The North Carolina hatch chart will help you identify the most popular aquatic and terrestrial insects that inhabit rivers and streams throughout the state—including hatch dates, emergence timing, recommend fly patterns and sizes. This chart is not all inclusive. For a more detailed list of hatches, you’ll want to review hatch charts for the specific river you’ll be fishing. However, the following chart covers the majority of the hatches you’ll encounter when fly fishing North Carolina rivers and backcountry waterways.
North Carolina fly hatch chart including hatch dates, emergence times, fly sizes and patterns.
| Hatch | Size | Dates | Emergence | Patterns |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Midges | 18–24 | January-December | Afternoons warm days | Black, Gray, Olive, and Cream Midge, Griffith‘s Gnat, Renegade |
| Blue Winged Olive | 18 | October-March | Early afternoon warm days | Blue Winged Olive, Adams |
| Early Black Stone Fly | 18 | October-March | All day | Black Stone Fly Adult, Black Elk Hair Caddis |
| Blue Quill | 16–18 | Late March-Early April | Morning to early afternoon | Blue Quill, Adams |
| Quill Gordan | 12–14 | Late March-Early April | Early afternoon | Quill Gordon, Adams |
| Hendrickson | 14 | April | All day | Hendrickson, Red Quill |
| March Brown | 12 | Mid April-May | All day | March Brown, Adams |
| Giant Stone Fly | 12 | Mid April-Early May | Early morning | Stimulator |
| Black Caddis | 14–16 | Mid-April-Early May | Mid morning | Dark Elk Hair Caddis, Dark Thunderhead |
| Mottled Brown Caddis | 4–8 | April-June | All day | Elk Hair Caddis, Thunderhead, Irresistible Adams |
| Light Cahill | 14–18 | May-September | Afternoon to evening | Light Cahill |
| Sulphur | 14–18 | May-July | Late afternoon to evening | Sulphurs, Yellow Humpy, Yellow Hammer |
| Green Sedge | 14–16 | May-June | All day | Green Rock Worm, Light Elk Hair Caddis, Green Humpy |
| Dun Variant | 12 | June-Sept | All day | Adams |
| Yellow Stone Fly | 14–16 | June-July | Late afternoons | Yellow Sallie, Stimulator, Yellow Palmer, Tellico Nymph |
| Golden Stone Fly | 6–12 | July-August | Early morning and dusk | Stimulator |
| Terrestrials/Attractors | Various | June-September | All day | Black Ants, Inchworms, Beetles, Crickets, Royal Wulff, Royal Coachman |
Major Hatches in North Carolina by Month and Season
Knowing which fly hatches are occuring and when is useful for planning a successful fly fishing trip. Below we’ve listed the most important fly hatches by season you’ll want to pay attention to when planning your next fly fishing excursion in North Carolina’s trout waters.
January — March
Later winter and early spring is nymphing season and prime time to catch the trophy browns that habitate many of North Carolina’s trout fisheries. It’s also the season for streamer fishing and there’s no better way to hook a lunker than fishing two streamers at the same time. A small streamer followed a couple feet from behind by a larger streamer is a perfect setup for fly fishing during North Carolina’s colder months.
Midge hatches are present all winter long through early spring. Gray and olive midge, griffith gnat, and renegade patterns are your best options. February through March your target hatches are Blue Winged Olives (BWO) and Early Black Stoneflies. Elk Hair Caddis and Adams are your go-to patterns. Early spring entering into March, Blue Quill and Quill Gordon hatches take center stage.
April
By April, spring is well under way and aquatic insects hatches are prolific. During April nymphing is the name of the game and matching the hatch is critical for many of North Carolina top trout fisheries including the Tuckasegee River, Straight Fork Creek, Little River and many more.
Midge, Blue Quill, and Quill Gordon hatches continue through April with the introduction of Hendrickson, March Brown, Giant Stone Fly, and Black Caddis hatches mid month. Red Quill is one of the best patterns for targeting Hendrickson hatches. Stimulators are ideal for mimicing giant stone flies. Top caddis patterns include Elk Hair Caddis, Thunderhead, and Irresitible Adams. For mayfly hatches you can’t beat an Adams.
May
There are more hatches during May than any month of the year, as well as more fish aggressively feeding. The opportunities for anglers are huge but with all the activity it can be challenging to hook a trophy trout without a good presentation.
Light Cahill, Sulphurs, Black Caddis, and Green Sedge are the new hatches you want to prepare for. Midge, March Brown, BWO, and Giant Stone Fly hatches from April continue into May. A few of the best patterns to have on hand during May include Dark Elk Hair Caddis, Blue Winged Olive, Adams, and Green Rock Worm.
June
June ushers in the beginning of North Caronlina’s hot summer season—especially toward the end of the month. Brook trout are now in full feeding mode offering anglers some great fly fishing action in the mid to high elevantion streams and rivers.
Light Cahill, Sulphurs, Mottled Brown Caddis, and Green Sedge hatches continue from May into June, with Dun Variant and Yellow Stone Fly making their debut. Yellow Sallie, Yellow Palmer, and Stimulator patterns are perfect for targeting Yellow Stone Fly hatches. For Dun Variant your go to is the trusty old Adams.
Toward mid-June expect to start seeing more terrestrials along the river banks with vegetation. Black Ant, Beetle, Cricket, Royal Coachman, and Royal Wulff are your go-to terrestrial patterns. Inchworm patterns are also effective.
July
The best way to describe July in North Carolina is ‘The heat is on.’ Summer heat can put pressure on trout fishing especially in lower elevation trout fisheries. July is a great month to head for the high country and try your hand fishing some dry flies in cool water streams and rivers. Angler report a dry-dropper rig—a dry fly followed by a sub-surface fly or nymph—is one of the more productive presentations.
Most of the hatches that began in June continue through July. But we do see Golden Stone Fly hatches added to the mix and terrestrials really begin to take center stage on many of North Carolina’s trout waters. For targeting Golden Stone Fly hatches you’ll have best success with a good stimulator pattern. When fishing terrestrials, it’s important to match the hatch. Trout will quickly strike terrestrial patterns they’re familiar with, while ignoring those they don’t immediately recognize.
August
If you’re going to target trout during the dog days of August, you want to focus on the higher elevation creeks and streams where the water is relatively cool and the trout remain active. You’ll find good brown and brook trout activity throughout August in many higher elevation fisheries.
August hatches are a bit more sparse, but not non-existent. Some of your staple patterns including Griffith’s Gnat, Adams, stimulators, and Light Cahill will continue to produce. Fishing black ant, beetle, cricket, and hopper patterns, while matching the hatch for the region your fishing, is also productive. Royal Wulff and Royal Coachman are two top producing terrestrial patterns.
September
September is a transition month that marks the end of summer and beginning of cooler days and nights. Most of September is still hot but the morning and evenings begin to cool down toward the end of the month. For the first two weeks of September stick to mid elevations and higher.
The main hatches during September are Light Cahill and Dun Variant. Midge patterns continues to produce throughout September and terrestrial patterns will produce through the end of the month.
October — December
Weather really starts to cool down starting October and continues to get colder through the end of December. Trout fishing in October is strong and November provides the opportunity to hit some of the delayed harvest creeks and rivers to chase recently stocked trout. November can provide some great non-stop action for trout anglers.
The key to fishing these colder months is to downsize your line and flies. Water is clear and a smaller 6x or 7x tippet is required. Dry flies are out and nymphs and streamers are in. Hatches include Midges and Early Black Stone Fly. Smaller BWO hatches are sporadic. Black midges, Y2k eggs, jelly leeches, pheasant tail jigs, Adams, Black Elk Hair Caddis, and Black Adult Stone Fly patterns are top producers.
