ESF reader and reviewer Mo Graham told us about the Strike Indicator Tool he has been using and after a season of use he tells us what he has found.
Over the last season I have been using strike indicators for most of my nymph fishing, these are not the usual clip on types, nor are any knots used, they are totally moveable up and down the line, even over knots, and will not kink your leader. This new system comes from New Zealand, the indicators are formed by using the Strike Indicator Tool, it's very easy to use and has allowed me to fish my nymphs with much greater control.
The actual indicator is Merino Wool in either white or orange, I use some of each to cover changing light conditions, you use enough to suspend your nymph, a surprisingly little amount will hold up a 3mm tungsten bead, adjust the distance to your nymph to suit the depth of the pool or run you are fishing and away you go, the indicator will not affect your casting and you can mend the line without pulling your nymph off track. Some of you will ask why not use the line as an indicator?
Let me describe a pool I fished earlier in the season, the river in question is in a gorge in mid Wales, there is a long gutter that shallows up before entering the pool, so the water is travelling at speed when it enters the neck of the pool, if you cast into the fast water you line is pulled under by the current, if you cast either side into the slower water your line is dragged by the fast water on the far side or dragged into a shallow back eddy on the near side, constant mending of the line pulls your nymph off the productive line.
With the indicator thoroughly greased up with Mucilin and about 5' from the nymph I cast to the far side of the fast water and pulled the indicator to the edge of the crease and proceeded to mend the line as the nymph trundled back towards me, the indicator ticking every now and again as the nymph bounced over the gravel, a quick lift as it hesitated (you soon learn to tell the difference between tics and when a fish has taken the fly) and I was into a 12” Grayling, a cast to the near side, some tricky mending and another hesitation produced a 12” Brown right where I thought he would be, back to the far side and another 12” Grayling. Three casts produced three fish from a pool I had never been able to fish properly before, ended up with the largest fish of the day, a 14” Grayling from the tail of pool. The next pool I fished that day had fish rising so off came the indicator, on went dry para gnat and I was catching more Grayling in the time it took to change the fly.
Here are a couple of videos, the first on how to attach your indicator the second shows it in use.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=iYKnR4iK4FA#!
http://www.fishitnetwork.com/video/video/show?id=6431455%3AVideo%3A20105
I end with a quote from a New Zealand Guide:-
"Half hitches do the job, so of a fancy new tool I was sceptical. Now I own one,
and keep a spare close at hand. The first tool in a long time that has made my job,
and personal fishing experiences so much easier and enjoyable. Quick and effortless to use, less fiddling, tightening and repositioning of my indicator means more fly-time in the water. It’s a no brainer"
Chris Dore,
Queenstown, New Zealand
Fly Fishing Guide / Writer
Available from Fly Fishing Tackle UK