To be successful at fishing the low, clear waters in the heat of summer, it’s important to remember five basic tactics, the first of which is to approach the stream with more stealth than you usually might; in low water conditions fish tend to be much more wary, making them spook easier.
The second tactic is to use lighter tippet. For example, if you usually fish 5X on a favorite stream, you may need to switch to 6X if you find that the fish are not eating a fly you tend to have good luck with. Also, consider upgrading from nylon tippet to fluorocarbon tippet, which is more abrasion-resistant and not as visible underwater as nylon. The third tactic is two-fold; try to present your fly more delicately than you may be used to and also try not to leave so much of your fly line on the water. These strategies will help prevent the fish from being spooked out of the run before they have a chance to eat your fly. The fourth tactic is to consider using a downstream presentation. If you usually cast your dry fly or nymph rig upstream and “line” the fish, you may need to start drifting your rig down to them from an upstream position. That way, the fish see your fly before the line becomes visible to them.
The fifth tactic is to adjust your weight on your nymph rigs. Clearly, in less water you are going to need less weight to get your flies to the trouts’ feeding zone. Having too much weight on can also cause a disturbance in the surface of the water when the line lands, and that can spook fish, especially in clear, low water.
If you would like to scoop on where to fish, call any of our three fly fishing shops in the Asheville, NC area or visit the Fly Fishing Asheville and Western North Carolina – Stream Reports page on our website. Either way you will be getting some of the best fly fishing intel in the business!
I hope to see you out there. Tight lines, Nick Roberts
