Upstream Wading
Taking smaller steps ensures that holding fish
do not get spooked by the increased
wake created by your legs in the water
Timothy Kusherets
Look at the wake that my legs are making. With each subsequent
step upriver I’m careful to “side” step effectively
diminishing how much noise the water rushing past my legs will make.
Remember, fish can hear absolutely everything in the water and the
first sounds they focus on are those that sound atypical, such as
wading.
Did you know that if you stay as still as a stone for about fifteen
minutes, salmonids, amongst many other species of fish, will swim
right up to the wake that wading legs make? It's true! I've seen
it hundreds of times and have video of hordes of fish surrounding
me as I fish deep water.
Wading upstream should be done in half steps. Whatever
your normal gait while wading straight and downriver is it should
be cut in half when wading upstream. Outwardly it is obvious that
taking reduced steps is a safety precaution, but there is another
reason too. Taking smaller steps ensures that holding fish do not
get spooked by the increased wake created by your legs in the water.
Fish can sense the movements of fishermen using their lateral lines
on the sides of their bodies as they move back and forth (side to
side). Increased sound means that fish will be able to hear you better.
Taking the time to take half-steps will keep fish on the bite while
not doing it will keep them off for hours on end. A really cool trick
with wading upstream is to side step rather than head straight into
the current. Side stepping literally hides one leg from the torrents
of rushing water, depending on the flow of the river or current, which
can easily be applied to saltwater fishing making this technique an
effective application everywhere.
© Timothy Kusherets 2007/10
