Just because the weather is turning doesn’t mean you need to hang up your fishing rod and turn in for the season. You can still use your trout flies to catch a few fish but you will have to change your game ever so slightly. Here are a few tips to help you out.
1.
Fish later in the day
If you want to maximise your chances of catching a fish, get up later and head out in the mid afternoon as this is when trout will be at their liveliest during the winter months. Also, keep an eye on the temperature – the warmer it is, the more surface activity you’ll see, so plan your fishing trips accordingly.
2.
Use lighter tippets
Water in winter is typically clearer than at any other time of the year and while this can be beautiful to look at and admire, it also means that the fish can see your leader and tippet a lot easier. Counteract this by using lighter ones and smaller flies.
3.
Fish deep
You’ll find that winter fish are different to summer fish as they’re a lot slower and will be less interested in moving a lot to catch food, since they’re trying to save energy. Change your fishing style to suit the trout and weigh your flies down so you’re fishing deeper in the water.
These three simple changes to your fishing routine could see you catching a lot more trout in the winter than you may have done in the past. Give them all a go and let us know how you get on.
