Advanced Fly Stream Tactics

Building on his advice for beginners last issue, a diehard flyrodder details 201-level tips and tricks for working late summer’s moving waters.

By Jeff Holmes

In the July issue of Northwest Sportsman, I wrote about why fly fishing is awesome and how
newcomers to the sport and longtime dabblers can have a fantastic time wading around in summer splendor fishing for trout in Washington and Oregon’s many cool-water mountain streams, especially in August. There are fly fishing opportunities year-round in moving and still waters throughout the Pacific Northwest and the adjoining Rocky Mountain states of Idaho, Montana and Wyoming. But in the dog days of summer, the best fishing and the best times will always be found in the mountains.

As we all know, trout are salmonids and are sensitive to warm water temperatures, especially when those
warm air temperatures permeate their aquatic environment. At the time of this writing in mid-July, much of Northwest was baking in 100-plus-degree temps, particularly inland locations. Montana had closed some streams and had enacted “hoot owl” regs, restricting all fishing to before 2 p.m. daily. When these sorts of extreme temps occur, combined with long day sand not-so-cool nights, all trout not wanting to die retreat to the depths of lakes, and trout in lowland streams seek springs and seeps to stay cool – and alive. Meanwhile, in the blessedly abundant mountains of the Northwest and the Rockies, water temperatures in early August are more conducive to good fishing. Streams emanating from high in the Cascades, Blue Mountains, Kettle Range, Selkirks, Bitterroots and other subranges of the western slopes of the Rockies remain cool and allow lucrative and responsible angling, and are ready for you to explore this August.

IN LAST MONTH’S article, I talked about how to get set up with a 4- to 6-weight rod, a fly reel outfitted with backing and a floating line with the same weight rating as your rod, a small collection of tackle (tapered leaders, tippet, nippers, hemostats, fly floatant, felt-soled wading boots with wool socks and gravel guards), and a small collection of dry flies, nymphs and streamers. This article assumes you are
set up with a small pack or vest or with pockets stuffed full of this minimal assortment of tackle and flies. And it assumes that you are outfitted with a rod-reel-floating line combo and that you have four-wheel drive for wading tied to your feet – felt-soled boots wrapped in gravel guards. The article also assumes you have identified a favorite or soon-to-be favorite fishing area in the mountains where the water is cold and the trout are abundant. I won’t sell out sensitive little stream names here in heavily populated Washington and Oregon, especially since the internet and other resources abound with such
information, but I’ll point out that well-known North Idaho catch-and-release cutthroat streams are my favorite and that I discussed them in the July article.
The upper Coeur d’Alene River, St. Joe River (my favorite), Kelly Creek, upper North Fork Clearwater River, Little North Fork of the Clearwater River and the upper Lochsa River are excellent destinations for August camping and angling. Although the ideas in this article can be applied to any mountain stream with cold water and hungry trout, my mind will be focused on these Bitterroot streams in North Idaho, places I desperately wish I was right now and long to get back to soon, as always. These fisheries are mostly catch and release, restricted to a single barbless hook only, don’t allow bait and are thriving despite heavy pressure and lots of notoriety. You’ll find plenty of other excellent streams in the other mountains of the West, including opportunities to harvest a panful of trout – especially brookies – where management allows.

ASSUMING YOU’RE IN the mountains on a beautiful stream with wading boots or (worst-case scenario) sandals or old sneakers on your feet; a fly rod in your hands; and a small pack or vest with tackle, flies, beverages, snacks, bug spray, bear spray and other essentials you might need, here’s how to find
fish, or at least how to begin to explore.
All streams have their unique characteristics and places fish favor, and all streams have places you will
not find fish, especially in August. In the early summer, when flows are higher and waters are colder, fish can be found scattered around rivers in shallow-water riffles, slow gliding pools, side channels, along banks and any place they find food and safety. By the time August rolls around, waters have warmed and have shrunk. Side channels are dewatered or stagnant, main channels are shallower and warmer with less oxygen, and overall fish real estate has shrunk. Late-summer trout will generally not be found in water where you can easily see them. They seek the coldest, most oxygenated water and protection
from aerial attacks by predators. As such, they are typically in heavier, faster-moving water at the head of pools and runs. They will move out of heavy water when there is a lucrative insect hatch or in the early morning or evening, but generally you’ll find more fish where they feel comfortable and safe. Similarly, depending on the size of the stream and characteristics, you may find fish in rapids if the water is deep enough and there are boulders and other structure to hide in.

A good rule of thumb is don’t be “that guy.” That guy is the guy who pulls over in the most heavily used turnout or campground and starts flailing away endlessly in fishless water. If the water is shallow, slow and so clear that you can perfectly see the bottom, there will likely be no fish to grab your fly, or, if there are fish, they will be juveniles forced out of the prime holding water by the grownups. Moving around on foot in pursuit of less-pressured water and experimenting by fishing different water types is a great approach to find fish.

THERE ARE THREE main types of fishing approaches newcomers should focus on to catch fish: nymphing, streamer fishing and presenting dry flies with a drag-free presentation. Dry fly fishing is my favorite and most recommended approach for August and for those looking for the most exciting and visual approach to summertime fly fishing for trout. Before a short description of these three approaches, it’s important to think about the food mountain trout eat. By the time August rolls around, the most abundant stream-bound insects are caddisflies and mayflies. The big stoneflies of spring and early summer are gone for the year and exist in larval form in streambeds, ready to emerge next year as adults. Caddis and mayflies also live underwater in larval and nymph stages before emerging from the water as adults during hatches.
While we see trout eating adults on the surface, they feed subsurface on nymphs for 80 to 90 percent of their diet. Fishing subsurface nymphs can be very, very effective and is sometimes the only game going. I recommend nymphing in August as an alternative when you can’t get fish to rise for dries. Of course, there are hatches all summer long where nymphs emerge from stream bottoms and rise to the surface or crawl to the banks to transition to the adult stage. As nymphs emerge into adults and expose their wings to take flight, trout gorge on these more or less “crippled,” mid stage bugs. From nymph to adult stages, caddisflies and mayflies are on the menu in August.
Also on the menu are “terrestrials,” aka insects that live on land and jump or fall into the water. August is famous for hopper fishing, which can draw big fish to the surface even in the heat of the day. Don’t overlook black ants and beetles, either. My favorite dry fly in the mountains is a small foam black ant with a white patch on top to make it easy to see.
Nymphs can be fished with or without a strike indicator (aka a tiny fly fishing bobber), and they are certainly easier to cast without one. That said, I usually prefer to fish an indicator and recommend one for a new angler because of the visual confirmation when they sink. In very small streams, they are unnecessary, and straight-lining nymphs and feeling for the bites is preferable in small waters/creeks.
Just as with fishing with a float for steelhead, salmon or trout, an angler immediately lifts the rod when an indicator sinks or a potential bite is felt in case it’s a fish eating the nymph. Pulling up will hook a fish or usually pull free of a snag.

As you present a nymph, visualize what a small, dislodged little nymph would look like floating along a stream bottom, and present your fly accordingly and naturally without drag. Another option for fishing a nymph is to use a large buoyant fly as an indicator, and August is a perfect month to use one of the most buoyant, easy-to-see and effective flies: the grasshopper pattern. The so-called hopper-and-dropper combo is lethal and a favored approach for seasoned anglers. To achieve a dropper off of a hopper, tie a short section of light tippet to the eye or shank of the hook on the hopper, followed by a small nymph that won’t sink the fly. Often fish will gobble the dry or the nymph, and sometimes you can hook a fish on both at the same time!

WHETHER FISHING A big hopper or a delicate little pale morning dun mayfly imitation, dry fly fishing is most everyone’s favorite approach when conditions and the fish allow it. Summer is the most lucrative and forgiving time to fish dries, so that’s where I recommend starting. If the fish are not rising and, most importantly, not rising to your fly, go to nymphs.
But only go to nymphs if you have to. Watching fish snatch or gulp a drag-free dry fly is one of the great joys in the outdoors, which is probably the main reason why so many love and romanticize fly fishing. Even when you do not actively see a hatch or fish rising to the surface, fish dry flies with
confidence until the fish tell you they don’t want to rise to your offering.
If you are not fishing your dry fly naturally and drag-free, however, fish that would be willing to rise and eat likely will not. A drag-free presentation is one that allows the fly to float naturally and unencumbered by natural human clumsiness. This requires some technique, one called mending. Mending line is one of the greatest victories in learning to fly fish in moving waters. It involves manipulating your fly line and leader by gently pulling it upstream of your fly such that you do not impact any action on your fly, allowing it to drift “drag-free” and naturally. In the past, I’ve watched friends catch three fish to my 30 when they could not mend, only to see them quadruple or better their previous catches on the first day they make the breakthrough to mending and achieving drag-free drifts. The longer and more consistent your drag-free drift, the more fish you will catch dry fly and nymph fishing in streams. Practicing dry fly fishing can be frustrating, but gains are easy to make, and sticking with it is key. Fishing streamers is another great way to get the biggest fish in a run to grab your fly. Streamers imitate minnows and are subsurface flies that can be stripped back to you several inches at a time, tempting trout to grab a big meal by chasing down a struggling little fish. Streamer fishing can be a good option for new anglers who want to practice with the equipment and catch fish before they are adept at presenting nymphs
and dries in the drag-free natural manner that trout greatly prefer. Streamers are made to be moved and are forgiving flies in terms of drawing the interest of fish without the aid of a practiced, natural presentation by the angler – no line mending needed.

WHATEVER YOUR APPROACH – nymphs, dries or streamers – fighting fish occurs in one of two ways: holding the rod with your dominant hand while using the other hand to pull (strip) line in to bring the fish to hand, or, in the case of larger fish, reeling them in once they fight and pull all of your slack line tight and enable you to reel them in. Once you bring a fish to hand or net – and soft catch-and-release nets are essential if you use one – quickly releasing them with minimal handling by popping your barbless fly out of their mouths with hemostats or your hand is the best way to get a fish on its way safely so you can get back to fishing.
On streams where you can legally retain trout and when you want to, indulge in your preferred method of dispatching the fish, rip its gills to bleed it and get it cool – fast. Trout degrade quickly in summer, and fish poached on stringers in shallow, sun-drenched waters don’t hold up well. NS