Salomone: 2 bugs — one is here, one is coming.

The river is reaching summer flow levels rapidly. Water temperatures are making a rise. Insect activity is producing stellar fly fishing. We may not see much of a runoff increase. Getting out on the river now ensures some productive time on our local waters. The fish are eating a prevalent mayfly that we have been seeing for a while, the Blue Wing Olive. But the interest is already leaning towards what is to come: caddis — an insect that is staging up for its massive emergence.

Blue Wing Olives lead trout out of the winter feeding patterns that revolve around midges. The repeated, sluggish feeding behaviors of trout during the colder months changes as the warmth of spring heats the air and melts the snow.

Blue Wing Olives begin showing up early in the year under gray clouds and a sunless sky. The bugs emerge in numbers when spring’s fickle weather bounces around. The water temperature on the Eagle River has been ideal for sometime now. The Blue Wing Olive mayfly has a range of sizes from small, mini-mayflies to larger, winged sailboats. They do not have strength when flying. The weak insects are often blown into the water. Trout often target these drowned, dead mayflies.

Caddis are coming. Watch your thermometer. Knowledgeable fly fishers are presenting caddis larvae now. The activity has already begun underwater. The mature nymphs are moving, drifting and preparing for the magical temperature of 54 degrees, when massive numbers of the insect emerge.

The bugs are already feeling the warmth. Singles and early emergers are bouncing around on shoreline grass and popping through the surface film on the river. Active bugs skitter, dive and swim. They bounce and dance on the surface when emerging.

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Caddis are here for the summer. Buy your caddis flies now. Bins will be ravaged when the hatch arrives. The best sizes and patterns disappear first. Got a favorite? Buy it now. Confidence is key to success. Fish your favorite bug. It feels good.

Caddis are king of the dry flies on the Eagle River; whether they’re Goddard’s, Elk hair or foam-bodied, they all catch fish. The Eagle River is one of the best caddis dry-fly rivers to be found — anywhere. Dry-fly fishing on the Eagle River during a caddis hatch is what fills pages of books recording memories and crowds images onto social media accounts flaunting successes.

Flies for those that have been here include PTs, RS2s and performance perdigons in black or olive.

While I have been catching some fish on dry flies, the real activity has been subsurface. The saturation of aquatic nymphs in the river water now is astounding. Midges are the ever-present offering that will always catch fish. But the Blue Wing Olive nymphs have been giving the trout a slightly larger bite per bug and that “something new” that gets fish excited for the sustenance summer delivers. Blue Wing Olives are the transition bug from lean winter to summer abundance. Caddis are a mainstay for summer insect indulgence.

Flies like LaFontaine’s Sparkle Pupa and the X-caddis are patterns to save for later. Even the prince nymph is truly an emerger that should be kept in your box for now. Save these flies for when the emergence is showing plentiful numbers of adults. With massive numbers of bugs in the water, the saturation keeps fish keyed into the surplus. Trout will target the weakest stage, the emerger. If you want to tempt them with a dry, fish the emerger as your dropper for increased action.

Caddis larvae are the stage you want to imitate right now. The larvae are feeling the increase in the water temperature. This is getting them going. The bugs have developed for a long time in cases and tubes. Now they are feeling the push to transition. It is not moon-influenced or even persuaded by river flow but rather a trigger felt in water temperature. Watch the river gauge to keep tabs on current conditions and to dial in your response. The fly fisher more in tune with the river will have a better feel of what to feed the fish. River gauges keep you in touch with reliable, timely information.

Blue Wing Olive mayflies have been carrying trout from the cold into the spring feeding patterns. Caddis that have been waiting for a magical water temperature are moving about actively. Two bugs: one is here, one is coming.

Michael Salomone has lived in the Eagle River valley since 1992. He started his professional guiding career in 2002 and currently guides for Vail Valley Anglers. He lives on the bank of the Eagle River with his wife, Lori, his youngest daughter, Ella and a yellow Labrador named Poppy. His published writing has appeared in Southwest Fly Fishing, Fly Rod & Reel, Eastern Fly Fishing, On the Fly, FlyLords, the Pointing Dog Journal, Upland Almanac, TROUT, American Fly Fishing, USA Today Hunt & Fish and Fly Fisherman magazines.