Fly Fishing Reporter » European Nymphing

[DVD] European Nymphing Techniques

Ken Sperry — Thu, 02 Dec 2010 16:47:18 +0000

I've followed Aaron Jasper and his ascent in the fly fishing world, namely through his tireless pursuit to perfect European nymphing techniques, and written extensively (see article list below) about the short- and long-line nymphing techniques, including Czech nymphing and French nymphing he teaches.

Now, after over three years of research, practical testing, and instruction both on the stream and in the classroom, Aaron has come out with European Nymphing - Techniques & Fly Tying an instructional DVD that will show you how-to master European nymphing techniques. If you have not had the benefit of attending one of Aaron's European nymphing classes in person (or even if you have), then be sure to put this DVD on your must have list.

European Nymphing - Techniques & Fly Tying with Aaron Jasper available on Amazon

Congrats Aaron!

FFR Articles on European Nymphing Techniques

Euro Nymphing: Czech Nymphing, French Nymphing, Spanish Nymphing
How-to Build a Czech Nymphing Leader
How-to Rig a 2-Fly Czech Nymphing Setup
How-to Build a French / Spanish Nymphing Leader
How-to Tie a Davy Knot
How-to Make a Backing Sighter for a European Nymphing Rig
How-to Make a European Nymphing Coiled Mono Sighter
European Nymphing Fly Rod Craze or Bandwagon?

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4 Tips to Catching Big Trout Down Deep

Ken Sperry — Tue, 08 Jun 2010 03:55:10 +0000

This Fly Fishing Tip is brought to you by RiverBum.com and Jake Ricks of Utah Fly Guides.

What Lies Beneath

There’s just something in all of us that wants to know what lies beneath. That’s a big part of the reason we fish. The deeper and darker the run or pool on a river the more we are inclined to think that a big old trout is hunkered down there with what looks to us like an ornery toothy frown on its face.

The good news: Our assumptions are correct a lot of the time. Every time I’ve seen or heard reports of electro-shock studies on rivers they pull some behemoth up from the bottom, even in streams with mostly small fish.

The bad news: Old big trout are tough to catch. You can find and fool them occasionally, but if I could get them every time, my guiding services would be in much greater demand.

Here are 4 tips to help you catch big trout:

1. Fish When Big Trout Are Feeding

Night is generally best. Morning and evening are good, as is runoff time. You won’t need to fish as deep when it’s dark. You may even get big fish to come up to hit mice and other big dries skated at night. Streamers are also very good in the low-light hours. Fish them slowly across the current or across and down with a short twitchy retrieve.

2. Fish Heavy Flies - Get Down Deep

I generally employ some type of European nymphing techniques like Czech/Polish nymphing with 2 or 3 very heavy weighted nymphs. (dead drifting heavy streamers also works) My nymphs for these situations are big, sometimes size 4, 6, or 8, and are generally tungsten beaded or double tungsten beaded. Cast short casts upstream of the target zone, let the flies sink, and drag your flies slowly along the bottom of the deep dark runs and holes with a tight line. Feel for unusual bumps and tightening of the line, then set the hook. You will lose flies. If you don’t lose some you need more weight. You can also fish these spots with traditional indicator rigs but remember you will need a long leader and big indicator. (Thingamabobber are by far the best indicators if you have to fish one.)

Ken chiming in here. If you are interested in learning more about the nymphing techniques Jake is discussing there are a number of good books on european nymphing available now.

3. Fish Heavy Flourocarbon Leaders

Flouro sinks faster and stretches a little less than nylon monofilament. It will sink better and transmit the feel of strikes faster. I like to use flat (not tapered) 2X flourocarbon leaders if I’m going after big fish in deep spots.

Ken again. I use Seaguar AbrazX flourocarbon for all my euro nymphing leaders. Save some money and get a big spool of Seaguar AbrazX fluorocarbon fishing line.

4. Lengthen Your Leader

Sounds basic but you’d be surprised at the resistance to doing this one: Lengthen your leader when it’s deep. Too many people fish with a 9 foot tapered leader all the time. That type of leader only really let’s you fish the top 4 feet of the water effectively. Fish a flat leader (not tapered) if you are nymphing and lengthen the leader to at least 1 1/2 times the suspected depth of the run you are fishing + 1 foot or so. If you guess it’s 6 feet deep then go 10 feet. If you think it’s 8 feet then a 13 foot leader is necessary. If you think it’s 12 feet deep then good luck casting the thing, but you’ll need 19 feet of leader or so to fish down to the bottom of the hole. One river I fish a lot, the Green River, has a few huge fish that hang out down at 15 to 20 feet. I just wave as I drift by.

There really are big trout down there. Get out there. Lengthen those leaders and catch one!

Jake Ricks
Fly Fishing Professional, Guide, and Author

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[Video] Man’s Last Stand – Make it with a Fly Rod

Ken Sperry — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 18:16:26 +0000

I know this is a bit off-topic but this commercial from the Superbowl last night hit a little too close to home and had me cracking up so I had to share it just in case you missed it. This is one of those commercials that really gets you thinking.

Click here to watch video.

Man's Last Stand

Not a car buff? No problem, just substitute the car for one of those fly rods you have been eying up. Spring is coming and you know you want one of those new 10- or 11-foot nymphing fly rods that are all the rage these days and perfect for high stick or euro nymphing and swinging wet flies.

So what are you waiting for? Are you going to man-up and get one or just take out the recycling, make dinner and watch Twilight (vampire chick-flick) again like a good boy?

Your choice. I say take a stand!

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European Nymphing Fly Rod Craze or Bandwagon?

Ken Sperry — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 14:00:40 +0000

Euro Nymphing Fly Rod Race

Well I guess European nymphing, or Euro nymphing, is officially a craze with several major manufacturers looking to get in on the action with new longer specialty fly rods targeting the US market this year.

European Nymphing Craze

I'm not exactly sure when it happened but European nymphing techniques including short-line Czech nymphing, and long-line French nymphing and Spanish nymphing have started to enter the mainstream here in the US. As evidence of this, just look at the number of manufacturers selling 10-foot, even 11-foot, fly rods here in the US.

European Nymphing Rods

Here are a few of the more popular fly rods available in the US that are well suited for the highly effective Czech, French and Spanish nymphing techniques that are all the rage these days.

Fly Rod Model

Length

Weight

Price

Cabelas CZN Series

Cortland Brook Series

TFO Pro Series

Greys Streamflex Series

G. Loomis Max Czech Nymph GLX

Hardy Marksman Drifter

Sage 99 Series

Sage Z-Axis

Orvis ZG Helios 104-4

10 foot

10 or 11 foot

9 foot 9 inch

10 foot

4 or 5 weight

5 weight

3 or 4 weight

5 weight

4 or 5 weight

4 weight

$200

$300

$650

$700

$775

Of course you don't need a new rod to try out some of these euro nymphing techniques but having that extra foot or so really does make it a lot easier.

Tight lines!

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[Video] How-to Make a Backing Sighter for a European Nymphing Rig

Ken Sperry — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 20:27:30 +0000

Click here to watch video.

Add a little color to your European nymphing leader with a backing sighter and see strikes like never before. Learn how in this short video from Trout Predator Online.

What’s Backing Sighter?

Simple to make, a colorful backing sighter makes a great alternative to a coiled monofilament sighter when French nymphing or Spanish nymphing. Inserted midway down your long-line nymphing leader and fished at or above the water interface a backing sighter is just plain fun to fish.

How to Make Backing Sighter

Not only is a backing sighter fun to fish, it is also fun and simple to make. Tie two equal lengths of differently colored Dacron backing material together with a blood knot and finish with a loop on each end – that’s it!

I don’t bother with the needle threaded loops as shown in the video but instead use a Perfection loop. It’s faster and the sighter is not going in and out of the guides very often while fishing so the knots hanging on the guide are not a big deal.

I prefer an orange and chartreuse barred backing sighter. Barring is easily done by wrapping the sighter around a pencil and coloring a quarter of the sighter with a permanent black marker.

Backing Sighter Versus Coiled Monofilament Sighter

We gave high praise to the coiled monofilament sighter in our last post, so why use a backing sighter?

A coiled mono sighter is more sensitive and effective in strike detection than a backing sighter but it is also harder to see. For this reason, I tend to favor a backing sighter during low light conditions as we often have to deal with during late fall and winter.

What’s Next?

Tie up a backing sighter or two in different colors and give European nymphing a try. Not that you need one to get started, if you are in the market for a new or used Euro nymphing rod, stay tuned for our next post where we review some of the nymphing fly rods on the market that are well suited to the European style of fishing nymphs.

Enjoy!

[Video] How-to Make a European Nymphing Coiled Mono Sighter

Ken Sperry — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 22:15:25 +0000

Click here to watch video.

This quick video tutorial shows you how to build a coiled mono sighter used in place of a strike indicator when fly fishing with nymphs.

Used in several European nymphing methods, including French Nymphing and Spanish nymphing techniques, a coiled mono sighter greatly increases strike detection.

What’s a Sighter

The concept of a sighter was introduced in our last post on how to build a French / Spanish nymphing leader where we introduced two types of sighters including a coiled mono sighter and a backing sighter.

How-to Make a Coiled Mono Sighter

Making a coiled mono sighter is very easy. There are 3 basic steps:

1. Wrap hard monofilament around a cylindrical shaped object
2. Boiled for 5-minutes
3. Freeze

The heating and cooling cycle sets a coil into the monofilament resulting in what looks like a spring made from monofilament. Watch the video for more details.

How-to Rig a Coiled Sighter

When French nymphing or Spanish nymphing the coiled sighter is typically tied in about midway down the leader. I prefer loop-to-loop connections for ease of use. Alternatively, you might use a Davy Wotton Leader Knot to attach the upper end of the sighter to the butt section of the leader and use a loop-to-loop connection between the sighter and tippet section.

Give It A Try!

You may garner a few strange looks when you whip out your coiled mono sighter stream side and even a few giggles as you begin to fling this thing about. But trust me; the laughing will stop when you start out fishing everyone on the stream!

I guarantee you will be amazed, that is if you are willing to give it a try.

The Beat Goes On

We’re in the home stretch of our European nymphing tutorial . Next up we'll take a look at how to build a backing sighter and then we'll finish out the series with a European nymphing fly rod review – yee haw!

Now stop reading this and go boil some mono!

[How-to] Build a French / Spanish Nymphing Leader

Ken Sperry — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 21:10:34 +0000

French / Spanish Nymphing Leader

I’ve been experimenting with European fly fishing nymphing techniques including Czech nymphing, French nymphing and Spanish nymphing. The Europeans have been kicking butt in international fly fishing competitions for years using these techniques for fishing nymphs so I figured they were worth a look.

Czech Nymphing

In the last few posts we covered Czech nymphing, a short-line nymphing technique the Czech’s and Polish fancy, including how to rig short-line nymphing leaders. Czech nymphing is similar to what we call High Stick nymphing here in the states, albeit there are a number of differences that make Czech nymphing more effective.

French / Spanish Nymphing Leaders

Shown above is a French / Spanish nymphing leader setup, a version of which I learned from Aaron Jasper of Trout Predator Online during one of his European Nymphing Clincs. There really is no set formula for this type of leader setup so I’d hesitate to call this typical but common to the French and Spanish nymphing techniques is the use of long, thin leaders, and I mean long.

Generally, the longer the better when fishing nymphs for wild fish or fish that receive a lot of angling pressure. The leader setup can and needs to be varied depending on the type and condition of water you are fishing (e.g., speed, depth, clarity, etc.).

What’s a Sighter?

You’ll notice something called a sighter in the French / Spanish nymphing leader diagram shown above. What is it? Well, in competitive fly fishing the use of strike indicators added to your line is prohibited. To get around (I mean comply with) this regulation the Europeans often incorporate a length of color monofilament into their leaders to aid in strike detection. Colored Dacron backing material also makes a great sighter.

Coiled Mono sighter

As the use of colored mono in competition is frowned upon by some, the French took this concept a bit further and developed the coiled mono sighter. This basically looks like a spring made from monofilament.

The backing sighter or coiled mono sighter is tied in about half way down the leader and fished with a taunt line right above or at the water interface. Fished with properly rigged flies the sighter is super sensitive and will help you see even the most subtle strikes.

Spanish Nymphing Leader - Going Long

Accustomed to fishing for spooky wild brown trout the Spanish have taken long-line nymphing to an extreme. It you want to have any chance of catching one of the very elusive Fario brown trout that exist in the Pyrenees mountains, as Hemingway did in the 20’s, you need to use long (and I mean long) thin leaders, upwards of 30 feet!

To build a Spanish nymphing leader, take the diagram above and stretch it out to 25 to 30 feet, lighten up the mono used in the butt sections and extend the tippets down to 6x or 7x for use with lighter flies, both dries and nymphs.

If this sounds like something that is a pain in the arse to cast, your right! Kind of makes you wonder why they bother. I suppose the beautiful trout, stunning scenery and the challenge of it all has some thing to do with it.

How-to Cast a Long-Line Nymphing Rig

In short, it’s takes some getting used to casting these long-line nymphing rigs. Here are 3 tips:

First and foremost you need a longer rod with a slower action than is typically used here in the states.
Secondly, you need to slow down your cast.
Lastly, you need to be patient and willing to practice.

This technique is not for everybody but is well worth it for those who persist (like most things in life – go figure). If you would like to reduce the learning curve, I'd highly recommend attending an on-stream European nymphing clinc. The clinc I attended really changed my whole approach to fly fishing nymphs.

French / Spanish Nymphing Fly Rods

As for fly rods, most of the Europeans use a 10 to 12-foot rod. This helps tremendously. In particular, the longer rod helps with line control and keeping line off the water, two elements that are important when fishing like a European.

I started Euro nymphing using an 8.5 ft rod and just about went insane. I went up to a 9-ft rod and it got a little easier. I am now using a 10-ft rod and am finally starting to get the hang of it but I see an 11-ft rod in my future (I’m just not so sure my wife does!).

I like How the French Do It (nymphing that is)

The French nymphing style, for me, was like Goldie Locks finding the bed that was not too hard and not too soft, but just right. A cross between Czech nymphing and Spanish nymphing techniques (at least as I understand it), the French nymphing style suits me well.

Fished upstream in a quarterly motion while maintaining a tight-line and leading your flies slightly ahead of the current, an 18-foot French nymphing setup (diagram shown above) allows you to keep some distance from the fish yet remain in good contact with your flies. Add in the phenomenal strike detection you get with the coiled mono sighter and you’ve got a winning combination!

What’s Next?

Next up we will delve into the mysterious world of sighters, including two video tutorials to show you how to build a backing sighter and how to build a coiled mono sighter. Lastly, we will conclude this mini-series on European nymphing with a review of fly rods best suited to the European nymphing style and more importantly where to get them!

Go Euro or Go Home!

[Video] How-to Tie a Davy Knot

Ken Sperry — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 06:51:42 +0000

Click here to watch video.

Davy Knot??

In my last post about rigging a Czech nymphing setup the Davy Knot was mentioned a few times and few folks asked the obvious question - what's a Davy Knot.

Field Tested and Super Strong

This knot was developed by fishing legend Davy Wotton , featured in the DVD Wet Fly Ways, and is a great alternative to the improved clinch knot for attaching flies to the tippet. It is also great for stepping down line sizes when building leaders as it is a very small knot that passes through guides well. It is a really simple but very strong knot (rated at full line strength). I've been using if for about a year now and have not had one fail.

Never Tie A Clinch Knot (again)

Practice the Davy Knot a few times at home and then give it a try the next time you go out. If you do, you'll never tie an improved clinch knot again - guaranteed!

Go get em!

[Video] How-to Rig a 2-Fly Czech Nymphing Setup

Ken Sperry — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 16:00:40 +0000

Click here to watch video.

A little intimidated by the thought of fishing 3 or 4 flies like the Czech’s do? So was I, and frankly it’s a bit of a pain in the butt. Not to worry though, a 2-fly Czech nymph setup works pretty darn well too.

2-Fly European Nymphing Rig

In this video tutorial Aaron Jasper of Trout Predator Online shows us how to rig a 2-fly European nymphing setup that can be used with a Czech nymphing leader or when fishing a Spanish or French style nymphing setup.

A Simple Dropper Fly Setup

The setup as shown in the video is often used by the Spanish and French and consists of 5 feet of 5X fluorocarbon tippet material coming off a backing sighter or coiled-mono sighter to an anchor fly. A second, lighter fly, is tied off a dropper about 20-inches above the anchor fly. We will discuss how to make and use a backing sighter and coiled sighter in our next few articles on Spanish and French nymphing techniques.

The same 2-fly setup can be used to build a Czech nymphing leader, only we would not need the sighter using this short-line nymphing technique.

Improved Surgeons Knot

The dropper fly is tied in using a double or triple Surgeons Knot, as shown in the video (I know it is a little hard to see), or an Orvis Tippet Knot can be used. When using a Surgeons knot I take the dropper tag and throw a half-hitch above the Surgeons Knot. This makes the dropper come off the leader at more of a right angle and helps reduce tangles. The Surgeons and Orvis Tippet Knots are illustrated at Orvis Animated Knots.

Note: When tying in the dropper make sure to attach the fly to the lower tag end of the Surgeons Knot. If you use the upper tag (the one going back toward the fly line) the knot will come apart. I learned this the hard way, several times!

Spanish / French Nymphing Techniques

Spanish nymphing and French nymphing techniques; are they all that different? Find out in our next article on how to build a French/Spanish nymphing leader as our mini-series on European nymphing techniques.

Enjoy!

[Video] How-to Build a Czech Nymphing Leader

Ken Sperry — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 22:35:22 +0000

Czech Nymphing Leader

Aaron Jasper demonstrates a Davy Wotton leader knot that can be used to construct a Czech nymphing leader. I attended Aaron's Euro Nymphing Clinc earlier this year where he demonstrated how to build and fish a Czech nymphing rig. If what follows sounds confusing, trust me it's not. It's just hard to explain. If you get a chance I'd highly recommend attending a clinc like the one Aaron put's on or getting out on the water with a guide who is proficient using European nymphing techniques. Until then, give this a try.

A typical Czech nymphing rig is 10 to 14 feet long and consists of:

3 feet 20 lb monofilament (Golden Stren is often used to aid in strike detection)
2 feet 14 lb mono
3 to 6 feet of 4x or 5X fluorocarbon to the first fly tied on a dropper (usually a smaller nymph)
18 to 24 inches of 4x or 5x fluorocarbon to the anchor fly (usually the heaviest nymph, e.g. Czech nymph) tied on a dropper in a 3-fly rig or at the end of the tippet in a 2-fly rig
18 to 24 inches of 5x fluorocarbon to the last fly in a 3-fly rig

The droppers are typically tied in with an Orivs Tippet Knot or a Triple Surgeons knot with a 4" to 6" tag.

The key to this leader setup is that it is built with smaller diameter mono as opposed to a traditional tapered leader, as is favored in the US, which has a thick, heavy butt section. The smaller diameter mono, and fluorocarbon tippet (which is heavier than other mono tippet materials), enable the leader system and your flies to sink quickly through the water column. This is very important when Czech nymphing where you typically use very short drifts and you need to get your flies down quickly as is often the case when fishing pocket water and heavy riffles where this nymphing method lends itself well.

Not Up for Tying Czech Nymph Leaders

If you are just getting started Czech nymphing and are not up for tying your own leaders you might check out the Umpqua Czech Nymph leader that was designed by Czech nymph specialist Andy Burk.

Each leader comes with a handy guide written by Andy Burk that shows you how to rig the Umpqua Czech nymph leader with either 2 or 3 Czech nymphs.

Up Next French and Spanish Nymphing Leaders

Up next we'll take a closer look at how to build leader systems used in the French nymphing and Spanish nymphing techniques as we continue our mini-series on European nymphing techniques.

Enjoy!

Fly Fishing Reporter » European Nymphing

[DVD] European Nymphing Techniques

FFR Articles on European Nymphing Techniques

4 Tips to Catching Big Trout Down Deep

What Lies Beneath

1. Fish When Big Trout Are Feeding

2. Fish Heavy Flies - Get Down Deep

3. Fish Heavy Flourocarbon Leaders

4. Lengthen Your Leader

[Video] Man’s Last Stand – Make it with a Fly Rod

Man's Last Stand

European Nymphing Fly Rod Craze or Bandwagon?

European Nymphing Craze

European Nymphing Rods

[Video] How-to Make a Backing Sighter for a European Nymphing Rig

What’s Backing Sighter?

How to Make Backing Sighter

Backing Sighter Versus Coiled Monofilament Sighter

What’s Next?

More FFR Articles on European Nymphing Techniques

[Video] How-to Make a European Nymphing Coiled Mono Sighter

What’s a Sighter

How-to Make a Coiled Mono Sighter

How-to Rig a Coiled Sighter

Give It A Try!

The Beat Goes On

More FFR Articles on European Nymphing Techniques

[How-to] Build a French / Spanish Nymphing Leader

Czech Nymphing

French / Spanish Nymphing Leaders

What’s a Sighter?

Spanish Nymphing Leader - Going Long

How-to Cast a Long-Line Nymphing Rig

French / Spanish Nymphing Fly Rods

I like How the French Do It (nymphing that is)

What’s Next?

More FFR Articles on European Nymphing Techniques

[Video] How-to Tie a Davy Knot

Davy Knot??

Field Tested and Super Strong

Never Tie A Clinch Knot (again)

More FFR Articles on European Nymphing Techniques

[Video] How-to Rig a 2-Fly Czech Nymphing Setup

2-Fly European Nymphing Rig

A Simple Dropper Fly Setup

Improved Surgeons Knot

Spanish / French Nymphing Techniques

More FFR Articles on European Nymphing Techniques

[Video] How-to Build a Czech Nymphing Leader

Czech Nymphing Leader

Not Up for Tying Czech Nymph Leaders

Up Next French and Spanish Nymphing Leaders

More FFR Articles on European Nymphing Techniques