This is a Pyramid Lake Tadpole. I found this pattern while looking for flies to fish at Pyramid Lake in Western Nevada and seeing as how I want to try to fish Pyramid Lake the Winter/Spring I want to make sure my arsenal of flies is up to date. I fished Pyramid Lake with my Dad when I lived in Reno, NV. It is a unique fishing experience. The first time I fished out there, I thought that the fly fishers were crazy. I mean, who uses ladders to fish a lake. The experience was fun; I caught a couple nice 20” trout and soon realized that that was just average for Pyramid Lake. (There are some real monsters that come out of that lake.) My limited experience with Pyramid Lake has taught me a couple of things. One thing that I have learned is that a ladder is a great tool for fishing Pyramid Lake, Not only does a ladder keep one out of the frigid water temps, but it also gives one a better view of the water they are fishing. When on the ladder your head is higher above the water, making it easier to see fish roaming the drop off.
The pyramid lake tadpole can be fished in multiple colors. The colors I have tied are orange body with red shell, Chartreuse body with a green shell, chartreuse body with white shell and purple body with black shell. I think that it will be a deadly fly for Pyramid Lake because it is a fly that can be striped if the trout aren’t hitting the nymphs. I think that I will probably fish this tadpole with a wooly bugger trailing it.
Anyway here is the recipe:
Pyramid Lake Tadpole
Hook: TMC 2499BL-SP
Thread: White-Ultra Thread 140
Tail: White Marabou Fibers
Over body: White 2mm Craft Foam
Underbody: Chartreuse Estaz Chenille (or similar product)