Articles in the Category Dry Fly Fishing

PODCAST: Dry Fly Skills Series #7 — Fishing Dry Flies — S12, Ep7

For this final episode in the dry fly skills series, we work through some scenarios that anglers frequently encounter. Because, just like nymphing, fishing streamers and fishing wets, we fish dry flies for many different reasons and in many different ways.

Head Hunting, Fishing, Terrestrials, Small Stream Stuff, and Working a Hatch . . .

PODCAST: Dry Fly Skills Series #6 — Rise Forms and Hook Sets — S12, Ep6

Watch for different rise forms and prepare for the hooks set. It’s all a lot of fun when you realize that good fishing isn’t luck. It’s attention to detail with an open mind and a willingness to dive into the mystery . . .

VIDEO: The Lagging Curve Cast — Dead Drifts for Days (Fly Casting Skills)

The Lagging Curve is a beautiful way to provide slack to a dry fly, and it’s my favorite way to get perfect dead drifts to a dry fly in rivers. I fish a lagging curve at just about any angle, using both a forehand and backhand cast, and it provides slack to a dry fly for days.

The lagging curve is really the opposite of what most people mean by a curve cast. This is an underpowered curve and not a power curve.

The leader design matters a lot, and so does the casting stroke. I cover it all in the video . . .

PODCAST: Dry Fly Skills Series #5 — All About the Flies — S12, Ep5

The flies matter. But more than anything, it’s about matching the moment, the water type, the lifecycle of the bug – and even the wind conditions. For us, those conditions — those situations — dictate our next fly choice.

We don’t guess on patterns. Instead, we think about things, develop a theory and test it with the next fly choice and (hopefully) a great presentation.

Casting Forehand and Backhand (with VIDEO)

Apr 6, 2022 | Dry Fly Fishing, Tactics, The Mono Rig, Videos

Fly casting differs from spin casing in a few key ways, and here’s one one of them: You need both a forehand and a backhand cast to achieve effective presentations. Trying to fit a forehand cast on the backhand side is a bad habit that causes problems and limits what is possible on the water. While there’s plenty of room for personal style in fly fishing, this is not one of those places.

As you can see in the video, there are multiple reasons for developing both the forehand and backhand casting stroke. Being equally comfortable with both sides opens the doors to every angle necessary on the river . . .

The Tight Line Advantage Across Fly Fishing Styles

Apr 5, 2021 | Dry Fly Fishing, Nymphing, Streamers, Tactics

I first picked up fly fishing as a teenager, and I vividly remember the confusion. With time, I learned to cast the weight of the line rather than the weight of the lure, but I didn’t know what to do with the line after the cast. Sure, I learned about mending, but that never seemed to solve the problems at hand. Enter, tight lining concepts . . .

Turnover

Feb 24, 2021 | Dry Fly Fishing, Fly Casting, Tactics

In short, turnover gives us freedom to choose what happens with the line that’s tethered to the fly. How does the tippet and leader land? With contact or with slack? And where does it land? In the seam and partnered with the fly, or in an adjacent current? By having mastery of turnover, we dictate the positioning of not just the fly, but the leader itself. And nothing could be more important . . .

Two Ways to Splat a Terrestrial Dry Fly and Follow It With a Dead Drift

Sep 24, 2020 | Dry Fly Fishing, Tactics

Trout love the plop of a terrestrial — sometimes. But we catch even more by setting the fly up for a dead drift after the plop. It’s not easy, but it makes all the difference . . .

Dry Fly Fishing — The Forehand and Backhand Curve

Aug 2, 2020 | Dry Fly Fishing, Fly Casting, Tactics

Learning to use the natural curve that’s present in every cast produces better drag free drifts than does a straight line.

It takes proficiency on both the forehand and backhand.

I’ve seen some anglers resist casting backhand, just because it’s uncomfortable at first. But, by avoiding the backhand, half of the delivery options are gone. So, open up the angles, understand the natural curve and get better drag free drifts on the dry fly . . .

Dry Flies on the Mono Rig

Sep 25, 2019 | Dry Fly Fishing, Tactics, The Mono Rig | 20 Comments

For many years, I never much considered casting dry flies on a Mono Rig as a viable option. I enjoyed the art of casting a dry with a traditional fly line. And if you asked me about dries on a long leader system back then, I’d shake my head and tell you something about using the right tool for the job. But in the last few years, much of that has changed. And now, I suggest that a long Mono Rig is, in fact, the right tool for the job — sometimes.

There’s a time and place for everything. And fishing dry flies on the Mono Rig has become one of my favorite ways to approach trout, not just because it’s a convenient and quick variation when swapping over from a tight line nymphing rig, but because it is stunningly effective . . .

Three Styles of Dry Dropper: #3 — Tight Line Dry Dropper

Sep 10, 2019 | Dry Fly Fishing, Nymphing | 22 Comments

It’s the effectiveness of a nymphing rig and the excitement of a dry fly rig, with boosted catch rates.

In this four part series covering dry dropper styles, I’ve saved the best for last.

I prefer methods that lend excellent control to the angler. And tight line rigs, with direct contact as the primary feature, are built for just that. Add a dry fly to the rig and tight line dry dropper is the best of all possible worlds . . .

Dry Fly Fishing — The Crash Cast

Aug 27, 2019 | Dry Fly Fishing, Fly Casting, Tactics | 8 Comments

Casting styles change with the water. The same stroke that lays a dry line with perfect s-curves in a soft flat is useless in pocket water. As the river picks up speed, so must our casting. Effective drifts are shorter, so we cast more. Mixed surface currents greedily pull our built-in slack over to the next seam. So our casting matches the currents. It’s more aggressive. Faster.

But fishing rough or mixed currents doesn’t mean we give up on a good dead drift. And the best stroke for the job is one that I call the Crash Cast . . .

Dry Fly Fishing — The Stop and Drop

Aug 6, 2019 | Dry Fly Fishing, Fly Casting | 13 Comments

A backcast loop unfolds, parallel to the rolling current. The tapered fly line straightens and joins the rod tip on its forward path. It punches through the wet air with a second loop — a horseshoe arc with all the power and energy needed to drive a bushy Royal Wulff to the target.

The rod tip stops above that target — in vertical alignment with the mark, but well above the water’s surface. Tip stops high. Leader shoots out and releases its power. Fly reaches the end of the line. Then the rod tip drops. The line recoils in s-curves as the dropping rod pushes more depth into those bends and arcs.

Fly lands and drifts. Fish eats. Perfection.

That’s the stop and drop. And this simple move is the key to good dead drifts with a dry fly. Let’s look at it closer . . .

Dry Fly Fishing — The George Harvey Leader Design

Jul 21, 2019 | Dry Fly Fishing, Tactics | 73 Comments

Dry flies were my first love.

I don’t believe I ever bought an extruded, knotless leader back then. I tied my own leaders from the beginning, with blood knots and nippers under the bright bulb of my tying desk. Only later did I learn how critical the Harvey leader design was to my early success.

Because, for dry fly fishing, nothing is more important than the leader . . .

Three Styles of Dry Dropper: #2 — Light Dry Dropper

May 21, 2019 | Dry Fly Fishing, Nymphing | 7 Comments

Fishing a nymph under a dry is not as simple as looping on a nymph and casting. And some forethought into what your objectives truly are, measured against your options for rigging and fly selection, goes a long way toward filling the net with trout.

Do you want to fish the nymph or the dry? That’s the first question to ask. Of course, each style allows the opportunity to catch trout on both flies, but only the light dry dropper style is tuned in for good drifts on the dry.

While bobber dry dropper and tight line dry dropper are great for fishing the nymph first, light dry dropper is perfect for offering the dry as a primary choice. And sometimes, the frequency of takes on the nymph is stunning . . .