Fishing dry flies on stillwater involves understanding how to create a natural presentation, targeting rising fish, and using appropriate techniques for different conditions.Key elements include degreasing leaders to ensure a clean, floating fly, accurately casting to rising fish, and adjusting your retrieve based on the situation.
1. Understanding the Environment & Fish Behavior:
- Spotting Rising Fish:Pay attention to subsurface swirls, head and tail rises, and small dimples on the water surface to locate active fish.
- Ideal Conditions:Consider overcast days, light to moderate wind from a warm direction, or flat calm with bright sun as potential times for dry fly success.
2. Casting and Presentation:
- Degreasing the Leader:This is crucial for a clean presentation, allowing the fly to float naturally. Use fluorocarbon leaders, which are known to sink readily and turn over easily.
- Accurate Casting:Cast to the movement of the fish, anticipating their direction, rather than just to the ring of a rise.
- Leader Length and Material:A 12-foot fluorocarbon leader can be a good starting point.
- Fly Placement:Aim for the fly to land in a straight line and let the leader sink naturally, without showing knots or bits of leader on the surface.
- Trim Fly Hackle:For hackled dries, trimming the underside of the hackle by about 40% can make the fly sit lower in the surface film, mimicking a trapped or hatching insect.
3. Retrieval and Striking:
- Slow Hand-Twist Retrieve:Use a smooth, controlled retrieve by twisting the wrist and using your fingers to grab line.
- Striking:For buzzer imitations, a gentle strike is often sufficient, as the fish may take the fly and then move.
- Retrieve Speed:Consider the wind and fish behavior when adjusting your retrieve speed. A steady retrieve can help you find the fish.
4. Other Tips:
- Consider Wind:Cast across the wind for better hook-ups, as the trout will be facing the current created by the wind.
- Use a Team of Flies:If using a “team” of flies, a floating line with a weighted point fly can help keep dropper flies at the right depth.
- Experiment with Floatants:Use floatants like gink to control how your fly sits on the water, whether on top or in the surface film.
- Watch for Fish Behavior:Pay close attention to how the fish are feeding and adjust your presentation accordingly.