Insects and other foods the trout
should be eating:
1. BWOs (Little BWOs)
3. Little Winter Stoneflies
Most available/ Other types of food:
4. Sculpin, Minnows (Streamers)
Fly Fishing School - In the Air Mend
In the first article in the new Fly Fishing School section, I wrote about a huge, basic casting mistake. The
mistake I was referring to is fly fishing small, pocket water streams such as those that exist in the Smokies
with cast that completely straighten the fly line and leader out. The problem with that is that when the line and
leader hit the water, it creates instant drag on the fly.
If your fishing a nymph, the description of the problem is correctly termed "drag" in the sense the fly leaves a
visible wake on the surface, but the same thing causes the nymph to travel through the water at a speed
that's different from the speed of the current. That is just as bad a drag on the surface when your dry fly
fishing. Real nymphs and/or larvae don't travel through the water at a different speed than the
water is flowing. It is true that the little swimming nymphs can dart about like minnows a very short distance
of a few inches at the most, but other than that, nymphs would either be crawling on the bottom of the
substrate, or drifting at the same speed of the current. All I'm saying is that your fly should drift drag free on
the surface, if it's a dry fly, or at the same speed of the current if it's a nymph or larvae.
To accomplish this, the cast should land on the water with some slack in the line and/or leader.
Otherwise, you have to pick up line off of the water and "mend" the fly line creating additional surface
disturbance. Sure, you can mend the fly line but if your making short, upstream presentations in pocket
water, you may spook the trout doing it. It's best to have some slack in the line when it hits the water.
So far, I've just covered what was written last week and added that fishing flies below the surface presents
the same problem. Last week, I mentioned that the best way prevent this, or maybe I should have said the
easiest way to prevent this, would be to make a reach cast. I described the reach cast.
Another way to get the fly to drift drag free, or if it's a nymph, at the same speed of the current, is to make an
"in the air" mend. To do that you reach out, right or left, just like you would do making a reach cast but in
addition, you reach back in the opposite direction in the same line you started the forward cast. This puts a
curve section in fly line in mid air, or an "in the air mend". When the fly line hits the water, it has a curved
section in the fly line the same as it would if you picked the fly line up off the water to mend it.
I'm about the last person to fly fish to endorse anything by Orvis other than their dog beds but I must say this
guy does an excellent job of demonstrating an "in the air" mend for them
I should mention that I only use the "in the air mend" on relatively long cast. :The reach cast serves the
purpose most of the time.
Copyright 2013 James Marsh
New Schedule of Daily Articles
Mondays: Weather and Stream Conditions
Forecast - Coming Week
Tuesdays: Fly Fishing Strategies - Which
Flies To Use - Coming Week
Wednesday: Fishing Tales
Thursday: Smoky Mountains Fishing Report
Friday: Getting Started
Saturday: Fly Fishing School
Sunday: This Week's Featured Trout Food