Dry Flyintermediate

Rocky Mountain West

Blue Wing Olive (BWO)

Name: Blue Wing Olive (BWO)
Brand: The Woolly Gentleman

Flybox sourcing profile

No TWG price or checkout is active. Use this page to validate the fly, then source it through the mapped tier or trusted fly shops.

Available Sizes#16 - #22

Color Variations

OliveDark OliveGray-Olive

Pattern Ledger

Source Blue Wing Olive (BWO)

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Sourcing Ledger

Where to source this pattern

TWG checkout is closed. These are current sourcing leads, scored by mapped tier, region, species, fly type, and named-pattern evidence. Confirm availability directly with the tier or shop.

Regional shopStrong match

Taos Fly Shop

Matched on Rocky Mountain West, dry flies, trout. New Mexico/Southwest trout shop lead for Rio Grande, San Juan, Pecos, and high desert water.

Rocky Mountain Westdry fliestrout

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Signature tierStrong match

Rocky Mountain Fly Design

Matched on Rocky Mountain West, dry flies, trout. Colorado tier and shop lead for Rocky Mountain trout, bass, and predator patterns.

Rocky Mountain Westdry fliestrout

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Broad sourceStrong match

Fly Fish Food

Matched on dry flies, trout, mayfly. Strong technical tying and trout catalog coverage, especially nymphs, dries, and stillwater flies.

dry fliestroutmayfly

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Broad sourceStrong match

Fulling Mill Flies

Matched on dry flies, trout, dry. Large pattern house with broad freshwater and saltwater fly categories.

dry fliestroutdry

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Broad sourceStrong match

Big Y Fly Co.

Matched on dry flies, trout, dry. Broad by-type catalog useful for common benchmark patterns and inexpensive backups.

dry fliestroutdry

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When the weather turns miserable -- overcast, drizzling, the kind of day that makes sane people stay home -- the Baetis hatch, and suddenly the river is alive with rising trout. The Blue Wing Olive is your ticket to the show. It is small, subtle, and requires the kind of precise presentation that will either make you a better angler or make you take up golf. There is no middle ground.

Quick Facts

TypeDry Fly

Difficultyintermediate

SeasonsSpring, Fall, Winter

Target SpeciesRainbow Trout, Brown Trout, Cutthroat Trout

Sizes#16 - #22

Best LocationsFrying Pan River, CO; Missouri River, MT; South Platte River, CO; Henry's Fork, ID

Where to Fish It

Frying Pan River

CO · Tailwater

Missouri River

MT · Tailwater

South Platte River

CO · Tailwater

Henry's Fork

ID · Spring Creek

Map unavailable. Locations for Blue Wing Olive (BWO): Frying Pan River, CO; Missouri River, MT; South Platte River, CO; Henry's Fork, ID

Related Reading

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Water Temperature: The Master Variable

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Every angler has heard it: 'The barometer's falling — the fish are gonna feed.' But how much of barometric pressure lore is actual science, and how much is confirmation bias wrapped in a fishing vest? The answer is more nuanced than either camp wants to admit.

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The Fall Guide: Changing Seasons, Changing Tactics

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The Winter Guide: Cold Water, Warm Hands, Willing Fish

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