Indicator fishing / Stillwater

Indicator fishing for trophy trout

  • Total voters
    73
  • Poll closed .
I’m new to still water fishing and really don’t have much of an idea how to effectively fish this technique. Have watched a bunch of how to videos, just haven’t had the patience to try it out as stripping leeches have been pretty effective for me.

Guess it would have been nice to have a 4th category for a “I don’t know I’m still learning” lol
 
Skimr said:
I’m new to still water fishing and really don’t have much of an idea how to effectively fish this technique. Have watched a bunch of how to videos, just haven’t had the patience to try it out as stripping leeches have been pretty effective for me.

Guess it would have been nice to have a 4th category for a “I don’t know I’m still learning” lol
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Dedicate a day or two to bobber watching to help you get the technique dialed in and leave the streamer rod at home….or take it with you and just don’t deploy it unless you get desperate for a tug. 😉
SF
 
Bobber fishing is pretty easy.

Even a three year olds can fish bobbers and they do.

I remember the days of when we "fishing naked" before "kids" and their bobbers took over the game. Now those were the real days of chrionomid fishing.

Depth and mud is all you need to know.
 
Stonedfish said:
.or take it with you and just don’t deploy it unless you get desperate for a tug. 😉
SF
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Maybe others can relate, but, if I want to learn a new technique, I have to leave my other rods on shore, otherwise I'll give up and default back. Then I catch nothing for the day because I keep switching back and forth. That's the indecisive in me.
 
I use AI to answer all the bobber fishing questions...
🙂
 
Skimr said:
I’m new to still water fishing and really don’t have much of an idea how to effectively fish this technique. Have watched a bunch of how to videos, just haven’t had the patience to try it out as stripping leeches have been pretty effective for me.

Guess it would have been nice to have a 4th category for a “I don’t know I’m still learning” lol
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For Pete's sake don't start fishing from a small watercraft that makes trolling flies around a lake effortless (like a pedal kayak)...you'll find that having an assortment of different lines and a fishfinder will completely stunt your development of a wide flyfishing skillset...but will not impair your catch rate.

For some strange reason dragging a fly through a strata/location where shitloads of fish are hanging out seems to often work embarrassingly well. 😃
 
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jaredoconnor said:
I like the simplicity and precision of a slip bobber setup; once I set the depth, I know what I’m getting. In comparison, counting down sinking lines feels random.
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I have gotten slightly annoyed before with needing to re-set a slip indicator at 20+ feet over and over and over from my float tube. But then I remember that the reason I have to keep doing it is because I keep catching yet another fish every couple of minutes or so, and that helps take the sting out of it.
 
For me it's all about the grab, so the slowest movers I would typically fish and enjoy would be a damsel nymph, but most of the time it's something more along the lines of leach, bugger, baitfish. But there's no denying that indi-fishing can be the ticket.
 
It's a boring, but at times effective way to fish.
I prefer other methods, so don't fish under a bobber all that much anymore, life's short...
;)

Just in case I do need to resort to watching a bobber, I am prepared.

I have bobbers...
 
Matt B said:
I have gotten slightly annoyed before with needing to re-set a slip indicator at 20+ feet over and over and over from my float tube. But then I remember that the reason I have to keep doing it is because I keep catching yet another fish every couple of minutes or so, and that helps take the sting out of it.
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I stop at 18ft and switch to a 6ips line. Casting a level leader longer than that sucks the fun out of it for me.
 
Eight years ago, I read Tim's book on Stillwater strategies. It provided me with the information I needed to effectively fish Pass Lake. I saw the indicator fisherman having great success, on that lake, and learned about it from you tube. I learned about throat pumping, using two anchors, and all about indicators that slip. I had fun tying several classic chironomid patterns. I had success with balanced leeches under an indicator, but I never got enthusiastic about the chironomid scene. If my goal was to land the most poundage of trout?...Indicators hands down, with two anchors and good electronics and a throat pump.
But I like to drag a streamer through the weed bed channels, troll a leech while on a tour of the lake or throw a gurgler for surface strikes.
 
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