Foam Grasshopper
Late July through September is grasshopper season on Western meadow streams, and a large foam hopper pattern cast tight to a grassy bank is one of the most explosive takes in fly fishing. Trout, especially large browns, hold near undercut banks waiting for hoppers to misjump. Fish this close to the bank with a drift that mimics a struggling natural — a subtle twitch can trigger strikes when the dead drift fails.
- Type
- dry fly (Terrestrial)
- Hook sizes
- #8–14
- Target species
- trout
- Difficulty
- beginner
- Best seasons
- summer, fall
Materials
- hook: Dry fly 2XL #8–14
- thread: Yellow or olive 6/0
- body: Yellow or tan foam, shaped and lightly segmented
- wing: Mottled turkey quill or elk hair over body
- legs: Knotted rubber legs or pheasant tail fibers
- hackle: Brown, palmered through body
Tying steps
- Mount a size 8–14 2XL dry fly hook; start yellow or olive thread at the bend.
- Cut a yellow or tan foam strip and shape it to a hopper silhouette; tie it in at the bend.
- Tie in a palmered brown hackle and wind it over the hook shank, then fold the foam over top.
- Tie down the foam at the eye to form a segmented body.
- Tie in knotted rubber legs or pheasant tail fibers as legs on each side of the body.
- Add a mottled turkey quill or elk hair wing flat over the body.
- Trim a small deer hair or foam bullet head and tie in behind the eye.
- Whip finish and cement; legs should extend slightly beyond the hook bend.