Nymphs for spooky trout

[ryc72]

Need some help from you experienced folk. Was fishing today and I would sneak up from behind on a group of 15 or 20 trout facing upstream. I'm about 30ftback and fish are relaxed and remain in place. Water is about 2 to 3ft deep and gin clear not moving that fast. Trying to be careful not to line the fish and focus on trying to target the back few fish and try to work my way up to the head of the group. Fishing an egg and an olive wooly bugger at the time. Everything great, make the cast and it's spot on and all the fish scatter because the bugger and egg disturb the water too much. The pinch on indicator probably didn't help either but the bugger definitely landed hardest. Any advice as to flies that wouldn't make nearly as much disturbance? Midges? Anything else? Any suggestions in terms of approach and application? Thanks in advance!

 

[krayfish2]

I toss a small beadhead Caddis and a smaller pheasant til trailing it. Based on you description of the water, I would have approached one of 2 ways...... #1 get closer to even with the lead fish, cast above them and drift your rig through the pack. Doing this would have allowed you to throw a #2 sex dungeon without too much worry about spooking the fish. or #2 get above the fish and drift the rig into the top fish. As you near the end of the drift, point the tip toward the bank which will slightly swim your offerings across the pack. The flies should also change depth in water column. One of those would have been a better way of getting at the fish. I've used that type of indicator as a way to keep small nymphs from snagging in slower / shallow types of runs.

 

[ryansheehan]

An elk hair caddis or any bouyant dry of your choice, 3 feet of fluorocarbon to a small tungsten zebra midge. Don't be afraid to switch up the distance and weight of the nymph, this is just the recipe I would start with and then adjust according to my drift. Pretty sure you're going to get some advice about ditching the indicator and putting on a green weenie, that works too 🙂

 

[krayfish2]

But......putting on the weenie is like giving up.

 

[Char_Master]

If the water is low and or clear I prefer to just tight line the flies, if it's low flow too then I'd do two natural colored nymphs in the size 12-18 range with just a bit of weight and slowly strip them back to you just enough to keep them off the bottom.

 

[mcwillja]

low and clear i would recommend dry/dropper and the dropper being a small nymph/midge/Rs2. Cast upstream with a 2-3 ft fluro tippet to make sure the nymph is in the zone.

 

[PocketWater]

I wouldn't go bugger or heavy streamer in low clear water.

 

[ryansheehan]

mcwillja wrote:
low and clear i would recommend dry/dropper and the dropper being a small nymph/midge/Rs2. Cast upstream with a 2-3 ft fluro tippet to make sure the nymph is in the zone.

^That's a smart idea :-D

 

[ryc72]

Krayfish, if I could have gotten even I would have but the stream was too narrow and the fish would spook just as I was walking by.

Next time I will have to try the dry dropper and maybe even without an indicator (although I like having the crutch). Good suggestions! Thank you!

 

[jkilroy]

Those are some of the hardest fish to catch. Most of us try to catch them and are not successful.

Try casting 30 plus feet upstream and slightly off to the side. Try a curly indicator or no indicator and just float the leader back. Grease leader with floatant. Use a tippet ring with 4' or so of 6x or 7x fluorocarbon. Nest try a 2.0 or 2.5 tungsten copper or black nickel bead 16 or smaller walts worm, PT, or zebra midge. Key is something small with no or little flash.

Conditions in most streams are very difficult now.

 

[ryc72]

Thanks jk. There sure is a lot of satisfaction that comes from catching spooky fish. One question though, if I am not using an indicator why do I want to grease my leader with floatant? Is that to keep the leader above the tippet ring to act more as a sighter?

 

[brookieaddict]

low clear water is tough, try fishing down stream with a long leader and tippet. swing the fly to the fish and see what happens.

 

[krayfish2]

Grease the leader so it floats. You'll be able to see it in the surface film. If it stops or twitches, you may have something on the business end. Basically, it's you indi

 

[ryc72]

Aaaah. Gotcha ray. Thanks for the insight.

Fishing downstream is an interesting thought too. May have to give that a shot too although I am concerned that I may have to be pretty far upstream or I will scatter the group. Will give it a shot though.

I'm pumped. Got a couple of new tricks to work on the next time I get out.