If you have ever stared at a lake wondering why the guy in the next boat is hammering fish while you are not, this episode is for you. In Part 1 of our conversation, stillwater authority Phil Rowley walks through how he thinks about lake fishing, and the big takeaway is simple: the best fly in the world does nothing if it is not in front of a fish.
Depth Comes Before Pattern
Most of us obsess over fly patterns. Phil's point is that depth is one of the key players in stillwater success, right alongside retrieve and presentation. If the fish are cruising a foot off the bottom and your fly is fishing three feet higher, pattern choice is irrelevant. When I fish a lake, I start by finding out where the fish are holding: ask the guy coming off the water, watch whether other boats are casting a lot or barely moving, and note what is hatching and whether shucks are on the surface. Then I adjust sink time and retrieve speed until I find the zone.
The Floating-Line, Long-Leader Method
Phil came up fishing chironomids the old way: a floating line, a long knotted leader of 20 to 25 feet, and unweighted flies. No indicators, no tungsten beads. He still loves that approach, particularly in deeper water, because it teaches two things: patience and touch. Patience, because you have to let the fly and leader sink, sometimes 30 seconds to a minute, which feels like forever when nothing seems to be happening. Touch, because the takes can be extremely subtle.
In skinny water an indicator makes sense because it holds the fly up out of trouble. As you move deeper, the long leader gets more appealing, and as Phil points out, it is the lake cousin of European-style nymphing on rivers.
Hanging a Fly and Using Droppers
One of the most fun ideas in the episode is the hang or dangle: letting a fly sit suspended in the water, even in a strong wind, while you simply hold the rod. Takes can be ferocious. Phil described them as a freight train grabbing a mailbag. A practical tip from the conversation: the rod you are not holding, the one in the rod holder, always seems to be the one that gets hit.
Droppers let you cover more ground. Fishing two stages of an insect together, such as a pupa with a bloodworm, or two different nymphs when damsels and mayflies overlap, lets the fish tell you what they want. You can also pair an attractor with a natural. If you hang a blob, consider a beadhead so it sinks and stays tight to the leader, which also helps avoid fish swallowing it deeply.
Putting It Together
- Locate the depth first, then choose the pattern.
- Learn the long-leader method and give it the time it needs to sink.
- Use an indicator in shallow water or when you need to keep the fly out of weeds.
- Add a dropper to let the fish decide between two stages of the same hatch.
Phil is also helping teach in-person stillwater schools, which is worth a look if you want hands-on instruction on insects, tactics and fly tying.
Gear
For the bottom of that long leader, our Basics Collection Essential Bead Head Midge Nymph Assortment gives you ten midges across five patterns in sizes 14-18. For lake-specific supplies like indicators and chironomid patterns, your local fly shop will know what is working on nearby waters.
