Ok, here is my theory. March in Maine means one thing. Sea Run Brown Trout. Now, I have noticed a cycle to the Stone Fly hatches and I think I finally figured out the puzzle. Like most things, it is fairly simple. Since we are talking about tidal waters, we are of course talking about high and low tides. So, the tide goes out and all of the rocks are exposed to the warmth of the sunlight for 5 hours or so. Then the tide comes back in and submerges the rock beds again. This incoming tide cycle triggers a good hatch, because all of the bugs that would have hatched over a 5-6 hour period, begin to hatch all at once. Now, with that being said, it is safe to assume that when a major hatch traspires the trout inevitably start feeding. This theory is the only thing that explains the lack of Stone Flies during the outgoing tide and the over abundance of stone flies during the initial stages of the incoming tide. I am not a biologist, so this is just one opinion from a guy who really has no credentials to even give an opinion. But, it makes sense to me and I have been catching fish in the tidal waters by following this theory. I caught the trout in this picture on an Adams Parachute Fly. We all know that the Adams Fly is a versatile fly and represents nearly anything and everything. The picture of the fly that you see is one of the thousands of stone flies that was actually hatching during the incoming tide. They varied in color. Some were light and some were dark, but they were all relatively large in size. It was awesome catching this fish becauseit was nasty on the river. Cold and windy. My feet were cold and the guides on my rod were full of ice. I paid my dues and put in a few hours nymphing. I got so cold that I went to the car to warm up, and boy was I tempted to call it a day. I convinced myself to get back out on the river for a few more casts. So, I walked out to the rising waters edge and stood in one spot and watched the stone flies funnel down a deepening trout run. Then I saw the slurp. A brown tried to sneak a bug off the surface without being seen. Unfortunately for him, he did not go unseen. I checked my guides, checked my line and checked my fly. I knew I only had one shot at this fish and I was not going to blow it with a sloppy cast and/or a bad drift. I false casted twice and dropped the fly in the zone. Nothing happened. Again, nothing happened. @#$#@, I must have spooked him. I casted a third time and the fly was in great shape. It drifted perfectly through the shallows, calmly over the riffles and effortlessly through the deeper section of the … WHAM! He ate it. I brought him in slowly and my buddy Leo was kind enough to take a photo. Leo and I both agreed that the big Stone Fly hatch was a result of the tidal theory. We fished a little longer, told some fish stories, swapped some secret holes and then called it a day. So, when your flyfishing for Sea Run Browns in tidal waters get close to the fresh water run during the incoming tide and throw big stones into the water.