Fishing dries has to be one of the most satisfying ways of catching a trout on a fly rod. Delicate casts with light tippet, watching your fly float across the waters surface, and blow up takes on the surface. There is just something about watching a trout rise to the surface to smack your dry fly during an explosive hatch on the river. After long hours of fishing dries, they do tend to get waterlogged requiring the use of floatant. While floatant is a great option, there are cheaper and quicker ways to dry your flies. In this tips and tricks video of the week, Lance Egan of Fly Fish Food demonstrates a hack for drying off your dry flies.
Fly Fishing Hack you Say?
A couple of hours worth of fishing will waterlog your dry flies. So how do we combat this?
- Using either your dry fly patch or your shirt cuff, dab your dry fly to get the exterior water off of the feathers and materials.
- Take a piece of Life Flex (Tying Material) and create a loop with that tying an overhand knot.
- Hook your fly over the Life Flex loop and using your fingers to separate the loop, begin strumming your tippet.
- The strumming motion will shake out all of the excess water embedded in your dry fly leaving it completely dry.
There you have it. A simple and easy way to completely dry off your dry flies. You can hook the Life Flex loop that you made to your vest, pack, or waders to ensure its always there when you need it. Rubber bands can also be used but will need replaced every so often due to sun rot.
For more fly fishing hacks and tips, check out Fly Fish Food’s YouTube channel by clicking here.
