Parachute Adams

Parachute Adams — Colorado's Most Versatile Dry Fly

If you're only going to tie on one dry fly on the Roaring Fork, Frying Pan, or Colorado River, make it a Parachute Adams. This is the searching pattern that Colorado guides reach for when the hatch isn't obvious — a fly that imitates enough different insects well enough to fool trout in almost any condition. The parachute hackle keeps it riding upright and visible on fast, broken water, and the white post makes it easy to track even in low light or heavy glare.

The Parachute Adams is effective year-round. Fish it during mixed hatches when you can't pin down exactly what's coming off, as a dry in a dry-dropper rig with a Copper John or Pheasant Tail below, or as a standalone attractor on pocket water and riffles. It's one of those flies that earns its place in every box.

Pattern Details

• Style: Parachute dry fly
• Sizes available: 14, 16, 18, 20, 22, 24
• Hook: Standard dry fly
• Post: White calf tail or poly yarn for high visibility
• Hackle: Parachute-style grizzly for upright riding and stability
• Body: Adams grey dubbing
• Best fished: Riffles, pocket water, mixed hatches, dry-dropper rigs

Local Knowledge

On the Roaring Fork and Colorado River, the Parachute Adams shines during the shoulder seasons — early spring before the big hatches kick in, and fall when PMDs and caddis are tapering off. On the Frying Pan below Ruedi Reservoir, size 20–24 Parachute Adams patterns are a staple during the midge and BWO hatches that define that tailwater. Keep a range of sizes in your box and match the size to what you're seeing on the water.

Order online for shipping or in-store pickup at Glenwood Springs Outdoors, 831 Grand Ave, Glenwood Springs, CO.