combo saved the day and definitely taught me a valuable lesson going forward.

Had a similar situation. Ended up cutting down the hackle on a red humpy I had in my box. It worked, but I stocked up on ant patterns after that.
SF

 

[Irafly]

I remember talking about the anabatic winds chapter in Gary Lafontaine's "Flyfishing the Mountain Lakes" on our way up to those two lakes we fished in early July last year. Involuntary flying ants...

I loved that book!

 

[Lue Taylor]

Four years back Steve and I got into a flying Ant hatch at a lake on a pass that you just had to be there to understand how much fun we had catching rising fish, lost a few flies but what the hell that's the reason you tie flies. Another time at Coldwater lake we got into Hoppers being blown on the water.

 

[GAT]

My wife and I where caught in the middle of a carpenter ant hatch (migration?) at Gold Lake a few years ago. I could not find anything in my box to represent the insects because they were so much larger than any ant patterns I had with me.

So the trout were going nuts chowing down on the bugs and no matter what I tossed on the surface, it was ignored.

Yes, now I do carry large ant patterns in my pontoon boat and never remove them... you can't predict when you'll need them so all you can do is always have them handy.... which means I'll never need them again

 

[O' Clarkii Lewisi]

My favorite flying ant pattern on stillwater and moving water is a small Royal Trude, and the old school Harrop flying ant a close second.

 

[Canuck from Kansas]

I fish a lot of small woody streams - when in doubt, tie on an ant.

cheers

 

[Phil K]

When we ran into a hatch of flying ants one of my old fishing buddies (I wonder what ever happened to Wally…?) would joyfully exclaim- “TROUT CHEESECAKE!”

 

[Grpaman]

I got caught with my pants down once, a big winged carpenter ant hatch came off with fish slashing at them and nary an ant pattern in my box.
In a moment of desperation I found some gel floatant and greased up a black pine squirrel leech plus a few feet of my leader.
That combo saved the day and definitely taught me a valuable lesson going forward.

Had a wonderful afternoon on Slough creek in the park a few years ago. Water came alive when the flying ants hit the water. My buddy came prepared with his version saved the day.

 

[BDD]

Hit a carpenter ant "hatch" last year...nothing in 4 different fly boxes that would remotely match the hatch even though I tried all kinds of stuff. Finally I gave up and just enjoyed watching fish rise...rainbows, browns, and tigers, in clear shallow water. While it was fun, it didn't stop me from hitting North 40 the next morning and stocking up. Went out the next day and nary and ant or rise...but at least I was prepared. And will be again the next time.

 

[Bakerite]

Hit a huge one on Anthony lake in NEO one warm June day. Ants all over my tube, crawling down my back, on almost every square foot of water. The brookies had ants coming out their gills, but the rainbows, planted earlier that week, weren't rising. All fish would take a Carey about the right size, fished very slowly, basically just sinking like a drowned ant. I grew bored after a little more than an hour, too easy!

Also used to run into a hatch at the far end of Pass lake late in the year, October, maybe even November. Fun times.

 

[Triploidjunkie]

I've hit some great ant hatches before, and was glad I had imitations. The fish get amazingly picky. Once they get a taste, it's all they want. The only thing better is when they key in on a bee swarm. That's some of the best dry fly action I've ever had. Didn't catch a swarm in 2021, but did in 2020!

 

[Irafly]

I grew bored after a little more than an hour, too easy!

I don’t ever imagine I will be bored of catching fish!