pcray1231 wrote:
Generally that's true but of course there are exceptions. And it's also not uncommon for beginners not to see rising fish, especially in broken water. i.e. in that long glassy flat pool, rises are pretty obvious from the ring in the water that slowly expands from the epicenter. But in some choppy current, all you may see is a beak. It just depends.
The truth is, when I'm EXPECTING rising fish, I look hard to see them. It's usually not smack in the middle of a heavy riff. It's on current breaks between those riffs and a slower side area. It's in eddy's. It's in tail outs. Right against side rocks, or on the edges of (but not in) deep holes, etc.
The most obvious rises are in those long, flat, glassy pools, and frankly, I avoid them like the plague. Fish in slow water are harder to approach, and more picky in terms of drag and fly selection as they have far longer to inspect it.
Anyway, whether dry flies or nymphing, familiarizing yourself with the typical hatches of the stream and their behavior and timing will help tremendously. When nymphing, you generally wanna use something resembling the nymphs of the most active insect. And the nymphs of mayflies get active even in the weeks leading up to a hatch, or during the morning hours even if the actual hatch doesn't happen till evening. And they inhabit different areas of the stream.
For instance, March Browns are clinger mayflies. They inhabit rocky riffles. Prior to emergence they try to make their way towards the slower water on the edges, behind rocks, etc. But they move by crawling. In the process they become dislodged. So even if they aren't hatching at this moment, nymphing strategy during March Brown periods should focus on heavy riffs, and fish them deep. Get that nymph to roll around the bottom in the pocket water.
On the other hand, Green Drakes are burrowing mayflies and their nymphs inhabit slower, siltier sections. Prior to emergence, they're often crawling around the bottom of deep, slow holes, and your nymphing strategy should be as such.
Sulphers, on the other hand, are swimmers. They tend to be in more moderate currents. And have some interesting habits. For instance, lets say you think the hatch will begin around 6 p.m. Well, you may deep nymph all morning. But come 4 or 5, no bugs popping yet, no rises. But those nymphs are actually starting to swim around like slower versions of minnows, schooling up. So now your fishing moderate currents. Tailouts and glides, and the need to be right on bottom is much less. Just prior to (and during) emergence they'll be swimming around JUST below the surface film. They actually get slow and clumsy as they molt fractions of an inch below the surface. You start to see rises. Many get frustrated because they can't seem to catch them on the duns. They ain't eatin duns, they're eating surface nymphs. This is why many recognize that low sitting flies like comparaduns and parachutes work better than catskill style dries, as the body sits below the surface. I like using a high floatin catskill tie, but an unweighted nymph dropper a few inches behind it. And forget drag. Actually intentionally add it. Those nymphs are swimming a little. I'll treat it like a slow streamer. Can be deadly. Is that nymphing? I dunno, but it works.
For caddis, there are "hatches". But just as commonly, there is no active hatch, but there are adult egg layers zipping around the surface occasionally dipping into the surface dropping eggs. This is when you see sporadic, splashy rises and the occasional fish launch. Forget the CDC crap. Get yourself an elk hair or something that floats like a cork. Cast well beyond fish holding water and skip it back to you. Skip, let drift, skip, let drift. Even in places where you saw no rise. Takes can be savage, sudden rod bending affairs. This is quite fun. For me, anyway.
