European fly fishing techniques rely on feel
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No false cast, no split shot, no dead drift, no strike indicator. Mike Fortune of Highland Park gets some European nymphing tips from Dale Kotowski.
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The pastoral beauty of fly-line control, as demonstrated by Brad Pitt's casting double Jerry Siem in 1992's "A River Runs Through It," lured so many newcomers to fly fishing that the following summer license sales spiked nationwide.
Those that stuck with it learned that under most water conditions, those long, graceful false casts with dry flies result in fewer trout hook ups than the shorter, less-aesthetic rolls of nymph fishing.
Trout get about 90 percent of their food from the bottom. American nymphers learned to position themselves on the water and mend the fly line to get the perfect dead drift -- the fly moving with the current, skipping naturally across the bottom with no line drag as the angler carefully watches a floating strike indicator for a subtle hit.
But for decades, anglers in much of Europe experienced a different kind of drag. An Iron Curtain ran through it and fly-fishing supplies were difficult to get in the East. Most sport fishing was banned, but fly-fishing competitions were permitted. Innovative anglers developed techniques reflecting rules barring the use of lead weights on fishing line.
Now, with European short-liners trouncing the graceful Americans on the competitive fly-fishing circuit, many anglers in the U.S. are taking a closer look at European nymphing.
Last weekend, in a loft at Ohiopyle's Wilderness Voyageurs Outfitters and on the Delayed Harvest Artificial Lures Only stretch of nearby Meadow Run, fly fishing instructor Dale Kotowski showed a small Venture Outdoors class how it's done. The manager of the store's fly shop, Kotowski said he learned European nymphing during a fishing vacation in the Czech Republic.
The difference, he explained, is fundamental. In fishing with spinning and casting tackle, the rod throws the weight of the bait or lure attached to light fishing line. In traditional fly fishing, the rod throws the weight of heavy fly line attached through a light leader to a virtually weightless fly.
First Published March 28, 2010 12:00 am
