Trout leader setup
When it comes to rod power, ultralight is the most commonly used option for trout fishing, and the one that we recommend. In addition, ultralight rod power is the ideal choice when fishing with lightweight lines of 2 to 6 lb test.
Using these lightweight lines is often necessary in order to get bites from shy trout in heavily fished lakes. When it comes to spinning reel size, you can either opt for a size ultralight reel, or a slightly larger or size reel. The smaller reel size comes with the advantage that it helps to keep the overall weight of your trout fishing spinning setup low, while the larger sizes come with larger spools that hold more line which can help to increase casting distance.
See also : Tips for trout shore fishing. You can use any of the 3 types of fishing line for trout: monofilament, fluorocarbon, or braided line. The reason for this is that braid has almost no stretch, which provides more sensitivity for trout fishing. In addition to the advantage of increased sensitivity, braided fishing line also has virtually no memory, which results in better casting properties compared to mono or fluoro.
This helps to increase both casting distance and accuracy when using micro lures or lightweight rigs, which can help you to catch more trout. The only problem with braid is that it has high visibility in the water, which is why you need to tie a fluorocarbon or monofilament leader when using braided main line.
Because of this, we recommend using 10 lb test braid as your main line, and tying this to a 2 to 6 lb test fluorocarbon leader to achieve more stealth in your presentation. Just slide the indicator-up or down the leader to get the right depth. Your fly should be 6 inches off the bottom.
See the nymphing leader formula below. I use longer leaders when I fish rivers with a lot of pools that are 6 to 10 feet deep. Shorter nymphing leaders around 9 to 10 feet will mend much easier due to the weight of the thicker upper section of the leader and the weight of the fly line. I use shorter leaders when teaching new fly anglers. For nymphing leaders, my tippet section which is the section below the indicator or a sighter is between 3 and 6 feet most of the time.
You always want to use fluorocarbon tippets because they are abrasion resistant and more invisible to the fish. The upper tapered part of the leader is best to be a co-polymer or mono leader because those leaders float better than fluorocarbon. If you are struggling with your mending make sure your leader is floating high.
That is when I will switch and use Payette Paste. Mucilin can also liquefy in the summer and leak all over your pack or vest, especially if you leave it in your car on a hot sunny day. Therefore I store my Mucilin in a zip lock bag just in case it leaks. Payette Paste is more user-friendly and stays at the same consistency in hot or cold so it may be better suited for most anglers. Some anglers believe a custom made leader casts and turns over better than store-bought tapered leaders.
The picture above shows my custom made nymphing leader setup. If you added 6 inches to each of the 4 upper sections you would turn this foot leader into a foot leader or add 12 inches to each section and now you are set up with a foot leader which is a great length for steelhead fishing.
For my steelhead leaders, I just upsize all the parts by about 2 pounds. Some states and provinces and some rivers will not allow 2 flies so check your fishing rules before you try this. I use a Triple Surgeons knot to attach a 6 to 8-inch tag where I will add a second fly. If I feel that my flies are not getting down to the fish I will sometimes add a weight halfway between the tag knot and the bottom fly. The knot will prevent the weight from sliding down to the bottom fly. Make sure you use the right weights because some weights will spook the fish and some are just not good for river fishing.
Your nymphing leader length will depend on the average depth of the spots that you are going to fish and the type of fish that you fish for and the type of nymphing that you are doing.
For most trout sized rivers I will use a leader between 10 and 14 feet long. When you back to a shallow spot you simple move the shots and the float down. You can see the added split shot up near the float in the diagram above.
Someone mentioned the fish seeing the mainline with this method. I will also sometimes add a second leader with a second bait of about 12 to 20 inches tied off the hook bend of the top hook to make the whole leader longer and to get the shots and shot line higher up and away from the fish. Adding the second leader and bait makes the entire leader closer to 6 feet deep which is better in the deeper water of 8 to 12 feet deep, and so there is less mainline in the water.
If I move back into shallower water again I can just remove the second bait and leader so I have a short leader again. If you do decide to run the 2 baits, to make sure that the bottom bait is getting down to the fish or the bottom, I will add a split shot between the two baits, usually about dead center. See my 2 bait float fishing leader in the diagram below. For a deepwater float fishing leader setup I will make a shot-line of about 6 feet long and use larger splits shots, and then space them out in the same basic pattern as I would with my regular shot line.
But on my longer float fishing leader setup, I will use a 6-foot long shot line and the space between the top two split shots might start around 6 inches because now I have to fill up 6 feet of leader, and not just 20 inches of leader. With the deep water float fishing leader, you will need to upsize the split shots to be sure the leader works properly and that the bait gets down fast enough.
I use lead shots around the size of a pea. Your float size also needs to increase to a 12 to gram float. Slip floats are often the best to use when fishing water is deeper than your float rod is long. This will help you cast easier and will help you land the fish easier. This fast and deep float fishing leader setup which is known as a bulk shot leader or as bulk shotting is one that I might use when I need to get my bait down to the fish very fast.
With this rig, all 5 out of seven split shots are placed12 to 14 inches from the bait which will get your bait down really fast. Keep the same length of shot line section for all depths and just slide your float up or down to get the desired depth.
I also keep the bait 8 to 14 inches from the lowest splits shots so that it gets down and stays down. I only use the bulk shot float fishing leader setup if the fish are holding at the bottom of deep drop-off ledges like in the picture below.
An example would be if I was fishing a spot in fast water where the bottom went from 2 feet deep to 7 feet deep very fast and all the fish are sitting on that 7-foot drop. I would cast a couple of feet before the drop and the weights would pull the bait down the slope of the drop and into the strike zone. This would be the only time I would use this type of float fishing leader, all other times my standard float fishing leader setup is better.
My float fishing leader uses a 16 to inch bottom leader. But, there are times when I will add a weight to this part of the leader. Most guys will fish many drifts before they notice that the split shot has slid down to the bait, and that wastes time and can spook fish on that drift and on all other drifts after that even if you move the split shot up, so I have a little trick that I use.
Guide Tip: I have been known to use a split shot between the bottom swivel and the bait when I use buoyant baits like a Berkley Trout Worm but you could do it with any bait if you feel you are not getting down to the fish. Therefore, when I fish two baits I will either use a heavy bait like a glass bead on the bottom or I will sometimes add a split shot between the two baits to be sure that both baits are getting down to the fish and the bottom.
This is a fast and easy way to rig two baits on a leader. The reason I use this 2-bait rig a lot is that I can easily fish sections of the river that are from 2 to 4 feet deep with just the top bait, and when it gets deeper instead of sliding the float up, I simply tied on a second leader with a second bait off the hook bend. This allows me to fish shallow and deep easily, and it allows me to experiment with baits and to see if 2 baits are more effective than one bait.
For trout fishing, I just drop down in size, I go about 0. In case you are wondering why I say to go by the millimeter size instead of just saying to go from 8-pound test to 4-pound test is because of the brands that do not rate their lines properly which I explain above.
When the water is not clear, I will keep the two baits 12 to 14 inches apart but when the water is very clear I will often increase the distance between the baits up to 24 inches because the fish will be able to see the bait from a distance.
Tying your lower leader off the bend of the hook like this does have some issues. It makes threading on spawn bags and some other baits more difficult because the line prevents the bait from going on the hook all the way.
I will show you another option below. Instead of tying the second leader off the bend of the hook, I add a 4 to 6-inch tag line with a hook on it. This allows better movement of the bait, allows better hookups because the fish can inhale it better, and it allows me to add any bait unobstructed by a line tied off the hook bend.
Someone just asked me what leader set up is best for float fishing in water that is 2 feet deep or less, my reply was this:. The exception is fishing in dirty water. Since I like to catch fish, in water that is 2 feet or less, I will often switch to my advanced bottom bouncing method which can be done with a Centerpin reel or a spinning reel and is much more effective in shallow water if done right.
If for some reason I wanted to fish in 2 feet or less of clear or dirtier water, the diagram above is my very shallow water float fishing leader set-up. Hey graham i just starting to get into steelheading and got my first centerpin.
Hi Joshua, good question. The fluorocarbon is also clear which allows me to use a high viz line as my mainline, which I always do. The high viz line has a lot of advantages over a clear line,or a green line, especially for someone who is learning or for a guide like me that teaches most of the time. The total length of my leader from that swivel to the bait is usually 3 feet. That allows me to fish a 2. Should I find fish in pocket water or in really shallow water I will usually take the entire leader and float off and switch to bottom bouncing which is far more effective in that type of water.
Thanks for your question. I will likely add this to the post for others.. Good luck this spring. I have a question about the bottom leader line from the bottom swivel to the bait. In your opinion is it ok to put 1 split shot on this line to ensure the bait stays down? Hi Mike, Good question and I answered it in the post in more detail with a couple of diagrams for you. Just wanted clarification. Thanks for all the info you have posted thus far. You are correct, I almost never let my clients cast upriver because you can not control float and leader angles and speed.
I always try to be upriver of where my target zone is and always fish from the top of the zone down and try to cover the water systematically. Your email address will not be published. Skip to content Learn the best float fishing leader set up from a professional float fishing guide.
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