Your possibilities of capturing a beautiful trout like this boost the longer your fly remains in the strike zone.
Image by Shawn Combs
There’s an old expression amongst anglers: You can’t capture fish if your line isn’t in the water. I think that this is among the factors that the less passionate angler frequently outfished their more-experienced partner on float journeys when I directed on the Yellowstone and in Alaska. Whereas the “knowledgeable” angler acknowledged every excellent trout lie the boat drifted previous and felt the requirement to cast to all of them, the amateur was usually more content to keep an offered drift going as long as possible. Each time the passionate angler got their line and began false-casting, they were taking themselves out of the video game.
Beginner fly fishers ought to take this to heart … and take it to the extreme. Unless you are casting or altering flies, keep your fly in the water If you require to change your sunglasses, remove your coat, or blow your nose, do not stop fishing. Merely let your fly drift, swing, and await the present. Anytime the fly remains in the water, a fish may consume it.
This holds true even when you’re transferring to another area (as long as challenging wading isn’t needed). Cast your fly, and after that work your method up- or downstream. If you’re strolling upstream, your fly will be dragging behind you, and every longtime angler has a story about capturing fish by “trolling” by doing this. If you’re strolling downstream, remain a number of lawns behind the fly, and let it wander naturally for as long as you can. When it begins to drag, cast once again and duplicate the procedure till you get to the next area.
The very first fly I ever connected was a conventional Maine pattern called the Devil Bug, which was taught to me by Jim Thibodeau, a fellow guide at Hubbard’s Yellowstone Lodge in Montana. Profoundly happy with my brand-new production, I right away took it down to the Yellowstone River for a test drive. After about 15 minutes of unsuccessful casting, nevertheless, I chose that the pattern was crap and I ought to alter flies. As I browsed my fly box, I enabled my line to await the present straight downstream. Prior to I might pick a replacement pattern, a 17-inch brown whacked the dangling Devil Bug and hooked itself. Not a bad fish for my very first self-tied fly, and I never ever would have captured it if my fly had actually remained in my hand.
