Unweighted dynamite

Ok, here's the deal:

The following is the most effective way I know to
fish small, unweighted nymphs in medium to deep water.
This isn't necessarily a tailwater strategy, and it's definately
not a spring creek deal. It is, for instance, the way I like
to nymph-fish rivers like Montana's Gallatin, Yellowstone and
Madison above Ennis.

Strike indicators have made a big splash recently. I use them
a lot myself. Except my strike indicator
is always a fly of some sort--so I can catch fish on the
bobber too; sometimes it's a bushy #15 PMD in front of
an emerger, and sometimes a big foam-bodied fly on top
of a fat stonefly nymph.

But indicator fishing doesn't work so well for bottom
hugging riffle fish, and even less well for nymphing
into deep, rolling runs.

In freestone streams and rivers--especially for rivers
like Montana's Yellowstone--the most reliably effective
way to fish nymphs is to fish an unweighted, free drifting
nymph in deep water.

One way to do that is with a short leader and sink tip
line. But that strategy doesn't work well for small
nymphs because it is too hard to vibe out subtle
strikes. Short leader sink tip rigs are
better suited to unweighted streamer fishing.

Another way (to fish unweighted nymphs in deep water)
is to put weight on an extra-long leader, and to fish without
any indicator. When fish aren't up near the surface, sipping
emergers or gulping dry flies, it doesn't mean you can't
catch fish. It means you have to fish deep with an unweighted fly.

All of the very best nymph fishermen I've ever encountered
fish that way, usually with a surprising amount of split shot
on the leader, 18" to 30" up from the actual nymph.

So here's my twist. I've actually posted this once before.
But as time drifts by, I've become more convinced
this is the very best way to fish small nymphs:

....Use an extra heavy barbell-eyed Crazy Charly as the weight,
rather than split shot. There're two reasons for this:

1) The Crazy Charlie does the same job:
it gets the unweighted nymph down into deep water, but it
also catches fish. It never catches as many fish as the small
nymph, but it almost always catches bigger fish. Often
(usually, in fact) the biggest fish of the day.

2) The crazy charlie is flashy. Because of its pearly-white
crystal flash wing, it catches the fish's attention--
much like a miniature trolling-rig cow bell. The fish do a double
take when the see the Crazy Charlie drift by. And then
they take the nymph.

I'm into my third season fishing this way now, and my
success rate (especially for bigger fish) has never
been so high. I figured this technique out by accident,
several years ago, when fishing the North Platte in Wyoming,
near Gray Reef dam. So, the obvious name for the rig
is the "Gray Reefer." The name is joke, sort of, but
the technique is deadly serious. The Gray Reefer is dynamite.
Works like magic.

Salmo Bytes wrote:

...Use an extra heavy barbell-eyed Crazy Charly as the weight,
rather than split shot. There're two reasons for this:

1) The Crazy Charlie does the same job:
it gets the unweighted nymph down into deep water, but it
also catches fish. It never catches as many fish as the small
nymph, but it almost always catches bigger fish. Often
(usually, in fact) the biggest fish of the day.

2) The crazy charlie is flashy. Because of its pearly-white
crystal flash wing, it catches the fish's attention--
much like a miniature trolling-rig cow bell. The fish do a double
take when the see the Crazy Charlie drift by. And then
they take the nymph.

I'm into my third season fishing this way now, and my
success rate (especially for bigger fish) has never
been so high. I figured this technique out by accident,
several years ago, when fishing the North Platte in Wyoming,
near Gray Reef dam. So, the obvious name for the rig
is the "Gray Reefer." The name is joke, sort of, but
the technique is deadly serious. The Gray Reefer is dynamite.
Works like magic.


Using a Crazy Charlie is interesting. Since you don't use an indicator,
do you watch the leader for takes or do you fish an almost tight line to
feel the takes? Are you short line fishing the flies?

On big heavy water I'll use weight plus a big stonefly as the lead fly
with a small one as a dropper and after letting the fly sink, I fish it
with an almost tight line to sense the take. I make long casts and cover
alot of water with the technique. It can can be very productive when the
fish are aggressively feeding but most of the time, I'm sure I miss the
majority of the takes.


Willi

Willi wrote in message ...

Using a Crazy Charlie is interesting. Since you don't use an indicator,
do you watch the leader for takes or do you fish an almost tight line to
feel the takes?
Are you short line fishing the flies?


When fising without an indicator, and especially with weight on the leader,
I tend to fish upstream and short with a tight straight line.
Sometimes you need to make a long cast, just to get enough sink
time. But the fishing part of the drift still ends up short,
close and straight.

I (think I) remember, from "Larger Trout for the Western Fly
Fisherman," that Charles Brooks argues against tight line nymphing.
But I just dont' believe it. I've watched George Anderson pull
more fish out of the water, without taking a step, than you would
imagine possible. He doesn't fish with loops of slack in his line,
ala Brooks. And he is the best.