My friends and I don't go fishing with our mind set on a certain tactic. We let the trout make those decisions, and we're ready for anything. The Troutbitten Standard Mono Rig is the perfect tool for such an approach.

. . . It's a versatile tool. It's a hybrid system. And to maximize those options, simple adjustments are necessary. This video shows those adjustments in detail . . .

Continue reading VIDEO: Mono Rig Mods — All the Adjustment for a Versatile, Hybrid System at Troutbitten.

For over a decade, my Troutbitten friends and I have fished a small yarn indicator that weighs nothing, is extremely sensitive, versatile, cheap, doesn't affect the cast, and flat out catches more trout than any other indicator we've ever used. What we call "the Dorsey" is a daily-use tool that is integral to our nymphing system. We mount it on a tight line rig or a traditional leader with fly line. It floats like crazy. It signals takes and information about the drift like no other indy we've ever used, and it's an unstoppable fish catcher.

Continue reading VIDEO: The Dorsey Yarn Indicator — Our Best and Most Versatile Indy Choice — Building It and Fishing It at Troutbitten.

One rod length over and two rod lengths up. That’s the Golden Ratio. That’s the baseline, and it’s where trust in our drift begins. There are surely moments and situations that call for something different. But a good tight line style starts here, within the Golden Ratio of nymphing . . .

Continue reading VIDEO: The Golden Ratio of Nymphing at Troutbitten.

Split shot doesn't create tangles. Bad casting and bad rigging does. Don't blame the shot. Have a plan and learn the system.

Continue reading Q&A: Split Shot Tangling Issues? at Troutbitten.

The Lift and Lead is a cornerstone concept for advanced tight line nymphing skills.

Lift to allow the fly to fall into place. Lead to stop it from falling and to keep it gliding through the strike zone.

For certain, the lift and lead is an advanced tactic. But if you’re having success on a tight line for a few seasons now, you’re probably already incorporating some of this without knowing it. And by considering both elements, by being deliberate with each part of the lift and lead, control over the course of your flies increases. Efficiency with weight improves.

The path is more predictable. And more trout eat the fly . . .

Continue reading VIDEO: Tight Line and Euro Nymphing — The Lift and Lead at Troutbitten.

Can we truly drift nymphs without any influence over them? No. And while I agree that too much contact or too much influence over the nymph can look unnatural, I disagree that being out of contact is the best approach . . .

Continue reading Q&A: Can I Dead Drift the Nymphs Without Contact? at Troutbitten.

Some anglers seem resigned to the notion that more flies, split shot or drop shot inevitably bring more tangles. But multiple nymphs on one rig won't tangle if the cast is right and the rigging is solid.

Continue reading Q&A: Why Do Multi-Nymph Rigs Tangle and How Can You Avoid It? at Troutbitten.

Slipping contact is the intermixing of influence and autonomy. Take the fly somewhere — help it glide along. Then surrender it to the current, and let the river make the decisions. Slip in and out, and find the balance between influence and independence to the fly . . .

Continue reading Slipping Contact — Tight Line and Euro Nymphing at Troutbitten.

Do we ever animate the fly during the drift? Sure, but at that point it's no longer a dead drift. Activating the fly out of a dead drift often turns the trick . . .

Continue reading Q&A: Active Drifting vs Dead Drifting at Troutbitten.

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 . . .

Continue reading Q&A: Blind Striking at Troutbitten.