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      Using a float on your fly fishing set up to indicate what the fly or flys are doing in the depths of a pool or run is not evil or elementary. . Okay so we have put that away lets get down to the meat of the matter. You can increase your success for steelhead dramatically when you use equip that helps you detect strikes visually and not just physically or by “feel” as we say. . The response time for detecting strikes on the swing by high sticking or dead drifting can sometimes, in cooler water temps, be non existent or come to late to know there is a steelhead on your line.  Don’t get me wrong, I love hooking a Steely on the swing and the take on the swing is far more dramatic, but in our rivers up here in the Northland, conditions sometimes just don’t allow those methods.  The speed that a visual aid shows is far quicker because it is normally closer to the fly or flys. That puts them closer to the steelhead. A visual aid shows where the flys are at that precise moment and what direction the flys are in. First do not use an indicator that is so big and bulky that it drags the line and leader with it as it floats down the river.  Pick one that is comfortable to cast and drift. You need to watch that the indicator. It needs to float at the same speed as the bubbles along side it. And remember to mend, mend, mend, mend. Just because you are using a visual aid does not keep you from using your most important manual fly line aid, MENDING. 

     Here are some tips for using a float on your fly fishing rig: If the indicator is pointing down river your fly or system is hanging up or dragging. This usually happens when you are right at the head of the pool where it is shallower. It might float straight up when it gets father down river, so don’t be so quick to change, see what happens  If the indicator is pointing up river the rig is too light and all your product is getting washed away by the underneath current. Add weight or increase the distance the indicator is from the flies  If the indicator floats faster then the bubbles around it. Slow it down by adding distance between the flys and the float or add weight.  But concentrate on exactly what you system is doing.  It can be a number of things.  Being lite helps. Small flys and rigging tandem flys is a big help as well as knowing what your depth of the hole is. You usually set the float 1 ½ times or 2 times the depth of the hole as the distance from the flys .  Set on the slightest pause, going down, bump, etc..that the float does is good advise. Once you get more in tune to your system and fly fishing with this rig you will not be so jumpy on the float. Try to do a set on every drift just for practice, this helps.  I put the lightest float that my system can handle and I try to make it a football shape rather then round. I found that round seems to add to much water noise or disturbance than I need. The football shape cuts through water faster and is easier to set on, but the choice is yours. Just make sure it is the right size for your system for how much product it is holding up.  Now dealing with the meat of the matter! What is the float holding up? Lots. You will typically have tandem rigged flies on the end and quiet a few split shots to give depth and that’s the whole secrete, you must get down to the bottom, I cannot stress that enough, get deep. You will loose a lots of flies and maybe some floats, but the rewards will come and hopefully more often. Remember when the float goes down “SET”