I fish the Clinch river in Tennessee and I am having a hard time understanding how to fish nymths,and I have a problem with how to retrieve the line when I use wet flies. I end up with alot of line in the water when I go to casting back out. Can I get a little help here. Thanks. Roger You can tell I’m new at this.
Hello Ninjaturtle, Just wanted to say welcome aboard to FAOL from So Cal. Since you are in Tennessee I’m sure some of our members there will chime in when they see your post. This is a top notch outfit.
Joining a local fly fishing club may be in order.
Actually nymphing is a skill that is better hands on taught than told how to. Retrieving line is done by stripping it back in. The use of a stripping basking keeps most line out of the water. Oh yeah. Practice, Practice, Practice. Jim
Hey ninjaturtle!!
A big welcome from South Central Tennessee!!:D:D
We do a lot of wet fly fishing here. I use the across and down method giving the fly short strips while it is swinging. A lot of fish are caught at the end of the swing so don’t be too quick to make another cast.
I have made a red mark on my fly line with a Sharpie Pen that is at “MY” comfort zone to lift and cast. I strip in untill the mark is at my rod tip. This reduces the number of bad/poor casts and I spend a lot more time fishing instead of untangeling!
On our tail waters here most of us use a furled leader made of 4# test Berkley Transition Flourocarbon. It lets you throw longer tippets and sinks like a rock to get the fly down deep and quick. Contact me at jackhise@charter.net and I’ll send you one.
Having someone show you is best (guide or friend) but absent this opportunity, I’d suggest getting a copy of Nymphing by Gary Borger. I’d suggest getting both a copy of the DVD and the book (both of the same name), if you can afford both.
Joe Humphreys is another good nympher to learn from. He as a few how to videos on DVD, and Joe actually taught fly fishing classes at the University level in Pennsylvania.
Hey NinjaTurtle,
I only started this fly fishing stuff 15 months ago. Love fishing the Clinch - though lately they keep pushing too much water (especially when I have time to fish) for me to do much there.
Like Jack said, I like that across and down approach. Seems to be quite productive. Size and color of the nymphs are likely the most important factor. Think small and black most of the time.
Good luck! Hope to see you on the water.
John R
Hey Ninja- you’ve gotten good suggestions on the books, dvd’s and joining a club like a local chapter of Trout unlimited or Federation of Fly Fishers. It’s the best way to jump start your FF career- clubs have group trips, informative meetings and casting clinics etc.
You can do a search for one here for an FFF club near you:
http://www.fedflyfishers.org/Default.aspx?tabid=4357
and here for TU http://www.tu.org/site/c.kkLRJ7MSKtH/b.3041427/k.5CE6/CouncilChapter_Search.htm
There are a bunch of different ways to fish nymphs. This link might be helpful for you. Part 1 of wet flies discusses different ways to rig up, and Part 2 covers several different ways to fish nymphs and wets. Hopefully 1 or more will work for you. There are also some good articles and tips on presenting dry flies:
http://www.westfly.com/basic-skills/basic-skills.php
Good luck!
mark