Terrestrial · #17 of 129

Dave's Hopper

Also known as: Hopper

Imitates: Adult grasshopper

How to Rig It

Single dry or hopper-dropper with a bead-head Pheasant Tail 24" below.

Slap it tight to the bank. Twitch once. Big hoppers struggle when they hit the water.

A grasshopper is a 600-calorie meal that trout can't ignore. The bigger the splash, the better — it sounds like a real bug crash-landing.

Dave Whitlock tied it in the 1960s. It became the template for nearly every modern hopper pattern.

Fish hoppers when the wind picks up — gusts blow real grasshoppers into the river and trout get conditioned to look up.

When is hopper season?+

Mid-July through September, peaking when grass dries out and grasshoppers are most active in afternoon heat.

How close to the bank should I cast a hopper?+

Inches. Trout hold tight to grassy banks waiting for hoppers to fall. Hit the grass if you have to.

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