Troutbitten

Like anything else in fishing, you can take the emerger concept just about as far as you want. You get technical, or you can spin up a couple wet flies, float them in the film, and keep things simple. I’ve often argued that you don’t have to match the hatch when fly fishing. I think it’s a fun approach, but having exactly the right shade of dubbing to match the most prevalent insect is rarely necessary. Most often, you can fish caddis imitations during a mayfly hatch and do pretty well, because there’s a lot more food in a river than what our eyes see at the surface. But we don’t ignore the hatches either. Far from it. In fact, we look forward to these events, anticipating the response from the trout, observing their behaviors day to day, and often using flies and tactics that imitate the emergence. From the bottom to the top, when the bugs transform from water born to airborne, meeting them with an emerger often sells the presentation. Our conversation in this episode covers those emergences. Resources READ: Troutbitten | You Don't Have to Match the Hatch PODCAST: Troutbitten | Night Fishing and the Mouse Emerger Concept PODCAST: Troutbitten | Category | Dry Fly Fishing Visit Troutbitten Website Troutbitten Instagram Troutbitten YouTube Troutbitten Facebook Thank You to Pre-Roll Ad Sponsors: Skwala and Orvis

My friends join me for a tough discussion. What are the benefits of guiding? What are the good things? How does it help anglers? Does it actually help people and make our sport or this fishing scene better, or does it just put money in the guide’s pocket and put more pressure on the trout? Also, what kinds of guided trips are there? Different types of guided trips are offered across the country. Some cater to the first timer, introducing new anglers to the fly rod. Other trips feature education first, with a strong focus on refining the tactics for more experienced anglers. Many guides sell the river itself. Others sell trips by promising big trout. Some guide for clubs with stocked and fed fish, sometimes catering to lodges with clients that are not anglers, but vacationing guests where fly fishing is just another highlighted activity. When does guiding trout water do more harm that good? There are no right or wrong answer to all of this, but we’re here to work through a few things — to think about all of it and to have the conversation that others might avoid. Resources READ: Troutbitten | Respect the Spots! A fisherman's perspective on friendship and spot burning READ: Troutbitten | Fish Hard PODCAST: Troutbitten | Angler Pressure TWO -- What It Does to the Fishing Visit Troutbitten Website Troutbitten Instagram Troutbitten YouTube Troutbitten Facebook Thank You to Pre-Roll Ad Sponsors: Skwala and Orvis

Two years ago we did a full episode on Hatches. That discussion was a broad, overarching look at how the bugs — the insects that trout eat — dictate many of the habits of trout. We argued that knowing the hatches, following the emergence and being ready for these events is not only a lot of fun, it drastically improves your success on the water. Trout don’t miss the hatches, and neither should we. At the same time, none of us here think the pattern matters all that much — usually. While we all admit that a color change or certainly the fly size can make a big difference, we all agree that what a trout eats most frequently is a great presentation. This episode is about those presentations. We consider the full life cycle of a caddis: the pre-hatch, the emergence, the egg laying phase and death. And at each of those stages, we ask what the bugs are doing, how the trout respond and how we can imitate the bugs to fool a trout. Visit Troutbitten Website Troutbitten Instagram Troutbitten YouTube Troutbitten Facebook Thank You to Pre-Roll Ad Sponsors: Skwala and Orvis

How many times have we heard the supposed stages of an angler? First you want to catch a fish, then you want to catch a bunch of fish, then you want to catch a big fish, then you want to catch the toughest fish, and then you just want to catch a fish again. This is a clever way to look at a life on the water. But is it really true? This is our topic. We also expand on some other stages that anglers go through, and we think about the beginning stage — why it’s so hard at first, how anglers get held back, and how, sadly, the majority of anglers probably never get a whole lot further than those early stages. Resources READ: Troutbitten | Life on the Water READ: Troutbitten | Two Sides to Every Fishermen READ: Troutbitten | The Dirty Fisherman READ: Troutbitten | How to Stay in the Fly Fishing Game for a Lifetime Visit Troutbitten Website Troutbitten Instagram Troutbitten YouTube Troutbitten Facebook Thank You to Pre-Roll Ad Sponsors: Skwala and Orvis

I was happy to be a guest on the Untangled Podcast with Spencer Durrant. We talked mostly about Nymphing tactics for beginners. We also talked a little about a fishing life and the fly fishing industry. You can listen to that full episode here in the Troubitten Podcast feed Follow the Untangled Podcast hosted by the Venturing Fly Company YouTube channel. https://youtu.be/AWoagPJ0JPc?si=EjXoavzV8pGg9NEI Visit Troutbitten Website Troutbitten Instagram Troutbitten YouTube Troutbitten Facebook Thank You to Pre-Roll Ad Sponsors: Skwala and Orvis

In this interim episode, Becky and I look back on what has happened in 2024 so far, and we set the table for what’s to come. We talk about Patagonia, videos, articles, podcasts, livestream podcasts, one-on-one sessions, hosted trips, guide season, the next Troutbitten Leader Sale and a Troutbitten beer. Thank you for being part of this Troutbitten community. Resources READ: Troutbitten | One-On-One Virtual Skills Sessions READ: Troutbitten | The First Troutbitten LIVESTREAM Podcast On YouTube Visit Troutbitten Website Troutbitten Instagram Troutbitten YouTube Troutbitten Facebook Thank You to Pre-Roll Ad Sponsors: Skwala and Orvis

Here we are with our final installment, part seven of our series on critical nymphing concepts. Almost all of our focus throughout this series has been on achieving dead drifts. We aim for natural looks that imitate what the real bugs do most. So we try to stay in one lane, we try to find the right speed and the right depth. Most of the articles on Troutbitten about nymphing also assume we’re aiming for dead drifts. It's the same with the videos. Why? Because dead drifts usually work best. But in this episode, our topic is getting something other than a dead drift. How can we add animation to a nymph that seals the deal? Something that either grabs a trout’s attention and attracts it to the fly . . . or the chosen animation actually mimics something natural that the real bugs are doing at the moment. We spend so much time refining presentations and trying to achieve perfectly natural dead drifts that moving the nymph a bit, animating the fly, is liberating. It’s fun. But moving our nymph at random, moving it accidentally or relabeling drag as enticing motion doesn’t work so well. Stripping or swinging a nymph like a streamer doesn't work so well. More often, subtle motions add an extra spark to the presentation. These are mostly additions to a dead drift, and not a full abandonment of the dead drift principles we try so hard to achieve. This is our topic for part seven, this season finale. Resources READ: Troutbitten | Streamer Presentations -- The Crossover Technique READ: Troutbitten | The First Troutbitten LIVESTREAM Podcast On YouTube READ: Troutbitten | The Big Rig -- The Two Plus One -- Two Nymphs and a Streamer READ: Troutbitten | Streamer Presentations -- The Super Pause READ: Troutbitten | Natural vs Attractive Presentation Visit Troutbitten Website Troutbitten Instagram Troutbitten YouTube Troutbitten Facebook Thank You to Pre-Roll Ad Sponsors: Skwala and Orvis

This episode is about tension and slack. It's about how we manage fly lines and leaders on the water while nymphing. Remember, each of these episodes — all of these concepts — apply to all styles of nymphing. So we might choose to lay line on the water with an indicator rig (and sometimes mend it) just like we might choose to float the sighter with a tight line rig. My friend, Austin Dando, joins me to walk through the tight line advantage of keeping line off the water and what happens when we give that up. Fishing greater distances often requires laying line on the water, and how we manage that line, how we plan for it, makes all the difference between a great drift and a poor one. Resources READ: Troutbitten | The Tight Line Advantage Across Fishing Styles PODCAST: Troutbitten | Fly Fishing the Mono Rig -- Versatility and The Tight Line Advantage Taken Further READ: Troutbitten | Fly Casting -- Five Tips for Better Mending VIDEO: Troutbitten | The Hop Mend READ: Troutbitten | Regarding Classic Upstream Nymphing READ: Troutbitten | You Need Turnover Visit Troutbitten Website Troutbitten Instagram Troutbitten YouTube Troutbitten Facebook Thank You to Pre-Roll Ad Sponsors: Skwala and Orvis

This discussion is all about weight. It’s the fundamental factor in nymphing. Because as soon as you choose to leave the surface, once you clip off the dry fly and fish anything else . . . weight is necessary. Even wet flies have some weight. They’re designed not to float but to break the surface with at least the weight of the hook. With streamers, of course, weight is required to get the flies to whatever depth is necessary — and we do that with all types of weight, whether that’s a sinking line, split shot or weight built into the fly. Then of course, with nymphs, we need weight, just like streamers, to get the flies to some kind of depth and actually fish them. You can’t avoid it. Weight is the fundamental factor. Meaning, it’s probably more important than the fly itself. More weight or less is more consequential than what dubbing, feather or ribbing is wound around the hook shank. We use all types of weight, and there are good reasons for all of these: tungsten beads, split shot and drop shot. Our topic is how each of these weight choices, along with the decision for more or less weight, helps us match river situations and meet the trout with a presentation they're looking for. This is a technical topic that is built on many Troutbitten resources that have come before it . . . Resources READ: Troutbitten | No Limits -- Use Every Type of Weight Available PODCAST: Troutbitten | Weight In Fly Fishing: Beads, Shot, Sinking Lines and More READ: Troutbitten | Series | Drop Shot Nymphing on a Tight Line Rig VIDEO: Troutbitten | Don't Hate the Split Shot - Have a System READ: Troutbitten | Pattern vs Presentation READ: Troutbitten | Split Shot vs Weighted Flies Visit Troutbitten Website Troutbitten Instagram Troutbitten YouTube Troutbitten Facebook Thank You to Pre-Roll Ad Sponsors: Skwala and Orvis

This episode features what might be the most important concept of nymph fishing. There are three different ways to present a dead drifted nymph to the trout -- three ways to imitate what trout commonly see from the naturals. While trout eat dry flies in one plane (the surface) the complexity of currents underneath introduces more difficulty, simply because trout might be looking for food in multiple ways. My friend, Austin Dando, and I break down one of my favorite topics in fly fishing -- the three ways to dead drift nymphs: bottom bouncing, strike zone rides and tracking the flies. All three of these methods are viable. All of them produce. A nymphing angler dedicated to improving should consider what level to focus the presentation and how those nymphs might best look natural within that level. This is a technical topic that is built on many Troutbitten resources that have come before it . . . Resources READ: Troutbitten | Nymphs: Three Ways to Dead Drift: Bottom Bounce, Strike Zone Rides, Tracking PODCAST: Troutbitten | Locating the Strike Zone -- Tight Line Skills #6 READ: Troutbitten | The Water Column and the All-Important Strike Zone READ: Troutbitten | Drop Shot Nymphing Series READ: Troutbitten | Tight Line and Euro Nymphing: Leading vs Tracking vs Guiding the Flies READ: Troutbitten | That's Not a Dead Drift Visit Troutbitten Website Troutbitten Instagram Troutbitten YouTube Troutbitten Facebook Thank You to Pre-Roll Ad Sponsors: Skwala and Orvis

In the third part of this critical nymphing concepts series, we consider the advantages and disadvantages of fishing with a suspender. We cover the following Resources READ: Troutbitten | It's a Suspender, Not Just an Indicator PODCAST: Troutbitten | Nymphing Tight Line to the Indicator Style -- Tight Line Advantage to the Indicator READ: Troutbitten | The Backing Barrel Might Be the Best Sighter Ever READ: Troutbitten | Tight Line to the Indicator -- a Mono Rig Variant READ: Troutbitten | Your Indicator is Too Big READ: Troutbitten | The Dorsey Yarn Indicator -- Everything You Need to Know and a Little More Visit Troutbitten Website Troutbitten Instagram Troutbitten YouTube Troutbitten Facebook Thank You to Pre-Roll Ad Sponsors: Skwala and Orvis

In this second episode of our Critical Nymphing Concepts series, my friend, Austin Dando, and I walk through the idea — the concept — of having more influence or less over the flies. Meaning, who or what is in charge of the nymphs? Is it you or the river? And do we want to have more influence over the flies or less? What looks more natural? Which choice — which method — fools more trout? We cover the following Resources READ: Troutbitten | Tight Line and Euro Nymphing: Tracking the Flies PODCAST: Troutbitten | #7, Nine Essential Skill for Tight Line and Euro Nymphing | Guiding the Flies READ: Troutbitten | Tight Line and Euro Nymphing: Leading vs Tracking vs Guiding READ: Troutbitten | Slipping Contact -- Tight Line and Euro Nymphing READ: Troutbitten | Tight Line Nymphing With an Indicator READ: Troutbitten | Your Indicator Is Too Big Visit Troutbitten Website Troutbitten Instagram Troutbitten YouTube Troutbitten Facebook Thank You to Pre-Roll Ad Sponsors: Skwala and Orvis

This Season Ten skills series is about the critical concepts of nymphing. In seven episodes this season, we're covering the what and the why of nymphing. The techniques we work on are physical skills necessary to get great drifts and fool fish. But these nymphing concepts are about putting a reason behind everything we do. Why do we make the changes? How do we adapt to meet the preferences of trout for the moment? This is the other side of the coin. And once you put all of this together, you have a full picture of what it takes to regularly catch trout on a nymph. Importantly, these concepts apply to all nymphing styles, tight line, indicator or otherwise. Episode One covers the three most important questions in nymphing. My friend Austin Dando joins me this season to walk through these concepts. Resources READ: Troutbitten | Three Nymphing Questions to Solve Any Problem PODCAST: Troutbitten | #1, Nine Essential Skill for Tight Line and Euro Nymphing | Angle and Approach READ: Troutbitten | The Water Column, and the All-Important Strike Zone READ: Troutbitten | When Drifting Low Isn't Low Enough Visit Troutbitten Website Troutbitten Instagram Troutbitten YouTube Troutbitten Facebook Thank You to Pre-Roll Ad Sponsors: Skwala and Orvis

For this final episode of Season Ten and of 2023, we wanted to have some fun. In this episode we walk through a bunch of Troutbitten . . . terms, words, sayings, phrases . . . and talk about what all of this means. Let’s call it a Troutbitten glossary. If you’re lucky enough to have your own group of long-time fishing friends, then I’m sure you have your own phrases too — your own idioms and ways of talking about things. It’s all a lot of fun. Long-time listeners understand what it means when Austin says he could have caught a lot more trout — if he really wanted to. Most of you also understand what it means to play bartender for a friend, and you know how many inches a trout should be to fall under the Troutbitten classification, Whiskey. Our lingo is part of the Troutbitten culture. Here we go . . . Resources READ: Troutbitten | Category | History PODCAST: Troutbitten | The One With Sloop, Stories with a Fishing Friend S7 Ep12 PODCAST: Troutbitten | Fishing Buddies S5 Ep12 Visit Troutbitten Website Troutbitten Instagram Troutbitten YouTube Troutbitten Facebook Thank You to Pre-Roll Ad Sponsors: Skwala and Orvis

We’re here to talk about bad habits — things that aren’t personal style but just bad form. These are bad habits that come with a consequence. These are, quite simply, mistakes. And in every case, there’s a much better way to do things. We meet anglers from all over the country and the world, we often see these bad habits from good anglers. And inevitably, these are some of the key things that hold people back from going further — from catching more trout. These are deal breakers -- bad habits that come with consequences, and habits that, once changed, open up new avenues and better opportunities. Our intention here is to be helpful and not critical. We want to point out some of the worst habits that we see most often — the mistakes that a lot of good anglers still make and that hold them back. And these are mistakes — it’s almost right and wrong. I always say there are no experts in fly fishing. So we are not experts. But all of us here are experienced. In fact, we’re experienced enough to have gone through many of these bad habits on our own and have corrected them. Our goal is to share a few of these habits and highlight what might go unnoticed by a pretty wide segment of our friends. Resources READ: Troutbitten | All the Things PODCAST: Troutbitten | The Inefficiencies that Waste Your Fishing Time - S3,Ep2 READ: Troutbitten | How Many Effective Fishing Minutes? Visit Troutbitten Website Troutbitten Instagram Troutbitten YouTube Troutbitten Facebook Thank You to Pre-Roll Ad Sponsors: Skwala and Orvis

This one is about taking photos and videos on the water, about camera gear, about keeping that gear safe but available, and even a few tips on taking a good fish selfie. Photography is something that we see most anglers get into, at least a little bit. I’ve often described the fish selfie as the grand compromise of catch and release fishing. We don’t kill the trout and take it home to show it off to friends anymore. But we do want to share some of the best trout and our most memorable situations on the river. So we take photos and videos. We plan for these trips, we look forward to them, we tie flies, we think about leaders, buy gear and read books about the region and the tactics. And when we finally get our boots in the water, we want to document these experiences — especially when the stars align and something remarkable happens. Resources READ: Troutbitten | Fishing With a Camera READ: Troutbitten | All the Things PODCAST: Troutbitten | How to Handle a Trout, S1 Ep2 READ: Troutbitten | Their Heart in Your Hands Visit Troutbitten Website Troutbitten Instagram Troutbitten YouTube Troutbitten Facebook Thank You to Pre-Roll Ad Sponsors: Skwala and Orvis

Some favorite rivers meander and roll through stunning scenery and enchanting tracts of wilderness. And most trout fishermen quickly realize that the pursuit of wild trout takes them into some of the most beautiful valleys on earth. But some other favorite rivers run through towns or behind old factories. Maybe they’re paralleled by a highway or narrowly channeled by railroad tracks on either side. These places can be just as special, just as meaningful and treasured, for what they hold — for what they teach. All of our favorite rivers have made an impact on who we are as a person — not just as an angler. Because, for so many fishermen, a home water is precisely that — a home. A place to rest. A place to seek comfort and rejuvenation. These rivers are places to share with those we love . . . or to seek an adventure alone. Our favorite rivers are as integral to our experience as the rods, leaders, lines and tactics. They define our fishing, and they become part of our lives. In this episode, we share some history with these places and discuss what connects us to these moving waters. Resources READ: Troutbitten | The Secret READ: Troutbitten | Right Here PODCAST: Troutbitten | What to Love About Small Stream Fishing S7 Ep6 PODCAST: Troutbitten | Secrets and Spot Burning S3 Ep1 VIDEO: Troutbitten | The River Doesn't Owe You Anything Visit Troutbitten Website Troutbitten Instagram Troutbitten YouTube Troutbitten Facebook Thank You to Pre-Roll Ad Sponsors: Skwala and Orvis

This episode is a conversation about tight line leader styles. We share what we like best, what works for each of us and what does not. This is Part Two for the podcast that we two weeks ago, titled, “Tight Line, High Stick, Euro Nymph, Mono Rig -- What's the Difference and How Did We Get Here?” While that first episode laid out a history of tight line tactics, this conversation is focused on how we use these leaders. How do we fish the different leader builds for tight lining? What are the advantages and disadvantages of Standard, Thin and Micro-Thin Mono Rigs? What can we do with each of them? My friends join me for a great discussion, full of deep experience and strong opinion. Resources READ: Troutbitten | Category | The Mono Rig READ: Troutbitten | Beyond Euro Nymphing PODCAST: Troutbitten | Fly Fishing the Mono Rig — Versatility and the Tight Line Advantage Taken Further READ: Troutbitten | Design and Function of the Troutbitten Standard Mono Rig VIDEO: Troutbitten | Mono Rigs and Euro Rigs -- Micro Thin or Standard? READ: Troutbitten | Thin and Micro-Thin Leaders for Euro Nymphing and the Mono Rig READ: Troutbitten | The Full Mono Rig System — All the variations, with formulas and adjustments READ: Troutbitten | What You're Missing By Following FIPS Competition Rules Visit Troutbitten Website Troutbitten Instagram Troutbitten YouTube Troutbitten Facebook Thank You to Pre-Roll Ad Sponsors: Skwala and Orvis

Here we are in the middle of season nine, and we’re doing something a little different. This is like an intermission between sets. My wife, Becky, is here, and we’ll catch up on a few Troutbitten things, like updates to the Recommended Gear page and the upcoming fall leader sale. I also have a listener email to share that really gets to the heart of what we all love about being out there on the water. And then, I read one of my favorite Troutbitten stories from the archives. It’s titled, Coffee and Secrets, and I think it strikes at a similar sentiment about the intangible motivations that keep us involved in a fishing life. Resources READ: Troutbitten | Recommended Gear SHOP: Troutbitten | Leaders READ: Troutbitten | Design and Function of the Troutbitten Standard Mono Rig READ: Troutbitten | Coffee and Secrets READ: Troutbitten | Some Days are Diamonds, Some Days are Rocks Visit Troutbitten Website Troutbitten Instagram Troutbitten YouTube Troutbitten Facebook Thank You to Pre-Roll Ad Sponsors: Skwala and Orvis

Over the years, nymphing has grown up a bit. There's more information, more styles and more acceptance of those styles than ever before. While nymphing was once seen as that thing you did when trout wouldn’t eat dry flies or wets, more anglers than ever choose nymphing first — as their go-to method for catching trout in all seasons. Because nymphing provides a unique complexity unlike anything else in fly fishing. And anglers who are dedicated to the craft take particular joy in seeing their refinements pay dividends. All that is to say . . . nymphing is fun. And in large part, what makes it fun is the control that is gained through tight line tactics. Indeed, the popularization of contact nymphing systems coincides with the popularity and the surge of nymphing among the community. One of the most frequent requests we receive is for a full breakdown on the differences between the tight line styles. What is euro nymphing, and how is it different than the Mono Rig? Can I tight line with a fly line and a shorter leader? Is that called high sticking? What are the key differences between Polish, Czech, French and Spanish nymphing styles? And how does a thinner or thicker tight line leader help or hurt my presentation? Troutbitten has become synonymous with the Mono Rig. And while each of us at Troutbitten spends lots of time with traditional leaders and fly lines, we all enjoy the benefits gained from tight line tactics when fishing underneath the surface. In this episode, Austin Dando and I walk through the differences between all of these styles. We provide some history and think objectively about how far the tight line game has come. And next week, the rest of the guys will join us to talk about the strengths and weaknesses, the advantages and disadvantages of what we call the standard, thin and micro thin mono rig leaders. Resources READ: Troutbitten | Category | The Mono Rig READ: Troutbitten | Beyond Euro Nymphing PODCAST: Troutbitten | Fly Fishing the Mono Rig — Versatility and the Tight Line Advantage Taken Further READ: Troutbitten | Design and Function of the Troutbitten Standard Mono Rig VIDEO: Troutbitten | Mono Rigs and Euro Rigs -- Micro Thin or Standard? READ: Troutbitten | Thin and Micro-Thin Leaders for Euro Nymphing and the Mono Rig READ: Troutbitten | The Full Mono Rig System — All the variations, with formulas and adjustments Visit Troutbitten Website Troutbitten Instagram Troutbitten YouTube Troutbitten Facebook Thank You to Pre-Roll Ad Sponsors: Skwala and Orvis