Dry Dropper

[fish4trout]

For the last year or so I have really gotten into fishing a dry dropper rig. I usually fish a Stimulator on top followed by a Micro Mayfly 2' to 3' below. What I have been noticing a lot is it seems like the fish will take the dry then when I start fighting them they are actually on the dropper. What I think must be happening is they are trying to take both flys. Has anybody else experianced anything like this?

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Born to fish forced to work.
Alan

[Garic]

when I have had this happen to me, I notice that the fish is only swirling at the dry fly not actually taking it, then as it turns away from the dry it sees the nymph or whatever on the dropper and takes that. others may have different explainations.

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Born to fish, forced to work.

[Buddy Sanders]

Alan,

What can also happen is that the fish hits the dry, but misses it, gettting the LINE from the dropper in it's mouth in the process. The dropper fly hooks the fish as the line is pulled through the trouts jaws.

Or, the fish hits the dry, you hook it, but it comes loose during the fight, with the same result as above.

I have also seen the fish have BOTH flies in it's mouth, but my speculation has always been that the fish hit the dropper fly first.... Could go either way, I guess.

Good luck!

Buddy

[J Castwell]

A small cluster of droppers (gotchagob) will usually end up with a few hooks embedded in a fish.

[fish4trout]

Buddy.... I thought that too. But they are definatly hooked inside the mouth with the dropper and I can see them actually take the dry. If they are hooked outside the mouth on there face or somthing I would say they missed the dry and got snagged by the dropper. I would love to see this from underwater to se exactly what is happening. If they are just accidently getting hooked by the dropper then obviously I would quit using this method.

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Born to fish forced to work.
Alan

[fish4trout]

gotchagob????? Is that one of your local patterns?

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Born to fish forced to work.
Alan

[J Castwell]

Common.

[kbobb]

This has happened to me also, the fish absolutely takes the dry, the strike feels good and quick but the fish shows up with the dropper in the corner of its mouth, not foul hooked. I like the theory about the dropper line pulling through the mouth on the strike.

As a variation on the gotchagob I sometimes like to use a string of three 2/0 treble hooks as a dropper...looks kind of like the bottom view of a zara spook but it really works well, I never lose a fish with this setup.

[J Castwell]

Ah,,, the old "Three Trebles". A take off on the three tenors. World wide acceptance.