Clients have asked me in the past, "which is more important? Presentation of the fly, or the fly that is presented?" This question will conjure up a plethora of debate in the local fly shop. The argument can be made both ways, and there are excellent points on both sides.
I have caught fish dragging my flies in the top of the water column. I have also caught trout on fly patterns that appear ridiculous in design and nature, so who can say who is right. I think in most cases the aforementioned scenarios are statistical outliers.
There is no doubt that a well presented fly is critical to the rate of success in which fish are caught. Anecdotally speaking, when guiding, there is a direct correlation between the quality of presentation, i.e. a drag free drift, and the number of fish caught. The better the presentation, the more successful the my day is.
In this post I am going to cover how to achieve a successful drag free drift, techniques for mending, and rigging your flies in a manner that will give you an advantage when nymphing with strike indicators and without.
What is Nymphing?
Nymphing is a fly fishing technique used to simulate subsurface aquatic insects. Hungry trout feed on all types of aquatic forage that live under the river's surface. In the simplest of terms, nymph fly fishing is fishing artificial flies subsurface.
There are many ways that fly anglers can utilize nymph rigs to catch fish. Better understanding aquatic insects and their behavior below the river's surface, allows you as an angler to better understand the art of nymphing.
Aquatic insects spend most of their lives underneath river rock, detritus on the floor of the river, or burrowed in the mud substrate of the river bottom. In whichever case, most of their lives are spent out of reach from trout.
Depending on the aquatic insects lifecycle, environmental factors, ambient light, and water temperature, insects will leave the safety of the river floor and emerge to the surface of the river. The emergence period is the first true opportunity that trout have to feed on the insects. In this process, the insects are caught in the rivers current, sweeping them down stream and into the feeding lanes of eager trout.
The river's current remains in constant motion, individual seams, up swellings, and eddy lines, each with their own subtle character, all come to together to form a larger more dynamic river. Aquatic insects finding their way into the various currents are all floating at the same uniform speed of the current they are trapped in.
Remarkably, trout key into the speed of the forage items moving toward them. If your fly is moving too fast, then it is being pulled up and out of the strike zone. Furthermore, its movement appears unnatural in contrast to the other forage items floating at a uniform speed.
If your nymph flies are moving too slow, then it also appears artificial in nature. Moving your flies at the same speed as the current, is what is known as achieving a dead drift or drag free drift. Achieving a drag free drift is the goal of dead drift nymphing.
The Benefits of Nymphing Techniques
Why would fly anglers choose to catch fish with nymphs instead of using dry flies? For whatever reason, many anglers look down on catching trout under an indicator. Some fly fisherman are dry fly purist, but I prefer to catch fish anyway I can. On some days, you don't get to choose how trout are going to eat. Nymph fishing is effective, and there are many advantages to the technique.
For starters, fish live underwater and they spend 99.9% of their lives feeding subsurface. While we see epic hatches on our favorite rivers in the summer months, aquatic insects also spend the majority of their lives underwater too. Trout do most of their eating subsurface, because that is where their food is. A well placed nymph rig is a simple way of playing the odds in your favor. Much of the time, nymphing results in fish caught.
Indicator nymphing is an effective way to reach fish holding in deeper water. An indicator rig with heavy flies or added split shot presents flies deep in the water column. Nymphing allows fly anglers to reach fish that dry fly fishing techniques just aren't able to effectively target.
Choosing the Right Nymphs
Choosing the right flies is important piece of the fish catching puzzle. However, I always recommend choosing nymph flies that you have confidence in. If you are new to fly fishing and aren't sure where to start nymphing, there are fly patterns that work universally in a variety of fisheries. These fly patterns are tried and true imitations that can be confidently fished almost anywhere.
A few flies that fall into this category are: Hare's ear, jig head hare's ear, guides choice hare's ear, pheasant tails, hot spot pheasant tail, jig head pheasant tail, UV pheasant tail frenchie, English pheasant tail, Quasimodo pheasant tail, purple pheasant tail, tungsten CDC pheasant tail, the prince nymph, jiggy euro prince nymph, BH prince nymph, to name a few.
For reliable fly patterns that represent specific hatches, below are a few of my favorite patterns: Pat's Rubber leg, Euro tungsten missile, dirty hipster golden stone, atomic mayfly nymph, olive baetis UV jig, split back B.W.O., split back P.M.D., mercury baetis, RS2, jiggy glam rocker, just to name a few.
I like jig head fly patterns because they are heavy, ride hook point up to reduce snags, and get to depth quickly. For whatever reason, jig head fly patterns seem to out perform other patterns tied on conventional hooks.
Fly Fishing Gear for Nymphing
There are many different ways to nymph flies effectively and achieve a drag free drift. Because of the variety of nymph fishing techniques, different anglers might prefer different rod lengths, weights, etc. If you are looking for a good all around nymphing fly rod, then I would recommend a 9 foot 5 or 6 weight rod with a fast action rod tip.
I personally like a 6 weight rod with a fast action rod tip, because many times it is windy on the rivers that I fish. A 6 weight rod will help you present flies easier in windy conditions. In addition, many of the nymph flies that I prefer to fish are heavily weighted flies. Most of my nymph rigs utilize two nymphs on the leader. Add in a strike indicator and split shot, and you are casting a lot of weight. A 6 weight can turn over heavier rigs in a more efficient manner on the forward cast. Many might disagree with me, but I think if you are going to buy one general purpose fly rod for freshwater fly fishing, then a 6 weight will give you the most versatility.
Regardless, of what rod weight you choose, pair your rod with a weight forward floating fly line. There are many fly lines available. They range in price from $20 to $120. A good fly line is often the most overlooked piece of fly fishing equipment. However, fly line performance is critical to achieving the best drag free drift. Cheaper fly lines are more difficult to mend, and they often sink. This makes it incredibly difficult to separate the fly line form the water and results in increased drag.
Nymph-Fishing Techniques
The most common nymph fishing technique is to use a tapered leader with a strike indicator. Utilizing this type of setup, an angler can nymph flies in a single or double fly nymph rig. This is the easiest and most straight forward way to approach new water. This method of nymphing allows a fly anglers flies to sink deep in the water column. Reaching fish which are holding in deeper pocket water, off the back side of shelves and into deep seams, allows you target fish in a variety of holding water.
I prefer to utilize this method of nymphing with a 7.5' 3x tapered leader. I then take 18"-24" of fluorocarbon tippet and tie that to the end of the leader with a double surgeons knot. This provides you with a knot in the leader. The additional knot above your point fly is helpful should you need to add split shot for additional weight to the nymph rig.
The knot keeps the split shot from sliding down the leader. Plus, the additional fluorocarbon is invisible underwater adding an element of stealth to the rig. My lead fly, A.K.A. the point fly or first fly, is usually the heaviest of my two nymph flies. A Pat's rubber leg is my preferred fly pattern. A large heavy point fly helps to get the fly rig to depth.
Then tie 18" to 24" of fluorocarbon to the bend of the hook of the first fly or from the eye of hook of the first fly. I prefer to tie it to the eye of the hook. My belief is that a fly tied off the bend of the hook acts as a rudder and increases drag. This my opinion. I do not have any evidence to support this.
At the end of the additional tippet, tie your second nymph fly. This can be a weighted or unweighted fly. I prefer to use a fly that matches the most prevalent aquatic insect on the water. A good all around nymph pattern is a jig head pheasant tail.
Some anglers choose to reverse the order of flies. Reversing the heavier fly with the lighter fly can be effective at keeping the flies drifting closer to the bottom of the river. This makes it easier for you to maintain contact with the floor of the river. The heavier nymph fly skips along the bottom of the river and keeps both flies in the strike zone.
Advanced Techniques for Fishing Nymphs
Hinged Leader Setup
A favorite nymphing technique for many fly anglers is to use a 90 degree leader set up. This is also known as a hinged leader. It has several advantages to a standard nymph rig that I described in the previous section.
The hinged leader allows you to maintain direct contact with your flies. With a hinged leader, you can use light thin tippet which reduces the amount of drag that a heavier tapered leader will create. Lastly, because you are using thin and light leader material, it allows smaller flies to sink in the water column without having to add significant amounts of weight.
To fish nymphs with a hinged leader, I take a tapered leader and cut it back to 4 feet in length. Tie your indicator to the end of the leader using a clinch knot. This can be a small Thingama Bobber or even a small piece of yarn treated with floatant. Tie a piece of 5x tippet to the leader above the indicator. The additional piece of tippet should 1.5 x the average depth of the water you are fishing. This essentially turns your nymph setup into a deeper version of a dry dropper rig. You can fish this setup with a single fly or two flies. The hinged leader also works well in shallow water. It is the perfect rig to catch trout in the winter when the water is low and clear.
Cast upstream of your position at a 45 degree angle using a tuck cast. Utilizing a tuck cast, helps to drive the flies into the water and sink without any drag. As the flies hit the water, throw a upstream mend into the line, dead drifting the flies backdown stream and toward your casting position. When the strike indicator reaches your position at 90 degrees, make a large mend up stream. Then as the indicator passes down stream of you, feed out excess line to extend the drift.
Your nymph patterns should be skipping along the bottom of the river. This is indicated by small twitches that can be detected through the strike indicator. With a small indicator, you can detect extremely subtle takes. The only draw back to this rig, is that if you want to change depth with your flies, you have to cut the dropper.
Dry Dropper
Using a dry dropper rig is an excellent way to cover two different levels of the water column: a dry fly on the surface and nymph fly subsurface. I like to use a dry dropper when there is a large amount of insects present on the water, but fish aren't actively rising, during the emergence period, and for shallow water nymphing.
When setting up a dry dropper nymph rig, I prefer to use a shorter heavier leader. A leader 7' to 7.5' in length in 3x or greater is excellent for turning over heavier point flies like a chubby chernobyl, foam stone fly pattern or grasshopper patterns.
A heavier leader makes it easier to present accurate short casts as well as long casts. Add a piece of tippet to the bend of the hook that is 3' in length. I like to start at three feet in depth to ensure that my flies are getting deep enough in the water column. I can then make adjustments as needed.
Most of the time when there are insects actively on the water but not feeding on hatching bugs, trout will still be looking up. Presenting one dry fly on the surface of the water and one sub surface puts you in the position of prospecting for trout that will eat a dry fly, but will also eat a nymph. It is the best of both worlds.
Euro Nymphing Techniques
Euro nymphing techniques allow anglers to take a more tactical approach to nymph fishing and presentation. Euro nymphing uses heavily weighted nymphs, long rods, and a direct connection to heavily weighted flies in order to fish nymphs along the bottom of the river. Unlike conventional nymphing, euro nymphing omits the use of split shot and strike indicators.
Tight line nymphing is a technique that involves keeping most or all of your fly line off the water. Ideally, Euro nymphing is best suited to fast, swirling pocket water.
Euro nymph flies are heavily weighted which allows a angler's flies to bounce along the bottom of the river. Because there is no fly line or indicator touching the water, the amount of drag on the nymph flies is virtually non existent. This allows the nymphs to drift slowly on the bottom of the river in a drag free realistic manner.
Trout spend a large amount of time on the bottom of the river, so euro nymphing keeps the flies in the strike zone. In addition, the use of a longer fly rod allow anglers to present the flies with precision to specific fish.
Drift Control and Strike Detection
Reducing drag has much to do with line control and the type of rig that an angler chooses to fish. Not all water in the river's water column flows at the same speed. The surface and upper most portion of the water column flows the fastest. As you move closer to the bottom of the river, the water moves slower. The slowest water in the entire river is found a few inches above the substrate of the river bottom.
Fish often key into the slower moving food deeper in the water column. Your fly line, leader, and indicator all make fly control difficult because the faster current higher in the water column pulls your line, indicator and leader. The drag created pulls your flies faster then the deeper slower moving water where fish are feeding. In addition, drag pulls the flies higher into the water column and out of the strike zone. There are several ways to reduce drag and give yourself a better chance at catching trout.
First, reduce the size of your indicator. The smaller the indicator the less surface area there is for faster water at the top of the water column to create drag by forcing the indicator down stream. A small yarn indicator is the most sensitive indicator for nymphing.
Second, reduce the thickness of your tapered leader. Down sizing to a thinner leader will help to reduce drag. Changing your nymph rig all together to incorporate thin un-tapered segments of leader will work even better. I like to use a hinged leader with a single piece of un-tapered 5x fluorocarbon.
Third, you have to mend the fly line. Mending the fly line is without a doubt the most important part of achieving the desired drag free drift. A mend is when an angler uses his or her arm and fly rod to separate the fly line from the surface of the water to create slack in the line, and flip the fly line upstream of the fly.
Mending fly line eliminates the surface tension of the river's current from dragging the fly line and indicator through the water. Mends are usually performed upstream of your strike indicator, but they can also be performed down stream depending on the direction of the current.
The most efficient way to mend fly line, is to lift the rod and reel high above your head. Your casting elbow should be above your ear. Utilizing the entire rod and rod tip, use a flipping motion to pick the floating line up off the water and flip it above your indicator. The goal of an effective mend is to mend the entire fly line with out moving the strike indicator.
After you perform a mend, continue to keep your rod tip high in the air. This is referred to as high sticking. High sticking allows you to maintain a tight line connection to your indicator and keep as much line off the water as possible. The less line on the water, the less drag.
In order to know if you are achieving a drag free drift, compare your strike indicator to bubbles or small pieces of debris floating on the water's surface. If your indicator is moving at the same speed as an object in the river, then you are achieving a drag free drift.
Don't Be Afraid to Fish the Bobber
Nymph fly fishing is a technique that can be used during any month of the year. There are many strategies for fly fishing with nymphs. The key to effectively nymphing is achieving a drag free presentation. For many anglers, this an underutilized technique.
Don't let the stigma of nymphing keep you from perfecting your nymphing strategies. There are lots of different nymphing styles. With practice and patience, anglers can begin to learn the various arts of nymphing and catch more fish.
