Driftin' Jigs for Trout

A bug’s life isn’t all it’s cracked up to be – at least not in a trout stream.  With limited mobility, aquatic insects in most stages of life pretty much have to go with the flow.  Trout seem to sense this, and they stack up in the places where bugs and other foodstuff tend to drift.

Many fly-fishermen “get the drift,” and their strategies center on good drifting presentations.  Spin-fishermen, on the other hand, typically rely on reaction strikes, adding action to their lures with turns of a reel handle or twitches of a rod tip.  Few see a spinning outfit as the fine tool that it is for presenting offerings that mimic freely drifting trout food.  In truth, spin-fishermen who don’t use dead-drifting strategies are missing an easy and hugely effective means for catching trout throughout the seasons from streams of every size.  

Among the most effective styles of offerings for drifting approaches are very small jigs, such as 1/32-ounce Little Guppies and Lindy Premium Marabou Jigs and even 1/64-ounce Little Nippers.  Depending on the current, the water depth and the attitude of the trout, a jig can be floated alone or beneath a small float.
The approach, in its most basic form, is exceptionally simple: Examine a run to determine where trout should be holding; cast upstream of that spot; and allow the offering to drift through that area. Keys to consistent success include selecting the best baits to drift, determining float sizes and depth settings, reading the water and positioning yourself for the truest presentations.

The Right Stuff

A Marabou Jig (at right) offers a fluttering motion, slow fall and highly natural profile and ranks among the best overall jigs to drift for trout.  A Marabou Jig often can be drifted with no float on the line.  It’s also a great bait to swim or work with twitches, but that’s another story for another time!

A Little Nipper has a narrow skirt and offers minimal resistance in the water column, which allows it to get down among the fish better than a Marabou Jig in swift water.  A Little Nipper is an outstanding choice for drifting under a float through a long deep run because it gets down quickly and looks like an easy meal to a trout.

The Queen and Little Guppy jigs are extra buggy, and each fits a unique niche.  The Queen’s front hackle and wings cause it to fall slowly through the water column, zigzagging as it drops.  The Little Guppy is compact and looks a lot like the nymph of an aquatic insect (a huge part of the average trout’s diet). Its soft body also makes it feel like a real bug in a trout’s mouth, which causes fish to hold on a little longer.
Black is arguably the best jig color for generally resembling something natural drifting through the water column; however, white-dominated color schemes match minnows of various sorts, and anything with orange or red in it screams crawfish.  Bright colors, such as pink and chartreuse, meanwhile, often will trigger strikes from trout when the natural patterns seem to go unnoticed.

Whatever the color and design, a jig generally should be heavy enough to find its way to the bottom during a drift but light enough that the current will carry it along.  If the bottom make-up allows, a bait that drifts right along the bottom, kicking rocks as it goes, looks the most like an insect nymph and generally stays among the most trout.  If a bottom-bumping jig snags too frequently or picks up moss, it becomes necessary to go smaller, add a float or shorten casts and drifts.

For the tiniest jigs and depth settings of less than about 3 feet, a Thill Bite Strike Fly Fishing Strike Indicator works really nicely as a float.  It casts well, and the slide-in peg lends itself to quick and simple depth changes. For deeper settings or heavier offerings, a River Master balsa slip float offers more buoyancy and easier casting.

Except in waters where extra big trout, heavy current or gnarly cover demand going heavier, 4-pound test works well for drifting jigs in trout streams.  Use a light or ultralight combo, with a 6 ½-foot rod.  A fairly long rod is helpful for casting float rigs and for keeping line off the water, which is sometimes necessary for avoiding drag.

The Right Drifts

Reading water and planning drifts begins with thinking like a trout.  Ambush feeders, trout lie in strategic positions, typically facing upcurrent, which allows them to hold their place easily and watch for passing foodstuff.  They’ll often hang behind rocks, just inside eddies or close to current seams.  They also stack up within lines of funneled current because food likewise gets funneled through such areas.   Jackpot spots are little pockets behind boulders in the middle of concentrated current lines and other areas where more than one element come together.

A good strategy is to identify the absolute key spot in particular run and plan the first cast so the bait drifts naturally through that spot. Trout can be wary, and often they will either strike or be spooked with their first glimpse at an offering.  Depending on the depth, the current strength and where the fish are holding in the water column, that perfect first presentation might mean making a short pitch barely above the spot or casting farther upstream for a longer drift.

In small streams or places where pockets are very well defined, a drift or two per spot might be sufficient.  Large pools warrant multiple drifts along different lines to cover the area effectively, and diligence can reap rewards.

For most drift fishing, the best overall approach is to work upstream, either quartering casts upstream and across or casting straight upstream. It’s also possible to cast straight across a stream and allow the current to carry the bait downstream, giving care to prevent any bow in the line pulling sideways or slowing its drift.

One essential element of all drift-fishing strategies is to create pure drifts, with no drag. If currents cause a loop in your line and pull the bait sideways, slow it or speed it up, trout often will get spooked and will keep their mouths shut.

It’s also critical to watch the line or float for ANY little jump, hesitation or acceleration.  Trout typically don’t hit baits hard, and they won’t hang onto anything that feels even slightly unnatural for very long.  Stay alert and set the hook quickly with a snap of the wrist.

The good news is that with a well-executed drifting strategy, opportunities to hook fish tend to come quite often!