15 Best Trout Flies for June

Updated for June 2026: These June trout fly recommendations have been refreshed to better match early summer fishing conditions. As runoff settles, water temperatures warm, and hatches become more active, trout often shift between subsurface nymphs, emerging insects, and dry flies throughout the day. Use this guide to help choose the right fly based on the water, the hatch, and how the fish are feeding.

June is one of the best months of the year to chase trout on the fly. Spring hatches are still active, early summer insects are starting to show up, and trout are often feeding aggressively as water temperatures settle into a more productive range. The key is carrying the right mix of nymphs, emergers, dry flies, and terrestrials so you can adjust as conditions change throughout the day.

If you want to catch as many fish as possible, you must have the right flies for the job, and what represents the right flies can change from season to season. June is right on the cusp between spring and summer proper, which means you have to be particularly careful when choosing your flies.

There are 15 Fly Fishing Flies that we recommend for the month of June:

1. Lightning Bug Pearl
2. Flashback Pheasant Tail-Beadhead Gold
3. Prince Nymph-Beadhead
4. Copper John Hot Wire-Beadhead - Red Gold
5. Caddis Larva - Beadhead - Tan
6. Parachute Adams
7. Hot Wing Caddis - Tan
8. PMD - Pale Yellow
9. Baetis Barr Emergers Plain
10. RS2 Emerger - Olive
11. Half Chornobyl Brown/Orange
12. Fat Albert Purple
13. Royal Wulff
14. Green Drakes
15. Adams

How to Choose the Right June Trout Fly

June is one of the best months of the year to fly fish for trout, but it can also be one of the trickiest if you are not paying attention to the water. As spring runoff starts to settle and water temperatures begin to warm, trout become more active and start feeding on a wider variety of insects. That means your fly selection should change throughout the day.

In the morning, nymphs are usually the best place to start. Trout often hold near the bottom before the main hatch activity begins, so patterns that imitate mayfly nymphs, caddis larvae, stoneflies, and midges can be very effective. As the day warms up and insects start moving, you may see trout feeding higher in the water column or rising to the surface.

During the afternoon and evening, dry flies and emergers can become the better choice, especially when mayflies, caddis, or PMDs are coming off the water. This is when matching the size, shape, and color of the hatch can make a big difference. If you see fish rising but they are refusing your dry fly, try switching to an emerger or a slightly smaller pattern.

As June moves closer to summer, terrestrials like ants, beetles, and small hoppers can also start to play a role, especially along grassy banks and under overhanging vegetation. A simple rule to follow is this: fish nymphs when you do not see surface activity, switch to dries or emergers when trout are rising, and use terrestrials when warm weather and bank-side activity pick up.

Even within each fly category, there are dozens of patterns to choose from. To make it easier, we’ve broken down some of the best June trout flies by style, including nymphs, dry flies, emergers, hoppers, and attractor patterns. It can be challenging to know which ones to choose for your next fly fishing trip, which is why we've put together this great guide of the best trout flies for June for your consideration:

• Nymphs
• Dry flies
• Emergers
• Hoppers
• Stimulators

Of course, you could use a mixture of all five classifications if you prefer, many fly fishers tend to stick to their favorite - the choice is entirely up to you. The main thing is to ensure that your tackle box is filled with flies that will improve your success the next time to go out on the water.

Nymphs for Fly Fishing in June

Nymphs are one of the most reliable choices for June trout fishing, especially early in the morning or when fish are holding near the bottom. Before a hatch gets going, trout often feed below the surface on mayfly nymphs, caddis larvae, midges, and stoneflies. Keeping a strong selection of nymphs in your fly box gives you a better chance of finding fish even when there is little or no surface activity.

1. Lightning Bug Pearl

The Lightning Bug Pearl is one of those flies you learn about in fly fishing 101. It's effective in early and late seasons and is well-known as one of the most productive nymph patterns anywhere in the world. Created by Larry Graham from Kirkland, Washington, way back in 1992, it has been the trout fly fisher's constant companion ever since. Available in various trout enticing colors, it's good to have a few of these in your tackle box.

2. Flashback Pheasant Tail-Beadhead Gold

One of the most commonly used nymphs used in rivers around the globe, the Flashback Pheasant Tail-Beadhead Gold is a beautiful looking fly through human eyes, but the trout, well, they find it irresistible. What makes the Flashback one of the best fly fishing flies for trout? The gold bead helps the Flashback sink much more quickly than many other models, and the flash is very effective at attracting the trout and enticing them to come up and take a bite.

3. Prince Nymph-Beadhead

The Prince Nymph-Beadhead is an excellent steelhead and trout fly pattern. It was invented by a man called Mike Mercer, who really knows his fish, and it is one of the most innovative nymphs on the market. Available in various colors, it's great at attracting the big fish, and its beadhead is really effective at sinking the fly at a rapid speed for more efficient fly fishing.

4. Copper John Hot Wire - Beadhead - Red Gold

Great for attracting rainbow trout in particular, the Copper John Hot Wire-Beadhead in red gold is a mix between a brassie and a pheasant tail. It's perfect for use in areas where nymphs, mayflies, and stoneflies are plentiful. As well as looking great, it sinks fast, attracts the light just about as well as any nymph, and is particularly good at attracting trout in murky water. This is one nymph you'll definitely want to have in your tackle box.

5. Caddis Larva - Tan

Tan is a strong June pattern because caddis are active in many rivers during early summer. Fish it near the bottom in the morning or before a caddis hatch begins. This pattern works especially well in riffles, seams, and pocket water where trout are used to seeing caddis larvae drifting naturally through the current.

Dry Flies & Emergers for Fly Fishing in June

Dry flies and emergers become especially important in June as mayflies, caddis, and other insects become more active on the surface. Dry flies imitate adult insects riding on top of the water, while emergers imitate insects transitioning from the subsurface stage to the adult stage. If trout are rising but refusing your dry fly, an emerger can often be the better choice.

Dry flies are particularly useful because they can mimic the adult stages of flies, which tend to be plentiful in June and the summer months.

Emergers replicate the larva stage emerging to the surface to become an adult. These patterns are great used in tandem with both nymphs and dry flies.

6. Parachute Adams

The Parachute Adams is a classic dry fly that deserves a spot in almost every trout box. It can imitate a wide range of mayflies and other small insects, making it a dependable choice when trout are feeding on the surface but you are not exactly sure what they are eating. Its parachute-style hackle also makes it easier to see in broken water and low light.

Right now, the Purple Haze version of the Parachute Adams is probably the most popular, but there are quite a few variations on the old design now, so be sure to take a look around and see which you like the most.

7. Hot Wing Caddis - Tan

The Hot Wing Caddis is a higher visibility version of the classic Elk Hair Caddis, which is known for being an excellent floater and a traditional fish fly design. It has incredibly bright wings, which make it ideal for use in low light conditions, so if you plan to do some late June evening fishing, you're going to want to have a couple of these in your kit.

8. PMD - Pale Yellow

The PMD is known by all experienced trout fly anglers to be among the greatest emergers of all time. So many anglers have chosen the PMD as their fly of choice for the warmer months of the year, and it is not surprising because it does an excellent job of tempting the trout from April right through the fall season.

Why is it so effective? Perhaps because its poxybacks are great at mimicking the shiny wing casings that develop on insects just before they emerge, or maybe it's because the pale yellow hue is just so irresistible to the fish. Either way, it's a winner.

9. Baetis Barr Emergers Plain

An exceptional fly that has the trout almost throwing themselves at you, the Baetis Barr Emergers are hard to beat. Created by John Barr, who is undisputedly one of the greatest fly tiers in history, they are real game-changers. Deceptively simple, they do what they are supposed to do - imitate the Baetis fly exceptionally well. So well, there is rarely a fish that is not fooled by them, which means plenty of catches for you this June.

10. RS2 Emerger - Olive

A must-have fly fish pattern for those serious about catching trout, the RS2 Emerger - Olive has been around for more than 40 years, but it is still one of the most popular. Why? Because it's a simple and effective pattern that does an excellent job of imitating a range of insects, including midges and mayflies.

It is very versatile and very slim. It has a natural body tone that enables it to trick trout into believing it's an actual insect - food, in other words. If you use this in a multi-rig setup, tie it as the last fly on the line, and you will be able to freely swing it across the river to get the trout excited.

Hoppers & Stimulators for Fly Fishing in June

Hoppers and stimulators can be great search patterns as June moves closer to summer. Grasshoppers, beetles, ants, and other terrestrials become more active along grassy banks, while stimulator-style flies can imitate larger stoneflies, caddis, or general attractor insects. These patterns are especially useful when you want to cover water and bring trout to the surface.

11. Half Chornobyl Brown/Orange

The Half Chornobyl is undoubtedly one of the most durable fly fishing flies for trout. It's also pretty great at catching salmon, so if you like to vary your fishing, it is a good one to have in the old tackle box. It's very effective due to its hair wing, a recent but handy addition to the classic design.

12. Fat Albert Purple

The Fat Albert is a high-floating attractor pattern that can be especially effective when trout are willing to look up. Its foam body makes it durable and buoyant, which also makes it a good choice for a dry-dropper setup. In purple, it works less as an exact imitation and more as a bold attractor that can pull fish from deeper holding water.

The Fat Albert can be used to imitate salmon flies, hoppers, cicadas, and skwala very effectively, which means you can use it in a wide range of environments, and it will work well.

13. Royal Wulff

The Royal Wulff is an ideal general-purpose fishing dry fly that mimics a wide range of insects of the larger, winged variety. Still, it is also perfect for generating a bee, wasp, or hornet pattern too. Ideally, you should use it to fish on the surface, but it can be adapted to your own particular fishing style pretty well.

14. Green Drakes

Perfect for the early season, Green Drakes are an extremely popular choice. They take their name from the feathers used to create the wings of the fly. The green Drake is tied like a fan, making them appear larger and more appealing to the trout. May and June are the perfect months to deploy these particular emergers, so be sure to have one in your fly box right about now.

15. Adams

The Adams dry fly is nothing less than iconic. Designed more than 85 years ago, it is still used by keen anglers all over the place. Its medium body size and grizzled brown hackles combine to ensure that it is effective in a range of water types when attracting trout, anyway.

The Adams is one of the most versatile dry flies ever tied. It works well as a general mayfly imitation and can be fished in a variety of water types, from riffles and runs to slower seams. In June, it is a great pattern to carry when trout are rising but the exact hatch is hard to identify.

Tips for Fly Fishing in Summer

Now that you know which are the best trout flies for fly fishing in June, let's take a look at a few essential tips to help you make the most of your fly fishing efforts this summer.

Late evening or early morning

You may have the best fly fishing flies for trout this June, but if you don't head out at the right time, you may still struggle to get as many bites as you could. In summer, the weather is a lot nicer, which means more people are out on the river, fishing and canoeing, rowing, and participating in various other water sports, which, as you can imagine, can frighten the fish away.

Not only that, but big hatches often tend to take place in the evening, which means the fish are ready and waiting, and you can either make use of the hatches or use your own emergers to mimic them with great effect. That's why heading out as early as 5 am or earlier if you want to, or late in the evening when the activity has died down, is likely to pay off.

Head to the mountains

If you happen to live near a mountain range with a decent trout supply, fly fishing 101 dictates that you should head there with your fly fishing flies assortment and try your luck.

Why? Because in the summer, mountain streams are pretty much always going to be a few degrees lower than streams and rivers elsewhere, which means the trout will be less sluggish. They’ll also potentially be far hungrier because mountain trout often don’t have as plentiful a supply of food as trout located lower down.

For tips on fly fishing in the mountains, check out our full article here >

Mimic the life cycle of your fly

In June and the rest of the summer, it is essential to mimic the life cycle of your fly as the day progresses because that is what happens in nature.

You can start in the early morning with a nymph, then move on to a dry fly in the afternoon before ending with dry flies and hatches in the early to late evening because this is what the typical life cycle of a fly looks like and what the trout will be expecting, which means you can really sneak up and catch them unawares.

That's why it always pays to have a fly fishing flies assortment in your fly box, so you can ensure that you always have the optimal fly for the job at the optimal time.

Choosing the perfect combination of flies

As you can see, there are numerous options to choose from when it comes to trout fly fishing in June. There are so many options that it can seem overwhelming, especially when you factor in the point that it is often better to choose a mixture of flies instead of sticking with one type.

However, our guide to the top 15 fly fishing flies for trout this June should make it a bit easier for you to get it right and catch a few big ones.

If you aren’t sure which flies to purchase, our fly fishing assortments can be a good choice as they take the work out of choosing the best flies for you, but whatever you choose, have fun out there!

About the Author

This guide was written by Matthew Bernhardt, a Colorado-based angler with over 35 years of experience fishing Western rivers, including the Colorado, Arkansas, and Blue River. He is the founder and owner of Drifthook Fly Fishing, which he has operated since 2015.

Matthew specializes in trout rigging systems, leader construction, and technical nymphing presentations. Over decades of fishing high-altitude tailwaters and freestone rivers, he has field-tested dozens of leader and tippet configurations across varying water clarity, flow rates, and seasonal conditions.

His focus is helping anglers build efficient, reliable fly fishing systems so they spend less time adjusting gear and more time fishing effectively.