California's
Sierra is known for its breathtaking views, amazing geology, and for
its place in the frontiersman fabric of the United States. The region
is also known for its healthy populations of resident trout.
One
of the legendary fly fishers and fly tyers in the Sierra is Ralph
Cutter, and his E/C Caddis, originally introduced in 1981, has become
one of the world's most effective caddis emerger imitations ever tied.
Cutter modeled the fly after the classic Elk Hair Caddis, but designed
it to sit lower in the surface film by including a parachute style wing
post. He further improved the fly by adding a contrasting body and a
trailing shuck.
Cutter's E/C Caddis - Black Caddis is a highly
effective imitation of an emergent or crippled Black Caddis. This fly
works like a charm from Hot Creek to Patagonia and properly prepared
anglers always carry a few in their fly box.
Specifications:
- Legendary California fly angler, Ralph Cutter's, E/C Caddis is an emerger/cripple pattern is designed to sit lower in the surface film than the Elk Hair Caddis for a more natural caddis profile
- Black Caddis imitation in the emerger life stage
- Use as either an impressionistic searching fly or as a realistic imitation when matching the hatch
- Check under rocks and streamside debris for dark caddis pupae and match size and color before offering a fly
- Fish on a dead drift low in the surface film
- Hatches can occur throughout the day across North America
- The most prolific hatches occur in eastern North America during May, while the western watersheds see two stages of activity from April to May and July to August
- This fly is not always highly visible, indicators are sometimes needed in rougher water
- SIZE 18
When and Where to Fish Cutter's E/C Caddis – Black Caddis
This
caddis emerger can be fished as either an impressionistic fly pattern
when searching for trout or as a realistic imitation when matching the
hatch. There are literally thousands of highly localized species of
caddis native to lakes, streams, and rivers across the globe. With so
much variation it's often a best practice when fishing a caddis hatch
to match color and size of the local species as closely as possible
rather than worry about imitating a single specific species. This fly
is highly effective in medium to high energy water; riffles, runs,
tailouts, and current seams are prime real estate for this fly. Darkly
colored caddis and sedges can be active throughout the year, but are
especially prolific in the early spring in eastern North America and in
the west from April to May and again in July to August.
How to Fish Cutter's E/C Caddis - Black Caddis
Fish
this fly low in the surface film on a dead drift. Before you make a
cast, check underneath rocks and streamside debris for wriggling pupae,
and match your offering to the size and color of these pending
emergers. Typically, early in a hatch, trout will feed on emergent
caddis just above the riverbed. As the hatch wears on, however, these
trout will often key in solely on the emergers and crippled emergers at
or just below the water's surface. Swimming the fly at the end of the
drift can also help to induce a strike from a feeding fish. The fly is
not always highly visible, especially in rougher water. When having
trouble spotting the fly, the use of an indicator can be quite helpful.
Black Caddis
Caddisflies
are relatively large aquatic insects that provide hungry trout with an
excellent source of nutritional protein. There are literally thousands
of species of caddis across the globe so it's often helpful to
generalize caddis by their color and size; an angler would have to have
a thousand fly boxes to match every local species of caddis.
Not
surprisingly, there are many species of darkly colored or black caddis
available to trout. Most anglers will refer to a black caddis as an
"American Grannom," which most of the time is probably not wrong, but
is often not right. Again, the important elements of caddis imitation
are size and color, not species-specific foolery.
Caddis,
unlike mayflies and stoneflies, undergo complete metamorphosis,
experiencing larva, pupa, and adult stages within a typical life cycle,
rather than just a single nymph stage. During the larval stage, caddis
look like tiny, segmented worms. These wormy creatures are classified
as either cased caddis larvae or free-living caddis larvae.
Ideally,
caddis emerge from their pupal shuck as quickly as possible as they are
extremely vulnerable when hanging in the surface film. Once the winged
adult caddis has fully emerged, it continues to act with a keen sense
of urgency, wasting no time to flitter from the water's surface and to
the safety of nearby trees and stream-side vegetation.
Adult
caddis live significantly longer winged lives than mayflies and will
spend up to two or three full weeks away from the water. When they're
finally ready to mate, males will gather near their home water to form
a swarm. Females will join the swarm to have their eggs fertilized.
Once the mating process has been successfully completed, females will
deposit their eggs on the water's surface, propagating the species.
Black Caddis Emerger Life Stage
Caddis
are most vulnerable during their pupa and emergent stages, pupae,
emerger, making emergent and cripple stages quite important to
successful trout angling on a fly. Black caddis, like most caddis types
or species, emerge quite rapidly, spending as little time in this most
vulnerable stage as possible. Therefore, it's extremely important to
recognize when trout are focusing their selective feeding on these
emergers - catching a hatch at just the right time can render a slow
day a fantastic day in a hurry.
About the Tyer: Ralph Cutter
An
avid outdoors-man, passionate educator, and legendary contributor to
the sport of fly fishing, Ralph Cutter proudly calls California's
Sierra his home. Cutter has been fishing, guiding, and teaching others
about the sport for years and is one of the most respected anglers in
the west. He's always been a true ambassador for the sport and has
devoted his life to the science and challenge fly fishing provides. He
is a famous fly tyer with many of his designs in production and his
efforts at increasing anglers' understanding of aquatic ecosystems and
the organisms (not simply trout) that inhabit them is unrivaled. Cutter
has written several books including the classic, "Sierra Trout Guide."
His most recent contribution is through a DVD titled, "Bugs of the
Underworld," a fascinating look at the life cycles of the major aquatic
insects. Ralph's passion is a testament to the importance of angling
for many people and his work will continue to help others improve their
knowledge of the sport for years to come.
Leland on Umpqua
In
1972 a man named Dennis Black and his fly tying skills found themselves
in high demand. Mr. Black, then a professional production fly tyer, was
famous in the industry for his unsurpassed skill and speed with
whipping up tremendously beautiful and precisely constructed flies. It
wasn’t long until this young fly tying superstar realized that he ought
to take his consistent approach to quality to the next level. Shortly
after this realization, a small army of fly tyers had banded together
to support Mr. Black’s vision. With the likes of Dave Whitlock, Jack
Dennis, and Andy Puyans, Mr. Black was officially in business.
Dennis
Black’s new company Umpqua Feather Merchants quickly extended its reach
and fly production capabilities with expansion into India, Sri Lanka,
and Thailand, where the world’s first and full blown “fly tying
factories” were built. Since those early days, only the highest
standard of excellence has marked Umpqua and this commitment to quality
and efficiency continues to spur the company forward. Dennis Black’s
innovative vision for “fly production” has truly revolutionized how the
fly industry operates and has ultimately made the majority of
production flies better. From the first “royalty system” for rewarding
the most creative professional fly tyers to streamlining production
systems and offering a range of other products, Umpqua Feather
Merchants just seems to “do it all.”
Today, Umpqua Feather Merchants
is without a doubt the world’s best and most prolific supplier of hand
tied fly fishing flies as well as fly tying hooks and materials, and
they recently got better! Umpqua’s brand new, state of the art
headquarters in Louisville, Colorado marks another paradigm shift in
the way fly tying business is done. From its vast warehouse to its
specially designed inventory management and tracking system, Umpqua is
poised to continue its energetic trajectory and lead the way for the
next generation of flies and fly tyers.
Umpqua on Umpqua
"As
you may or may not know, we're the largest producer of quality
hand-tied flies in the world. We also make available through your local
fly shop a wide array of the finest fly-tying hackle and Tiemco hooks.
At Umpqua we offer everything the angler needs to a have a first
class fishing experience. (Everything that is, but the water and the
fish.)"
Umpqua on Dennis Black and the “Obvious Quest”
“The
idea first took shape in the hands of our founder, Dennis Black, back
in 1972. As a fast and facile professional fly tyer, Dennis was known
for his skill and speed at producing hundreds of dozens of flies each
year for the larger mail order houses. But he was also quick to realize
how fast the demand for excellent flies would outstrip the abilities of
cottage industry types like him.
The Obvious Quest: To create
excellent flies in sufficient supply – without sinking his standards.
In response, Dennis developed (with characteristic care) a methodical
plan: First, he enlisted the tying expertise of the likes of Dave
Whitlock, Jack Dennis, Andy Puyans and others, to help him set the
standard of excellence for Umpqua flies.
Next, Dennis established the
first of what would eventually be five separate fly-tying “factories,”
first in India, then in Sri Lanka, and finally in Thailand. The primary
focus at each of these factories was on producing the very best fishing
flies possible, constructed of the very best materials available. From
the beginning, the quantity of flies produced was secondary to the
quality and excellence of each fly pattern. These high standards were
assured by the personal involvement of the fly designers themselves,
and by the ever-increasing skill, imagination and creativity of the
Umpqua production fly tiers. Today, you will find no flies more
skillfully tied than those available from Umpqua Feather Merchants.
Finally, Dennis created a system of royalty payments, to reward
professional tyers like Whitlock, Lefty Kreh, Randall Kaufman, Larry
Dahlberg, and Bob Popovics for uniquely good patterns.
The Result:
Today, Umpqua produces umpteen thousand dozen flies, from micro-scopic
midge imitations to the huge patterns favored by marlin and sailfish.
And the "Umpquality" – you’ll see for yourself.”