Rainbow Warrior
The Rainbow Warrior is all flash and no apology - a pearl-tinsel midge with a rainbow dubbing head that pressured tailwater trout eat like it's their job.
Lance Egan built the Rainbow Warrior out of pure tinsel - a fly with no natural analogue whatsoever - and then used it to win national championships on the most educated trout in America. It fishes where subtlety is supposed to rule and wins anyway: attraction, it turns out, never goes out of season, even at size 18.
What it imitates
Officially a midge pupa/small baetis; practically, a tiny flashbulb that triggers eats from fish that have seen every natural.
When & where it wins
Tailwaters and pressured water, bright days, winter midging; the change-up when naturals get refused.
How to fish it
Dropper duty in tandem rigs - behind a Frenchie on a Euro rig or under an indicator; dead-drift, soft takes.
Sizes & variants
16-20; red and purple variants for rotation.
Tying notes
Pearl tinsel body, rainbow scud-dubbing head, bead - fast, cheap, gleeful.
Common mistakes
Refusing to fish 'that gaudy thing' on principle - the fish keep failing to share the principle.