Fly Fishing the Drift

One of the most overlooked ways to drift-fish salmonids, yet can be one of the most productive is Fly Fishing.

Timothy Kusherets

One of the most overlooked ways to drift-fish salmonids, yet can be one of the most productive is Fly Fishing. Address the river and find the best holds. Each segment of rivers and lakes tell a different tale. When you can walk up to water without the aid of hiding in brush or hunkering near the waterline, then you are truly in the midst of hundreds of fish. That is what it takes to carelessly view fish that can see you easily. When fly fishermen, or any other, can see fish then the school has long seen the fishermen. The best way to approach fly-fishing is to fish downstream from the hold. Being behind fish is an amazingly effective way to hide from them when visibility is unlimited; however, some of the best fishing conditions are during water stages most fly-fishermen avoid, and that means turbid water fishing. With a sinking tippet, cast directly upstream and mend the line as it makes its way downstream. The fly, regardless of what you use, will get down to holding fish fast. At the first sign of stress on the floating mainline set the hook, and that's just how easy it is. The only real hard part about fishing this way is convincing fly fishermen that it can be done. Ironically, the more turbid the water is the more on the bite fish tend to be and that means fishing overcast days with the skies threatening rain. Have you ever seen a fly fishermen in the rain? With all the good fishing available there should be more than just me on the water. Universally, fly fishing does not involve using scents, but with the clarity of the river being zero, it will need to be applied. The best place to put scent is either on the head or the hook. Make sure to use a gel that will stick to the area it's applied to so as not to ruin fur, feathers, or hackle of each fly. The other great option is a single egg on the hook. The scent from the egg can be useful for about ten to fifteen casts, which eliminates the threat of scent destroying beautiful flies used for clear water conditions. When fish are in abundance make sure to have plenty of tippets for quick fly changes, especially if you're scouting out the area for the first time. You never know what you're going to run into when on recon. It has happened to me, and it will you, a few times where there were hundreds of fish and I only had a few leaders and flies. As a consequence I only fished for a short time before I was out of gear while fish were everywhere and not another fishermen in sight. The very next day I returned to find the banks full of fishermen and the water severely depleted of fish.