Euro Nymphing
Starting Out Strong
Bridge The Gap Between Learning to Nymph, and Catching Tons of Trout
Shocked, elated, and a little bit bitter — like a baby trying peanut butter for the first time.
That’s how I felt, knee deep in my home river in Washington State, ten minutes into my inaugural euro nymphing trip.
Being that it was the first time I’d ever tried the technique, I never imagined that by the end of the afternoon I’d net nearly twenty fish and hook into dozens more. As an intermediate-level angler, that was an astronomically high number — the sort of number I’d later attempt to casually drop into conversation with my parents and triplet siblings. It was totally, absolutely, unheard of for me.
For context, I’ve only been an avid fly fisherman (or woman) for a few years now. In that time I’ve focused on mastering the basics: efficiently setting up my rig, tying knots, reading the water, picking out the correct fly based on the discernable insect life. I also spent most hours on the river tossing dry flies, indicator nymphing, and (occasionally) fishing streamers. All of these techniques were, and are, incredibly fun to fish — don’t get me wrong! But, for me, they haven’t produced numbers quite like my first day of euro nymphing did.
Of course, there’s still plenty to learn — all of which I plan to study through TCTH’s Euro Nymphing Course… which you can get a killer deal on (pssst…65% OFF) if you click the link. Now, back to the topic at hand!
Here are a few lessons I learned euro nymphing for the very first time:
You’re Going to Feel Everything
Every Bite. Every tug. Every rock.
For most anglers (including myself) the tug is the drug.
If that’s as true for you as it is for me, then you’re going to LOVE euro nymphing. Drift after drift, I felt everything that went for, or scraped against the end of my line — every bite, every tug, and every rock.
Which, in the case of this particular technique, was a major factor in my fishing success. Unlike traditional nymphing with an indicator, when I euro nymphed, (given I set up my rig correctly), my fly actually sank to the bottom quickly — where most of the fish are. At the same time, because I was euro nymphing using two flies, one would pass fish resting on the bottom of the hole, while the other would gently float above. That’s A LOT of food for the trout to potentially munch, and I could without a doubt feel when a fish was biting vs. when I was touching bottom.
As a result, on most every drift — arm up, line tight, eyes locked on the colored leader dipping precariously below the water — I at least felt a bite. Every other drift, I’d hook a fish. And every couple drifts, I’d get one in my net.
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Wading Skill is a Must
When casting becomes irrelevant, wading becomes VERY relevant
I’m clumsy. Really, really clumsy. Always have been.
As a result, learning to safely wade has been a challenge for me. Sure, I’ve definitely gotten better over time, but I rarely risk it for the fish, no matter HOW good a certain hole looks.
So, before I went out for my first day of euro nymphing, I invested in a wading stick. Simply because I knew that when I euro nymphed, I wasn’t going to be casting. Instead I’d be standing near my desired spot, flicking my line up river, and re-flicking until I moved to a new hole. My line would be tight, and really only as long as it needed to be to reach the bottom.
The great thing about wading out to your spot? Accuracy. I could drift through the same hole multiple times while also hitting different spots within that hole, before actually moving on. I knew that I was actually putting my fly in front of more fish because I was hooking into more fish. It felt fantastic.
Still, at the end of the day, safety is most important. Even when big fishing numbers are within reach. So, if you aren’t a master wader, I’d highly recommend practicing or investing in a wading stick to keep yourself upright all afternoon long.
Big Numbers are Within Reach
Just be sure to cover plenty of ground
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Like I mentioned before, there were benefits to being close to the hole that I was fishing. MAJOR benefits…in the form of gorgeous rainbow trout!
As the afternoon went on, I learned that if I was strategic enough about fishing the entire run or pool with precision, I would hook in to more trout.
For context, when I was indicator nymphing, I’d probably land one or two fish out of every spot before moving on. Now, I was getting my fly in front of different fish with every drift, and was pulling up at least five fish before wading to my next spot.
It’s true — the more holes you fish, the more fish you catch.
And, like me, by the end of your very first day of euro nymphing, you might just catch more trout than you imagined possible.
EVEN though you’re brand new to the technique.
What’s Next?
becoming one with my nymph + catching more fish
My first day euro nymphing lit a fire under my waders like I couldn’t believe. I remember going home and immediately planning out my next day on the river — my next shot at learning to master this extremely fun, fish-producing technique.
Outside of producing numbers, though, I found euro nymphing incredibly relaxing. I’d let my flies drift silently, flicking my line back up the river, listening to the sounds of rustling leaves and chirping birds. All while rarely getting tangled (so I could spend more time fishing, and less time pulling my flies out of the bushes behind me).
Now I plan to take The Catch and The Hatch’s Euro Nymphing Course so I can learn to be a master of this technique. With more hours on the river, and more lessons under my belt, who’s to say how many fish I’ll catch next time I go out to euro nymph!
KATIE GILBERT
KATIE GILBERTOver and tr-out!
Euro Nymphing Course Deal
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Fully Online | Self Paced | Lifetime Access
7 Lessons | 90+ Pages | 20 Videos | Pics | Diagrams & More
What You’ll Get In This Course
- 7 Lessons that teach the entire euro nymph technique
- Perfect for beginner to intermediate skill levels
- Catch more fish than ever thought possible
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- Guaranteed to make you a better angler or your money back
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