How to Fish Streamers

Streamers are a deadly weapon in the fly-fishing arsenal. Trout and big bass will attack streamers long after anglers tossing dry flies have gone home in empty-handed frustration. The reason smart fly anglers use streamers with such success is because of the size of the lure. A dry fly appears as little more than a snack to a brook trout or smallmouth bass. But a streamer resembles a nice, fat baitfish, which is the perfect meal for a hefty trout or ravenous bass.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

Things You’ll Need:

Medium-weight fly fishing rod and reel

Step 1

Tie a shorter leader to your main fly line, between 4 and 7 feet. Streamers are heavier than dry flies and don't require as long a leader to whip them out during the cast. Be sure to tie on a sinking leader, not a floater. You want to get the streamer down where the trout and bass can see it.

Step 2

Drop the streamer upstream from pools and slow-moving water, allowing the lure to sink and drift.

Step 3

Use your flyline as a visual guide to follow the drifting streamer as it approaches a pool, where you are most likely to get a strike.

Step 4

Switch immediately to streamers if the skies become overcast or the water is murky. Their larger size and greater visibility make streamers the better fly-fishing option when the weather turns against you.

Step 5

Vary your retrieval to match the speed of the current in the river or stream. This increases the lifelike appearance of your streamer, fooling a big, wary brown trout into thinking he's about to inhale a juicy baitfish. Instead, he's destined for your skillet.

Tips & Warnings

Be sure to bring your fishing license and trout permit with you on the river.

Article Written By James Clark

James Clark began his career in 1985. He has written about electronics, appliance repair and outdoor topics for a variety of publications and websites. He has more than four years of experience in appliance and electrical repairs. Clark holds a bachelor's degree in political science.

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