“Dry Fly” of the St. Louis Ozarks

There’s no “matching the hatch” when I fly-fish clear Ozark streams near St. Louis, Missouri.  While I am interested in insects, bugs, and so on, I’m more interested in catching smallmouth on my fly rod.  I also enjoy seeing snakes slither acorss the water’s surface. 

So I’m often asked the common question, “What are you using for bait?”  No worms, no stinkbait, or mechanical gagets, but simply “poppers.”  My first choice is a yellow popper, followed by any variation with yellow in it, then white, then green and dark green.  Black only if I’ve run out of the others.  All poppers must have “legs,” those white rubber extensions as seen in the photo below.

Smallmouth, rock bass, goggleye, bluegill, and sunfish are all fairly aggresive and are attrached to the movement of these popper when they “fall” from the sky.  Your “dry fly” for St. Louis streams should be a “popper.” 

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