Hexagenias

If you ever wonder if smallmouth bass feed on natural adult mayflies you should have been with me yesterday evening (August 24) on the North Fork of the Shenandoah River. The hexagenia mayflies began hatching about 6:45pm and by 7:15 the river was alive with them. Just to give myself a number value I held my watch out over the stream and counted the actual number of bass I saw rise. In one minute they took 17 hexagenias. I put on a Mr. Rapidan Skater size 8 dry fly and caught many nice bass until it got dark.