Archive for the ‘#reading the water’ Tag
“Alright, let’s get started”, someone with authority barks, but I’m already seated up toward the front. “How did I get here?”, I muse as I realize I am front and center. I quickly scoot myself back toward a wall during the confusion of folks jockeying for chairs and finding their comfy places. Our manager welcomes everyone and decides we should do introductions as there’s new faces in the crowd. There’s always new faces, where do these folks come from?
Oldest guy in the room.
The guy with a beard to my right starts, “I’m so and so and this is my second year”, then it’s the other guy with a beard, “I’m so and so, and this is my first year, then it’s the fresh faced young woman, “I’m so and so, this is my first year. Uh-oh, my turn, “I’m Duane, ah this is my first year.” That gets a laughing response from the masses, because they all know I’m the old guy. The roll-call continues and the bearded guys keep rolling out low numbers of years with guiding experience. I’m amazed. Yea, there’s a few with eight or nine years in the room (one that says he shadowed me 8 or 9 years ago), but for the most part these folks are young enough to be my kids. Hell, some of them might be.
It’s like going to a professional baseball game and realizing that the damn umpires are younger than you. I’m the oldest in the room again, and after some health issues last winter, I’m beginning to feel it. Don’t get me wrong, I can hang with these kids all day everyday, it’s just that when I grow a beard, it’s gray. That just doesn’t look cool in a fly shop or magazine cover anymore. I’m a relic, and my fly choices and approach to the sport show it. I still throw tons of soft-hackles and my idea of lunch is sandwiches on the way to the river so we have optimal time to fish. Although I still throw softies, I have had to learn that guide trip lunch is something you do sitting down next to the river after you have thoroughly washed your hands with that new antibacterial liquid soap. Isn’t all soap antibacterial?
I digress. As the paper stack grows at my feet, I wonder how many old permits are in my pack. Not too long ago, I was stopped by a game warden and checked for a license. I found one in there from 2007, I really need to get in there and clean my pack out. Might be a sandwich in there. The manager explains how to carry these in a water-proof bag in your waist pack (no vest wearers in this room, not since I switched 5 years ago.), and I watch as some folks jot down this information, and the most of the rest are nodding their heads in agreement. I think, “You gotta be told how to carry this stuff?”. Then, I kick myself for being “that old guy”, and find myself nodding with the rest.
I’m asked to get up and describe the areas we can legally guide on the South Platte River near Deckers. I get up and in a nice way tell them it is their responsibility to learn where they can and can’t fish. I go into how one winter, I walked the entire blue line from the confluence up to the fly shop, and drew a map showing every feature I thought important. I realize at this time that I wasn’t asked to tell them to learn it themselves, so I explain that we can meet down there and do a drive-a-long. Old guy relinquishes again, but it’s worth it.
I also throw in that there are a million first year guides out there, but not nearly as many second year guides. In other words, don’t be a jerk, keep your head down, and bust your ass. As the meeting comes to a close, I think about how these guide meetings are just like the first day of school. A good chance to meet new people, rekindle old friendships, discern a pecking order, and fill out a pile of paperwork. Just before the meeting was adjourned I got “it”. I got that old feeling that I used to get before a guide trip, or when geese were set and coming in to my decoys. or before a big baseball game. I got a butterfly. Only one, but it was a good one. I’m excited for another year on the river. I look for the challenges, and am stoked about working with all of the guides, management, and ownership. Here we go.
Fear No Water
p.s. Buy a copy of The Fly Fishers Playbook for the old guy in your life for Father’s Day
Hidy Ho Good Neighbors!
Wow, been too long since I last posted, but I’ve been a busy dude. Just spent the last eight to ten weeks cranking out the text for my next book project. I’m really fired up about this book, and am looking for an on the shelf date of late 2017. The text is done except for countless edits, but that’s never been the hard part for me. The hard part is all of the charts, graphs, illustrations and pictures. Going to rely on some talented friends to help out with all of that. Speaking of friends, I asked four from around the country, at various stages of their perspective fishing careers to read and edit for flow, content, etc. I really appreciate their help, and they will have special mention in the book.
First book was out on June of 2011, second came out in December 2014, this one hopefully, in December 2017. Notice a pattern there? What it tells me is that it takes me about three years to learn enough new stuff to be able to write another book. That’s thousands of hours of on the water observations, note taking, and data collection. I was on the river yesterday and someone shouted to me the river temperature, and I honestly didn’t care. Oh, I will in a couple of weeks when the Blue Wings start popping, but yesterday was a diversion from the book day, so I simply nodded it off.
I am still amazed at what I glean from simple water time in a relatively short time. It shows I’m paying attention AND there’s still more to learn! A lot more! This next book uses statistical information from hours and hours of dedicated note taking to flesh out the best techniques and flies to use as you progress on your fly fishing journey. It’s going to be roughly 55,000 words, plenty of illustrations and pictures should round it out. This years presentation is called Hidden In Plain View, and folks across the country seem to like it. The presentation mirrors the book as it gets into being able to recognize the obvious and exploit the obscure in fly fishing. It should have something for every level angler, and covers tactics from mini/skinny, double dry fly, nymphing, and streamer work. Crazy fun.
So, with all that going on, I haven’t had much time to work on my annual winter technique. Most that have followed for a while will recall that I pick something to work on every winter during slack times in the season. This year, I decided to continue what I was working on last winter and last 2 years guiding seasons. I’ve been working on this covertly, simply because I didn’t feel as if it was ready to unveil. It’s no mind blasting technique, but I wanted to have the specifics dialed in before telling anyone about it. In the last three years I have begun to use “sighter” leaders in my suspended or hinged nymph rigs. A sighter leader allows the angler many benefits, but mostly for this indicator fishing it helps detect very subtle eats, and it gives you a great idea of what your rig is doing sub-surface in relation to your indicator. It’s a specialized leader I build using various poundages and colors of amnesia and monofilament lines. A few of the knot tags are left un-trimmed and further the sight capabilities.
Many anglers don’t even realize what is going on sub-surface in regards to the indicator. We are so dialed into surface mending, that we don’t think about subsurface mending. We can see what is going on surface wise because of our fly line, but it’s often difficult to discern what is going on below the indicator. The sighter leader fixes that because it will clue you in as to when your leader turns over the indicator, and where your flies are at pretty much anytime within the drift. This has been a huge help to many of my clients as they begin to see how a few specialty mends can effect the entire sub-surface drift. They then can learn and employ a pile, stack, or pause mend with great effectiveness and confidence, because the results are observable through the sighter.
Here’s the formula for one of my leaders, this is all you get til the book comes out! Try this, I think you’ll like it:
36″- 20 pound Yellow Amnesia
30″ – 14 pound clear Monofilament
24″ – 10 pound Red Amnesia
Connect everything with a blood knot, and if you wish use a tippet ring at the end of the 10 pound red amnesia, it’s a fine idea. From the tippet ring attach your 16″ of 4x, 5x, or whatever mono or flouro to your first fly. You can place your split shot above the tippet ring to complete your in-line nymph rig.
Upstream sighter leader work. Photo James Durden.
I was fishing this rig just yesterday and noticed and set on the sighter movement more than a few times. The indicator never even twitched. It does take a bit of practice to use the sighter because it forces you to keep the indicator in your peripheral vision and use it as a secondary device. This just adds to your angling versatility as you begin to fish the entire vicinity around the nymph rig.
Anyway, enough for now. I’ll be better with more consistent posts. Til then, get out and fish the sighter.
Fear No Water!
Notice the blood knot tag location…mono to red amnesia line.
Hidy Ho Good Neighbors!
Added a new video at: https://youtu.be/h_8BmcfsYnQ
Obligatory grip and grin…
This one deals with fishing those juicy shelves you find in every river. Not all shelves look the same. Most are very easy to locate at the lateral top of a run, some are hidden within the run and some run longitudinally with the run. If you look closely at the video thru the link I provided, you will see a fast riffle dumping over the shelf. Look closer and you will see “sleeper seams” within the run as it dumps over the shelf. Sleeper seams show nearly imperceptible areas where obstructions gently slow the river flow. Almost a sure thing that you’ll find feeding fish holding in those sleepers, and the adjoining seams, but you’ve really got to stop and look closely.
The trick is to cast up onto the fast water to place your bugs above the shelf and put them in perfect position as the water slows and drops onto the shelf. If fish are up there, they are there to eat. Make sure you’re mended up, anticipating the next mend, and primed to set quickly. Adjust your rig longer and heavier than you think you’ll need because you want your flies to follow the same path as the naturals. If you’re too light or too short, your flies will rarely drop into the proper column as the fish are below the fast water, because they are sitting in the slower flows down on the shelf. Once you really concentrate on mastering a few shelves, the formula becomes easy to figure.
Sometimes you’ll see where a lateral, across the river shelf, and a longitudinal, with the river shelf connect. That situation can be pure magic as it provides multiple areas where food and fish will collide. That’s the crux of the Fly Fishing Formula. You want the fish to either eat or get out of the way. Opportunistic feeding fish will move distances to eat, selectively feeding fish will either eat or sway out of the way. They are more prone to eat if your drift is perfect and your flies are close to the naturals in size and color. Make the fish decide.
Enjoy the video. Go work a shelf as soon as possible and get back to me!
Fear No Water
Hidy Ho Good Neighbors,
“He ate”, I said. “Really, I never even saw it”, he replied. Recognizing a fish taking your dry fly is not always the stuff that movies are made of. Sometimes, it is so subtle that we miss the take. Fish typically don’t eat dries while you’re zoomed into the frame in super slow motion with music playing in the background. It’s typically a game of controlled speed, technique, and yep, luck.
It’s obvious we don’t know what we’re missing while nymphing because stuff is going down sub-surface. I imagine there are several fish we “miss” and don’t even know they ate. Same holds true for surface fishing, but actually seeing the misses is much easier and certainly more frustrating. Just last week I had a client set up doing some quarter upstream double dry work. He was rolling an Elk Hair Caddis 18” ahead of a Yellow Sally. The fish were gorging on both. He surmised that for every 10 fish that ate his offerings, he may turn 3, and for every 3 he turned he may solidly hook 1. And this guy is a good stick, honest too.
Last week, it was easy to tell when a fish ate the dries as most takes were splashy. That’s the telltale sign fish are eating caddis, stones, or terrestrials. Not a hard and fast rule, like all in fly fishing, but when you’re seeing aggressive, splashy takes, good bet they’re eating something that skitters, flutters, or bounces on the water. When you see those easy, simple rises, fish are usually secure, calm, and eating duns, spents, or cripples. In all cases you need to read the fish, the bugs, as well as the river to dial in the correct offerings.
Let’s talk more about reading fish as they eat dries. There are basically, 3 types of rises; simple, compound, and complex. In each case the fish have a staging spot, or a beginning holding area. In a simple rise, the fish typically simply elevate to the surface, break the surface, and yawn in the bug. A compound rise is a bit more detailed as the fish, starting in the same staging area, follows the bugs for a short distance before ingesting. This is a tough rise to consistently hook fish because they are really inspecting your flies, and any wrong move means game over. The last type of rise is a complex rise. These fish do the same as a compound except they actually turn downstream and follow your bug downstream. Usually, if you can maintain your drift, that fish will eat.
The key to dry fly presentation when it comes to how the fish are eating is observation. Watch how the fish are feeding, where they are staging, and then cast 4 to 5 feet upstream of them. Show the flies only, no fly line allowed. I see a lot of folks that have a surface feeding fish picked out and either cast way too far upstream, or cast directly on top of the fish. If you take a nymphing cast approach and cast way upstream, you will have a terrible time keeping your drift as you near the fish strike zone. Casting on top of the fish that is eating a full 4 feet downstream of where it’s staging causes issues too if you cast 4 feet above where you saw it eat. I’ll let you digest this for a minute.
Couple things about the dry fly lift. Not even gonna call it a set. It’s a lift in the opposite direction that the fish ate. Fish eats going downstream (complex rise), you lift upstream. Simple rise upstream of you, you lift up and downstream. Lift speed is not nearly as critical as lift direction and control, and this is how most fish are missed when dry fly fishing.
That’s enough for now. Hey, if you don’t already, please like The Fly Fishers Playbook Facebook page. Only fly fishing, and plenty of it.
Fear No water!
Dry fly fishing in beautiful places….
Size 18 Elk Hair caddis
Hidy Ho Good Neighbors!
Automatic systematic. That’s what I think of as I prepare to fish or guide another day. I want to take a step by step approach to attacking the river, and do my level best to take out guessing what I need to do, and instead approach the river with options. Just like a quarterback at the line of scrimmage, I want to be able to audible or change the play, in a systematic way. In other words, if this is presented, I do this, if this presents, I do this, and so on. Try not to guess.
The quarterback “reads” the defense and I try to incorporate that into my mindset. There are several reads that need to occur. First off, read the water. Most everyone has heard that term, but my experience tells me a lot of anglers really don’t read the water, they see it as they see all typical runs, and fish it accordingly. I submit that even though a run may appear as other runs you’ve fished, it doesn’t take much to make it fish very differently. Therefore, you’ve got to study the run and look for everything from shelves to obstructions that could harbor fish. One well-placed boulder can change the behavioral drift in an instant. Slow down and really study.
Read the fish. Look for where fish are holding both laterally and longitudinally. This will tell you volumes. If fish are belly down on the bottom and actively feeding in a side to side, short sway action, they are probably eating nymphs in the lower column. If fish are in the middle column and actively chasing side to side in a longer swinging pattern, it’s a good bet they’re eating pupa or emergers of some sort. If the fish are in the upper column and elevating to eat in the film, then most likely they are eating bugs either trapped in the film, or bugs that are just about to emerge. These examples are simply basic ways to look at feeding behaviors, and there’s still a missing piece of the puzzle. What about the bugs?
Read the bugs. A good, blue collar ability to read basic insects and their stages is critical for this systematic step. If you can tell the difference between an adult Pale Morning Dun and an adult Blue wing olive, then you’re on your way. If you can read them through their life-cycle that’s even better. When you flip a few rocks rummaging for bugs, and not only can you identify, but match and know the next stage of that insect, you are really ahead of the game.
Ok, so you’ve read the water, locating likely holds, and determined how to fish the nuances for the best behavioral drift. You’ve also read the fish and have determined how they’re eating, giving clues as to what stage of the insects are being consumed. Finally, you’ve identified the bugs either in the air (preferred) or by rummaging rocks. Simply reverse engineer systematically.
I see caddis adults in the air and capture one to look closely at size and body color. I don’t see any splashy rises but the fish are swinging side to side and elevating up and down with urgency. It’s a good bet the fish are feeding on the pupa phase of the adult caddis you’re seeing. Find a good soft hackle with appropriate body color and size, and dead drift and swing that bug in the proper columns with confidence.
My examples in this post are simplified for sure, but I hope you get the idea of the systematic approach. Certainly, there’s a lot more to it like the adjustments you can make to really dial in your drifts, but let’s save that for a bit down the road. Stay systematic my friends.
Fear No Water,
Duane
Read it!
Reverse engineer from here once you’ve read the water and fish….
P.S> I’ve attached this years speaking schedule, if you’re in the area, look me up!Also, if you want me to speak near you to a group. class, organization, or club, just let me know!
Duane Redford’s Fly Fishing Presentation Schedule 2015
Denver Fly Fishing Show- January 9, 10, 11 (Check show times for Destination Theater)
Tucson, Arizona- March 4th– Old Pueblo TU Chapter #531. Viscount Hotel 6:30pm
Salida, Colorado- March 11th– Collegiate Peaks Trout Unlimited. Boathouse Cantina 6:00pm
Parker, Colorado- April 4th – Minturn Anglers, Book Signing TBD
Aurora, Colorado- April 9th– Cherry Creek Anglers. Parker Senior Center 7:00pm
Lakewood, Colorado- April 11-12th – Ascent Fly Fishing Rendezvous, Holiday Inn April 12th 1pm
Evergreen, Colorado- April 15th– Evergreen Trout Unlimited. Beau Jo’s Pizza 7:00pm
Bailey, Colorado- April 22nd – Platte Canyon University, Platte Canyon HS 6:00pm
Eagle, Colorado- April 29th – Eagle Valley Library, 6pm
Colorado Springs, Colorado- May 7th-Cheyenne Mountain Trout Unlimited (TBA)
Chandler, Arizona- May 13th– Desert Fly Casters. 1775 W. Chandler Blvd, Chandler AZ 6:00pm
Phoenix, Arizona- May 14th– Arizona Flycasters Club. Sunnyslope Community Center 7:00pm
Lakeside, Arizona- May 20th– White Mountain Fly Fishing Club. Lakeside Fire Dept. 6:00pm
Steamboat Springs, Colorado- October 7th– Yampa Valley Fly Fishers (TBD)
Hidy Ho Good Neighbors,
Been a while since I last posted. A lot going on, but that’s not really a good excuse. Truth is I’ve changed fly shops. Not that I didn’t absolutely respect my old fly shop, but I am the kind of person that enjoys a new challenge now and then. I now work for Minturn Anglers in Minturn Colorado. Unbelievable amount of water to guide, and quite frankly, I am being stretched to my limits. You know, I go all over the place giving presentations about fly fishing and because of the “new” water I’m fishing, it’s time for me to prove what I spout about technique is not just smoke.
More often than not, I am given a stretch to fish or someone recommends a stretch to fish, and off I go with clients to make it happen. Just last Sunday I was on Gore Creek as it flows thru Vail. Bob Streb and Joe gave me the boundaries using Google Maps, and as much info as they could. It was up to me to really dig into the how-to’s, what-to’s, and the when-to’s to get my folks on fish. Not ever stepping foot into water that you need to produce fish for folks is more than interesting. That’s a challenge, and I look forward to it!
I always tout the importance of historical, seasonal, and conditional data when it comes down to successfully fly fishing a river for the first time. I have found this idea to be the most important factor in getting clients on fish in unfamiliar waters. If you snoop thru the archives of this blog, you’ll find more info about the data I’m talking about. The techniques are roughly the same, I’m finding that the data is of the utmost importance.
Sure, I may run bugs a bit deeper, or the sizes may be different than what I’m used to, but the chance to pick peoples brains about how a river fishes, at various times of the year is HUGE! I’ve gone from tailwater to freestone fly fishing, if folks don’t think that’s a big shift, then they haven’t been paying attention. This challenge is exactly what I want and need. I am getting better as a guide, getting stretched, and I’m rejuvenated.
All this new information is going into journals and presentations to eventually become my next book project. I’m really excited to get that moving. Folks, all I’m really trying to say is get out there and stretch yourself as a person and an angler. Fish new water, see new sights, meet new people.
Below are some pictures of folks with nice fish from the Eagle River and Gore Creek……..
FEAR No Water!
Duane
Hidy Ho Fine Neighbors,
Hope all has been going swimmingly for all of you folks. I’ve been staying busy, writing, speaking, picture taking, film-making, tying, and running my pheasant dogs. Things are good.
As I mentioned, I’ve been doing a fair amount of speaking, and at this time I’ve about a dozen gigs scheduled this year. I expect a few more to trickle in. My main presentation deals with mastering technical water. The talk revolves around catching big, selective tailwater trout. Trout that are highly pressured and more than a little “experienced”.
A small part of the presentation deals with how to attack technical water you’ve rarely or never fished. Without going into technique at this time, and assuming that the technique used is fundamentally sound, I talk about 3 aspects that go into selecting the proper flies to throw. The 3 aspects are historical data, seasonal data, and conditional data. Let’s break’em down.
Historical data is data that can be gathered accurately from several sources. This data is about which bugs are typically active or hatching historically, or the same time every year. Notice I said “active or hatching” That’s critical, and we’ll hit on that in more detail a bit later. How do you acquire historical data? There are several good sources. One good place to visit is your state’s wildlife organization. With a bit of digging you can find some good info there. Also, join an organization, like TU, or send them a question if you’re out of state. Calling a river specific fly shop is always a good idea to find out which bugs are prevalent at certain times. There are also river specific blogs, river reports, and fly fishing forums you can join in on. Historical data is fairly simple to find.
Seasonal data is basically taking historical data to the next level. I look at seasonal data as “What’s going on with the bugs at this time?” You may have a good handle on which bugs, hatch when historically, but seasonal data further refines the information. For example, on the South Platte this winter we have been seeing about a size 22 midge. Historically, we will begin to see a larger midge come into the picture soon. It’s a crap shoot when it will start to pop in earnest, but I know seasonally, it will come off. The “season” or seasonal factors will determine the hatch. Factors such as unusual cold snaps, non-historical flows and water temps, and even previous factors can put things off or ramp them up seasonally. Maybe that low water we had last summer killed off certain nymphs. That’s seasonal data.
To take advantage of seasonal data, again ask your local shop what’s going on, and look to several sources that I mentioned earlier. Back to the South Platte. I can observe the small midge coming off during the day, and I know historically the larger midge will soon start to hatch, so I will set-up my rig to capture seasonal data by incorporating a larger midge along with the small midge to prepare for the “active” large midge nymphs. Look at seasonal data as the transitions between the main hatches. Prepare for the caddis as you fish Blue Wings. Prepare for PMD’s as you fish with Blue Wings. You get the idea. It’s another way to stay ahead of the hatch, seasonally.
The last bit of data is gathered on the river the day you put your boots in the drink. Conditional data is just that, what’s it like today and what bugs are hatching?
This fish pictured fell prey to a Chocolate Thunder, a Blue Wing emerger. This was a “conditional catch” in that, the day was overcast, and the Blue Wings really came off more than a sunny cloudless day. The hatch was prolific, and lasted longer than normal, allowing the fish to get really dialed in to feeding on emergers. Conditionally, it was a no-brainer.
So, look at weather conditions to give you valuable clues to bug activity. Is it cold, hot, windy? Is a front coming in, moving away? How about water conditions? Murky or off-color? Low or high? How about angling pressure? These are all observable factors that come into play. In The Fly Fishers Playbook, I have gone to great lengths to try to explain how to fly fish conditionally. It’s that important!
When you combine historical data, seasonal data, and current conditions toward fly selections you are more than ahead of the game. It’s fairly simple and goes a long way toward fly fishing success. So, the next time you get ready to fly fish a river, go armed with proper data, and combine that with the days’ conditions so you don’t have to stand knee deep in the river scratching your head over your flybox.
Thank you for following, and FEAR NO WATER! Duane
Hidy Ho Neighbors!
I had an absolute blast at the Fly Fishing Show. Presentations were packed, met a bunch of super people, and sold some books. My presentation was centered around mastering technical water and one of the rigs I discussed is the “Skinny Rig”. I refer to it as that because it has no weight, and is designed to be fished in skinny/shallow water, or at a skinny depth just below the surface. It’s great for picking off fish in shallow holds or for catching fish feeding on emergers, duns, spents, or pupa just below the surface, in the film, or on top. I mentioned at the show for folks to come to the blog and search thru the archives for the original skinny rig explanation. That proved to be a pain, so I am going to re-post about it.
The skinny rig is nothing more than giving you the opportunity to put your flies exactly where the fish are feeding. Once you determine what they are feeding on, and where in the column they are feeding, half the battle is won. Let’s say that you see fish feeding slightly below the surface, with their backs breaking the water, but their heads are not. Maybe there’s a Blue Wing hatch occurring simultaneously. Bingo, they are probably eating the emergent phase of the BW. This is where the skinny rigs shine, and can be used for any emerging or pupating insects.
Using my normal nymph rig (pictured), simply move the indicator up the leader so it’s about 5 feet from the first dropper. Take off any and all split shot weight, apply floatant to the San Juan Worm (SJW), and you’re ready to go. If you’re not using an SJW just make sure the fly you have in that position is NOT weighted.
I use monofilament leader in all of my nymph rigs because mono floats better than flourocarbon, and I want something that helps buoyancy of the rig. The tippets are flouro, but that doesn’t seem to hurt the drift because most drifts are only 5 or so feet and the mono is carrying the heavy load. Sliding the indicator away from the flies just helps to ensure you’re not spooking fish with indicator “slap”, and that the fish only see the presented flies.
Once you find feeding fish as I explained, the set-up is critical. Most of the time, you’ll set up slightly downstream of the fish. Occasionally you’ll set up above the fish, but that’s for special occasions when it’s the only way you can get to them. Pick out one feeding fish when possible, and cast accordingly. You’re probably screaming, “According to what!” According to the speed of the water and the depth of the fish. It’s your job to try to place your offering at or above the fishes level. You do that by practicing casting angles, reading water, and reading fish depths and feeding behavior. It’s not as tough as it sounds, but does take practice.
Most drifts are much less that 5′, so once you learn the sink rate of your particular rig, you’re almost there. I have beginners use this method a lot, so it can be perfected quickly,IF, you have a working idea as to how quickly your rig sinks. Experiment.
The “set” on the skinny rig is more of a full “lift” Too rigorous a set, and you’ll snap everything off, especially after nymphing with the same rig for a period of time. I could carry a second rig set-up with a dry-drop rig to use for the same reason, but I’d rather capitalize on the versatility of the nymph rig. Plus, it’s really fun to set on a “swirl” around your fly, or to watch the indicator scream across the river without warning.
Here’s a quick video showing casting angles. Go to: (click on)
Hope this explains the rig. The best way to learn it is to use it, so Fear No Water!
Duane
During the winter, I’m not on the water as much as when the season is ripping. That being said, when I do have gaps between trips, it sometimes feels as if I am guiding on “new” water.
About a month ago I guided on a stretch of water that I hadn’t laid eyes on in two years. To say I was a bit aprehensive would be more than accurate. But, over the years I’ve learned a few tricks that ease the pain and usually gets us into fish in a reasonable time frame.
First off, no matter the size of the river, learn to break it down into “runs” in longitudinal sections. River left, river middle, and river right. I learned that reading Bill Edringtons’ book about the Arkansas River. This will help you manage the river and your emotions. Just pick it apart from down-to-up and in-to-out. By this, I mean to pick one run in one section, and fish it up river from near to far.
Fish to your strengths. I’m fairly adequate at nymph fishing, so I am absolutely going to dial in depth and speed. You can catch fish with the wrong bugs at perfect depth and speed. Once I do a bit of reverse-engineering, or recognizing adult bugs and working back to the nymph stage, I should be picking up increasing numbers of fish because of the right fly choices. If you’re good and confident at throwing streamers, dry-drops, or whatever, use it to your advantage to pick up fish while you learn more about the river.
Apply what you know. For example, if you know how, where, and why fish set-up around an obstruction or in a bend, then concentrate on that water. If you’re proficient in riffles, then find and fish them. What you know breeds confidence and allows you to systematically attack the river. No guesses, only the next option. Enjoy the experience.
Make sure you can identify caddis, mayflies, midges, and stone flies. Learn their stages, and simple flies that mimic them.
Last and certainly not least, employ fish spotting skills. I am a much better guide and fly fisher when I can see fish. No big mystery there, but good polarized optics and the accompanying skills are paramount.
Just a few thoughts on using old tricks on a new river. Try it sometime and Fear No Water!
Duane
I figure I might as well finish the job and talk some more about how to read the river. If you haven’t already, take a look at a 5 minute video I loaded on youtube: http://youtu.be/pDsCsIb0ycM It’s pretty basic, but I think it shows the foundation of river reading. You have to find the fish, and find out what they’re eating. It’s that basic, but that important. Reading the river is the first step in finding fish.
The picture above illustrates how and where fish hold in the different parts of a run, couple this with why they are there, and you’re mostly done. Obviously, what’s left is what they’re eating and at what stage is the insect of choice. That’s what I call reverse entomology and it’s for another time.
The fishes nose is pointing to where he was stationed in the run. He was in the seam that forms the shelf below the riffle. He ate a black midge pupa.
This fish is pointing to where he was fooled by a Pat’s Rubberleg. He was sitting in the uppper section of the tailout. See the riffle downstream?
Please feel free to ask questions, comment, and share this info.
Another good source for this information, and it is in much more depth, is the Fly Fishers’ Playbook. I think you can still order one and have it for Christmas!
Fear No Water!
Duane
duaneredford.com 