'One reason Paul caught more fish than anyone else was that he
had his flies in the water more than anyone else. "Brother," he would
say, "there are no flying fish in Montana. Out here, you can't catch
fish with your flies in the air."’
The narrator of A River Runs Through it conveys the love of fly fishing
in a way that reveals the fun, the humor, and the imperative of using
the right fly fishing techniques. And the experts will concur
with advice of their own. For example, many recommend three
strategies of nymphing that suggest success in even the most casual of
fly fishing experiences.
First, there’s Short-line Nymphing
Short-line nymphing is a process done in four steps, made easy to
remember and practice by Dick Galland, who has named them the four Ls:
looking, lobbing, lifting, and leading. The trick with this
technique is to get the fish to consider the artificial fly as if it
were a real, living one, and at the same time be able to detect when
the fish takes. This maneuver, then, allows the fisherman to
present the fly in a loose enough way that it is as if it were
seemingly drifting along naturally…and at the same time, hold the rod
(and line) taut enough to be able to register when a fish strikes.
A second fly fishing technique is In-line Indicator Nymphing.
In-line indicator nymphing is designed for fly fishing stances that are
too far from the shallow (wadeable) water or are not allowing access to
a cove pocket or to fish that easily spooked for one reason or
another. Attaching a strike indicator—with strike putty and
polypropylene yarn (which is light, easily adjusted, and easily seen
from a distance)—Galland points out, lends itself to maximum allowances
for a sensitive drift and a minimum of drag.
And third, there’s Puffball Nymphing
While the short-line and the in-line nymphing strategies are ideal for
deep water up to five or six feet and pocket water, the deeper waters
and the clear waters require something more effective: the puffball (a
strike indicator of macraméd yarn). And as Galland and
others advise, the best approach to use is work the puffball the same
way you would an artificial fly, fishing it with no drag whatsoever.
Such is the advice of the pros, experienced and good-humored fishermen
who know what it takes to straighten up and fly fish right.
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