High Stickin'

[Barbara]

Inspired by this thread, I spent 4 hrs on Middle Prong nymphing without indicator. I don't know if I hate nymph fishing because I'm no good at it or if I'm no good at it because I hate it. Got 3 rainbow, lots of leaves and 2 rocks/logs that took my nymphs. I believe if I keep at it I will "see" the strikes. Maybe......

[No Hackle]

Nduncan whatI try to do inthat situation when theres an overhang is to try to throw the loop under the hang and not the fly. This helps me most of the time and sometimes you just get hung. Thats part of it. Kind of a no guts no glory mind set. Your gonna lose flies if your not your only gonna catch average trout most of the time. Barbara has the right idea and this is what I did. Leave the indicators at home and make yourself nymph w/o them. I still use indicators although not that seldom in the park. There's just days I like to see it go under. Summer time in the park I almost treat the park like a tailwater go small and light and you pretty much have to use a strike indicator. The other 90% of the time I'm nymphing w/o the bobber.
Good for you Barbara. By the leaves, logs and rock you were where you needed to be. I know it's hard to start your nymphing w/o an indicator it will help you in the long run. You can adjust with your casting and not moving your bobber up and down your line.
Lynn

[BlueRaiderFan]

Originally Posted by Rog 1

Like to consider it a Senior Citizen handicap...just allows my older peepers to get locked in on the fly line a little quicker....it is still part of your leader....not bobber fishing....in one of my favorite fly fishing books..."Flying Fishing Through a Mid-Life Crisis"...one of the authors sons asked him about the use of indicators when using a nymph...wanted to know what the difference between that and bait fishing was....

I hear ya! I was joking around with someone on here a few years back about the size of the foam on their fly (just goofin around and didn't really mean anything by it), sure enough a year ago I find out I can't see my fly, can't get the tippet through the eye, can't see the instrumentation read out at work etc...I get checked and need BIFOCALS!!! Thanks for the tip. I'll use it.

[BlueRaiderFan]

Originally Posted by jeffnles1

Only if a purist is looking.

I'm no great expert on this but second what has been said. Pick any point from the tip of the fly line to the leader that you can watch consistently. If it does anything out of the ordinary, set the hook.

You're going to set the hook on a lot of bottom bounces and rock hops but after catching a few fish this way, the way the line behaves when a fish takes the nymph is different than when the nymph bounces over a rock. I can't describe it but it is just different and when you see it you'll know.

If you have a lot of slack in the leader and tippet, the fish will have taken it and spit it back out before you can react. If it's too tight, the drift may not be natural.

I know, pretty basic common sense stuff but it works for me (usually).

Jeff

Thanks Jeff! I may give it a try next trip. I'm gettin' really good at a dry though. I'm even getting into bigger fish on average these days. I would like to get good at high stickin' too though. I think it will come in handy in the winter.

[BlueRaiderFan]

Originally Posted by Barbara

Inspired by this thread, I spent 4 hrs on Middle Prong nymphing without indicator. I don't know if I hate nymph fishing because I'm no good at it or if I'm no good at it because I hate it. Got 3 rainbow, lots of leaves and 2 rocks/logs that took my nymphs. I believe if I keep at it I will "see" the strikes. Maybe......

You and I are in the same boat then...it's not easy...at least for me.

[Barbara]

Tried nymphing again today from Metcalf Bottom to Elkmont, no fish to hand, very few strikes. Or at least strikes of which I was aware. Switched to a dry and dropper with no better results. On the way home, I decided to stop at Metcalf and cast with just a dry. Caught one rainbow and had 2 more strikes.

What to do tomorrow?

[No Hackle]

Barbara keep @ it. Momma said they'd be days like this. My son and I were looking around yesterday and didn't see alot of active fish. Were you fishing pools or riffles. By the way if you caught a fish on a dry @ Metcalf you've done something. Those fish are pretty educated by this time with all the flies they see.
Lynn

P.s. what to do tomorrow?------ Fish!!!!

[Barbara]

No Hackle, you are right! When all else fails, go fishing!

I fished riffles mostly yesterday. It got cloudy and didn't warm up at Elkmont like I expected. I noticed the air temp got higher as I drove down towards Townsend so maybe the water was a bit warmer at Metcalf? Wish I had taken the water temp.

Can't decide where to go today. Sunny, water should warm this afternoon. I planned on Roaring Fork just for the fun but maybe Tremont would be better. Decisions, decisions.....

[Byron Begley]

See that beautiful rainbow trout at the top of this page? Guess who caught it and took the picture? It was No Hackle, my buddy Lynn. Thought you all might want to know.

Byron

[NDuncan]

That is a really amazing rainbow. Why does it have such distinct coloration compared other rainbows?