"Rivers and the inhabitants of the watery elements are made for wise men to contemplate". - Izaac Walton
1. You don't need 7x or 8x to fish subsurface. The trout really cannot see that thin leader and I had some very good anglers back me up on that. When fishing the Swift below RT 9 I seldom if ever go smaller than 5x with a sunken fly and I catch trout. My Tenkara setup NEVER goes below 5x even with a size 18 PTN and it works. I saw a video of Joe Humpheys fishing nymphs on a limestone Pa stream with 3x and he caught trout. In short, if your subsurface presentation is orderly and not sloppy YOU WILL TOO!!
2. Ultra light tippets kill trout!! You see this on the Swift where hooked trout are played to death because we are afraid of break offs. "Catch and Release and Die" is not the game we are playing. Land the trout using a stronger tippet and then release it quickly.
3. Use a heavier rod!! I don't mean using a 6wt but a 3 or 4wt will get the trout to the net quickly to be quickly released. There are those that believe that you MUST use something like a 0wt for dry flies! It is simply not true. I've used my 7.5 foot 4wt bamboo with dry flies all over the 20 size range and was successful. If you are careful it can be done. On a windy day you will thank me for the advice.
One last thing: some anglers in the euro nymphing crowd fish very heavy nymphs on the lightest tippets saying that a light tippet gets the fly down quicker. Most prime euro water isn't really that deep to begin with and getting down shouldn't require depth charges to do it.
Another last thing: I noticed while re-visiting my old posts on the subject that I was preaching using about 5 feet of 3x while fishing heavier water below the surface.
Hmmm.......
Happy New Year
Ken
5 comments:
HNY and well said Ken! Any advice on the expiration date for tippet (nylon vs fluoro)? Wondering what the shelf life is for both types and if you have any recommendations on when to jettison the old stuff? Thx!
Hambone
Hambone,
I usually only carry 5x and 7x and 3x for high water. By the late Fall I ditch it all and by new stuff. I only use nylon and have not had trouble with it.
Ken
Dear Ken,
As one of the few who still ties his own knotted leaders, I agree wholeheartedly that ultra-light rods and ultra-fine tippets are unnecessary; both cause lost fish, lost flies, and excess trout mortality. Since 1986 I've caught countless trout on the Swift using an old Orvis Far & Fine 5-weight fitted with 9-foot knotted nylon leaders; I fish 5X tippet subsurface, and 6X tippet with dries and emergers. Works just fine ...
-Mike
Mike,
Your rod setup has worked for years but I shy away from knotted leaders especially in the Fall when we have the pine needle fall. They will always find a way to snag your leader.
Ken
Harvey style leader is all that's needed for drys/emergers 5x usually, sometimes 6x.
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