Fishy Fridays by Confident Angler: One fly fishing tip, one fly to try, and one inspirational post to get you fired up to fish this weekend. 🎣
Hey Reader,
How’s it going? Dang, it got cold here in Boise quick. Felt like I was just talking about how unusually warm winter has been. Shoulda kept my mouth shut. 😂
Anyway, are you going to any fly fishing expos this winter? The Western Idaho Fly Fishing Expo starts today. At the time of writing this week’s issue, I’m not sure I’ll be able to swing in there but we’ll see.
If you're hitting an expo this year, you'll hear a lot about gear and flies. But honestly, most of us just need to nail the basics first. Like this one...
Want a simple way to check your drift speed? Watch the bubbles.
Those little foam bubbles on the surface move at the exact speed of the current. No drag. No resistance. Just floating naturally downstream.
When I'm nymphing, I want my indicator moving at the same speed or even slightly slower than the bubbles. That tells me my flies are deep enough, probably ticking bottom or hanging in the slower currents where trout actually hold.
If my indicator is moving faster than the bubbles around it, something's pulling it forward too quickly. Usually, that's my fly line dragging from a faster seam. Time to mend.
If it's moving way slower or just sitting there? I'm too deep. Probably catching rocks or debris. That's when I know my flies are too heavy or my indicator is set too deep.
Dry flies are different. I want an exact match. Same speed as the bubbles, nothing more. Any drag makes the fly look unnatural and trout notice. Unless you're intentionally twitching or skating a fly, match the bubbles.
Bubbles don't lie. Keep your eye on them and they'll tell you when it's time to adjust.
Blue Winged Olives (BWOs) hatch on cold, cloudy days when most bugs stay hidden. Trout rise to them all winter. The RS2 sits just under the surface. Its slim body and trailing shuck look like a mayfly stuck mid-hatch. Try dropping it 12-18 inches below a small dry fly in slower water.
I have no idea how many fish this one fly has put in my net, but it's a lot. Anytime I'm struggling to get a take during a BWO hatch, this is usually the second fly I tie on. For some reason it just does the trick for me when trout are being really picky.
Clean drifts matter too, of course. Match the speed of the bubbles and you're in the game.
📸 One Inspiring Post
Is a double snake roll necessary to catch fish? Probably not. Is it one of the coolest casts in fly fishing? Absolutely.
This slow-mo clip from @scotia_fishing is pure eye candy. Watch how he sets his anchor point with two perfect loops before loading up his rod and then shooting his fly across the river.
It's the kind of cast that makes you want to grab your spey rod and practice until dark.
P.S. There are 10 skills that make or break your confidence on the water. I've organized them into a framework I call my River Ready System™. And my free Confident Angler Assessment scores you on all 10. You also get a simple roadmap showing exactly what to focus on next. Takes about 5 minutes.
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