Some time ago I wrote a blog on how to take advantage of “windows of activity” that occur as water is rising or falling during a runoff event on the river. I mentioned in passing that I like using a sink-tip fly line in conjunction with streamers that have a spun deer hair head. This blog explores why this combination can be deadly when streamer fishing.
There are many decisions one must make when streamer fishing. The following are some of the basic choices to make about the streamer:
- Size
- Color
- Style
- Fishing up- or downstream
As always, any tool works best in a handful of situations. That’s why our fly vests are stuffed with dozens and dozens of flies and who knows how many gadgets. This blog will focus on the advantages of using a sink-tip fly line with spun deer hair streamers. These lines can be used with any type of streamer. However, streamers with a spun deer hair head have some unique advantages. That is the topic of this blog.
The Set-up:
The line: Diagram 1 below shows the components of a generic sink tip line. The sink tip portion is usually a different color from the rest of the line. Working from right to left, it consists of a short sinking front taper and the sink tip body. Together these are referred to as the sink tip. This portion is weighted and can often be purchased in different weights leading to faster and slower sink rates. The sink tip is followed by the floating body and the back taper which is attached to the running line which also floats. The floating body and back taper make it easier to lift the line off the water.
Components of a Generic Sink Tip Fly Line
Choosing the right sink tip line
Sink tip fly lines consist of a sinking tip section attached in front of a floating line. The sink tip can be various lengths and have different sink rates. A shorter sink tip with a slower sink rate is designed for use in shallower water with little or modest current since they sink more slowly. Longer sink tips are designed to go deeper faster and are for use in deeper water with more current. You may have to try a couple of different lines to find what works best for the river conditions you will be fishing. A good fly shop should be able to coach you through that choice. Being frugal by nature, I found my first line on sale on-line. It turned out to be too heavy for my rivers. Consequently, I spent a lot of time getting the line freed up from rocks. After I decided this was something I was going to commit to, I purchased a shorter and lower sink rate line that minimizes the line catching on rocks and other obstacles in the river.
A large arbor reel and two or three extra spools are highly recommended
The sink tip portion of the line is prone to line memory which will make casting more difficult. A large arbor reel will minimize this problem. Having two or more spare spools allows you to switch between dry fly fishing with a floating line and multiple sink tip lines to use in various conditions. There are some decent reels that come with two extra spools and will not break the bank while still being serviceable. I have three spools. One for dry fly fishing and shallow streamer situations, a short slow sink tip line when getting a streamer a little deeper is necessary, and a longer and faster sink tip line when I need to get the streamer deeper into bigger holes. It only takes 7-9 minutes to switch spools and tie on a new fly or flies (I have timed that, so it is a real number. I had to convince myself it wasn’t that hard to switch over.)
A quick side note on sink tip fly lines. Most of the time you experience a snag, it is actually the line itself getting caught on an obstruction. At first, I didn’t appreciate that as I was fishing in cloudy run-off water. It wasn’t until I fished in clearer water where I discovered the line was snagged. The beauty of that is a strong roll cast going past where the line is stuck will almost always free the line and you can continue fishing!
The Leader
Unlike dry fly fishing where long tapered leaders are needed. Streamer fishing with a sink tip line works best with a 4–5-foot leader consisting of equal lengths (24-32 inches) of 20-pound test and 10–12-pound test monofilament or fluorocarbon. Each has its own benefits; monofilament is more supple while fluorocarbon is more abrasion resistant. If you are like me, I use whatever I have on hand. The leader is purposefully short and is an important factor in getting your fly to the proper depth.
The Big Advantages Of Sink Tip Fly Lines:
- Using a sink tip line makes it easier to pick your line up off the water and cast than a full sinking line and you don’t have to go to larger and heavier rods needed to handle full sinking lines.
- The action this impart to streamers with a spun deer hair head. Diagram 2 below shows in cartoon form what happens. The strip causes the streamer to be pulled under water and the pause allows the streamer to rise. This imitates an injured or dying prey fish and triggers the take.
- You can cast very close to shore or other structure in the water without snagging since the fly floats. This is important as fish often hold very close to areas like this. I have seen fish smash the streamer the instant it hits the water!
This is the step-by-step sequence during the retrieve shown in the cartoon below.
Step 1: The sink tip has sunk which creates a belly between the floating line and the floating streamer. When the angler makes the first strip, it pulls the streamer down into the water.
Step 2: The depth that the streamer goes depends on how long the angler waits to make the first strip and the length of the strip. The longer the angler waits before the first strip, the deeper the belly goes into the water and the deeper it will take the streamer. The longer the strip, the deeper the streamer goes. So, the angler has many variables to control to determine how deep the streamer goes on each strip.
Step 3: The angler pauses between strips. The longer the pause between the strips, the more the streamer rises. If you wait long enough, the streamer can even return to the surface.
Step 4: The angler strips line again and the streamer is pulled deeper and repeats the cycle of steps 1-3.
The key factor is the streamer rises on the pause between the strips which imitates a dying or injured fish. This can be like waving a big piece of prime rib in front of a hungry lion. Notice, I said, “can be.” If the fish are on as I described in a previous blog, “Opportunistic Streamer Fishing,” they will smash the streamer. However, if the fish are off, you can cast for a very long time without seeing a single fish. However, in conditions like this, if you do trigger a fish, it can be very big. The operative words are, “can be.”
Some anglers fully commit to fishing like this. They would rather catch one trophy fish and are willing to go fishless. I am not one of those anglers. I choose to use this approach judiciously choosing to do it during runoff conditions or at night. Even at night, there are good nights where you will have a lot of action using a sink tip line with a spun deer hair streamer and get some bigger fish. But there are nights where there will be few if any takes.
My experience has been that streamer fishing tends to be an either/or situation. Either the fish are on and you will get a lot of action. Or, they are off and little or nothing will happen. But in either situation if you use a larger streamer, you are putting yourself in position to get a bigger fish.
Part 2 of this series will explore the importance of:
- Streamer color, size, and style
- Fishing upstream or downstream
- Getting multiple fish out of certain spots
- Using other types of streamers.
---