It was a typical January winter day when the air temperatures reached into the upper 40’s. As usual when the air temperatures moderate this time of the year, the day was a silvery grey with thick clouds and patches of ground fog covering the open, still frozen fields that lined the river valley. Temperatures were in the upper 40's when I pulled off the road and parked where a path begins that leads to the river. I hopped out of the car and quickly got my waders on before the chill could get trapped between them and my thermal wading pants. Once I was dressed for a few hours of standing in the cold water on a winter day, I uncased my 3-weight reel and took a few minutes to clean and dress the line. Then I grabbed my 10ft 3wt, added the reel to the butt section, slipped on my vest and headed down the path.
When I got to the river, the water level was up a bit from rain a few days before, but mostly clear. The chilly, humid air bit into my face when the breeze kicked up, which was just often enough to keep my mind from thinking spring was closer than it really is. And when I looked up, the layers of gray winter clouds moved rapidly across the sky, just like they always seem to do before a major change in the weather. I stood on the bank, put my rod together and strung the line through the guides; I prefer to rig my rod up once I get to the river because it forces me to slow down and get a feel for the river’s mood. I check the water clarity, current speed and watch for signs of bugs, rising fish or the flash of fish feeding below the surface. Like most winter days, I saw nothing but light tea colored winter water that appeared to be lifeless from above.
That brings me to the first rule of fishing in winter, believing that there are trout within what appear to be empty currents from above. The key to fishing any time of the year is having confidence that the fly you are fishing is being seen by interested trout, and in winter when the trees are bare, bugs are scarce and the river seems as though it has secrets it intends to keep, confidence does not always come easy. As one of my childhood coaches always said, “Attitude is everything.” You must believe in something you cannot see. It often helps to remember those spring days when after not seeing or catching anything for several hours everything changes, bugs start showing and trout begin to rise like someone flipped a switch. The trout do not disappear, they change their habits, but they are still there.
And that is the next rule of winter fishing, understanding that the trout change their habits, and they slowdown in winter due to lower water temperatures. In the late spring and summer when trees, shrubs and grasses hanging over the river provide shelter, trout will often feed in the shadows feeling safe from predators above. Those same lies in winter offer no such protection unless they have some depth and often will not hold trout in the winter months. And because of the cold water, the trout’s metabolism slows, so they feed less and in turn are reluctant to move very far for our offerings. Unless you see fish feeding in the water column or on the surface, get your flies down deep where they will “hit them on the nose”. The most productive areas to fish will be the deep pockets and runs and channels at the head of pools. You will need to make more passes in each spot with your nymphs to improve your odds of putting your fly(s) right on the fish’s nose. If your flies and/or shot are not bouncing on the bottom or getting hung up, you will need to add weight or a heavier anchor fly.
You will often hear that small flies are the ticket in winter, but that is not always the case. Sure, there are many days when a Zebra midge or RS2 is all you need, particularly on tailwaters. But keep in mind that as I wrote above, the trout slow down, and often they will take a large fly that to them will offer lots of calories with a single, brief turn of the head and take that burns very little of their stored energy. For this very reason, in the winter months I will fish two flies, one larger nymph and a much smaller one of that. I will often put a small shot on the tippet between the two flies, so it keeps the smaller one down as deep as possible. And speaking of split shot, I recommend putting within 6” to 8“of your fly to make sure it gets right down near the bottom. As long as the shot is moving at the speed of the current, the trout will see it as just another piece of debris or a pebble drifting by them.
When I got to the river, the water level was up a bit from rain a few days before, but mostly clear. The chilly, humid air bit into my face when the breeze kicked up, which was just often enough to keep my mind from thinking spring was closer than it really is. And when I looked up, the layers of gray winter clouds moved rapidly across the sky, just like they always seem to do before a major change in the weather. I stood on the bank, put my rod together and strung the line through the guides; I prefer to rig my rod up once I get to the river because it forces me to slow down and get a feel for the river’s mood. I check the water clarity, current speed and watch for signs of bugs, rising fish or the flash of fish feeding below the surface. Like most winter days, I saw nothing but light tea colored winter water that appeared to be lifeless from above.
That brings me to the first rule of fishing in winter, believing that there are trout within what appear to be empty currents from above. The key to fishing any time of the year is having confidence that the fly you are fishing is being seen by interested trout, and in winter when the trees are bare, bugs are scarce and the river seems as though it has secrets it intends to keep, confidence does not always come easy. As one of my childhood coaches always said, “Attitude is everything.” You must believe in something you cannot see. It often helps to remember those spring days when after not seeing or catching anything for several hours everything changes, bugs start showing and trout begin to rise like someone flipped a switch. The trout do not disappear, they change their habits, but they are still there.
And that is the next rule of winter fishing, understanding that the trout change their habits, and they slowdown in winter due to lower water temperatures. In the late spring and summer when trees, shrubs and grasses hanging over the river provide shelter, trout will often feed in the shadows feeling safe from predators above. Those same lies in winter offer no such protection unless they have some depth and often will not hold trout in the winter months. And because of the cold water, the trout’s metabolism slows, so they feed less and in turn are reluctant to move very far for our offerings. Unless you see fish feeding in the water column or on the surface, get your flies down deep where they will “hit them on the nose”. The most productive areas to fish will be the deep pockets and runs and channels at the head of pools. You will need to make more passes in each spot with your nymphs to improve your odds of putting your fly(s) right on the fish’s nose. If your flies and/or shot are not bouncing on the bottom or getting hung up, you will need to add weight or a heavier anchor fly.
You will often hear that small flies are the ticket in winter, but that is not always the case. Sure, there are many days when a Zebra midge or RS2 is all you need, particularly on tailwaters. But keep in mind that as I wrote above, the trout slow down, and often they will take a large fly that to them will offer lots of calories with a single, brief turn of the head and take that burns very little of their stored energy. For this very reason, in the winter months I will fish two flies, one larger nymph and a much smaller one of that. I will often put a small shot on the tippet between the two flies, so it keeps the smaller one down as deep as possible. And speaking of split shot, I recommend putting within 6” to 8“of your fly to make sure it gets right down near the bottom. As long as the shot is moving at the speed of the current, the trout will see it as just another piece of debris or a pebble drifting by them.
Scuds, or freshwater shrimp, are a very abundant and important food for trout all across North America. They are present in rivers, streams and still waters, and in the winter months when other aquatic foods are not available to the trout, fishing a scud imitation can be the ticket to a good day on the water. Scuds are typically an olive-grey color with some being tan and every shade of the combination in between even on the same water. The one trait they all have in common is that they are fairly translucent. Dead scuds are orange in color, and I know many anglers that tie some of their scud imitations with orange in the body. Again, as with the other previously mentioned flies, get your imitations down deep.
There are times when nymphing just does not seem to interest the trout. On those days, I tie on a weighted or beadhead woolley bugger and work it across the river very slowly or let it swing down below me followed by short, deliberate strips, barely moving it through the water. I am not too particular about the fly in these instances and stick with basic colors with black being the most productive for me. I also do well with blue, white and rusty brown buggers. In deep pools and on larger rivers, I will go with a bucktail clouser minnow in black, rusty brown over yellow or white. With streamer fishing becoming popular in recent years there are also many other streamer patterns available today that you can choose from.
Winter fly fishing fortunately is not typically an early or late day activity. Rather trout are most active when the water temps “warm” up in late morning to midafternoon, particularly if you are hoping to see a midge hatch or little blue-winged olives and some dry fly action. Freestone streams by their very nature tend to stay colder than tailwaters, particularly if there is a warm day with snow on the ground. The air may be warm but melting snow water flowing into the river is like adding ice water to the mix. I have actually seen the water temperatures go down in the afternoon during a warm day with lots of snow melt and with that the fishing has shut down.
Obviously, it is important to dress warm and to stay warm and dry. With the trees bare and water generally very clear and often on the low side, be careful not to wear bright outer garments, hats or gloves that are easily seen by the trout. Although I always recommend moving slowly as you fish and cover water, in the winter it is even more important for the same reasons you should not wear bright clothing. I am also a big believer in staying as low as possible – stay low as you approach a run or pool and then kneel, sit or crouch once you are in position if at all possible. The trout will still know you are there - they always know you are there - but as long as do not seem threatening they go about life. A relaxed trout may feed, a nervous trout will not feed as they are much more concerned with staying safe. A fish’s number one instinct is self-preservation.
Depending on where you live and fish you may have opportunities to fish dry flies for rising trout in the winter months. The primary winter hatches we see in the United States are Blue-winged Olives and midges, both of which are on the small to very small side of the insect size scale. With that your tippet size will need to be on the thin side, mostly 6X with 7X being the lightest I will go. When olives hatch roughly half of them are crippled or otherwise compromised so they do not get off the water. The trout know this and will focus on cripples or emergers in the film so be sure to carry low riding patterns like Mathew’s Sparkle Emerger, CDC BWO Dun, BWO snowshoe emerger, and an upright winged pattern such as a BWO thorax, all in sizes #18-24. For midge patterns I mostly fish my Matt’s Gnat. Other good midge patterns are Griffith’s Gnat, Zelon midge, fur midge and the Simple Snowshoe Emerger in the same sizes as the olives previously mentioned. When fishing these small dry flies use a fairly long tippet and because the takes tend to be subtle, I like to use a gentle strip set as opposed to quickly lifting the rod. I find that just tightening the line will set the hook and it reduces breakoffs on the set.
There are times when nymphing just does not seem to interest the trout. On those days, I tie on a weighted or beadhead woolley bugger and work it across the river very slowly or let it swing down below me followed by short, deliberate strips, barely moving it through the water. I am not too particular about the fly in these instances and stick with basic colors with black being the most productive for me. I also do well with blue, white and rusty brown buggers. In deep pools and on larger rivers, I will go with a bucktail clouser minnow in black, rusty brown over yellow or white. With streamer fishing becoming popular in recent years there are also many other streamer patterns available today that you can choose from.
Winter fly fishing fortunately is not typically an early or late day activity. Rather trout are most active when the water temps “warm” up in late morning to midafternoon, particularly if you are hoping to see a midge hatch or little blue-winged olives and some dry fly action. Freestone streams by their very nature tend to stay colder than tailwaters, particularly if there is a warm day with snow on the ground. The air may be warm but melting snow water flowing into the river is like adding ice water to the mix. I have actually seen the water temperatures go down in the afternoon during a warm day with lots of snow melt and with that the fishing has shut down.
Obviously, it is important to dress warm and to stay warm and dry. With the trees bare and water generally very clear and often on the low side, be careful not to wear bright outer garments, hats or gloves that are easily seen by the trout. Although I always recommend moving slowly as you fish and cover water, in the winter it is even more important for the same reasons you should not wear bright clothing. I am also a big believer in staying as low as possible – stay low as you approach a run or pool and then kneel, sit or crouch once you are in position if at all possible. The trout will still know you are there - they always know you are there - but as long as do not seem threatening they go about life. A relaxed trout may feed, a nervous trout will not feed as they are much more concerned with staying safe. A fish’s number one instinct is self-preservation.
Depending on where you live and fish you may have opportunities to fish dry flies for rising trout in the winter months. The primary winter hatches we see in the United States are Blue-winged Olives and midges, both of which are on the small to very small side of the insect size scale. With that your tippet size will need to be on the thin side, mostly 6X with 7X being the lightest I will go. When olives hatch roughly half of them are crippled or otherwise compromised so they do not get off the water. The trout know this and will focus on cripples or emergers in the film so be sure to carry low riding patterns like Mathew’s Sparkle Emerger, CDC BWO Dun, BWO snowshoe emerger, and an upright winged pattern such as a BWO thorax, all in sizes #18-24. For midge patterns I mostly fish my Matt’s Gnat. Other good midge patterns are Griffith’s Gnat, Zelon midge, fur midge and the Simple Snowshoe Emerger in the same sizes as the olives previously mentioned. When fishing these small dry flies use a fairly long tippet and because the takes tend to be subtle, I like to use a gentle strip set as opposed to quickly lifting the rod. I find that just tightening the line will set the hook and it reduces breakoffs on the set.
Lastly, being winter you will likely be wearing some type of gloves on your hands to keep them warm. Please be aware that handling fish with gloves on removes their protective slime and can lead to fish mortality. Some recent studies on handling trout with gloves on have confirmed this. Sure, gloves make it easier to grab or hold the fish, but the cost can be the fish’s life and it really is not necessary. You can net the fish and then back out the fly without ever touching it and get a photo of it in your net if you wish. Or you can bring the fish up to within reach and grab the fly, back it out, and watch it swim away untouched and all the better from the experience. Bare, wet hands are an option if you must hold the fish but is not recommended in freezing weather as your hands will get cold very fast after that.
Dress warm and good luck!
Dress warm and good luck!
