Fishing low, clear water has its advantages

Some Advantages of Fishing Low, Clear Water

Most anglers cringe at the thought of having to fish low, clear water. Reduced flows certainly present challenges that must be overcome in order to maintain consistent catch rates. Like most things in life, you have to take the good with the bad. Although low, clear water can be more technical, there are also some advantages for anglers willing to commit to the task.

First and foremost, anglers that fish during low water conditions gain a better understanding of the water they fish (as well as the fish that reside there). During low water, it becomes very obvious which sections of a stream are capable of holding fish all year-long. The fish tend to be concentrated in the deeper, swifter sections of the stream that provide the best cover. This not only highlights some of the best holding lies, but it makes the fish easier to locate and approach.

Low, clear water allows the structure of the bottom of the stream to be visible. Learning the layout of the stream is especially helpful to know for future reference on a day that the water may not be clear.

Low, clear water is one of the best water conditions for sight fishing. Sight fishing is an aspect of fishing that is much like hunting. It is very appealing to have the ability to spot a fish prior to catching it. The downside of sight fishing is that if you can see the fish, they can definitely already see you.

This is very challenging but equally rewarding, because an angler can take great satisfaction away from catching a fish that was specifically targeted. Being able to see fish will help you identify specific areas where the fish tend to hold. Some of these areas will continue to hold fish all year, even when conditions do not allow the fish to be visible.

Having the ability to watch the fish will allow you to observe the behaviors of the fish you are pursuing. Learning the behaviors of the fish on your specific watershed will make them much easier to predict and catch.

There are many things that can be learned from spending time on streams when the conditions are not necessarily “ideal”. Low, clear water has become one of my favorite times to be on the water, because it presents challenges that will enable me to learn more and the opportunity to be able to sight fish. Learning to fish low clear water will not be easy, but I can promise you the advantages and rewards are more than worth the effort.

-Kyle

 

About Kyle:

Kyle has been fortunate enough to be raised in Central Pennsylvania where there is an abundance of fish to pursue. Fly fishing started out as a way to spend more time with his grandfather, Larry Winey, and turned into a passion that has been a major focal point of Kyle’s life.

Growing up, Kyle has always been driven by competition, and fly fishing was no different. He was selected in 2007 and 2008 to fish in two world championships as a member of the US Youth Fly Fishing Team.

He always knew he wanted to become a fishing guide at some point in his life, and at the age of 18, Kyle was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to start his guiding career.

After guiding the past six seasons and logging hundreds of days each year on the water, Kyle’s fly fishing passion has led him to realize that he simply wants everyone who fishes to enjoy it as much as he does.

It is a goal of Kyle’s to spread his passion in fly fishing to other anglers by sharing all types of fishing information and excitement.

2 Responses
  1. Nice job Kyle.
    You need to write more often.

  2. My father and I are planning to go on a fishing trip, after this quarantine, since we’ve been wanting to try this type of sport ever since I was in college. I guess you have a point that with low water, it’ll be easier to capture fishes because they’d be easy to spot. I also agree with you that, I will be allowed to observe the fishes’ behavior due to the clear water.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *