We aim for dead drifts on a nymph, but we also aim to be in touch. We want the fly traveling naturally with the currents, but we also desire contact. Good nymphing is a paradox with no perfect resolution. Dead drifts on a dry fly are a simpler affair. Since the fly...
** NOTE ** This is the sixth installment of the Troutbitten Short Series covering drop shot nymphing. Find the full series HERE. -- -- -- -- -- -- I began this series on drop shot nymphing close to a year ago. And after five in-depth Troutbitten articles, I’ve...
There is no other fly in my box that requires such a singular presentation to sell it to a trout. They want the drift of an egg just right. Dead drifts that are deader than dead, I like to say, because eggs don’t swim — they hug the bottom and bumble along, sliding...
** This Troutbitten article was originally published to Hatch magazine. ** Floating a couple of nymphs under an indicator is undeniably effective. In the right place and with the right conditions, flies under an indicator will outperform a tight line presentation all...
There are plenty of ways to build a drop shot rig. This one is built for finesse. Rarely is much weight required, because the rest of the leader is literally designed for getting the flies down — to allow light weights to fall quickly . . .
The weight is at the heart of drop shot nymphing. Putting that weight at the end of the line is what makes it unique. And using the right kind of weight makes it pretty special.
You want streamlined? You want dense, concentrated weight in a package with no material resistance? You want pure efficiency in a weight form? Drop shot is your answer . . .
Drop shot nymphing on a tight line system puts the angler in control of every part of the drift. By using the riverbed as a reference, you then choose the speed, level and lane-travel of the flies.
That control is a double-edged sword. While the benefits of contact and control are infinite, there is a downside — you must get everything just right. Ultimate control is a big responsibility. And in many ways, it’s easier to choose a pair of light nymphs with no shot and simply track the nymph’s progress downstream, letting the river make all the important decisions.
Learning and refining that presentation is a daily challenge. . . .
As the years pass, I’ve found a few refinements, I’ve learned a few advantages that lead me toward drop shot as the solution for more on-stream problems. It’s a tactic that has its place alongside all the other ways that I like to drift nymphs. Because the principles of dead drifting a nymph usually come down to imitating a natural drift as close as possible, but the methods for doing so are remarkably varied.
Every river scenario has a solution. And quite often, drop shotting is the perfect answer.
There’s a talent for combining all the essential techniques. Stitching them together seamlessly and flowing from one to the next takes a certain aptitude, and some intention.
Refine one through nine. Then time and again, you’ll see what you want to see. You’ll put it together. And you’ll say with confidence, “Now that was a great drift.”
The strike is the best part of fishing. It’s what we’re all out there waiting for, or rather, what we’re trying to make happen all day long. And the trout eats because we get so many things right.
We fool a fish, and we fulfill the wish of every angler.
When the fish strikes, we strike back. Short, swift and effective, the hook finds fish flesh. Then we try to keep the trout buttoned and get it to the net.
In the next article, this series concludes with the focus on putting it all together . . .