My hands are cold. It’s the second week of May, and I’m caught unprepared by a cold front that has moved in with more wind, more rain and more of the wet stuff than was predicted. “Last night’s forecast promised better than this.” I think it before I catch myself....
Trout are conditioned to the availability of eggs in a river system, and egg flies are the perfect pattern for a good part of the fishing season. It’s a high-protein meal that drifts predictably and can’t swim away, so trout eat eggs readily when the presentation is...
** NOTE ** This is part of a Troutbitten series on three styles of dry dropper. Here are links to all articles in the series: Three Styles of Dry Dropper (Overview) #1 Bobber Dry Dropper #2 Light Dry Dropper #3 Tight Line Dry Dropper -- -- -- Matt was full of...
** NOTE ** This is part of a Troutbitten series on three styles of dry dropper. Here are links to all articles in the series: Three Styles of Dry Dropper (Overview) #1 Bobber Dry Dropper #2 Light Dry Dropper #3 Tight Line Dry Dropper -- -- -- My buddy, Steve, hates...
Two flies don’t tangle much. Yes, I know the skeptic immediately thinks about a maze of twisted tippet. And we all fear the site of multiple flies in an entwined mass of confusing knots and snarls. But I’ll say it again: Two flies really don’t tangle very much. And...
This August, 2016 Troutbitten article is retooled and revisited here. Bobber, cork, foam, yarn, dry fly. Those are my categories, but who cares? If you’ve been fly fishing and nymphing for a while, you’ve probably tried all of the above. You have your own categories...
Efficiency is a guiding principle for me on the water, and it runs strong through the pages of Troutbitten. I believe most anglers mismanage their time on the water too often (myself included). Being thoughtful, intentional, and making the decisions that catch more...
A friend of mine once described a truly slidable, easily movable, dry dropper as the Holy Grail of fly fishing. I suppose it depends on where your goals and interests lie, but if you like fishing nymphs under a dry, then you’ve surely wished the dry fly was easily re-positioned without tying more knots. There is a way . . .
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.
The Perfect Parachute Ant is so effective and so versatile for me, that it’s the only terrestrial I carry in my box, most days.