Winter fishing has its own challenges but that’s no reason we have to put the rods away and wait until warmer weather. In this article, I discuss 5 tips that will help you catch more fish this winter.
Tip #1: Start Your Day Later
One of the best things about winter fishing is your start time. There’s no reason to set an early alarm or get your gear ready in the dark. Sleep in, enjoy a cup of coffee or two, slowly get your gear packed and plan on being on the river around mid-morning.
During the winter, fish will have a much shorter feeding window. That feeding window will coincide with the warmest part of the day. I plan to get there a bit earlier just to make sure I don’t miss any of the window.
General timing will be 10 in the morning to 3 in the afternoon. Even during this time, there will be lulls so I wouldn’t anticipate non-stop action. The weather will play a large roll in fish feeding time and it’s impossible to know for sure until you get to the river.
Tip #2: Find Water in the Sun
Finding an exposed piece of water will be critical to avoiding ice. If you’re fishing from a boat, maybe go check out the boat ramps prior to planning a trip because they may be under some thick ice making launching difficult.
Water that runs through a canyon may not see enough sunlight to prevent from icing over, which will not only make the fishing difficult but could put you in a real bind.
Obviously, water in the sun will be warmer than water in the shade. Fish will find this warmer water to help boost their metabolism. This warmer water will also be a good place to potentially see bugs hatching. Expect to find fish in holding areas that are exposed to the sun, especially if there’s bug activity.
Tip #3: Fish Slower Water
During the summer, we often target riffles and oxygenated water, which is what we would consider “feeding water.” During the winter, we’ll want to target what we call “holding water.”
As the temperatures get colder, trout metabolism slows down and they’re not as keen to fight the heavier currents in search of food. Typically, what you’ll find is that the fish have moved down stream toward the tail outs of the run.
Summertime holding water becomes feeding water for winter trout. The fish are really trying to conserve their energy and eat as efficiently as possible. So, you’ll likely find them in the slower moving water.
Tip #4: Size Down
A general rule of thumb for winter fishing is sizing down your bugs. Size is relative term. What’s small on one river may be considered large on another. No matter the season, I tend to fish flies as big as possible. I wouldn’t be afraid of throwing bigger bugs.
The rivers I fish are known as great stonefly rivers. Those bugs are in the water every day of the year and they’re a staple food source for those trout. For the most part, trout are opportunistic and will take advantage of a larger meal floating down river.
Having said that, if my go to size on my rubber legs is a 4, I might have to downsize to a 6, possibly an 8. Many times, during the winter, fish will still eat those bigger nymphs. Obviously, if those bigger flies aren’t producing fish, I’ll start to utilize smaller fly patterns.
Tip #5: Don't Be Afraid to Fish Dry Flies
I wouldn’t expect to get action on dry flies all day but there may be some opportunities. As the day matures, you may see some fish rising to hatching midges or eating emergers. You could force the issue with a dry fly but I would probably wait until I saw some signs of fish looking up.
Obviously, there’s nuances to different bodies of water. Local knowledge goes a long way. Personally, I’ve caught fish on a big chubby while fishing a dry dropper rig. I highly recommend fishing a dry dropper during the winter, especially in shallower waters.
The majority of my personal fishing and guiding are from a boat. My typical program for winter fishing is cruising from hole to hole and nymphing the obvious runs.
As we float from run to run, I’ll either throw streamers or dry dropper at the banks. I love the dry dropper rig along the bank. Rivers in my neck of the woods have excellent structure just off the banks, making great holding water for fish.
Expect to get more fish on the dropper than the dry but don’t be too surprised if you get a few on the surface. Obviously, this is condition dependent and not every day will be conducive to the dry dropper.
Winter fishing comes with difficulties. The fishing can certainly be slower. It’s much colder and there’s no getting around the inherit suffering that is winter fishing.
But, it’s a nice time of year to have the water to yourself and learn more about your water. During the winter, flows are lower, and water is clearer allowing you to see structure that may normally be covered up.
Take notes of that structure so that you can come back to that spot at higher flows and potentially find fish in those zones.
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