The Quill Gordon mayfly hatches are continuing to be very heavy. The Blue Ridge Mountain streams with southern exposure produce the heaviest Quill Gordon hatches in Virginia. One evening at dusk while hiking in the Park, I have no doubt there were over one thousand Quill Gordons in the air before me. The Mr. Rapidan Parachute Dry size 14 is still my favorite fly for this hatch. The Blue Quills are hatching so plan to have a Blue Quill Dry size 16 in your fly box. To spread this smorgasbord, there are March Brown mayflies starting and the March Brown Dry size 14 is perfect for this. If you have trouble seeing the March Brown Dry like I do, then use the Mr. Rapidan Parachute for this hatch as well. I have had several customers emailing saying they are using a dry with a nymph as a dropper with success. What they don't catch on the dry fly, they are catching on the nymph. Try a Mr. Rapidan Parachute Dry size 14 with a Mr. Rapidan Emerger size 14 below it. I am using a Murray's Mountain Leader 6ft 5X for now but will probably switch over to 6X in the next couple of weeks.
Update for April 12, 2024 After the heavy rains last evening, I recommend coming into the streams from the Skyline Drive or upper reaches as I feel there is too much water on the lower portions of the streams. This normally runs out pretty quickly in the mountains- usually within 2 days. If you need help on access, stop by the fly shop or see my book Trout Fishing in the Shenandoah National Park.
Looking for an all around fly assortment to get you through the major hatches in the Shenandoah National Park...see our Mountain Trout Fly Assortment.
We have a few openings left in our On The Stream Mountain Trout Fly Fishing Schools (Advanced). If you already know the basics of knot tying and reading the water but want to learn more about the entomology or just need a little extra instruction then sign up for one of our advanced classes. Wed. May 1 or Monday May 6 meeting at Murray's Fly Shop in Edinburg VA.