This past episode of the Casting Across Fly Fishing Podcast has seen a great response in the first weekend after release. In it, I discuss what I write about below. For a link to the episode, scroll to the bottom of this article.
There is something idyllic about standing in a river, casting a dry fly across the current, and making a precise presentation with a downstream drift. Being able to stand in the right spot, make a clean cast, and mend you fly into a feeding lane where a hungry trout is waiting is just about perfect.
Although we often get these moments, nature isn’t about perfect. Rivers, rocks, and trees create perfect challenges. Add in our skill limitations and cagey fish and sometimes anglers need to think outside the box.
No formal rules state how you have to fish dry flies. As romantic as a notion of the typical dry fly presentation is, real world scenarios call for ingenuity and adaptation. Below I share three techniques that can be incredibly effective when there is something keeping you from making that “perfect” presentation to the trout you see feeding on the surface:
Dry/Dry Dropper
How to do it: I use a larger dry fly as an “indicator” when I’m fishing a smaller dry that is difficult to detect at distance. I’ll use three or so feet of tippet between the flies, which allows the larger to serve as a beacon pointing to the smaller pattern. The larger fly isn’t so much for detecting strikes as it is there to assist in casting and determining presentation. This is really important when fishing sub-20 patterns at a distance, in broken water, or with a heavier rod.
Another way: When fish are rising in an odd manner, I’ll fish two of the same pattern but only put floatant on the lead fly. The second fly will ride lower in the surface film and present like an emerger or crippled bug.
Pile Cast
How to do it: This cast allows for a downstream dry fly presentation. There are great video resources for how to make the pile/puddle/parachute cast, but essentially it looks like this:
- End your forward cast with an upward (45 degrees or so) trajectory
- As the leader unrolls drop your rod tip to just above the water
The result is a relatively straight leader with a pile of line behind it. The line uncoils as the fly makes its way to your target. Just be ready with your line hand – if a fish takes you need to a) compensate for the slack between your rod tip and fly, and b) not pull the fly out of the fish’s mouth which is facing you.
Another way: If you don’t have the clearance for the cast as described above, you can always do this:
- Have the amount of line you’ll need for a full presentation out of the reel
- Make a normal cast, ending ten or so feet before your target
- As soon as the line hits the water, swing your rod tip back and forth to use the surface tension and strip out the extra line needed for the presentation
Skating
How to do it: Real flies don’t always drift “dead.” Sometimes they skitter, skip, and flutter. Pulling a bug across the surface can imitate or attract fish – especially big ones. There is an entire school of skating flies designed for the technique. However, you can accomplish this relatively simply by pulling a buoyant pattern across the surface through stripping holding your rod tip high. Hair patterns and patterns with stiff hackle, lubed up with a lot of floatant, are ideal for this approach.
Another way: If you are in smaller water, you can dance your fly by fishing a fixed line and just manipulating your rod tip to achieve that lifelike action. It’s dapping. And it works.
Want to hear more about these different dry fly tactics? Listen to this episode of the Casting Across Fly Fishing Podcast.