Old Dogs / New Tricks or My Venture Into Tight Line Nymphing

[PennKev]

thanks for the reply. an 11' fly rod?! i have a hard time walking a 9' rod through the woods let alone casting. are people euro fishing mostly open water and easy to acess? i feel like i would be walking a surf casting pole along a small stream. maybe im missing something.

It depends on overhead canopy, streamside brush, etc. I generally stick with more conventional set ups and methods on smaller water.

IMO, mainstream "euro" tackle igenerally sn't a great choice for small water. I'm sure there's guys out there that do it just to say that they do, but personally, self abuse isn't something I'm into.

 

[Nocktavius]

It depends on overhead canopy, streamside brush, etc. I generally stick with more conventional set ups and methods on smaller water.

IMO, mainstream "euro" tackle igenerally sn't a great choice for small water. I'm sure there's guys out there that do it just to say that they do, but personally, self abuse isn't something I'm into.

Small water you can fish damn near anything. I’m generally trying to target wild fish in big rivers and I want all the reach I can get.

I find it ironic that people are saying the mono rig and tight lining in general are too complex. It’s probably the most intuitive way I’ve ever fished. Just feels like an extension of my arm at this point.

Nobody loves a good dry fly bite or streamer take more than me, but you just can’t argue with the results of contact nymphing. At the very least, tie up some mono rigs and try them on your existing setup. I fished one on a 9’ 5 wt for years and still absolutely cleaned up.

 

[PennKev]

We are not in disagreement.

 

[KeviR]

I have been using the latest version of the 10'4" 2wt Moonshine Epiphany for the last year and really like it. I have started carrying a second reel with a conventional fly line and dry-fly leader. For me it seems to take less time and fuss to just switch the reel rather than cutting off and storing the mono rig section and replacing it with a conventional dry fly leader. I was experimenting the other day with casting distance and I can throw over 50ft with a 5 wt line on that rod. It might be a little over-lined, so maybe a 4 wt would be a bit better. But it's surprising that it casts a 5wt line so nicely and accurately.
I have also been experimenting with a fairly heavy float indicator on a mono rig for casting to 30' or more to cover mid-stream pockets behind boulders. The long rod and light mono line can hold the intervening line off (off the water above) fast-moving chutes and get a decent indicator drift in these pockets. It's not a pristine drift, but in a big river like the Lehigh (deep and fast at many places in the gorge), it lets you get a cast and decent drift in boulder pockets much further out into the river than you can with a basic mono rig.
This is sort of meant to highlight that the mono rig opens up some different capabilities (besides just tight-lining) that a conventional fly line rig can't do.
With that said, before you buy any new gear, you can use any fly rod to try out the basics of using the mono-rig. I would start with as long and light a rod as you already have and experiment with it. The main difference is the reach you can get with a longer rod. It's surprising how much more water you can reach with a rod that's just 1.5' or 2' longer than your normal 9 footer. Yes, a 10' rod is an okay starting point but if you're buying one just for tight lining, I would say go to 10'6" or 11'. My first tightline rod was a 10' rod but I only used it for a year or so before I went to an 11' rod. The 10'4" I mentioned earlier is a bit more versatile in that it also works great with a conventional fly line and dry fly. I find that it's good enough for tight-lining most of the time. If I am pretty certain that I will only be tight-lining, I will take my 11' rod. I'm not a fan of carrying two rods.

 

[KeviR]

And I agree with PennKev about smaller waters - a 10ft+ rod is noticeably more difficult to manage in tight brush. It helps to reach more water once you're in place by the creek, but getting it in there and out of there is ugly.

 

[Jessed]

I don’t know of anyone on this post who has said watching for ticks is new from Europe? I’m sure it’s been around here for centuries . Just a technique that’s becoming more popular among anglers in the United States. The industry the past 10 years but especially 5 years has exploded with newer (to the U.S ) companies like fulling mill really taking off.

 

[Jessed]

I have been using the latest version of the 10'4" 2wt Moonshine Epiphany for the last year and really like it. I have started carrying a second reel with a conventional fly line and dry-fly leader. For me it seems to take less time and fuss to just switch the reel rather than cutting off and storing the mono rig section and replacing it with a conventional dry fly leader. I was experimenting the other day with casting distance and I can throw over 50ft with a 5 wt line on that rod. It might be a little over-lined, so maybe a 4 wt would be a bit better. But it's surprising that it casts a 5wt line so nicely and accurately.
I have also been experimenting with a fairly heavy float indicator on a mono rig for casting to 30' or more to cover mid-stream pockets behind boulders. The long rod and light mono line can hold the intervening line off (off the water above) fast-moving chutes and get a decent indicator drift in these pockets. It's not a pristine drift, but in a big river like the Lehigh (deep and fast at many places in the gorge), it lets you get a cast and decent drift in boulder pockets much further out into the river than you can with a basic mono rig.
This is sort of meant to highlight that the mono rig opens up some different capabilities (besides just tight-lining) that a conventional fly line rig can't do.
With that said, before you buy any new gear, you can use any fly rod to try out the basics of using the mono-rig. I would start with as long and light a rod as you already have and experiment with it. The main difference is the reach you can get with a longer rod. It's surprising how much more water you can reach with a rod that's just 1.5' or 2' longer than your normal 9 footer. Yes, a 10' rod is an okay starting point but if you're buying one just for tight lining, I would say go to 10'6" or 11'. My first tightline rod was a 10' rod but I only used it for a year or so before I went to an 11' rod. The 10'4" I mentioned earlier is a bit more versatile in that it also works great with a conventional fly line and dry fly. I find that it's good enough for tight-lining most of the time. If I am pretty certain that I will only be tight-lining, I will take my 11' rod. I'm not a fan of carrying two rods.

Cool stuff kev!

 

[Letort]

thanks for the reply. an 11' fly rod?! i have a hard time walking a 9' rod through the woods let alone casting. are people euro fishing mostly open water and easy to acess? i feel like i would be walking a surf casting pole along a small stream. maybe im missing something.

Anything over 8’ stays home when i am blue lining wild trout. There my 7’3” Steffens gets the call. On the flip side, I am not likely to take that rod to Penns Creek. Horses for courses.

 

[troutbert]

Does anyone on here nymph fish with a fair amount of line out, maybe 20 feet of line and 10 feet of leader, and no strike indicator?

If you haven't fished nymphs this way, try it. It's fun.

 

[JeffK]

Yes, old school ways. Upstream I do that and watch the sag in the line. When it pulls up time to tighten and set the hook. Tuck cast sures helps getting initial slack to get nymph to drop.

Across stream this technique was used largely by worm/salmon egg fishers when I was a kid who learned to bait fish with fly tackle before spinning tackle was available. Cast across and slightly up and mend. Upstream enough so that nymph drops near bottom when it reaches the fish. One old guideline was to weight the nymph enough so that it gets in the zone in 3 seconds - heavy enough to get down, but not too heavy to drift nicely. Mend, mend, and mend so the fly line/leader junction drifts naturally. Once it starts skating need to pick up and do it over again because the nymphs will be dragging - it is all about getting good mends so the fly line drifts naturally. A yarn indicator near the line/leader junction is helpful to see to get the right drift, but it is not a bobber - just something to better watch the line leader junction. Good mends are key!

Tight line techniques are great closer in, but across stream technique can be better if one needs to fish further away, especially in riffles. Tight line works best (I guess any nymphing does) when one can keep your nymphs in the same current lane, which one can do best if you are a rod length or less away from the lane. The further across stream one fishes with tightlining the more the nymphs tend to track with some sideways motion towards the angler. IMHO, the across stream technique works best in a riffle where the current is roughly the same across the stream so your whole line and rig are going the same speed. In pocket water with conflicting currents the line on the water pulls the nymphs, so in these cases tightlining that keeps the line off the water may help. Strategy depends on the situation.

 

[Letort]

First time tight lining the Letort today. Picked up one native brown (for those that know the Letort, that is not a no brainer). Need to tie some flies up with lighter weight, as the heavier bead was getting me into too much salad.