Need Euro Nympher Mentor

[wbranch]

While I am by no means a novice when it comes to fly fishing I have zero knowledge about Euro nymphing. I've heard so much about it and how effective it is I figured if I learned the skills and techniques required I could learn something new and increase my catch rate.

I feel I am a good student and have light line rods but none longer than 9'. I'm willing to buy whatever lines or leaders are needed and will tie whatever flies are recommended. I just ordered those 60 degree jig hooks in #12, 14, and 16 and four different colors and sizes of slotted tungsten beads.

The only limiting factor is I hate the cold weather and wouldn't want to actually fish until the air temperature at least 52 degrees.

 

[maxima12]

Well, Wbranch. Not really a lot to it. Depends which style. Euro, Czech, French.

Euro usually consists of nothing but mono, on reel and water. Sighter, piece of hi vis, to detect strikes. tippet ring. then fluorocarbon.

check out lance eagen. youtube set up.

2. Czech usually 71/2 to 9ft. high vis butt and generally 2 drops. fish 3 flies Close and deep is the key. Flies generally are different colored caddis larve, pupa. weighted. beadhead and weight.

3. French.--can be same as above or general usage single nymph.
coils are used as the indicator. to make coil. 1st take about 2 feet hi vis line, put a perfection loop on each end. get a nice big long bolt and wrap hi vis line around bolt, not to overlap. secure both ends with ty straps to keep line unwinding.

boil for 5 minutes. take out a put in freezer. when unwrapped the line memory will be coiled and stay coiled.

when the coil stretches a little. fish on.

these methods have been blown out of proportion recently. everyone has a bigger, better, method. improved.


how do you improve something that is already good. tippet rings. baloney. you fell for it. tippet rings. known as jump rings to the jewelry makers. get them from a jewelry catalog. fire mt. gems. 1/5 of what the fly outfits charge.


last most important. keep flies close and deep. rod length depends on, you guessed it and fell for it. not what the others say. what is comfortable for you.

ps you already know how to do it, you just never did do it.

 

[Acristickid]

wbranch- while your waiting for the weather to break you may want to look up George Daniel or Domenick Swentosky.

Both know for those tactics and have tutorials, books etc...

Started to ease into the euro game but it seemed overly fussy and drifted away but I can see it merits while hatches and rises are dormant.

Good luck.

 

[3sip]

+1
I have learned a ton from https://troutbitten.com and https://www.livinonthefly.com. I fished with Domenick Swentosky and I would highly recommend as he has a wealth of knowledge and skill.

 

[wbranch]

maxima12 wrote;

you guessed it and fell for it.

Thanks for all the interesting info on Euro nymphing. Don't assume though that I fell for anything. I've not bought any long light weight rod and it is likely I won't. I'll probably use my Helios 9' #4 with a #3 line and the appropriate leader and tippet. I've ordered hooks and beads to tie some of the flies I've seen on various online fly shops. Luckily I have a spool of red 30# Amnesia I will use to make a sighter.

 

[timbow]

If you were closer I’d take you out for a few outings and teach you what I know. I am no means an expert but I’ve been fortunate enough to have been taught by several Team USA guys over the years.

I would highly recommend Lance and Devon’s “Modern Nymphing” video’s as well as the other resources mentioned. The whole mono rig from troutbitten thing is ok, but not for me. I can’t stand handling 20lb maxima all day and do prefer the Cortland mono core line or any other thin running line. If you do decide to go mono rig style I’d suggest picking up a spool of 25lb OPST LAZER line instead of using maxima. Much less memory and slicker.

I would stay away from using 30lb for your sighter though. Remember, weight and associated sag are your enemy. The weight of that sighted will pull the lighter tippet and flies back towards you and limit the distance you can effectively fish. The heaviest sighted material that I will use is 10lb.

 

[wbranch]

Timbow

I would stay away from using 30lb for your sighter though. Remember, weight and associated sag are your enemy.

Okay, thanks for the advice.

 

[jifigz]

These styles of nymphing catch a ton of fish in certain styles of water, no doubt, but that is my exact problem with going out solely with a setup for nymphing like this. I want to change and adapt in many different ways through the course of a full days fishing and I'd like to do that without swapping out rods, etc.

Not helpful to what your talking about exactly, I know, but just my .02.

 

[Acristickid]

^ I found truth in “certain types of water” for euro nymphing.

I once drove 5 hours or whatever it was to the Missouri and my fishing partner (euro nympher) first words upon laying eyes on the Missouri- “This sucks , I wanna go back to the Madison”. Hah.

 

[PennKev]

how do you improve something that is already good. tippet rings. baloney. you fell for it. tippet rings. known as jump rings to the jewelry makers. get them from a jewelry catalog. fire mt. gems. 1/5 of what the fly outfits charge

The jumps rings from jewelry/craft supply are not really that well suited for fishing. They are soft metal, and the soldered joints fail.

I've tried the ones from fire mt to be specific.

For what it's worth, I don't understand why tippet rings are so expensive and sold in such small quantity. The companies selling them could do just as well selling more of them at a lower price, mayube even do better. After all, they are a consumable product, the more people use them the more they will buy. $7+ for 10 or whatever is outrageous. They are very convenient and useful for nymphing but i think the cost keeps some people away.

 

[PennKev]

jifigz wrote:
I want to change and adapt in many different ways through the course of a full days fishing and I'd like to do that without swapping out rods, etc.

You don't have to use a 10+ft 2-3wt for any of this. That's just simply the most refined tool for the job. A 10' 4wt ads a lot of versatility and a 10' 5wt can be used too.

Don't want a long rod? Just use your 9ft 4, 5, or 6wt. Then all you need to do is change up your leader and fish dries, streamers, indi rigs whatever.

 

[jifigz]

PennKev wrote:

jifigz wrote:
I want to change and adapt in many different ways through the course of a full days fishing and I'd like to do that without swapping out rods, etc.

You don't have to use a 10+ft 2-3wt for any of this. That's just simply the most refined tool for the job. A 10' 4wt ads a lot of versatility and a 10' 5wt can be used too.

Don't want a long rod? Just use your 9ft 4, 5, or 6wt. Then all you need to do is change up your leader and fish dries, streamers, indi rigs whatever.

I understand that. But I usually associate "euro-nymphing" with super long leaders where they are still wound on the fly reel as well as through the guides of the rod and into the water. Otherwise, I call it high sticking. And that is when I have a few inches of my fly line out of the end of my rod and I am keeping a tight line as I work a double nymph rig through certain types of water. It works just fine except I use my 7.5 ft glass rod or my 8.5 ft graphite, both 4 weights. Then I still have a regular 9 foot or so leader on to hop to streamers, indicator fishing, etc. That isn't Euro Nymphing but it works much the same way and I don't have to deal with a 30 foot leader which, in my opinion, seems unnecessary.

 

[PennKev]

jifigz wrote:
I don't have to deal with a 30 foot leader which, in my opinion, seems unnecessary.

That's just one school of thought on leaders though. Euro nymphing is not just one specific way do it and there are different approaches to leader construction. It's much more nuanced and diverse than many think. If you haven't already done so, check out the various videos and books by George Daniel, Lance Egan, and Devin Olsen.

There are lots of ways to do this and you can incorporate into your fishing any aspects that seem to fit.

 

[troutbert]

When I first started flyfishing, around 1970, and before that time, everyone who fished nymphs did so without a strike indicator.

Because strike indicators didn't come on the market until about 1973, if my memory is correct. Around that time I remember seeing the Palsa foam stick on indicators for sale.

Some people began using those, but still most nymph fishing was done without indicators well through the 1970s.

Nymph fishing with indicators became very widespread, the norm, sometime in 1980s, as I recall.

We didn't call nymphing without an indicator "euro" nymphing. It was just nymph fishing. It had been done that way since the origin of nymph fishing, which I believe was around 1910 or so.

For lack of a better term, I call it "old school nymph fishing."

We fished not just "at your feet" but also pulling more line out gradually to fish a whole run. Using reach casts and mends to prevent drag.

I still nymph fish this way. I've tried various indicators, but I don't like them.

You can do the same thing. Just use your standard rod and leader. And just tie a beadhead Walts Worm on the end of your leader.

Cast it upstream at about a 45 degree angle. And drift it down through nice looking runs and pocket water. Follow the line and leader with your rod tip. Set the hook if you see the line stop or make an unusual movement.

It can be done very, very simply.

 

[afishinado]

troutbert wrote:
When I first started flyfishing, around 1970, and before that time, everyone who fished nymphs did so without a strike indicator.

Because strike indicators didn't come on the market until about 1973, if my memory is correct. Around that time I remember seeing the Palsa foam stick on indicators for sale.

Some people began using those, but still most nymph fishing was done without indicators well through the 1970s.

Nymph fishing with indicators became very widespread, the norm, sometime in 1980s, as I recall.

We didn't call nymphing without an indicator "euro" nymphing. It was just nymph fishing. It had been done that way since the origin of nymph fishing, which I believe was around 1910 or so.

For lack of a better term, I call it "old school nymph fishing."

We fished not just "at your feet" but also pulling more line out gradually to fish a whole run. Using reach casts and mends to prevent drag.

I still nymph fish this way. I've tried various indicators, but I don't like them.

You can do the same thing. Just use your standard rod and leader. And just tie a beadhead Walts Worm on the end of your leader.

Cast it upstream at about a 45 degree angle. And drift it down through nice looking runs and pocket water. Follow the line and leader with your rod tip. Set the hook if you see the line stop or make an unusual movement.

It can be done very, very simply.

Check out all the info on-line and in books on rigs and flies and stuff, but essentially that's all there's to it ^

Just practice and experiment a little.

Hey....you should write a book:lol:

 

[wbranch]

jifigz wrote;

I want to change and adapt in many different ways through the course of a full days fishing and I'd like to do that without swapping out rods, etc.

Agreed, that would be a pain in the butt if the rod/line/leader you were using was so specialized that you couldn't start casting little dry flies to a pod of 18" wild browns. Since I have a drift boat my plan was to just bring a 3rd rod with me. A #5 for traditional nymphing and small streamers, a #4 for most of the dry fly work, and a Euro rod setup. Then I can use whatever rod/technique best fits the situation.

 

[wbranch]

acristikid wrote;

I once drove 5 hours or whatever it was to the Missouri and my fishing partner (euro nympher) first words upon laying eyes on the Missouri- “This sucks , I wanna go back to the Madison”

Yep, the Missouri surely does not have very much nymphing water. At least not nearly as much as "The Fifty Mile Long Riffle" as some lovingly call the Madison. But then it doesn't have very many honest 20" - 21" rainbows or 21" - 24" browns either rising pretty much all day long.

This rainbow measured 21".

 

[ryansheehan]

Wbranch, I have a pair of 10 foot 4 weight rods that I use to nymph with. While I don't have a strict euro nymphing style, I will be happy to show you what I know when I make it up there this year. I will shoot you another PM shortly. Also that is a beautiful fish!

 

[troutpoop]

I'm with the last few posts. I don't even call it euro nymphing anymore. I call direct connection nymphing, however you choose to do it.
I customarily use dries 80% of the time and many times on the WB or other places don't carry nymphs. When I do choose to use them I cut the tippet from my Zen furled leader and attach 18" of two tone sighter and then tippet. The rig is just enough to have a teeny bit of fly line out of the tip top.
I then use the direct connection feel to the to nymph bouncing bottom. Pretty much the same thing without all the hoopla. If I need to switch back to dries its easy.

 

[wbranch]

Hello Ryan,

I have a pair of 10 foot 4 weight rods that I use to nymph with.

Hey, that would be neat. I hate to go out and buy a specialized 10' #3 rod if I find out I can do almost as good with a first generation Sage Light Line (soft tip) 9' #4. I'll reverse my WF#3 line, buy one of those fancy Rio Euro leaders and give it a whirl on the nice riffle near my cabin. I bought a bunch of hooks and beads from PenKev and have tied almost fifty Euro style nymphs this week.