There are some fly fishers that cringe when they hear the word “nymphing,” because of the sophisticated and difficult mystique that surrounds this form of fly fishing. The truth is, by keeping a few basic concepts and techniques in mind, this form of fishing can be fairly simple and extremely rewarding. In this article, I will attempt to shed some light onto the art of nymphing by describing the flies and equipment used, along with a few of the more common nymphing techniques and tips.

Flies

Nymph fishing is a fly fishers way of imitating the underwater life that fish often feed on. Many people claim that nearly 90 percent of a fish’s diet is made up of subsurface meals. Logic would conclude that by imitating these underwater creatures, a fisherman can easily increase their catch. There are probably a thousand varieties of nymphs, designed to imitate any number of aquatic critters. Some of the more familiar nymph patterns are the Prince, Hare’s Ear, Pheasant Tail, Brassie, and the Scud. These flies are designed to mimic a specific type of subaquatic insect or immature version of other insects. To help you select fly patterns that will be most effective, you should familiarize yourself with the local waters. It may be much more important to match the size and color of the insects than to match the type exactly. Nymphs are usually tied in earth tone colors. You will see a lot of brown, olive, tan, and black nymphs. A great deal of nymphs are tied with peacock herl to add a bit of iridescence to the fly. Most nymphs can be tied in unweighted or weighted versions, often with a bead head. Sizes of nymphs can vary between a size 2 and a size 20, but most are usually tied in the size 12 to size 18 range. The size of your nymph will depend on the size and stage of the insects you are mimicking. It always helps to go to your local fishing hole and turn over a few rocks and see what you find.

Equipment

You probably have all or nearly all of the equipment that is needed to nymph. To begin, most people prefer a fast action rod, between a 5 and 7 weight, that is 8 ½ feet or longer. The fast action rod helps you move the line easier when nymphing and the longer rod will help you control your line a bit more. You will need to match the weight of your rod to the fly patterns you plan to use. The line you will need will depend on where you plan to fish. For fishing deeper runs in the river, you may want to consider a sinking or sink tip line. For most other circumstances, a floating line will work fine.

For the leader, there are several variations to use. The most common is a 9-foot leader that tapers to a 5X tippet. Some techniques of nymphing encourage you to tie an additional trailer fly onto the first, where you would add an additional 12” to 18” tippet to the combination. There are two items that you may find very useful to attach to the leader. One is a strike indicator. This can be anything from an adhesive foam pad to a piece of yarn to a bright leader loop. No matter the substance, the purpose is the same. We will get into how the indicator helps later in the article. The second item you will attach to the leader is “microshot”, the very small version of lead split shot designed specifically for fly fishing. You will use the shot to help your fly stay at the correct depth. Now that you have the equipment put together, let’s cover how to fish it correctly.

Techniques

There are many different techniques used when nymphing, and everyone has their personal favorite. You may use only one method, or may use a combination of several methods, tailored to fishing conditions. As I mentioned earlier, some people prefer to use a two-fly setup when nymphing. This is done by tying a larger fly (usually an emerger pattern) directly onto the main tippet. You can then add a second fly (usually a smaller nymph pattern) by tying a second tippet onto the eye or hook bend of the first fly. It is as simple as that. This two fly modification can be used with any of the nymphing methods, but tends to work easier with some. Just experiment and see what your preference is. Below is a summary of three common nymphing methods.

Short Line Method: Also referred to as “high sticking”, this technique is used when fishing fairly close to where you are standing. This technique uses a floating fly line and a strike indicator (if you prefer) on the typical 9-foot tapered leader. You will first cast upstream and slightly out from you, so that the line drifts within a rods length of you as it passes. Casting more upstream than out helps to eliminate drag on the fly, by putting the fly and most of the fly line in relatively the same current. As the fly drifts closer to you, begin to raise your rod tip to take the slack out of the line. (Do not pull the fly, let the current do that. Just raise your rod tip enough to take the slack out of the line.) As the fly begins to move downstream from your position, you can slowly drop your rod tip to feed line, and maintain contact without putting drag on the fly. At the end of the cast, allow the current to lift the nymph off of the bottom.

Brooks Method: This method is used to pull fish out of relatively fast moving water. This method uses a full sinking line and a short, stout 4-foot leader section. This method is typically used with larger weighted nymph patterns or streamers. You begin by casting upstream and out into the fast water. You do not use a strike indicator with this method, so it is very important that you gather the slack line as it drifts toward you, so that you can feel the strike. You can lift the rod to accomplish this, as with the short line method. The same technique applies from here out. As the fly passes, drop the rod tip to feed line until the end of the cast. Let the fly rise from the bottom with the water current before you cast again.

Downstream method: This method is most simply described as the last half of most nymphing techniques. You can use a floating or sinking line, depending on the water depth and speed, with the typical 9-foot leader. You will cast your line downstream and slightly out. After you cast, feed some additional line out until you reach your desired hot spot. Slightly raise your rod tip and stop feeding line at that point. This will cause your fly to swing through the hole, rising slightly in the current. You can then feed more line out and repeat the process a few times before recasting.

Tips

I am sure that this still leaves a bit of mystery into the art of nymphing, but it shows the relatively simple movements that you will follow throughout the casts. The few tips below should add some additional knowledge to your bag, enhancing your nymphing experience.

• As always, “Match the hatch!” Try to match at least the color and size of the subsurface bugs you are trying to imitate.
• The line below your strike indicator should be about twice the depth of the water you are fishing.
• If you are using the two-fly method, adding a split shot between the flies will help assure the trailer fly is riding deeper than the main fly.
• Try to get your fly as close to the bottom as possible. If you are bouncing on the bottom, you are probably at the right depth.
• Courtesy of Mike Richards: Watch the speed of your line and strike indicator relative to the foam/debris on the water surface. Your line should be moving slightly slower than the surface debris, since the water along the bottom is moving slower than the surface. If your line is moving the same speed or faster, add more weight. If your line is much slower, decrease your weight.
• If it is needed, add the split shot between 12” to 18” above your fly.
• Try to carry your fly patterns in both a beaded/weighted and non-weighted varieties. This will allow more versatility in your fishing.
• Strike indicators are not bobbers, and will not usually dive under water or be tugged around. To detect a strike, you usually have to watch very carefully. It may be a slight twitch or the indicator may simply stop moving. Either way, set the hook!