Reading current and water environment

[Mika]

Any thoughts about this? I think that when you can read current it helps you a lot when going new waters. At least you know where to start.

[Paul Arden]

Hi Mika,

I think that reading the water is the most important skill in river fly fishing. There is no question for me that fishing clear water - such as the time I spent in NZ - has taught me about currents and fish lies.

I need to do some Internet searches for an article I read many years ago that described how water can spiral through currents as it travels downstream. Understanding this really opened up some of my techniques, particularly nymphing where fish often lay between seams. And now that I know what to look for I often see these currents everywhere.

So yes I would argue that reading the water is the most important river flyfishing skill of all. Interestingly just as significantly IMO is ISW currents and Stillwater ones too. Stillwater currents in particular are often overlooked. I’ve only been switched on to truly understanding their importance in the past decade.

Fish like currents. Often they lay in the seams of currents. Sometimes they swim against them. At other times they use them to drift on to flats. In the case of rivers being able to read the surface to tell you what is going on down below is absolute key to success.

Often really prime water to me looks “glassy”, and is usually around 3-4 feet deep. Such areas are often at the tailouts of big river pools when the flow channels out. In NZ another prime spot is the seam between the flow coming into the front of the pool and the eddy next to it. That’s a big fish area and exactly the same as in two nameless waters in Alberta that hold big fish as well as Varzina and no doubt every other big fish water. Grayling love that spot too!

Great FP by the way - tomorrow I’m sure they’ll love it

Cheers, Paul

[Boisker]

One of my favourite quotes to throw at people when they make the usual .... you don’t need to be able to cast well....comments on forums is JW’s-
“If you don’t know where the fish lie but can cast well enough to cover all the water with finesse, you are likely to solve the mystery and catch fish. If you know where they lie but can neither reach them or present the fly naturally, you are not even in the game”
But to be honest I only really do that for fun as it winds them up so much... for me learning to read the water is of equal importance; having good river craft involves both reading the water and casting in equal measure.

Perhaps it’s time to update Joan’s quote to...
“If you don’t know where the fish are and can’t cast with finesse you’re doubly fucked..”


Even if I am working by a river or walking the dog, I still find myself analysing every last bit of it and working out how I would approach it as if I was fishing... not being able to read it would be like fishing blindfolded.


I’d be interested in reading the article if you can find it Paul

[Paul Arden]

I’ve spent a lot of time looking but damned if I can find it. Here is an image showing helical flows on rivers. But remember that in the real world there are often many such currents on a river and not only one...

[Boisker]

A good way to get a feel for them, assuming good visibility, is to throw a bit of bread (lightly rolled or squeezed between the fingers) into the river.... it’s amazing how in even fairly laminar flows the actual currents are swirling and moving at strange angles.
One of the advantages of growing up coarse fishing on the river ribble was at the age of 12 your attention does wander or curiosity gets the better of you and you end up flicking in bits of bait and seeing what happens to them

[Paul Arden]

Or a nymph It’s no conincidence that fish are often laying in the seam. It’s much easier to pitch a fly down between the seam than in the middle of the current. The current assists you.

Now I’m going to propose that the purpose of the lateral line is the find the current seam and that bouncing off these current seams is how fish swim up fast water with effortless ease.

Of course it may be my imagination but that certainly appears to be what they are doing

Cheers, Paul

[Boisker]

I should clarify... I didnt mean throw a bit of bread in when fly fishing for that a nymph would definitely be better

But bread is good when you’re just having lunch or mooching about... you can mould it so it’s easier to see due to colour an shape and it will just move around sub-surface riding the currents... however careful you are a nymph never moves completely naturally, unless it’s unweighted and you forget to tie it onto your tippet

It’s autumn over here....the rivers are stuffed with leaves, a pain to fish through but great to watch sub-surface currents

[Paul Arden]

I’m finding this thread a bit suspect Matt. Just how large a lump of bread and what species are you fishing for?

Cheers, Paul

[Paul Arden]

I fish a bit on a fast flowing canal in Croatia. The canal is straight but the flow has many of these helical currents. The fish are hard on the bottom - you can see them. The trick is to collapse your cast such that the fly lands between them and in the seam so is dragged down to the bottom.

Instead of using bread I used a bright orange painted tungsten nymph so that I could watch it and guage its descent to the river bed. Quite fascinating actually how the same collapsed cast can either put the fly to the bottom or have it washed away just because of this.

Cheers, Paul

[Mika]

In springtime when snow is melting and I need to get water out of yard. I do miniminimini size river (rivulet maybe in English). Just kick little bit dust/sand and you can see how current is working. Really childish play but you learn, you can add some small floating stuff and you see how surface is working.

Reading lakes are more difficult but there is short cut. Watch the land, let's say about 100m away from shoreline. It will give you idea how it will be continued in the lake, under water. Not totally precise but if you are looking spot to start that will help you.

Mika