Ray Charles

The Ray Charles Sowbug is a highly effective fly pattern designed to imitate sowbugs, a primary food source for trout in tailwater rivers and spring creeks. Originating in the early 1990s on Montana's Bighorn River, it was developed as a guide fly and has since become a staple in many anglers' fly boxes. The pattern's name is attributed to its simplicity and effectiveness, with one story suggesting it was named because "even a blind man can catch fish with this fly.

Fish the Ray Charles on a micro-swing by lifting your rod tip just an inch or two at the end of the drift, then immediately dropping it back down. This tiny lift causes the fly to rise and then fall naturally—exactly how a real sowbug breaks loose from the rocks and tumbles.