10-23-2008, 10:59 PM
Flyfishing can be the most technique-intensive sport found in the world. But I don't find small stream fishing to be any more or less difficult than others. It just requires other thechniques is all.
I actually prefer fishing headwater streams and pocket water, because for me it's more challenging. Let's face it, when your leader is longer than the amount of line you're using, life is a lot more different than getting one of those long, drag-free floats on, say, the Madison or parts of the Ausable.
Anyway, one thing to try, when encountering conditions such as you describe, is to remember that you're not on an English chalk stream, and their rules don't apply. Try reversing direction, for instance, with a downstream presentation of one sort or another. Maybe a soft-hackle fly is in the cards. Or perhaps you need to be dapping?
As a technique, dragging the line through the rocks can be effective, as you say. But too much of that can tear up an expensive fly line. So I'd save it as a last resort.
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I actually prefer fishing headwater streams and pocket water, because for me it's more challenging. Let's face it, when your leader is longer than the amount of line you're using, life is a lot more different than getting one of those long, drag-free floats on, say, the Madison or parts of the Ausable.
Anyway, one thing to try, when encountering conditions such as you describe, is to remember that you're not on an English chalk stream, and their rules don't apply. Try reversing direction, for instance, with a downstream presentation of one sort or another. Maybe a soft-hackle fly is in the cards. Or perhaps you need to be dapping?
As a technique, dragging the line through the rocks can be effective, as you say. But too much of that can tear up an expensive fly line. So I'd save it as a last resort.
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