I’m less than a week away from a much-anticipated trip to Argentina, where I’ll be fishing the country’s northern Patagonia region. When I arrive, summer will be on the horizon, and bigger mayflies will be in my fly box.
Tim Flagler ties an excellent big mayfly pattern—size 12—in his Isonychia Parachute pattern, a dependable dry fly in the eastern U.S. in summer and fall. While I likely won’t fish to an isonychia hatch in Patagonia, there is a chance that I’ll be casting to trout rising to large green drakes.
By substituting the wine-colored thread and dubbing in Tim’s Isonychia Parachute with olive or even lime green, I might have the perfect pattern for early season Patagonian trout.
Of note: pay special attention to how Tim ties the parachute post in this pattern. He’s made a science out of parachute posts, and this might be my favorite method for tying in bigger posts on bigger flies like this one.