Written by: Tim Linehan, Linehan Outfitting Co.
Gerry shows off one of many trout that fell for a jigged nymph during high water.
Photo by Tim Linehan
In the spring, daily conditions can change dramatically. Wednesday it’s cool, overcast, and the river is in great shape. Thursday you show up at the boat ramp to find that thunder storms in the high country have tributaries running high and pushing color into the main river. Such was the case for me one late-April day. I arrived on the Bitterroot and discovered that, in the previous twenty-four hours, the river had risen 2,000cfs and visibility was no more than 6 inches. For all intents and purposes, the river was out, and I considered telling my client, Gerry B. from Boise, that the day was a bust and we should just go find a bar in Missoula and watch the Red Sox.
But then I thought, just maybe, with a little luck, we could pull a rabbit out of the hat. Under similar conditions in the past, I’ve had success by jigging nymphs in deep holes and eddies caused by the rising water. It’s not traditional dead-drift nymphing by any means, but it works and it’s simple.
I rigged a long leader with a butt section of 10-pound test followed by straight 3X Mirage. Off that, I tied two size 8 Skwala nymphs, weighted with two AB split shot and a big, white Thingamabobber. Instead of fishing every inch of the river, I floated downstream to the first big, foamy eddy.
Gerry plopped the rig into the foam, and after he let it it sink for a moment, I instructed him to start jigging the rig. Within seconds, the indicator disappeared, and he was fast to a 16-inch rainbow. First time is just luck, I thought to myself. He plopped it into the foam again, jigged it a few times, and wham! Into another one. Second time is coincidence, right? Again, he pitched the rig into the eddy, let it drift for a few feet, jigged it, and was met with a violent strike that broke off the point fly. Hmm. . .third time is a charm, and this might actually work, I couldn’t help but believe.
And so it went throughout the day. We floated bucket to bucket, eddy to eddy, and had as good a day as ever. We even took off the indicator just to make it easier to cast. We got no hits when we dead-drifted the nymphs. Clearly the fish wanted to eat but would only take when they saw movement in the muddy, off-color water. In the end, there’s no doubt we got lucky, and normally under such conditions I would have cancelled the trip. But we were there, and sometimes thinking outside the box works.
Tim Linehan is the owner of Linehan Outfitting Co. on the Kootenai River in Troy, Montana.
Thanks for the tip, Tim. Never thought to try this before, but it makes sense that fish would be stacked up in this kind of water and potentially feeding aggressively as food is delivered to them. Tight lines. Jack Donachy
Yup, in muddy water, movement means life. Fish that would only take dead-drift presentations before are now all over anything that moves. Another tip is to use dark flies. Black flies provide a better silhouette in muddy water than other colors. So they’re easier to spot. Purple also works well in muddy water…don’t know why exactly, but it does.
Dan
Thanks, Jack. Yeah…it was interesting to say the least. I still cancel most trips under those conditions but have had success with that technique a few more times here and there.
That’s a great point, Dan. Purple is very good under these conditions.
How fast/big jig are we talking about here?
kind of depends on what the water conditions are like. But for the most part a quick pulse of the rod in order move the fly 10-12 inches in the water column seems to work best. And don’t forget that fish will often hit it on the way down as well.
Hey Jens,
I’ve found about 3-6 inches usually does the trick. It’s more about just creating movement than anything else.
Yeah…sometimes I jig mine a bit more than that but again, depends on water conditions.
Tim..nice article.Were you floating or anchored up when jigging
Tom Conigliaro