Nymphing leader: ?

[ienjoydrinkingbeer]

Bought a 12' Rio nymphing leader on a whim. Anyone care to tell me how to rig it? Never used one before and would hate to waste the $12 it cost me. Do you fish it with an indicator? And how much tippet to the first fly? Prolly depends on water column depth, but any rules of thumb? Ice is melting quickly on my local stream and I need to catch some fish!

[Underoos]

You talking about a Euro nymph leader?
Watch this video, google Euro nymphing, then think about if you really want to make that call to your folks to tell them that you're gay.

[wyeaster]

i thought for sure this was a polyass thread

[ienjoydrinkingbeer]

If I choose to fish a euro nymph rig while wearing assless chaps and nothing else, it's my business. Does Simms make something like that, btw? Asking for a friend, of course.

[Underoos]

Aren't all chaps assless?

[neckdeep]

A basic rule of thumb for multi-nymph rigs is you stack your nymphs differently for pocket water than riffles. For a riffle or a shallow run, you usually put the lightest fly on the bottom. For deeper, swirly pocket water, you put the heavy fly on the bottom. It's a great technique if you only plan to fish short range in water that doesn't have a lot of snags. "Euro" is just another term for traditional high-stick nymphing. It's actually the oldest form of English fly fishing, from the era when gentlemen used 16 foot long billiard cues as a rod and 18 feet of silk and cat gut as a line. If you want to cover a wide run or pool and fish out farther than 12 feet from the bank, the standard one or two nymphs under a strike indicator is the more flexible setup and the dropshot rig is probably more effective at depth or in poor visibility. If your streams have a lot of wood in them, consider that multi-nymph rigs are prone to snag every damn unseen stick in the river. If you chuck your euro rig out past where you can read the bottom, it's like dredging with a grapple hook. If there's a snag out there, you're likely to find it.

[Adrider83]

You're not referring to colored sighter material, correct?

There really are a million different ways to nymph. If I'm indi nymphing, I just run like 5-6 feet of tippet off the end of my standard leader, the tie on two flies in series, with or without split shot above the first nymph.

Euro nymphing isn't really that different, except for the sighter material, and tying flies of tag ends of tippet (either to tippet rings or the tag end off a line-to-line) connection.

If I'm site nymphing, I usually treat it a little more like dry fly fishing, and just focus on getting the fly to the fishes mouth.

[Jong Lafitte]

Biggest thing I'd say is to have one diameter of tippet from the tippet ring to the first fly/first DS knot of a tag rig. 4x or 5x is what I use in CO. For, the length of the level tippet to the first fly, I like somewhere between 1.5 to 2 times the average water depth you want to be fishing. Have some soft weight or split shot to help fine tune the depth for each run. Grease the leader down to the tippet ring. The goal is to not have the tippet ring under water, ideally, it would be right at the surface while tight-lining and if you're laying it onto the water (with or without a 'bobber'), the tippet ring should not sink under during the drift, only the tippet should. Be prepared to have the leader up in the guides while fishing up close (which is why I'd prefer a nail know over a loop to loop) and hold the rod flat so it doesn't pull the bugs towards you as much.

To add to what others have said, you can use the tag dropper style rig or just tie tippet off of the hook bend to the next fly (18" or so) and the crimped barb will hold the tippet on there, tie to the eye if using barbless.

You can fish that with a floating indicator. Also, I think its 1x at the ring and you'd be putting the indicator near the ring, so the 1x makes it a bit easier to leave slack up the line from the floating indicator on a cast or mend vs. trying to mend just the leader when its on 15lb amnesia. I switch between all different techniques in the same run. You can tight line up close and then cast to get further out or across varying currents with or without a floating indicator or high-stick with a floating indicator. I especially like to use floating indicators in the wind. Its hard to tightline because the wind blows the line and the surface disturbance makes it harder to see the leader if you're just floating the leader.

This leader will be a bit hard to cast I'd suspect, once its rigged up. Seems really specialized, long butt section and tapering 1x or 0x, right? You're gonna have to flick it with the weight of the rig. Too much flicking is why I've gone away from the long mono. I've had some good luck with a 7.5' 3x, trimmed down to about "1.5x" (about 18" off) and then tie in about 18" Umpqua 2x hi vis indicator tippet tied to a tippet ring for a 7.5' 2x leader. Easier to cast distances. (tapering the indicator sections would be nicer, but what you gonna do, I only have the 2x) I'll then run the level tippet down to the flies from the ring, or, you can fish dries with it too by just tying 12" 3x to the ring and then 12" 4x/5x to the first dry fly. You can work up close with lots of leader in the guides but you can cast it quite well too. Sorry for not listing diameters, all "x" number are rio flouro unless otherwise stated.

I like to tie the dropper rigs to the ends of my tippet spools without cutting the section off and then re-spool. I can then pull it out and pull off as much of the tippet that I need depending on how much tippet i want between the ring and the first fly and the tags are already there.

[Jong Lafitte]

A basic rule of thumb for multi-nymph rigs is you stack your nymphs differently for pocket water than riffles. For a riffle or a shallow run, you usually put the lightest fly on the bottom. For deeper, swirly pocket water, you put the heavy fly on the bottom. It's a great technique if you only plan to fish short range in water that doesn't have a lot of snags. "Euro" is just another term for traditional high-stick nymphing. It's actually the oldest form of English fly fishing, from the era when gentlemen used 16 foot long billiard cues as a rod and 18 feet of silk and cat gut as a line. If you want to cover a wide run or pool and fish out farther than 12 feet from the bank, the standard one or two nymphs under a strike indicator is the more flexible setup and the dropshot rig is probably more effective at depth or in poor visibility. If your streams have a lot of wood in them, consider that multi-nymph rigs are prone to snag every damn unseen stick in the river. If you chuck your euro rig out past where you can read the bottom, it's like dredging with a grapple hook. If there's a snag out there, you're likely to find it.

Talk about loaded for bear! That brownie must be 36"! How you rig it is a matter of taste, I suppose and that's heavy duty. I like to achieve the same setup but use 4x or 5x where that says 2x and just use a double surgeons and tie off of the tag end (the tag end that's facing away from the reel). Not as strong though, definitely not as strong. I like how the bugs in that rig in your diagram get more action with the loops so you can probably go up a size or so in tippet. More pain in the ass to change the bugs tho. Actually, I think I'm gonna tie it this way next time I go and just go clinch knot to the bugs but use the loop + blood knot design.

[Underoos]

Holy shit. You guys are really serious about this stuff.

[lifelinksplit]

I may have missed it but does that diagram indicate where to apply the WD-40?

[concretejungle]

I may have missed it but does that diagram indicate where to apply the WD-40?

On the umbrella jig.

[snapt]

Nerds.

[Jong Lafitte]

Yeah, weird right. There's even fucking books written that you can read unless you're afraid someone'd aggressively ask you "whatchoo readin' fur?"

More info on Rio's nerdy gay leader. Its basically a pre-built version of the leader on pg. 12 of Dynamic Nymphing by George Daniel, can be viewed here:

https://books.google.com/books?id=eV...leader&f=false

There's good info in that book. He calls it the "standard tight line leader" but only because he didn't want to offend any gay nerds. Its the old "nerdy gay standard" with a dumb new name. There's a brief discussion you can read just in the preview, he takes you through a couple of other nerdy gay leader types. One is even a french style leader, talk about GAY, ooohh lala! Maybe its not gay, maybe its bi-color-curious.

[snapt]

Yeah, weird right. There's even fucking books written that you can read unless you're afraid someone'd aggressively ask you "whatchoo readin' fur?"

More info on Rio's nerdy gay leader. Its basically a pre-built version of the leader on pg. 12 of Dynamic Nymphing by George Daniel, can be viewed here:

To be fair I helped bring their Euro line to market when I worked for them. Doesn't get nerdier than that.

For a simple leader I like a 7.5 foot tapered leader, a couple feet of 3x sighter, tippet ring, then fluoro after that.

[Underoos]

It's not the method that's gay and nerdy, it's the gay nerds who get so gay and nerdy about it. But hey, some people like to fish bait.

[dunfree]

so if even the people who market/develop the shit don't really give a fuck about it, why does this shit exist?

[Underoos]

Because it's very effective. And it's attractive for guys that want to put numbers on the board. There's probably a thread about it on Epic. It's "techy."

[snapt]

so if even the people who market/develop the shit don't really give a fuck about it, why does this shit exist?

Because there's a market for it. Probably the same people who read Lou Dawson's blog feverishly.

[BobMc]

It's not the method that's gay and nerdy, it's the gay nerds who get so gay and nerdy about it. But hey, some people like to fish bait.

[sfb]ive always thought of it as slutty nympho
vrs gay
but i guess it is like a how bad do i need the dick thing either way
[\-sfb computer hack]

[CallMeAl]

This should answer any questions you have:

[gretch6364]

Bumping this thread because I am coming out of the closet. Bought a bunch of euro flies years ago and never tried it. Gave it a go at lunch today fir the first time with an old cheap 10’ 4wt I ad laying around. Pulled out three decent browns pretty quickly...but definitely have some learning to do.

May even use it as an excuse to buy a new rod and reel.


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[Mr. Mike]

Bumping this thread because I am coming out of the closet. Bought a bunch of euro flies years ago and never tried it. Gave it a go at lunch today fir the first time with an old cheap 10’ 4wt I ad laying around. Pulled out three decent browns pretty quickly...but definitely have some learning to do.

May even use it as an excuse to buy a new rod and reel.


Sent from my iPhone using TGR Forums

Pretty much nailed the best reason to geek out on different techniques there...

[gretch6364]

The main reason that I am giving it a go...I do 90% of my fishing wading locally on the Fork and Pan, the rest on small streams while camping, and floating the lower fork a handful of times each year. I can go to one of the holes I know and catch a bunch of fish quickly almost every time I am out. The main difference between the two rivers, I usually have to go through a couple fly changes on the Pan before I start catching fish, then I can pull a bunch out of a hole. Then, move to another hole, go through a fly change or two and catch a whole bunch more.

However, there is a lot of long wide flat riffles (you know those knee deep non-descript riffles that you know are full of fish hanging behind rocks on the bottom) and pocket water in between the main holes on both of these rivers that much much fewer people fish. I have never been fully satisfied with my ability to catch fish in this faster, shallow water, especially during runoff or when it is not hopper season. My indicator rig is generally too deep, and unless I am running a foam hopper, my smaller dries drown, or I can't get the dropper deep enough quickly. I know there are big fish in these areas as I have caught some of them, but my success rate is not great outside of the main summer time hatches when the fish are dumb.

99% of the other fisherman I see on these two rivers are using indicators, dropper rigs and dry flies and fishing the main holes. It seems to me, at least initially, this is the best way to fish that water in between the main holes and should be particularly good during runoff, which has always been a weak part of my wade fishing as well. Also, I have a dry fly rod, a streamer rod and a fast action 9ft 6wt for throwing big hoppers and heavy nymph rigs. I probably need a dedicated nymph rod like the 3wt 10' 9" T&T Contact II...it only makes sense, right?

[::: :::]

I joined the euro cult w/ an echo shadow II
still very much getting used to it & how differently it operates
no 5G access tho