Learning how to Read a River

                                    

When fishing a river it’s always good to know where the fish are and where they hold up.
There are many ways to fish a river
when fly fishing. Examine the river from a high angle if possible look for boulders, loges and any other obstacles that are in the water. Look at the contour of the river your fishing. Get an idea of what the river bed has as far as weed patches feed areas.

 Whether you’re Nymphing, dry fly

fishing, or Wet-fly fishing (dead drifting) you got know where they are so learning to read a river you’re going to fish will help you succeed.  These are the obvious locations for fish to hide or be at any given time. And the most common ones are listed below.

 The highlighted Names are what I call these fishing areas I fish.

The Riffles,   better known as the white water,   moderate to fast current.  Riffles produce abundance or Aquatic insects.  Sometime you will find a fish or two here feeding.

The lanes.    (Better known as runs / lies) there are three lanes in one runs on a river.  The runs are primary feeding areas for trout. Trout use these lanes / runs to lie on the edge of the swift current and feed on the insects there.

The lane tails.  (Better known as the tail-end of a run / lies.) these areas I found were the fish sometimes lie and feed while basking in the sun. I fish these tails in the morning hours with good success.

The back eddies.    (Better known as pools) the swift current come off of the riffle swirls into the bank and back into the river causing a pool and a slower current before heading back into the fast current of the river.

The cubbies.     (Behind a rock or large rubble.) With these rocks /boulders the will provide slack water for the fish to rest and sometime feed dodging in and out of the lanes

The edges.     (The undersides of both sides of the bank) there are deep undercut underneath the banks of a stream creating a shelter from hot temperatures, predators. And sometimes hold a lot of fish. And fishing each one of these takes time and patience and sometime skill.

 Always remember that 90% of the time when a fish hits / bits take your fly, it’s because you presented it to him right. Presentation is key in fishing a river. 

When I fish the riffles I usually fish them with a wet fly or a streamer like a muddler minnow, very large black woolly burger. I will dead drift it meaning no weight on it or on the line just like it says dead drift. This is a very fast pace fishing technique will take some getting used to but when you get it down this will produce big fish. Fishing the riffles is a lot of fun when you get the hang of it.

When I fish the lanes I like to use nymphs I like to drag the bottom and fish that particular lane hard I might stay on that lane for 30 minutes or so. If you recall I did say that there are three, 3 lanes in one run to fish. On the main run there is that lane I call the main lane.

 Then you have what I call the top lane (which is the top of the main lane) and of course the bottom lane of the main lane. 

 I will fish each one of these lanes separately.  And I will fish them hard. I have also found that if you are fishing a lane for some time now and have not gotten any hits / strikes  move up stream 1 to 3 step and try it again those couple of step can make a big difference in being in that strike zone of the fish.

 Fishing the lane ends of these lanes / runs, I call tail-end; it’s a lot different than fishing the three lanes. the tail end of these lanes / runs open up wide it’s clear smooth and it’s where I like to fish the top  (dry fly) were the fish/ trout are feeding,

 Fishing the back-eddies are quite hard, But if you've spent much time fishing back-eddies you know that it can be very tricky to get a drag-free presentation of your fly. The currents are moving in many conflicting directions at once, so fly, line, and leader conspire against a natural presentation.

Back-eddies can offer great fishing--and sometimes a lot of frustration. To improve your chances of success, position yourself well, to increase your chances of a good presentation, make a snake like loose cast will make a drag-free drift impossible. Watch the foam. The same current that concentrates foam will concentrate insects.

Fly fishing what I call cubbies is quite fun and sometimes challenging. There are so many different sizes of rock boulders other Debris, which will make the challenge of getting the fly to float naturally in or around the obstacles you’re trying to fish.  Then there are smaller cubbies that are right out in the open and trying to cast the fly over to the fish without spooking it is also a challenge.  I try to find the right position to attack this, the best way I can, while try to present the fly as naturally as I can.

Fly fishing what I call the edges is also a lot of fun. The edges have undercuts were the fish will hide form you and everything else that will spook them. The undercut allow the fish to hide from other pray the sun as the temperatures rises in the summer and when there is no other shade or cover. The edges also have less current, giving them a resting place. The fish will use the edges to feed where some insects will thrive and become easy prey if they land in the water.

 This is the fun time to try your luck at the fish rising along the banks. Standing on the opposite side presenting the fly to the fish on the other side and trying to get the fly to float down naturally. This also is a good way to test your casting skills.

Fly fishing can be a lot of fun giving the right equipment and the knowledge of knowing where to find fish.  Learning some of these steps I talked about and learning to read a river will help you succeed in your quest for fly fishing trout.