The Two Biggest Mistakes
In guiding fly fisherman over the years, I’ve noticed that fisherman--especially experienced trout fisherman--make two common mistakes when fly fishing for grayling: They strike too fast and they are slaves to the drag-free drift. Avoid these two mistakes and you’ll hook MANY more grayling. Let me explain.
Striking too fast!
Fly fishermen that are used to striking trout have a hard time slowing down. Remember, grayling are not trout. They don’t strike like rainbows or browns. They don’t tend to strike and spit a fly the way a trout will. So it’s hard for even good fisherman who’ve trained themselves to strike fast to SLOW down. My advice to catch more grayling is to pause for just a moment. For just half a beat. Then strike. Or strike at half your normal speed. Otherwise, you’re just going to pull the fly away from these fish. It’s also common for grayling to arc from the water and take the fly on reentry. So again, wait. Let the fish hit the fly as it falls. Pause for a half-beat. Strike. I promise that you hook more grayling!
Twitch, Skate, and Skitter.
Experienced trout fisherman work hard to present a dry fly with a drag-free float. As they should. So it’s hard for them to deliberately drag or move their fly. It would never work on most big, smart rainbows. But, again, Grayling are not rainbows. And while most of your drifts should be drag-free and you will catch lots of grayling with a drag-free drift, make sure--especially if you get a refusal--that you MOVE your fly. You can twitch it. And that will work. But often a skated fly is even more deadly. I’ve had large fish refuse, refuse, refuse. But when I skittered or skated my fly past the same fish…it produced an immediate strike. So by all means, float some beauty drag-free drifts. But them twitch, skate, and skitter!
If we can help you plan a fly fishing trip in the Denali/Cantwell area, by all means let us know! Email me at denaliangler@gmail.com.
Take care,
George Rogers
Owner and Guide
Denali Angler