When fishing for stocked trout, it is a good idea to carry an assortment of nymphs from size 8-20. After being in the stream for only a few days, then the trout learn the natural foods that are available. The riffles are loaded with stonefly nymph, caddis larva, mayfly nymph and hellgrammites. Below is a list of recommended flies:
- Murray’s Dark Stonefly Nymph size 12
- Rubber Leg Nymph size 8
- Mr. Rapidan Bead Head Nymph size 14
- Murray’s Heavy Hellgrammite, black size 8
- Mr. Rapidan Soft Hackle Nymph, brown size 12
First, I position myself 30 feet straight downstream of the riffles. Then I cast one of these nymphs straight upstream into the riffle and strip it back downstream. This gives it good depth and drifts it right to the waiting trout. By using a Murray’s Trout Nymph Leader with indicators built in, I can quickly detect the strike and finally land the trout. As one practices this method with nymphs, it is easy to catch 8-10 stocked trout from each riffle.
There are several stocked trout streams located close to my fly shop in Edinburg, VA. The streams are usually stocked several times from October to about May. For help on finding areas to fish, stop by the fly shop or see my book Virginia Blue Ribbon Streams.