Setting the hook with a dry?

[arbor1]

Last night I did pretty well, managed 6 smaller Large mouth bass with using a PT nymph and as it was starting to get later fish started to rise so I switched it out to a Elk Hair Caddis Dry. Managed to hook what looked like a native brown. With that said it just all kind of happened, I was trying to target where they were rising and I could see them wanting to take it, but wasn't too sure on how to set the hook. So my question is do you approach it like using a nymph or is there a different or more affective way to hook them when they are playing with dry's?

 

[dryflyguy]

A quick lifting of the rod is what you want.
And you can't have a lot of slack - or belly - in your fly line when that happens, or you'll likley miss the fish.
So, you have to be ready for the strike. And as soon as that fly disappears, hit it.

And that's it in a nutshell.
Pcray will likely chime in with a more "detailed" explanation

 

[arbor1]

dryflyguy wrote:
A quick lifting of the rod is what you want.
And you can't have a lot of slack - or belly - in your fly line when that happens, or you'll likley miss the fish.
So, you have to be ready for the strike. And as soon as that fly disappears, hit it

Thanks! That makes sense, I think I could of had a lot more last night if I managed my line better. I would see the dry disappear, but I think I had a little too much slack or belly in the line. I'll give it another go tomorrow evening. The one I caught last night basically hooked himself.

 

[gfen]

arbor1 wrote:
So my question is do you approach it like using a nymph or is there a different or more affective way to hook them when they are playing with dry's?

Four long winded pages, although I imagine there's only about 10 posts of relevant data.

 

[henrydavid]

I've been in situations where you can't always lift the rod high because of brush, trees, etc. Instead I got down, low, rod paralell to the water a few inches over the water. Point the rod at the fly and take up slack as it drifts. If you see a rise stand up, take up slack, lift the rod if you can, it gives you more leverage to set the hook.

 

[arbor1]

I think I have it down now. I had a couple of strikes on black caddis dries, but the problem was I really couldn't see the fly to properly time the hook set so I switch back out to a tan elk hair caddis and I had much better results. I finally landed a very sizable rainbow on a dry. He took it a couple of times, but I think I was pulling out the fly on the angle I was trying to set the hook. I then thought back to this post as to what dry fly guy had posted and bam, got em. Thanks everyone for all your help!!!!

 

[pcray1231]

Pcray will likely chime in with a more "detailed" explanation

Think you covered it pretty good.

Will add that sometimes we have a tendency to strike too quick when anticipating strikes on dries, specially when you see the fish comin for it, and pull it away before he ever gets it in his mouth. Wait till he turns down with it.

 

[Phish_On]

One of my rules of thumb is to never set the hook till you feel the fish on the line.

 

[MKern]

Let the fish take it under.
Heck they hook themselves most of the time. (or is it only their doing when they get off the hook, but the anlger has the skill when setting the hook)

 

[dryflyguy]

I strongly disagree with the last 2 posts.
IMO, only occassionally will a fish hook itself on a dry.
You need to have some kind of hook set to catch them consistently

With the people that I've taught to flyfish, I can always tell when they finally start to get control over their fly line. Hooking fish suddenly becomes routine for them

 

[pcray1231]

Agree with that. I suspect MKern and Phish both have some sort of hook set most of the time. But this ain't bass fishin. For a person with that kind of background (implied by the OP), the advice to wait longer than you think you should, and to significantly lower the power behind the hookset, is indeed good advice.

You see him come for the fly and know he's gonna take. Train yourself like you would a bird dog. HOLD! Wait till he takes and turns, so like a second after the take (which feels like an eternity). Then there IS a hookset, but its nothing more than a smooth lift of the rod, no yanking.

 

[trowpa]

I see it not so much as a "hookset" (has too many conotations related to bass fishing, saltwater, etc). Simply tighten the line. That's it. See the take...wait till the fish turns down with the fly and simply tighten the line.

As for the wait - there is the old rule of thumb - see the splash, say "god save the queen" then lift.

 

[csoult]

pcray1231 wrote:

Will add that sometimes we have a tendency to strike too quick when anticipating strikes on dries, specially when you see the fish comin for it, and pull it away before he ever gets it in his mouth. Wait till he turns down with it.

I do this too often.

 

[dryflyguy]

Just to clarify -
I would call any type of tightening of the line, or lift of the rod - right after the fly is taken - a hook set.

As opposed to doing nothing after the fly disappears, and just happening to find a fish on the line when you go to recast at the end of a drift

Pcray makes a good point about sometimes needing a slight delay in hook setting. Especially when fishing a fly straight downstream.

 

[BPS]

I do the "god save the Queen" thing too.

I really cut down on my wiff to hook-up ratio.

I only miss about 50-70% of them now. lol

 

[MKern]

Oh I set the hook, but I'm pretty sure the fish will hook themselves because the tension of the water on the line when the fish's weight is on the fly doesn't hurt.
I'm just picturing the average fly angler and the lack of focus they have while fishing and 3 to 6 feet of line are travelling under the water before they realize "oh boy there's a fish."

Heck I often "re-sting" them once they get it. Making sure the hook is in there.

 

[barbless]

Do what you can to keep as tight a line as possible, without having the fly drag.

Easier said than done

And use a sharp hook. I sharpen the hook on every fly I use, after I knot it on the leader. My goal in trout fishing is to make hooking the fish as much like acupuncture as possible. Streamer fishing excepted.

 

[pratt]

BPS wrote:
I do the "god save the Queen" thing too.

I really cut down on my wiff to hook-up ratio.

I only miss about 50-70% of them now. lol

I was just on a weeklong trip in Elk County, and learned the 'god save the queen' routine from a friend.....and ended up killng it with dries (sulphurs & coffin flies were the ticket last week evenings...)

wiffed on a few, but ended up with a positive hookup/wiff ratio....