Effective nymphing techniques
Peter Langlands
When it comes to river fishing there is no doubt that overall nymphing is the most effective method. In reality terrestrials and dries make up less than 5% of the trout’s diet, so effectively mastering a wide range of nymphing techniques will increase your catch rate.
Fundamentally it is very simple in many cases. You have to have your nymphs at the depth the trout are feeding at. While trout will swing horizontally some distance, at least a metre, to take a nymph, they are less likely to rise up vertically in the water column. Unless there is an emergence occurring- at which times soft hackles are highly effective. The second fundamental is that the nymphs have to be travelling at the same speed ass the river. Drag is often a death nail.
It is amazing how many times a slight alteration in the depth the nymphs are set at will make a difference. From my experience, from over seven years of guiding, making the nymphs sink deeper makes the difference. You can repeatedly cast over the trout with no response, until extra depth is achieved. Often you will get a strike on the first drift, once the nymphs have been set at the depth the trout are feeding at.
Often the challenge is getting the nymphs down deep enough. Whether you have a short lead in on the drift, or the water is turbulent, trout especially, after some angling pressure will sit deeper down in the pools.
On way is to use tungsten beads, along with a nymph, which is well weighted with lead and only has minimal dressing. These three factors combine to give a nymph with a super fast sink rate. In extreme cases I also add a tungsten sleeve, these nymphs are truly depth plungers.
Often commercial tied flies are too heavily dressed and not weighted enough. The nymphs I use do not have the same visual appeal to us, but they do to the fish, and function to get down to the right depth.
In many cases it is standard to use a “ large bomb” with a dropper, yet often after some angling pressure the bomb will alert wary fish. Also a large bomb may cause your nymphs to drift slower than the rivers flow. Often I like to use a tandem rig but with two smaller sized nymphs, say a size 14 and a size 16. By tying the nymphs with the three factors mentioned above, slim design, tungsten bead/ sleeve and lead, the smaller sized nymphs, when fished with a light tippet, will cut down into the strike zone. Also each of the nymphs is less likely to alert wary trout. These nymph designs, which my brother and me nicknamed “Slim Jims”, have been devastatingly effective, especially when fishing to browns that have had some angling pressure, and which shy away from larger nymphs.
Keeping the nymphs as non-descript as possible, with brown or green tone also is often an advantage. Also I like to use black or silver beads, as trout that have had some angling pressure will often shy away from gold beads.
Another important aspect of nymph design is to have a strong emphasis on segmentation. For this reason I often tie mayfly nymphs (one of the main species of insect taken by trout) with a white thread body, over, which I rib with finely, stretched audio tap. Using this material, which is practically free and very durable, is satisfying, and deadly.
One particular nymph, which I have found highly effective, is a horn-cased caddis tied with a body of audiotape, and a black bead at the front. With practically no dressing this nymph sinks very quickly.
While as described above I like to only use minimal dressing on my nymphs, just a small amount of soft hackle tied in behind the bead will greatly add to the look of the nymph from the trout’s perspective.
If tying larger nymphs to fish in extremely deep, or turbulent water, then again keep the dressing on the nymph to a minimum. The copper body Tongariro bomb is the epitome of this design. For this reason I rarely put bulky tails on my primary nymph, as this will markedly increase the amount of drag, and compromise sink rate.
Now that we have looked at nymph designs to sink quickly and allow you to get your nymphs in the strike zone the second factor to achieving a good sink rate on your nymphs is the drift.
I often like to fish nymphs on a short line, with the rod held high, and frequent mends made. By keeping the rod high, when fishing pools, you minimise the chance of drag on the line. Also by minimising the amount of line on the water you decrease the chance of your fly line getting dragged under the surface, which is also often a source of drag.
Also by keeping your rod high you can often, on smaller rivers fish to trout on the far bank, and it is amazing how often with a short drift, with heavy nymphs, and your rod held high that you can effectively fish to trout on the far side of the river.
Mending the line not only decreases the chance of drag on the line but an upstream mend will also increase the time that you nymphs have to sink in the water column. Often micro drag is an issue when fishing to larger, educated trout, and it is critically important that your flies are moving at exactly the same speed as the river.
It is also important to be able to track your line’s movement, so that you can anticipate the drift, make appropriate mends, and most importantly of all avoid having too much slack line on the water. For this reason fly line colour is important. I have no doubt that overall the best fly line is a dull olive green one which is easier enough for the angler to see, but subtle enough not to alert wary trout.
Also as often trout will only momentarily hold station it is important to be able to quickly select the right nymph, in weight, so take the time in the comfort of your home to organise your nymphs systematically by weight in your fly box.
Tight lines and happy nymphing this summer.
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