But then this this is going to be, you know, you choose your choose your strength 68, 10 depending on water conditions and fisher fishing too. If you flip your indicator upriver of your flies as soon as the indicator hits the water, the indicator wont be able to pull the flies and the flies will sink more straight down to the bottom much faster. To use the Euro Nymphing Leader Formula, tie the two parts together using the same knot. I teach my clients to set the hook at the end of every single drift until they get it right and until it becomes a habit, practice makes perfect! Your nymphing leader length will depend on the average depth of the spots that you are going to fish and the type of fish that you fish for and the type of nymphing that you are doing. And then theres time for doing for putting all of it into practice, making the casts, covering water and catching fish . Old school indicator nymphing anglers dragged their indicators a lot and needed to go 1.5 to 2 times the depth sometimes. When our rod tip is out in front of you, so is your hand, when you set the hook too hard and follow through your hand will be up near your shoulder and will be pointing behind you, this is too far. And then next, Im going to do about five or six feet of floor carbon. He knows he has a lot of experience and he knows the local waters. I have been lucky to have trained with some of the best competition fly anglers, and even a world champion fly angler. You should always know approximately where your fly is, its important. Because I can see the speed, drag or curling of the leader by watching the sighter on the water, it helps me to know if and when I should mend the line. PJ Bock is a fly fishing guide in Northern California and sent in this video. Typically this is the leader I use in riffle water which is usually less than waist deep and moderate speed. Your fly should be 6 to 20 inches off the bottom at all times when nymphing. Control. You cant do that with a round indicator. Is it your assessment that we have to either compromise on speed of strike detection or dragging the fly and that you place more emphasis on the latter, because that overall brings more fish to the net? Hes a great one to do that. But just find out to snip some off and just make that a little bit shorter. With it and a long mono leader, I feel prepared for most situations I encounter. Make that knot strong, don't half-ass it. And all three leaders can be adapted to other styles. As soon as that wild animal notices you they are going to run away or freeze. Custom Indicator nymphing leaders can make a big difference when trying to dead drift a fly. If you are constantly hitting bottom you will drag your fly below their heads and you will also get no fish, and you will probably lose a bunch of flies in the process. You can get the entire set-up atAmazon HERE. Cant wait to get started. Your angle is extremely important in controlling your speed when indicator nymphing. Fluorocarbon sinks and we dont want the upper part of the leader to sink. I just like the blood knot. I prefer to mount the indicator on a 24 inch section of 3X, sliding it up and down within those two feet to adjust for depth. And be nice. Mending is an important part of good indicator nymphing. This is my home, and I love it. Hatch ProStaff MIKE SCHULTZ of SCHULTZ OUTFITTERS demonstrates his technique for RIGGING A STEELHEAD VERTICAL NYMPH LEADER. This means that as soon as your fly hits the water you need to mend the fly line upriver and above the indicator so that the line doesnt pull and drag the indicator and then the fly prematurely. Hey Dom. Ive watched guys set the hook so hard that the little 6 inch trout on their fly goes flying over their heads and ends up 50 feet behind them in the bush. Just shoot us a call, text or email and well see you next time on The Backcast. That seems to make sense, right? They are so informative and often break the traditional thinking which makes a lot of sense to me once you pointed them out. . Speed is likely the most critical part of the presentation. I should mention that I never go under 4X for the two foot section beyond the sighter (where the indy mounts). Thanks for your help. Its not so much the water depth, but rather the amount of space that I have to cast. That means if you are fishing a spot that is 4 feet deep you set your strike indicator at 6 feet deep. I just wouldnt do both, but thats me. I will discuss some of these below but for everything on this list and everything you need for fly fishing check out my page Fly Fishing Gear: Everything You Need To Fly Fish. PJ Bock is a fly fishing guide in Northern California and sent in this video. Even the top competition fly anglers around the world rarely use indicators. You can see more of them on my page Best Indicators For Fly Fishing. This mend doesnt move your strike indicator or your fly and it doesnt rip off the water or splash down as the typical mend does. Book now to join me in 2023. As my clients get better I recommend increasing the length of the leader about 2 feet at a time until its around 16 to 18 feet. If an indicator doesnt improve my presentation, I wont use it.if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[300,250],'troutandsteelhead_net-banner-1','ezslot_1',107,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-troutandsteelhead_net-banner-1-0');if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[300,250],'troutandsteelhead_net-banner-1','ezslot_2',107,'0','1'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-troutandsteelhead_net-banner-1-0_1');.banner-1-multi-107{border:none!important;display:block!important;float:none!important;line-height:0;margin-bottom:7px!important;margin-left:auto!important;margin-right:auto!important;margin-top:7px!important;max-width:100%!important;min-height:250px;padding:0;text-align:center!important}. Be part of the Troutbitten community of ideas. If you drag your indicator through the pool you will need to go deeper. If thats you, then sub out the 3X for 4X and mount the indy there (with the remainder of the tippet ending in 5X or 6x). I change leaders sometimes many times each day. . Read our full disclosure HERE. This article will cover the pros and cons of indicator nymphing. I know this because I watch good nymphing anglers fish a big pool for an hour and catch 6 fish and after they leave I walk in and Ill catch 20 fish. Oftentimes that cost is built into our success. PJ Bock is a fly fishing guide with Bock fly fishing. Ill even add Loon Payette Paste or Mucilin to the upper part of the leader above the indicator and on the fly line to make sure they both float high. The nymphs are on a leash, and the suspender is boss. The rod is full flex slow action. For a traditional high stick nymphing leader, the normal size would be 10 to 12 feet. The weights on your leader and the fly below the surface can cause resistance that will slow your strike indicator down, but there is nothing slowing your fly line down so you need to slow it down or reposition the fly line with mends before it floats past your indicator and starts to pull everything abnormally fast. Use long lengths of level tippet to help your flies sink. Guide Tip: When you mend your line, you also want to mend the entire leader and the indicator upriver of the fly. It has been proven to increase your catch rate by an average of 35%, but it's not just about better results: Indicator Leader Formula is also one of the most environmentally friendly methods of fishing on the market today. No matter what were into, theres a time when the learning of skills reaches a critical mass, when its time to do rather than read more about it and buy more gear. Crowd the hazard . And then we got about three feet, three or four feet of that Maxima. How Do You Find The Bottom So You Can Set Your Indicator Properly? what shows did william bendix play in. I am absolutely new at this but will be giving it a try in Northern Arkanmsas and Southern Missouri all of May. A sighter is more than a strike indicator. Whatever the type of leader chosen, the fluorescent indicator that finishes it must be at least 18/100 in order to be visible. Terms of Service and Conditions | Affiliate Disclosure | Privacy Policy | Cookies Policy. What is it that these great indicator anglers do differently? These longer rods give you more reach to stay further from the fish and they help with mending and line control. Next, tie your tippet ring to the end of the indicator line . I wade closer, staying behind the trout and being cautious with my approach. Often, I cut the butt section of .017 Chameleon to under two feet. For steelhead and big trout or when I need more weight, I use the 1.5 inch size. And thank you. Your fly moving at 4 miles an hour while all the other flies are moving at 1 or 2 miles an hour looks unnatural to the fish, especially the bigger and wiser fish, and that means many fish will ignore or avoid your fly without you even knowing it. I simply dont find it necessary. If the tip of the float is upriver, then my fly is opposite and its downriver. The best nymphing rigs have only one diameter of tippet under the water. Im going to try this out but I have a question about the rigging first. The inherent compromises in a do-it-all leader are too great performance for each tactic suffers. I hear anglers and guides say that you want to match the speed of the bubbles which is a good start for a new angler learning how to fly fish with an indicator, but the speed of the bubbles is usually too fast. Let em go so they can grow. George Daniels book Strip Set Purchase here to support Troutbitten. READ: Troutbitten | Get Me Back to My Fly Line, READ: Troutbitten | Loop to Loop Is Bad Try Attaching Your Leaders This Way, Five Keys to Reading the Sighter (with VIDEO), When Fishing Around Structure, Crowd the Hazard, Fly Distance What Youre Missing by Following FIPS Competition Rules Part Three, Podcast: Winter Skills Series, #1: The System and the Plan S6, Ep1, Fifty Fly Fishing Tips: #26 The Art of Hanging Out, Angler Types in Profile The Fly Tying Artist, Streamer Presentations Why Always Strip Set! Makes No Sense, The Big Rig: The Two Plus One Two Nymphs and a Streamer, Podcast: Strategies for Fly Fishing In the Wind S5, Ep10, Roll Your Eggs Tips For Nymphing With Egg Patterns, Podcast: Listener Q&A Mono Rigs, Tough Days, Trout Range and More S5, Ep9, (VIDEO) The Tight Line Advantage for Nymphs, Indicators, Streamers and Dry Dropper, Podcast: Streamer Presentations All About the Head of the Fly S5, Ep8. For more information on the Sight Leader used, check outhttps://umpqua.com/products/leader-and-tippetFor more fly fishing, subscribe: https://goo.gl/kmhgXN Im hooked on Troutbitten! I call 2 flies, some weights, and an indicator a lot of junk on the line, and junk tangles and can become a mess very quickly with the wrong cast. The nymphing leader setups that Ill discuss here are the same nymphing leader steups that these experts use and that I use when Im fishing and guiding. You could have the best fly, the best setup, and the best indicators for fly fishing but unless you control your speed and get a great presentation none of that stuff will matter, controlling your speed is critical if you ever want to catch the maximum amount of fish possible when indicator nymphing. Thank you all, for a wonderful 2022 season! Monkey see monkey do. Keep the leader off the water stay tight to the suspender. And then all this fluorocarbons is clear line. Thought Id try some bigger streamers on it. I am a leader junkie and always trying new formulas. Thank you. Sure thing. One reason for this rig is that Ive discovered that, at least for me, looking at a sighter is not nearly as effective as looking at the fly line, and watching for a its curve to straighten out a little. I teach the guys to only bring their hand far enough back that their hand is straight up and their rod tip is also straight up and neither is behind their shoulder. These nymphing rods are a good choice:if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[300,250],'troutandsteelhead_net-large-mobile-banner-1','ezslot_4',111,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-troutandsteelhead_net-large-mobile-banner-1-0'); Casting a strike indicator is not like casting a dry fly or a streamer. Other indicators come in all shapes and sizes and can be made from different materials. You can feel fish bite, and you can feel the bottom. These are the most attractive aspects of fishing a tight line system, and the sighter is the key to it all. In order to slow your fly down and get the right angle, you need to mend properly or hold your indicator back just enough so that you will get a slight downward angle on your leader below your indicator. The best indicators for fly fishing will be either bi-color football-shaped ones, or they will have a pointed top like the Raven Indicators. The entire leader should be around 11 to 13 feet long and the lower tippet section should be 36 to 46 inches long for most rivers in the 3 to 7-foot deep range. In a lift and drop mend I simply raise my hand and lift my rod high move the rod tip upriver, I will reach if I need to, and then I will drop my rod tip and the line upriver of the strike indicator where it wont pull my strike indicator anymore. Thats my thats my basic indicator mimicking leader formula. Other than the initial first mend where I will mend the fly line, and the leader and the indicator to get my fly down faster, each mend after that I wont move my indicator at all. Streamer Presentations Quick or Smooth? The reason it is the most important tip is that if you do not approach every spot properly and you spook your fish before you even get to do all that other great stuff I just told you about, you wont catch any fish. River Nymph Leader is great for swinging wet flies, small streamers, and more. The best tip I give to my clients is to keep the line and leader straight as it comes out of the water and land it all in a straight line, and DO NOT false cast with an indicator unless you are an advanced fly angler and you know how to slow down your cast and open your loops. They don't work well on a lighter line or a heavier line. That thing is that the method of fishing that controls the speed of the bait or the fly the best is the method that is going to be the most effective method. Getting your fly down faster puts in into the strike zone faster and for longer which can increase your chance for more fish. That way I have just one point of contact on the water, instead of the full coiled sighter. Any pull on the line can make the fly look unnatural so we are always told to avoid drag. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Your email address will not be published. if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[250,250],'troutandsteelhead_net-leader-2','ezslot_6',112,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-troutandsteelhead_net-leader-2-0');Its hard to explain in words so until I get my own video of how to cast a strike indicator, I have included this video of how to cast when indicator fishing from the guys at the New Fly Fishing Show. Also, store leaders on old Maxima spools. And this is going to be like a three x four x, depending on the fish that youre fishing to The monofilament that were using is like today Im using a 12 or 15. The upper tapered part of the leader is best to be a co-polymer or mono leader because those leaders float better than fluorocarbon. When using less weight, and for smaller rivers and trout I will use the 7/8 size. Once you cast your indicator into the water and the fly sinks most guys dont have a clue where their fly is or how to control their leader angles, and most guys dont even know why they need to know this. . An Online Resource forFly Fishing in California, by Rick Ferrante | Feb 12, 2022 | Backcast Report, Rigging | 0 comments. Then one day I saw this method in a book and it was called Suspension Nymphing. It is a system that I use a lot, and it's very . Thanks for sharing!p. You can see from that video he knows what hes talking about. I always know where my fly is and using the right indicator will really help. steve says: Cheers, Don. Not here. With indicator fishing, its hard to tell if there is any slack under your indicator. I enjoy and learn a lot reading them.Thanks again.Nick. It points to our flies and takes away the guesswork. I think it works great for dries too, when adjusted. Three elements make this leader specifically designed for indicator nymphing: butt section, sighter (colored line section) and 3X fluorocarbon. These are the 3 best Indicators that I recommend. Because I am an expert at both types of methods and understand both methods equally well, I can honestly say that Euro nymphing is much more productive in many river fishing situations than indicator nymphing or traditional high stick nymphing. Second, the amount of tippet under the water is fixed in a suspender rig. Ive had the pleasure of training with George Daniel and seeing his suspension nymphing done first hand, and its often superior to what many other guides are doing.if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[300,250],'troutandsteelhead_net-leader-4','ezslot_8',116,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-troutandsteelhead_net-leader-4-0'); Suspension nymphing is when you suspend your fly from your strike indicator without the weights and flies dragging across the bottom. Unless I have a dedicated rod and reel for Euro nymphing I do not use the Euro lines and do not recommend them for indicator nymphing since there is not enough weight on the front section to mend well at distances. Euro, weight forward, or double taper?Thanks. He really loves kind of helping people with that same information when hes guiding them or if youre interested in just getting put on fish. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Indicator nymphing is when you present a fly below a small float. This is because the slower current down near your fly is holding the fly back. Any deeper and it becomes difficult to position the leader far enough up the line. Example If Im using a 6lb tippet and I will likely use a 6-pound leader but I will either just cut it 2 feet up the leader which will make it around 8 to 10pounds, or I will just visually compare the two lines and keep working my way up the leader until I see that the leader starts to get thicker than the tippet and then I cut the leader there and attach the tippet. This is a common nymphing leader setup for indicator fishing for trout.