geartalk

Reading Water: Blending In, Be the Tree and Nervous Water

Rosenbauer’s Rules

Perhaps nobody has written as thoroughly and thoughtfully on the topic of reading water as Tom Rosenbauer, marketing director for the Orvis Company and the author of The Orvis Guide to Prospecting for Trout and Reading Trout Streams, among many other titles. Having had the opportunity to fish with Tom several times (most memorably a blanket Hendrickson hatch on the Upper East Branch of the Delaware, as well as some remote streams in Chile), I’ve always been impressed by his deliberate, methodical approach on the water. One always sees Tom’s wheels turning well before he uncorks that first cast.

I once asked him what were the first things he looked for when he got knee-deep in a river.

“I don't stand knee-deep in the river,” he said. “I stay as far away as I can and still be able to see the water. Fish are often right on the edges, especially if you are the first person up the bank in the morning.”

Tom noted that, absent telltale rises, he often assumes that the biggest fish will be at the tail of a pool. He doesn’t necessarily target his first cast there, however.

“If I think I can cast into the seam and the faster water without messing up the tailout, I’ll often cast there first,” he explained. “The fish tend to be easier targets in faster water, so that’s usually a good place to start, checking to see if you have the right fly, and getting your confidence.”

Be the Tree

When standing on a river bank surveying the scene, Tom Rosenbauer always makes the effort to have his silhouette blend in against a bush or tree.

“If you’re standing out there all alone, creating shadows and a silhouette that wouldn’t naturally be there, it defeats the purpose,” he said. “Make yourself part of the landscape when you stand on the bank and read the water, and you will inevitably see more. In fact, it’s amazing what you can see in stupid-looking, shallow water if you take the time to blend in with a tree.”

Nervous Water

Bonefish guides are always looking for patches on the water with telltale ripples that reveal movement under the surface.

They call it “nervous water,” or (in Mexico) “agua nierviosa.” When fish move through shallow water in schools, they make a subtle disturbance that reveals their presence, even when their fins do not beak the surface.

This is also true with trout, especially in flat water like slow-moving spring creeks and lakes. It’s always worth looking for nervous patches of surface water when you are figuring out where to make your first cast.

Rehab an Old, Rusty Boat Trailer

This boat trailer rehab tip came from our friend Cody Richardson. You may know Cody from his creative use of automobile license plates to make customized fish art. Apparently, he’s a bit of a boat head too, and definitely knows his way around a shop. A couple of years ago, he made use of some fancy Sherwin-Williams paint and helped two of his buddies turn their rusty, beat-down trailers into something they could pass off as new.

A few words from Cody about his rehab process:

“A couple of good friends’ drift boat trailers were in pretty rough shape, so I figured I would help them out… 

I painted my Clackacraft trailer about three years ago with this paint (Sher-Kem High Gloss Metal Finishing Enamel), and it’s still holding up strong. 

We set the trailers on sawhorses in the yard to get them prepped–one of the trailers was already ready to go, while the other was dirty and had surface rust covering most of it. We removed the wheels, then hit the rusty one with a sander and some zinc spray paint to inhibit rusting. 

Once prepped, we used the Sher-Kem industrial-grade metal finishing enamel from Sherwin-Williams. I also use a cheap HVLP Spray Gun from Harbor Freight. This paint dries quick enough that we’re able to apply three coats on the top and bottom of each trailer.

Once finished, the paint dries rock hard and looks like black glass on the trailer.”

The Cut Bank

There is no place a big cutthroat or brown likes to hang out more than under a cut bank, where the high water currents of the river have scoured out a cave to hide in. Rainbows tend to prefer riffles and seams, although they, too, will inhabit cuts if there is enough current. 

When you find a horseshoe bend on the trout stream, which creates a deep, dark, cut bank, you can almost bet there will be a big brown trout living inside. Always be on the lookout for cut banks.

Once you’ve found your target, the trick becomes getting a fly to float into the strike zone. The overhang on a cut bank often makes dropping a shot directly in prime water impossible. You can try to sidearm a cast, or skip a hopper into the cut, but that’s sometimes too splashy to produce good results.

For me, the best approach for fishing the cut bank is from upstream, at an angle. I shoot the cast as tight to the bank as possible, then feed slack line downriver and hope the current sucks the fly under the cut.

Make your first cast count. When fishing cut banks, your first presentation will typically be the one that gets hit. This isn’t the place to experiment or mess around.

BONEDALE FISHING REPORT #5

REPORTS OF MY DEATH HAVE BEEN GREATLY EXAGGERATED

Runoff is a good thing and here’s why–it cleans the tailwater silt out of the real rivers. It also pushes the big food to the edges. Old-timers wait for the big water because that’s when the beasts come out of hiding. Having been temporarily inactivated from the guide lineup–even The Babe got pulled off the roster at one point–I visited with Dave York in Glenwood, and he told me about a 29-inch Brown he took on a dry last September on the big muddy. I don’t abuse the fish on my home water anymore, because I figure I’ve caught my share, but the fishing has been so off the hook, I can’t help myself. Pick any pattern you like, or ask the boys at the shop, then tie it bigger. Like Rusty Spinners four or five-inches long. The best time of year is now until the hatches taper. Copi and I found a pod of Bass off the I-70 corridor with a female that had to be 15 pounds, but we weren’t armed properly. You wouldn’t have a prayer without a 10-weight. The Mother’s Day hatch has been cranking and the fish are still posting Caddis. Or if you like to be dainty, you can fish dries on the upper drainage. The Plastic Jesus will take you where you need to go. I’m planning to fish with Tim Heng later this week and will file updates when I garner further information. God only knows how great the season will be, but I have a feeling it will surprise us. Forget about the big gangster wads of God’s money, the spiritual warfare, drop everything, and go fishing. God has always taken care of the money. I’ve broken every bone in my body and am happy to keep doing it…

Live from the WORLD HEADQUARTERS

Kea C. Hause

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Castwork proofs, Carbondale, CO. Photo: Liz Steketee