SilverFly
Legend
I see you are of no help whatsoeverOnly way to truly test that would be for me to go there.
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Detecting the take (euro nymphing)
- Thread starter Wasatchangler
- Start date
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SpeyrodGB
Life of the Party
I’m a sighter watcher, when I tightline fish. I lighten up my leader starting with 12 lb Amnesia. I alternate colors, orange then green etc. I also upgraded from the carbon xl to a Diamondback Ideal nymph rod. Big difference. I found that jigging a streamer, I feel more takes than just standard dead drifting.
DerekWhipple
Steelhead
I'm also in the camp of "if you're doing it just by feel, you're missing most of your takes".
I just keep up with whatever Devin Olson is posting on youtube. My whole leader is now just 15 feet of 4x sighter + 6x tippet if I am nymphing (been meaning to pick up 5x sighter to replace it). Using as light a leader as possible helps detect more takes, lets you use smaller flies and fish at a longer distance. Also, if you euro-nymph a lot, it is for sure worth it to spring for one of the better dedicated euro rods (echo shadow x, diamondback ideal, t&t contact II, etc.). They are so light, so much less fatigue, and you will feel everything.
Devin's site is still the best I think. He is still in the competition world, so he is always updating his tactics and learning from competitive anglers around the world. Other sites are helpful and can be good for those starting from the beginning, but I think a lot of them seem to just have learned from a guide or school and then stick with whatever rigs and methods they learned with.
Good examples of visual takes:
In this one he explains the importance of a lighter leader to help detect takes (less mass in the leader means more leader movement when the fish bites).
I just keep up with whatever Devin Olson is posting on youtube. My whole leader is now just 15 feet of 4x sighter + 6x tippet if I am nymphing (been meaning to pick up 5x sighter to replace it). Using as light a leader as possible helps detect more takes, lets you use smaller flies and fish at a longer distance. Also, if you euro-nymph a lot, it is for sure worth it to spring for one of the better dedicated euro rods (echo shadow x, diamondback ideal, t&t contact II, etc.). They are so light, so much less fatigue, and you will feel everything.
Devin's site is still the best I think. He is still in the competition world, so he is always updating his tactics and learning from competitive anglers around the world. Other sites are helpful and can be good for those starting from the beginning, but I think a lot of them seem to just have learned from a guide or school and then stick with whatever rigs and methods they learned with.
Good examples of visual takes:
In this one he explains the importance of a lighter leader to help detect takes (less mass in the leader means more leader movement when the fish bites).
I'm far far far from a full fledged euro nymph nerd, and if I trout fished a bit more, I'd be looking at one of those higher end rigs as well (mine is some unknown blank built up by Shane at Graywolf & is a bit too full flexing to be a top notch Euro rod, but I seem to catch a decent number regardless).
But to your point, Devin is the best evolving resource out there.
For my general all around setup I had been using a 15lb monorig. This year I dropped down to 8lb chameleon for my primary leader and found it to actually be easier and nearly as versatile....then down to 5x at the terminal end (I tend to horse my fish in).
Great video resources above.
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Some good info in this thread. In addition, I’d add - when your flies hit the water you want to have control and a fairly tight line to them. Other videos that i can’t recall but probably George Daniel and I’m sure tactical ff explains it better but often do a tuck cast or something to get the flies in the water and then I call it “walk the flies down” so you are not super tight but reasonably so, can more likely detect strike as it drops. But it also gives you the ability to ‘start’ the drift of the fly when you want. May not make a ton of sense but it’s just a way to be in Contact with your flies from the beginning. That helped me detect more strikes regardless of visual or feel.
Next I’d say with heavier rigs I can be more in contact with the fly (often moving them a little faster than current) and thus would feel it more. With lighter flies, it’s much more visual. And some days are just a mixup.
Lastly kinda like hooksets are free, start to think of where in each drift you should get the take and you’ll start to look for more reasons to set the hook. That trick seems to be one that is often a little better throughout the day when you have gotten a few and have a better idea (are the fish hunkered down or at head of run, when you’re fishing whatever likely holding water are they grabbing the flies almost immediately or say half way through the drift when flies are deepest)
Next I’d say with heavier rigs I can be more in contact with the fly (often moving them a little faster than current) and thus would feel it more. With lighter flies, it’s much more visual. And some days are just a mixup.
Lastly kinda like hooksets are free, start to think of where in each drift you should get the take and you’ll start to look for more reasons to set the hook. That trick seems to be one that is often a little better throughout the day when you have gotten a few and have a better idea (are the fish hunkered down or at head of run, when you’re fishing whatever likely holding water are they grabbing the flies almost immediately or say half way through the drift when flies are deepest)
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jaredoconnor
Peabrain Chub
Using the lightest mono rig that you can tolerate improves visual strike detection a lot. You can also try putting backing barrels on your sighter. Beyond that, it’s just practice.
Note that you shouldn’t be tight to the flies the whole time. If you do that, you’re almost definitely dragging the flies. You should slip in and out of contact, throughout the drift. If you are tight to the flies, you will generally see and feel the take at the same time. It’s only when you don’t have full contact that “reading the sighter” becomes meaningful; the sighter will move first and all slack/sag will need to be taken out before the rod tip moves.
Note that you shouldn’t be tight to the flies the whole time. If you do that, you’re almost definitely dragging the flies. You should slip in and out of contact, throughout the drift. If you are tight to the flies, you will generally see and feel the take at the same time. It’s only when you don’t have full contact that “reading the sighter” becomes meaningful; the sighter will move first and all slack/sag will need to be taken out before the rod tip moves.
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DerekWhipple
Steelhead
Another reason for folks to get a dedicated euro rod if one does this a lot: Euro rods are designed to have quick recovery speed so they stop wobbling faster than other rods. Helps get your leader off the water and get in contact to start drifting and being able to detect a take as quick as possible.
incredibly well worded response!
For me, the backing barrel knots on my sighter (I have 4 alternating colors on my ~2.5' of sighter) were the primary game changer, but lightening up on the mono rig helps a ton too, but one definitely has to get accustomed to casting with it the lighter one goes.
Agee with Clarkman. This is a great explanation.
I will add that the body of water determines a lot of how you will approach "euro"......when I fish the D, a good percentage to the time I am using a really heavy rig. It's, a big, brawling, river. More weight is the answer often times. I have to remind myself to shed some weight when I fish smaller water. Weight management, or balancing the rig, is very important, for obvious reasons.