Fishing droppers

[haptonlad]

What is every ones thoughts on fishing with droppers, for sea trout at night ?
I've always fished with a dropper & had no problems yet on losing fish, with break off's or the trailing hook snagging on anything so far.
I've been having a chat with a very experienced angler that has, & for his bad experience he stopped using droppers & only fished one fly at a time.
I intend to fish with one fly from now before it possibly cost me losing a fish of a life time...
He says he's had a lot of miss fortunes while fishing with droppers over the years.
What are your thoughts on using or not using droppers guys ?
I look forward to to replies

 

[weatherman]

Early in the season I tend to fish a single lure, on my local that's when the "larger" fish tend to enter the system. From around the end of July/beginning of August when the "shoalies" are running I'll fish a dropper. There's some logic in what the experienced angler you chatted with regarding losing a fish of a lifetime, why chance it. Another way of looking at it is why give the fish a choice, just put one in front of it & let it decide if it's going to take or not.

 

[sewinfly]

Few of the guys I know fish droppers to great effect.
Especially at Woodmill and Testwood, method I use more at these pools then ever before.

Usually they fish a nymph on the dropper which has a tungsten bead on it.
Then on the point is a small tube ,ally or plastic or a snake.

The weight of the bead is anchoring the leader down with the point fly trailing behind and the tube or snake above fishing.
Quite a number of the fish fall to the Nymph.
This method fished on sinktip or floater.

Does produce good takes.
When I'm fishing the Ogmore I only tend to use one fly.Unless it's snag free from trolleys
The other night landed a 2Ib roller skate on the dropper

Sewinfly. .........

 

[T7]

Usually do unless it’s very windy or if using v big tubes

 

[phl]

I almost always use a dropper; it somehow gives me a lot more confidence than a single fly. It's not so much that you're offering a choice of flies, as the difference in presentation; one fly fishing deeper, the dropper nearer the surface. One of my favourite combinations is a small (size 12) white muddler on the dropper, with a larger conventional wet fly on the point. The tail fly pulls the cast down at first, but as it swings round the dropper starts to fish like a mini surface lure.
I haven't yet had a disaster with the dropper, but.....

Paul

 

[weatherman]

Another reason for my original post is that the "better" holding pools are heavily snagged, perhaps these "structures" attract the fish that hold there. It's often been said that structures attract fish, possibly giving them the sense of security that these extremely shy fish seek.

 

[Alwyn]

I always like to fish a dropper and I think there are 3 solid reasons for doing it:

1. You get to use 2 different styles of fly at the same time, surely increasing your chances
2. You're covering more water with two flies than you will with one (or at least you will do so twice as quickly)
3. You are fishing at two different speeds at the same time. The point fly will be fishing at a faster speed than the dropper, so hopefully increasing your chances.

 

[alun]

the only time i dont use a dropper is when fishing a snake on short leader and sunk line or when using a surface lure. The dropper will land you far more fish over a season than it will lose you, infact i have only ever lost 1 salmon from the dropper/point getting snagged and never a sewin (yet!)

I also believe when a fish sees two flies swinging across them it triggers a more aggressive response, almost like the point fly is chasing the dropper

 

[teififlies]

What is every ones thoughts on fishing with droppers, for sea trout at night ?
I've always fished with a dropper & had no problems yet on losing fish, with break off's or the trailing hook snagging on anything so far.
I've been having a chat with a very experienced angler that has, & for his bad experience he stopped using droppers & only fished one fly at a time.
I intend to fish with one fly from now before it possibly cost me losing a fish of a life time...
He says he's had a lot of miss fortunes while fishing with droppers over the years.
What are your thoughts on using or not using droppers guys ?
I look forward to to replies

I can't understand why you would stop fishing a dropper at night for sewin(because of the missfortune of another angler) if in the past you've not had a problem. I've never lost a sewin or salmon in over 40years of fishing. In my experience I've probably caught more sewin on the dropper than the point fly. The only time I do not fish a dropper for sewin is when I fish a surface lure.

 

[haptonlad]

Thanks guys for all that have replied.
I to have yet to have any problems as yet, but I haven't caught nowhere near the amount of fish that the guy I'm talking about.
The disadvantages that he's suffered over the years are.
Loosing good fish with the trailing fly catching the net, hook hooking his clothing, the trailing hook catching on a snag or backside vegetation & last of all you get into more tangles.
I do get tangled a few times & occasionally hook my landing net, but other than that I've had no trouble. I don't like say that it usually jinks it for me & the next time out I'll hook a big fish & loose it due to fishing a dropper.
My mate insist that you don't catch anymore fish using droppers, than if by using a single fly, this is why I asked the question on here in the first place.
I trust him in what he states, because he's probably the best angler that I've ever come across in my time of fishing, he's also a fantastic fly tier too.
It's a crying shame he's not fit enough to fish anymore, I would have loved to have fished a long side him in his hey days.

 

[elwyman]

Always fish a dropper when fishing smaller flies on a floater in the first half. Nowadays I tend to go home to bed at half-time, but if I am fishing deeper with a tube or snake, then I tend to fish a single fly. Always a single fly if I'm tired and not casting well, or its windy.

 

[dj33]

I never fish a single fly for sea trout night or day , most of my landed sea trout have come to a dropper including most of my bigger fish, I know the tendency is to fish a smaller fly as a dropper but often both flies are the same size for me , just one black n silver the other blue and silver , or various other patterns.