Fly fishing for trout in still water – lakes and ponds – is a different game than pursuing fish in moving water. Most of us have caught trout from a pond by just casting to rising fish or stripping a woolly bugger. That works. But there is much more to this type of fly fishing.
Aficionados of this style of angling have a whole set of tactics particular to lakes, a knowledge base that covers these ecosystems, and even a slightly different cache of gear. Going down that rabbit hole is something I’ve only dabbled in. For me, and many fly fishers, chasing trout in still water is about making slight modifications to what we already do in order to get into fish.
Acknowledging that, there are some minor gear tweaks that can help your lake and pond trout fishing. Longer rods help, as does tying/buying streamers with weight on the shank (as opposed to just a bead/cone behind the eye). Another small change that I have found helps my still water fishing is incorporating furled leaders.
Here are four reasons why:
1. Casting
Furled leaders can really help punch flies out to your target. Since the taper of the fly line has a more natural transition into a furled butt section than solid, stiff mono or flouro, an average to mediocre cast will allow for greater energy transfer further down the leader. This translates into more casts straightening out. This is also helpful when you don’t have a current to compensate for your bad cast. Mending a fly sitting in a pile of tippet is one thing in moving water. Recovering from that same cast is made more difficult on a still surface, so casting straight matters a little bit more.
2. Floating
We don’t talk about greasing leaders enough in contemporary fly fishing. A little product can keep a leader ride high or dive deep. Due to their composition, furled leaders can utilize floatants with thicker consistencies. When your line and leader don’t sink, your fly has a better chance of staying up there where you want it. Another big benefit is picking your line, leader, and fly off the water for the next cast. Even with the thicker diameter, a greased furled leader will pick up easier. This can keep your fly from torpedoing under the surface. That’s good for keeping it afloat and also for not spooking fish.
3. Sinking
One of the reason every furled leader manufacturer recommends using some sort of floating agent on their product is because they will sink without it. End up in this situation with a dry fly, and you have to start over. If you want to sink a nymph or a streamer, you’re in business. Additionally, you benefit from the taper transition in still water because the hinge effect is mitigated. While the sink rate of the head of your fly line, furled leader, and tippet are all going to vary, the differences aren’t going to be as drastic as a simple line/leader “hinge.” (Of course, specialty lines and custom leaders can completely eliminate this, but that takes more work and investment.) Ultimately all of this really helps in tracking where your fly is underwater as you are making your presentation.
4. Simplicity
I love furled leaders for their simplicity. Even in relatively technical fly fishing situations, I find myself utilizing the right furled leader for the job with a straight run of tippet at the end. This might really only be saving me the hassle of tying one knot instead of two, but that adds up over the course of a day. Having a few different leaders on hand allows me to quickly switch things up utilizing a loop-to-loop system. If you fish for trout in ponds, you know that you might be tossing tiny midges one minute and throwing heavy streamers the next. Being able to “de-rig” and re-rig quickly and efficiently is nice. Plus, furled leaders rarely tangle like traditional leaders do as you pack and unpack them.
There are a lot of great furled leaders out there, but I am a fan of Appalachian Furled Leader Company. The quality, price, durability, and customer service can’t be beat.