More and more recently my friends and I have started using the duo almost to the exception of other methods, however today conditions dictated I couldn't go with this method so I fished a down stream wet with a GRHE on the point. Within two hours I wondered why I had abandoned this method of fishing having caught 6 fish, four natural brown whoppers well over 2.5 pounds.

The question that I left the water with is why we have got all hung up on the duo method and other upstream nymphing methods like New Zealand Stlye.

So my question to you guys is when should we be using upstream nymphing over traditional wet methods?

A very interesting question TPR1. I fished a river competition yesterday and the guys fishing wets caught the most trout. Anglers fishing the duo or other nymphing methods while catching trout, the numbers didn't come near the numbers caught on wets. The same happened in another recent competition where the top anglers were again fishing wets.

Maybe, it's a better method early on in the year, particularly this year with the funny weather we've had (water is still cold, flylife poor and way behind normal). The trout don't seem to be particularly active but are taking the wets swinging across them. It should change shortly hopefully and the nymphing will come into its own.

Bert

What's the Duo ?

DJ
Have a look at the video Places available on River fly fishing course near Sheffield of paul G fishing the trio and the duo. No idea why the set up differs from NZ dropper but it shows the style of fishing it.
It takes alittle while to get started , but stick with it.

Good question TPR1, firstly you say "the conditions dictated you couldn't use this method." Could you elaborate a little on that, too windy, low water ?
The duo is a method I rarely use to be honest.
I usually fish dry, or wet. Sometimes I give the duo a try, but I have never found it to be of much use to me.
I think you are right to a point in saying that the old methods have been overtaken in recent years, and we need to address this issue.
Spider fishing is back in fashion of late, and can be deadly here on the Eden at times, a friend of mine, who knows his stuff, does little else, and rarely fails.
North country spider fishing worked well all those years ago, so why shouldn't it now, same with good old accross and down wet fly.
Very interesting.
S.

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"A glint of sun has warmed the air,The flies will soon hatch out, To lure and tempt from their deep lair, The bonnie speckled trout." SKB tackle supporter. I love Furled Leaders.

Big question maybe but how do you fish wets and spiders on a small river/stream ? I fished my first one today and fished upstream NZ style, Got one on the nymph whilst fishing properly and another tiny one whilst walking upstream dragging my flies

Yep, that's happened to me as well, seems daft at the time doesn't it.
I have an old friend, who I have known for 45 years, a true Lakeland man, and a good fisherman.
He lives near to, and often fishes Hayeswater, and one day whilst fishing with him,I asked for his advice on how best to fish the tarn.
His response was, "I just chuck something small and black a few yards out, then start to walk around the tarn dragging the flies behind me".
I was amazed, but no one knows this tarn better than him, and he has accounted for many a good trout from it.
Just goes to prove, if it's in the water, and you cover enough of it for long enough, you will eventually srike gold.
S.

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"A glint of sun has warmed the air,The flies will soon hatch out, To lure and tempt from their deep lair, The bonnie speckled trout." SKB tackle supporter. I love Furled Leaders.

Steven, I must admit that when fishing "your" rivers and using nymphs/spiders I have had quite a few cheeky troutlets snatch them when just hanging in the current at end of a run or when retrieving back upstream, or when paddling upstream and flies trailing behind. Its suprising just how often it happens. Always small fish though. Mind you, a lot of the time they're that quick they just bounce off! I think its a bit like when trotting and your maggot rising up at the end of a trot - its a little like a nymph accelerating up in the water to hatch. Like you, I have tried the duo a few times but haven't really got to grips with doing it properly and am never too sure what top fly to use as I always seem to chose one too small and it ends up sinking. Haven't really got confidence (or competence!) in it

I haven't tried dragging flies around on my visits to Haweswater, but have no doubt it would be effective. Small and black certainly is as far as patterns go and those Haweswater brownies are hungry little fellas which hammer the fly aggressively - just so long as you haven't spooked them first (they are still very shy). I'll try it this year as an experiment!

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Hi Jeff, it was Hayeswater I was talking about, not Haweswater, tiny in comparison.
I know what you mean Jeff, I quite often pick up a fish on the dry when it is trailing behind me in the current, a similar effect to a spider I suppose, happened last night in fact.
As for your comparison to the similar effect when trotting and using M######, can't swear on here, you are again spot on I would say.
I caught a small fish at Bolton last night on a dry, it was unspotted, and very grayling like in colour, but it was a trout, I wonder if it was a small sea trout, never seen anything like it before.
S.

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"A glint of sun has warmed the air,The flies will soon hatch out, To lure and tempt from their deep lair, The bonnie speckled trout." SKB tackle supporter. I love Furled Leaders.

Steven what you say here is quite spooky .reason being where i went with fred in my post of first day back on rivers, fred had a fish exactly how you describe of about 6" in length there were no parr markings either on this fish but very silvery and no real spots to talk of yet the brownies of same length carried both parr marking and spots from exactly the same pool ,we did wonder if it was a "sea trout" aswell ????????????

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WHEN YOU LEAVE THE RIVER, TAKE NOTHING, AND LEAVE ONLY FOOTPRINT'S!!!

THA CAN TELL A YORKSHIREMAN ,BUT THA CAN'T TELL HIM MUCH !!