Dip and Swish — The Fly Rod Quick-Dip

by | Sep 23, 2018 | 19 comments

Some things in fly fishing are obvious right away. The concepts of casting and drifting a fly are intuitive for most anglers after just a bit of instruction and a few trips of experience. Advanced techniques are later pored over in conversations, books, articles and videos. We want to learn. But helpful friends and fly fishing authors probably make too many assumptions (myself included). And a lot of what we take for granted or think is obvious has become second nature only after fishing for a long, long time.

On Troutbitten, I sometimes focus on the small things that make a big difference — the type of things that new anglers might figure out for themselves but that veteran anglers may very well have missed.

Backbone of the fishery.

Dip it

Standing in the water, ready for the next cast, the line behind our rod-hand is either tight to the reel or there is some slack. Maybe there’s five feet of line hanging in a loop between the spool and the trigger finger on the rod. Or perhaps there’s just twelve inches of slack line, like this . . .

Now let’s say we want that slack line gone — we want it out through the guides and beyond the rod tip. Sure, we can shoot it on the next cast, but let’s eliminate the extra step.

If we’d rather have that twelve inches of line out past the rod tip, let’s do this:

Dip the rod tip in the water. Do it swiftly. Drag the tip through the current and let go of the line with the trigger finger. The extra line is sucked through the guides and into the water. The slack is taken by the force of the current and by a tension created with the swishing rod tip and the line in the water.

I do this all the time.

Fishing with my young sons is wonderful, because it gives me a fresh perspective. When Aiden asked me the other day why I draw lines in the water with my rod, my answer was simple at first, but it became more complicated. Soon enough, I realized I’d lost his attention but was still answering the question out loud for myself, because I’d never much considered it before.

Standing bank-side or belt-deep in the flow, I guess I draw my rod tip through the water for other reasons too.

Here’s the rest of my answer to Aiden . . .

Tangles

When the line tangles around the end of the rod, when there are a few loops of line over the first few feet of the rod, a quick flip, dip and swish usually solves the problem.

This trouble happens often with long leader Mono Rigs, and it happens with fly line too. Many times we elevate the rod tip while tying on a new fly or changing rigs. The slack line tends to loop around the tip, and we notice it before we cast. Flip, dip, swish, and the loops are out.

Now that I’m aware of the rod tip dip, I can’t help noticing that I do it dozens of times on every trip. It’s a good habit that I never gave much thought to. I now notice other fishermen doing the same, but I also see many anglers struggling with other ways to undo the loops around their rod tip. And I see them false casting more times than needed to throw some extra slack.

The water is there, just waiting to be a line-grabber and help you out with a little drag (for a change). So, let it help.

Fish hard, friends.

 

** Donate ** If you enjoy this article, please consider a donation. Your support is what keeps this Troutbitten project funded. Scroll below to find the Donate Button. And thank you.

 

Enjoy the day.
Domenick Swentosky
T R O U T B I T T E N
domenick@troutbitten.com

 

Share This Article . . .

Since 2014 and 1000+ articles deep
Troutbitten is a free resource for all anglers.
Your support is greatly appreciated.

– Explore These Post Tags –

Domenick Swentosky

Central Pennsylvania

Hi. I’m a father of two young boys, a husband, author, fly fishing guide and a musician. I fish for wild brown trout in the cool limestone waters of Central Pennsylvania year round. This is my home, and I love it. Friends. Family. And the river.

More from this Category

Fly Fishing with Streamers on the Mono Rig — More Control and More Contact

Fly Fishing with Streamers on the Mono Rig — More Control and More Contact

So why do we use a Mono Rig over fly line? What’s the advantage?

Just like a tight line nymph rig, we gain more control over the presentation of the flies, and we have better contact throughout the cast and the drift. With fly line in the game, we cast and manage the fly line itself. With the Mono Rig, we cast and manage the streamers more directly.

With the Mono Rig, we can stay tight to the streamer after the cast, we can dead drift it with precision for the first five feet, keeping all the leader off the water. Then we might activate the streamer with some jigs and pops for the next ten feet of the drift. And for the last twenty feet, as the streamer finishes out below and across from us, we may employ long strips. All these options are open . . .

High Light — Low Light

High Light — Low Light

My article, "High Light -- Low Light," is over at Hatch Magazine. Here are a few excerpts..... -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- ... Finding the shady cracks that harbor resting and wary trout is a good challenge on bright days. Offering the flies to them in those small...

Tight Line Nymphing with an Indicator — A Mono Rig Variant

Tight Line Nymphing with an Indicator — A Mono Rig Variant

I dislike arbitrary limits. Placing restrictions on tackle and techniques, when they inhibit my ability to adapt to the fishing conditions, makes no sense to me. I’m bound by no set of rules other than my own. And my philosophy is — Do what works.

I guess that’s why I’ve grown into this fishing system. Most of the time I use what I refer to as the Mono Rig. It’s a very long leader that substitutes for fly line, and I’ve written about it extensively on Troutbitten. Tight line and euro nymphing principles are at the heart of the Mono Rig, but there are multiple variations that deviate from those standard setups. Sometimes I use split shot rather than weighted flies. Sometimes I add suspenders to the rig. I even throw large, articulated streamers and strip aggressively with the Mono Rig. All of this works on the basic principle of substituting #20 monofilament for fly line.

Tight line nymphing is my default approach on most rivers. I like the control, the contact and the immediacy of strike detection. But sometimes adding a suspender (an indicator that suspends weight) just works better.

Often, I add a dry fly to my tight line nymphing rig. “The Duo” (European fishermen’s term for dry/dropper) is widely popular because it’s a deadly variation of the standard tight line approach. But dry/dropper rigs have their issues. And choosing a Thingamabobber or a Dorsey Yarn Indicator for the suspender not only solves those issues but also includes extra benefits.

This isn’t about which method is better. Invariably, the answer to such questions in fishing is, “It depends.” Everything has its place. This is about how to use tight line principles with a suspender rig. I hate arbitrary limits. Do what works.

Kinda Slow

Kinda Slow

I was either born or raised with an abundance of fishing optimism.

. . . No matter the situation, I have an ability to regroup and believe in big possibilities again. Within a few hours of making it home and saying to my sons, “It was kinda slow,” I’m ready for more. After a bowl of cereal and a few talks with friends, after a couple flies tied with something just a little different than last time, I always find a reason to believe the next trip will be better . . .

Split Shot vs Weighted Flies

Split Shot vs Weighted Flies

So you hate split shot, right? I’ve never had anyone tell me that they like using it. But for me, split shot is a convenient and useful tool in my vest, and I think it’s underrated. It does things for me that can’t be done any other way, and I like it. Yes, I like split shot. Sure, I prefer weighted flies over having shot crimped to the line. (My nymph box is full of tungsten beaded flies.) But I also carry a selection of unweighted patterns that get a regular workout while using split shot for the weight.

Here are some thoughts about all that . . .

What do you think?

Be part of the Troutbitten community of ideas.
Be helpful. And be nice.

19 Comments

  1. Wow if only I knew that sooner. Tried “Euro Nymphing” for the first time this weekend and found the braid often got twisted around the rod tip. I did notice once that it untangled in the flow. Now I know that is something to do. I will be keeping that in my box of top tips. Thanks

    Reply
    • Cheers. Yeah that should help.

      What braid, by the way?

      Reply
  2. I’ll try it. I’m new to the long leader game. It catches fish, but the leader tangle on the end of the rod is an unanticipated nuisance. I’ll try it – but it’s hard to tell which direction the line is on the rod.

    Reply
    • You can do it! Ha. Honestly, sometimes you just have to guess. Experience is the best teacher by far.

      Reply
    • Point the rod downstream and shake the tip a little bit. What you describe happens all the time with the mono rig. The above usually works to unwrap line from the tip.

      Reply
        • Thank you very much.
          I thought I was alone in my awkwardness while changing my flies only to sadly note that I have line wrap around the rod tip. How frustrating knowing my lure is not in the water where the fish are! Sometimes dip and swish works and sometimes I have to clip off a bird’s nest. Some days I wish I have 11 foot arms to work my 11 ft rod.

          Reply
  3. Having trouble following what you are trying to describe. A video would better demonstrate this “Quick Tip.” Thank you, and keep up the great work!.

    Reply
    • Les, I totally agree. A video would help. More videos for such things are in the works. I just need more than 24 hours in each day!

      Reply
      • I totally understand, Domenick. Being a bivocational pastor (working a full-time job plus pastoring a country church), I ‘m right there with you . Plus another 24 hours to fish! 🙂

        Reply
  4. wow, that’s a fantastic tip…will definitely try that next time I’m tight-lining (which will be next time I’m fishing)…

    Reply
    • Nice.

      Reply
  5. Tried it today. Worked like a charm. Thanks for the great tip.

    Reply
  6. Great tip! It has been there all along, but I didn’t see it. What a simple and effective way to deal with the issues you mentioned.

    I grew up fly fishing on banks and from John boats for bream and bass. No current! When I moved to PA in ‘74 to start my career, some friends and I started down the path of discovery of trout fishing. It has been quite a journey and I still learn. Many thanks for the tip. Now I need to research and find more of your gems.

    Reply
  7. Hi Domenick, that’s a good idea, I have on small question I am just getting started numph fishing and most people fish with two or three is one effective for a beginner and also I just talked to joe I live in ******* and read his gas meter for many years he is one special man my friend and I use your setup on our reals it works well the reason I talked to joe is to see how we could get permission to get on the ****** for those bruiser browns he was very helpful, nice talking and I read your web all the time I will be ordering some things from you soon. Thanks,, gary

    Reply
  8. Great tip to deal with my usual tip top wrap! BTW, that’s a heck of a beautiful photo of a sweet brown trout! Hope you get your son on a namer soon!

    Reply
  9. Thanks for the tip.

    I found the Diamondback Ideal rod gets less wrap around issues to begin with as well. I also try to take in slack before I change flies to avoid this in the first place.

    Reply
  10. Also works when a “fish on” runs directly at you and you need to recover a lot of slack in a hurry.

    Reply

Submit a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recent Articles

Recent Posts

Domenick Swentosky

Central Pennsylvania

Hi. I’m a father of two young boys, a husband, author, fly fishing guide and a musician. I fish for wild brown trout in the cool limestone waters of Central Pennsylvania year round. This is my home, and I love it. Friends. Family. And the river.

Pin It on Pinterest