Upstream -v- Across & Down
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In the UK publication, Fly-fishing and Fly-tying (about the best of the English fly-mags), there is an article this month purporting to set out some fundamental differences between the UK and US styles of fly-fishing.
The author referred to what he considered the absolute predominance of and preference for across and down presentations, as opposed to upstream, even in circumstances that would favour the upstream approach. He cited an incident in California’s Mt. Shasta region with a well-respected guide where he claimed to have had to sneak off on his own so that he could fish upstream without getting into an argument over the merits.
The writer, Peter Lapsley, is one about whom I am slightly cautious. He is a veteran writer, but his book on river fly-fishing I found, as a then newcomer to the sport, incomplete, dismissive and occasionally unintentionally misleading. But what he said in this article struck me as so surprising that I thought I’d raise it here — I’ve never fished in the US but have read a lot of your literature and none of it seems to show a slavish adherence to downstream presentations. Indeed, one of the best books from any writer anywhere on fly-fishing (Ed Engle’s ‘Fishing Small Flies’) is at pains to point out the frequent disadvantages in it.
So has this guy just got it wrong? Or does it apply in some places? Or did it apply more in times gone by?
I’d be glad of anyone’s comments.
Best regards
JolyonI think it would be easy for a writer living in the UK, with limited experience fishing in the US, to extrapolate general rules from specific occurrences. Still, he might have done his homework:
http://www.midcurrent.com/articles/techniques/matthews_twohandedrods.aspx
“One option is the straight-upstream nymphing cast. Position yourself below a rock or piece of structure and unleash a long cast, dropping the fly right in the pocket. As the fly comes back to your position, strip line quickly between your legs, monitoring your rod tip closely to prevent the line from sagging downstream toward you. In faster current, a stripping basket makes a very convenient place to hold line.
If the indicator dunks, as it frequently will, set the hook straight back at you, right up into the fish’s jaw. If it doesn’t, simply wait for your fly to come by your position, high-stick it past you, and then pivot and begin feeding line downstream. In this way, you can search a run over 100 feet long, which is particularly useful in stained or smooth water where you can’t pinpoint any obvious trout lies. The technique also shines where river depth varies and you can only stand in one small area.”
That’s from American Angler, reprinted here and on MidCurrent (my article).
Here’s more:
“Fishing an upstream pocket can be a little like shooting pool. Position yourself directly below a large rock or ledge, preferably with bubbles in a seam coming directly back to you. Pile up your cast as close to the structure as you can get, so the fly can get down quickly, and then smoothly strip line back into your basket (or between your feet) as it feeds to you. This is where that split shot really does its job. That weight draws slack out of the rig and gives you the ability to set the hook even when the line is constantly slouching its way downstream toward you.”
That was from my very first article in American Angler, reprinted on this site here:
http://www.itinerantangler.com/podcasts/2006/05/article_the_winter_game.html
I’d say he’s overstating things.
Zach
Greetings, I fished the S. Fork of the Yuba River a few years ago and spent some time in a tackle shop in Nevada City talking up local technique.
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