Articles in the Category Nymphing

Q&A: Blind Striking

I don’t guess, because I might ruin my best chance. I also do everything I can to be in contact or just slightly out of contact with the nymph, whether that’s on a tight line to my rod tip or under an indicator. And I trust my skills this way, more than I trust my instinct to set on nothing . . .

Mono Rigs and Euro Leaders — Micro Thin or Standard? (with VIDEO)

This is an absolute keystone to understanding all the information out there about long leader systems. I hope you enjoy it.

Just like the fly lines that these long leaders substitute for, the range and variety of leader formulas leads to a lot of confusion.

Mono Rigs, euro rigs, tight line or contact rigs: Yes, there’s a difference in those terms. But everything we’ll consider here applies to them all. Basically, if what is outside of your rod guides is the leader only (or even just a thin euro fly line), then it helps to understand how the leader build affects our possibilities for how we might fish . . .

The TB Yarn Indy Hack

What we at Troutbitten have affectionately called the Dorsey has undergone a few changes over the years. I use less yarn, two colors for better visibility and smaller bands. I pre-bunch the yarn at my tying desk with minimal wraps of 8/0 Uni-Thread, and sometimes . . . just once in a while . . . I add a small piece of split shot to the line above the indy.

Leaders and Hats are Back in the Troutbitten Shop

Troutbitten leaders are back in the Shop. There are some unique features to Troutbitten leaders that make a big difference. These are hand tied leaders in four varieties: Harvey Dry Leader, Standard Mono Rig, Thin Mono Rig, and Micro-Thin Mono Rig. Standard Sighters are also available, and they include a Backing Barrel. The Full Mono Rig Kit contains each of the three Mono Rig leaders, three foam spools and a twenty-inch Rio Bi-Color extension.

All Troutbitten leaders come on a three-inch spool, making long leader changes a breeze . . .

Troutbitten Confidence Flies: Seventeen Nymphs

Sep 29, 2019 | Nymphing, Troutbitten Fly Box

All long term anglers find a set of files to believe in. We attach a confidence to these patterns that carries over from the moment we form the knot to the hook eye. We fish better with these flies. We make them work. With more focus, we refine each drift with our best patterns. But there’s also something special about a great fly to begin with . . .

The set of flies below are built and carried as a system. There is very little overlap. Each fly does a specific job or offers the trout a certain look. I could tie a Hare’s Ear in five different colors, but I don’t. Instead, I see the flies in my box as pieces of a puzzle that lock together and fill out a whole . . .

Three Styles of Dry Dropper: #3 — Tight Line Dry Dropper

Sep 10, 2019 | Dry Fly Fishing, Nymphing

It’s the effectiveness of a nymphing rig and the excitement of a dry fly rig, with boosted catch rates.

In this four part series covering dry dropper styles, I’ve saved the best for last.

I prefer methods that lend excellent control to the angler. And tight line rigs, with direct contact as the primary feature, are built for just that. Add a dry fly to the rig and tight line dry dropper is the best of all possible worlds . . .

Forget the Bottom — Glide Nymphs Through the Strike Zone

Jul 28, 2019 | Nymphing, Tactics, The Mono Rig

Put the nymphs on the bottom. I heard it from everyone I talked with and everything I read, so that’s what I did. I added weight to get the nymphs down — to touch the river bottom with my flies. And on most days, the experience was something between frustrating and maddening. It was a long series of snags, hangups and breakoffs, mixed in with the occasional burst of fish catching — when I somehow got the drift just right.

Twenty years ago, this is how I learned to nymph. I thought snagging up a bunch was just part of the nymphing game. I dealt with it because I caught trout. And I learned to tie knots and put up with lost flies. But, I would argue, this is one of the main reasons many anglers don’t enjoy nymphing. We want to fish. We don’t want to re-rig tippet sections and tie on new flies all day.

One foggy fall morning on my favorite limestoner changed all that. In a couple hours of fast pocket water action, I stumbled upon one of the most important lessons in nymphing: The nymphs do not need to be on the bottom. In fact, gliding through the strike zone and staying off the bottom results in far more trout to the net . . .

Fly Fishing the Mono Rig: It’s Casting, Not Lobbing

Jul 7, 2019 | Nymphing, Tactics, The Mono Rig

Most of my weekday mornings start somewhere in a gravel or dirt space that’s large enough for a couple of cars. Surrounded by hemlocks, ferns and flowing water, it’s a privilege to guide the wild trout rivers that I’ve loved and fished for much of my life. Most...

Tight Line Nymphing: Reach with the rod to find the seam — Then stay in your lane

Jun 9, 2019 | Nymphing, Tactics, The Mono Rig

You might be a poor judge of ten feet. In fact, on the river, you probably are. Anglers are notorious for overestimating the lengths of things, right? Your buddy tells you about the big trout he caught, up around the bend. “It was probably twenty inches,” he says. But he didn’t measure it. So you nod and smile skeptically. Tell that same friend you’ll meet him three hundred yards upstream for lunch, and you could be walking around hungry at noon, until you finally find him a half mile upstream. Again, we’re bad at evaluating distance out there.

With that in mind, consider this . . .

Euro Nymphing and the Mono Rig

Jan 10, 2018 | Nymphing, Tactics, The Mono Rig | 45 Comments

The terms euro nymphing, tight line nymphing, contact nymphing and Mono Rig are often intertwined. For certain, there is much crossover and overlap. But there are also major distinctions. This article addresses some of that confusion. It reveals and highlights all that is truly possible with a contact system . . .

Tight Line Nymphing | Where Should the Sighter Be?

May 31, 2017 | Nymphing, Tactics, The Mono Rig | 14 Comments

A good sighter is highly visible and responsive. We use it not just for strike detection. It also tells us how and where the flies are drifting under the surface. But how high should it be off the water?

The Dorsey Yarn Indicator — Everything you need to know and a little more

Mar 30, 2017 | Nymphing, Tactics, The Mono Rig, Videos | 73 Comments

The dark truth is that upgrading your fly fishing gear rarely catches you more fish. Rods, reels, fly lines, expensive tippet and overpriced hooks hardly improve your catch rate. And the marginal improvement you might see is probably a result of confidence and concentration rather than the performance of new gear.

The Dorsey yarn indy will catch you more fish.

Here are the details . . .

Stop the Split-Shot-Slide

Aug 22, 2016 | Nymphing, Tactics | 20 Comments

Why so much hate for the split shot? Guys grumble about attaching it to the line, bitch about removing it and snarl when it slides. That's too much hate for such a timeless and effective tool. Sometimes, using split shot just makes the most sense. In a variety of...

Fly Fishing Strategies: Tags and Trailers

Mar 18, 2016 | Fly Fishing Strategies, Nymphing, Tactics, The Mono Rig | 19 Comments

Sometimes trout are feeding so aggressively that the particular intricacies of how nymphs are attached to the line seem like a trivial waste of time. Those are rare, memorable days with wet hands that never dry out between fish releases. More often than not, though, trout make us work to catch them. And those same particulars about where and how the flies are attached can make all the difference in delivering a convincing presentation to a lazy trout.

Two nymphs can double your chances of fooling a trout. But there are downsides. Here are some strategies for rigging and getting the most from two fly rigs.