Umpqua Boy Wonder Hopper Craven Fly

Overview

Charlie Craven spent about ten years developing the Boy Wonder Hopper, building on his Charlie Boy pattern to add more buoyancy and durability for hopper-dropper rigs. On a float of the lower Colorado, a prototype held up nine tungsten beads and never sank.

Craven sums it up simply: it floats, and it gets eaten too. For anglers who like to hang one or two heavy nymphs under a hopper, it gives you a dry fly that will not get dragged under, so you can watch it all day.

How to Fish It

• Hopper-dropper: hang one or two bead-head nymphs below it; it will keep floating.
• Bank shots: land it with a soft plop tight to grassy banks.
• Twitch: a small twitch now and then makes it look alive.
• Tippet: 3X or 4X to turn over the fly and the dropper.

Choosing Color and Size

Peach is a light, warm hopper color that matches many late-summer hoppers and is easy to see. Size 8 carries the heaviest droppers; size 10 is the everyday hopper size.