UP OR DOWN??

[Acristickid]

Do you prefer a downstream cast or and upstream cast to a rising fish?

I prefer downstream cast (with a reach cast if needed) but I realize that there are occasions when upstream is better.

For one, the hook set on an upstream cast intuitively should be better because you are pulling the hook into the mouth and not out from an upstream position. Second, since the fish is facing away- makes you less apt to scare or spook the fish with your presence.

I like an upstream cast in pocket water where I am concealed better and shoot casts behind and to the side of rocks. Also, upstream casts when there are multiple cross currents that could affect the drag of your downstream casts. I tend to fish more downstream in larger waters.
Not always or never but for me most of the time deals.

Can we all agree that dry fly fishing is enjoyable most of the time?

 

[afishinado]

acristickid wrote:
Do you prefer a downstream cast or and upstream cast to a rising fish?

I prefer downstream cast (with a reach cast if needed) but I realize that there are occasions when upstream is better.

For one, the hook set on an upstream cast intuitively should be better because you are pulling the hook into the mouth and not out from an upstream position. Second, since the fish is facing away- makes you less apt to scare or spook the fish with your presence.

I like an upstream cast in pocket water where I am concealed better and shoot casts behind and to the side of rocks. Also, upstream casts when there are multiple cross currents that could affect the drag of your downstream casts. I tend to fish more downstream in larger waters.
Not always or never but for me most of the time deals.

Can we all agree that dry fly fishing is enjoyable most of the time?

I agree 100% with all of the above.

 

[Acristickid]

Ha,very good.

 

[osprey]

I prefer an upstream approach and an upstream cast 99% of the time , especially when fishing small streams for wild brookies , which is my favorite. The upstream approach lets you stay in the blind spot of the fish , who most of the time is facing upstream. The upstream cast lets me put the first one below and slightly to the side , they turn and grab it much more often than you'd think. The upstream approach if you go slow keeps you from moving water over the fish which often is what spooks them. I don't cast directly up and over the fish but above and slightly to the side , curve casts come in handy there to keep from lining them. About a foot or so above the fish eventually a lil twitch will usually get their attention.

 

[gulfgreyhound]

Dry flies , upstream is my choice.Osprey nailed it cast and approach wise.Also less chance of drag and spooked fish..

 

[WildTigerTrout]

Upstream most of the time but also fish downstream if conditions warrant it. I agree dry fly fishing is enjoyable.

 

[PACOFRANSICO]

Down stream, I love swinging wets. Kinda hard doing up stream. I only fish dry in hatch situations.
Long live the partridge n orange.

 

[osprey]

PACO............i'm not pickin on ya but how do you "swing" wets with a downstream cast? When i swing wets or streamers it's usually an accross or an accross and slightly down so that they swing as the current straightens the deal out downstream. A directly downstream cast is not gonna swing much. GG thanks for the support and Afish i'd rather catch one nice fish on a dry fly than a dozen on any other method , i'll do what i have to do to catch fish but the whole experience of fooling and catching one on a dry fly is my idea of REAL/REEL fun.

 

[PaulG]

Most of the time, when fishing dries I fish up stream, will fish down and across, with in the air mend!

PaulG

 

[PACOFRANSICO]

Across n swing it down i ment. When I do this i fishthe creek in down stream direction. You can feed a wet directly down stream in to a blow down or a log jam done that before.

 

[osprey]

PACO.........i do that with nymphs alot , with a hand over hand retreive anthen "feed" it in there and hope you don't get stuck , but it does work.

 

[govtmule]

I think it depends on the conditions. I think if you are stalking a rising fish (low, clear, sunny...) and you are only concerned about that one, i'll see if theres anyway I can get far above him and feed the fly down the lane. If you're working up and approach a pool with a few risers and dont want to screw it up, then i'll try and work across and up to the lower fish (usually end up doing this)....i try to avoid throwing dries directly upstream unless it is a small freestoner and theres enough fish that you dont care if you spook a pool.....

 

[CLSports]

I prefer to do an upstream cast when possible, but it definitely depends on how I feel I can best approach a fish giving the surroundings and conditions. In riffles, I almost always cast upstream since there is little chance of spooking fish with your line, but if it is flat water and they are sipping midges or tricos and they are easily spooked, then a downstream cast may be best.

I have noticed that when Trico fishing that my hookup rate decreased on downstream approaches. With those small hooks I would pull the hook out of their mouth in most instances.

 

[JackM]

I will approach a specifically targeted riser from about 45 degrees downstream and to the side. That is, I cast upstream at about a 45 degree angle. But, that said, downstream casts may be the only way to present the fly in the zone without spooking the fish, and when that is the case, well, I adapt.

 

[jdaddy]

Completely and totally depends upon the stream. That is the correct answer.

 

[tomgamber]

I prefer to fish upstream but it is usually completely dependent on where I park in relation to the section I would like to fish. Sometimes I fish up and then back down...

 

[Tups]

WC Stewart said something to the effect of: to fish upstream in a heavy water is an unneccesary labor, to fish downstream in water which is low and clear is to invite ridicule and failure. I generally follow Stewart in this matter.

In almost any condition of water, the tail of a pool is a fine place to find fish, however it can be difficult to cast a fly to the tail from below; it is usually swept away quickly by the current breaking over the lip and into the riffle below. I often fish the tail from well above, casting slightly down and across the pool, letting the fly swing around and across the tail to dangle directly below. If he hasn't taken it on the swing, I let it hang in the current directly below me for a solid minute. If he's there he has seen it and is curious and suspicious of it; the waiting period lets him get over his fear. I then twitch the tip of my rod very gently a few times and begin a very slow hand twist retrieve. Rainbows can't resist this, but it also works well with browns. I beieve I learned this technique from reading Ray Bergman.

 

[osprey]

jdaddy is right but i'll add that it depends on the individual pool or riffle or run not the whole stream but each individual lie , but you are right daddio.

 

[Chaz]

The only time I fish dries downstream is if I can't get to the fish any other way. The one caveat to that is if I've been working upstream and a large fish starts rising downstream of me. Then all bets are off.
I've actaully had success standing directly over a fish and dropping my fly into the water at my feet and caught trout. It doesn't happen often but it does work.

 

[sandfly]

which ever way works for any fly, upstream or down i use what works..