Umpqua Smitherman's Pint Hopper Fly

Overview

The Pint Hopper is Josh Smitherman's small version of his Masshopper, made for smaller water and smaller fish where a big hopper is too much.

It is tied like the Masshopper with two changes: a short-shank Stubby T hook and a thin razor foam abdomen. The result is a compact, buoyant hopper that small-stream trout can fit in their mouths and hook up on. In late summer, when grasshoppers are jumping along the banks, a small hopper often draws strikes from fish that refuse bigger patterns.

How to Fish It

• Bank shots: drop it tight to grassy banks and undercuts, letting it land with a little splat.
• Twitch it: a small twitch after it lands looks like a struggling hopper.
• Small streams: work pockets, plunge pools and riffles in mountain creeks and meadow streams.
• Dry-dropper: it floats a small, light nymph on a short dropper.

Choosing Color and Size

Yellow matches the yellow-bellied hoppers common in late summer meadows and is easy to see. Size 16 is for small streams, small hoppers and picky fish that ignore larger patterns.