4 Reasons to Ditch The Indicator
And 2 Reasons to Use One
Written by Allen Gardner with The Catch and The Hatch
I get asked a lot, “What is the deal with this Euro-nymphing, tightline, indicator-less fishing method I keep hearing about. Is it actually any better?” (and yes, I get it asked exactly like that.) Well today, I’ve decided to answer this question from my own perspective and experience, and the results are actually quite impressive…
1 – It Beats the Current
Match The Hatch, Match The Current
2 – It Tightens Up Your Game
Shorter Casts = Better Casts
There’s a reason 50ft casts are called hero casts, because it takes a hero to make them work. I don’t care if you’re the best angler in the world, you have a lower chance for a successful hookset and landing of a trout the further out you cast. It’s just science.
3 – Double Those Drifts
Now That Fly Will Hunt Twice as Hard
4 – You Can Adjust Your Depth With the Tip of Your Rod
No More Line Kinks or Begrudging Indicator Adjustments
It’s a pain in the butt to walk 10 ft up the river and have to mess with that strike indicator and adjust the depth. Most of us just don’t do it and either fish the water with an improper depth, or skip the water all together to go find more water like you were just fishing. It’s a huge mistake to do that. What if I told you that all you had to do to adjust your depth 6 inches was raise your rod tip 6 inches? Well now, that’s much easier isn’t it?
You can adjust your depth on every cast, or as needed. This is huge when you’re wade fishing from a deep hole to a shallow riffle. with an indicator, you have to adjust the rig every time you want to change depth in the river. With a tightline technique, you can simply raise or lower your rod the amount needed to change your depth. Makes it super easy to cover water as you wade of all different kinds (which in turn you’ll find fish in places you never thought and you’ll learn to stop walking over productive water)
And 2 Reasons to Keep the Indicator
While I’d say I tightline nymph about 80% of the time now, there are certainly some times you want to keep that strike indicator on. let’s go over those to make this a well-rounded guide.
You Can’t Reach the Drift You Want
Your in a Drift Boat
Conclusion
So if you still aren’t convinced that ditching the incidator can improve your fly fishing game, then I challenge you to prove me wrong. Go and spend 2 hours on the water. 1 hour with your method and 1 tightlining and see which catches you more fish. I’ve done this test many times myself and I know how it turns out, which is why I tightline.
Try it out, you’ll be impressed with how easy it is to outfish your buddies and find productive water across the entire river and not just the holes.
Want Some Euro Nymphs?
We also put together an assortment of our top 48 euro nymphs and for a limited time are selling them at $50 off.