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[fisher man]

still learning how to fly fish rivers and the other day i found a nice spot but was having problems with my presentation on a dry fly.It was a small pool with a log at the back with slow water just in front,but in the middle was faster water that would carry my fly away.Any suggestions how to keep my fly still longer would be appreciated. 

[dennyman]

I am assuming the spot you were trying to cast to , is across from you. That would be a hard one, because the faster flow was in the middle. If you did not move, you would have to cast, to the spot and then with only the leader and a bit of fllyline down on the river, pick up the rest of the flyline if possible and have that portion flow through the spot, much like float fishing trying to keep your line off the water.  In my opinion that would be a hard cast to do.  A better way would be to wade over to that side of the river if possible.  And then make a cast to it, while you are upstream, sort of like a wiggle cast, and have the fly  flow down to your target spot.  The fly would then move at a uniform rate, to the fish and hopefully fool them to bite your fly.

[skaha]

--I would be fishing the fast water... drifting the fly though at head of pool and tail of pool..
--aggressive feeding fish like the faster water as it provides cover... harder for birds to see them also in the fast water is where the food is drifting.

--often areas that you can see fish are not the areas that they are feeding in.. they may be resting after a good feed in the fast water and are less likely to take your presentation. Not to say they won't if you put it on their nose.

--often in the slower water smaller fish may be aggressive to take, especially on the surface as no competition from larger fish who may have had a close call with a bird.

--larger fish may also be hanging around that log... cast to the area where you cannot see the bottom.. that is where the larger fish may be lurking to ambush and retreat to the safe water.

--don't cast over this area and drag through as this may spook the fish.. try to get a natural drift through the faster water into the area.

--don't be afraid to work the same area with a sinking tip if the dry isn't working... stonefly etc.

--work different parts of the pool, then go back to the  same productive areas.. if you just keep casting to the same area the fish are just going to roll their eyes at the same old thing that they now know isn't food.

[fisher man]

Great thanks guys. :)I'm just going to have to go out again tomorrow and keep workin it.I did catch a few little ones.The water is not deep enough for sinking tip so i'll try a stonefly or similar with my dry line.To me it seems like when my dry fly is in the faster water that the water just messes it up.
Do you guys stay away from dry flies in faster,ripple water or is that okay?

[skaha]

--I often fish along the edge of the fast water then down the middle. I look for the ripple.
--Under the water the fish is using the ripple to camouflage itself from predator's, like birds.
--especially larger fish won't want to venture out into clear water except at night or in shadow of an overhanging branch or log.

--they seem to be in the most difficult place for you to get your fly into.
--you may see them laying near the bottom of a deeper pool... if not white fish or pike minnow they are probably not aggressively feeding there. that doesn't mean you can't catch one..
--If no bites leave the water alone for awhile and then try again or change the fly size or pattern.
--the big thing is to get as natural a drift as possible.
--watch the water for awhile.. the fish, when it sees something is deciding if it is just a piece of wood or a leaf or good size piece of food. your fly has to look like food to them . bigger fish usually have been making better choices thus if it looks strange will not go for it.

--if out in the middle or in the pool you are most likely to catch smaller fish that haven't experienced the scare of something trying to eat them when they area going for food.

[maverick]

If you had seen a trout actively rising and taking bugs off the top then you don't have to worry as much about the dry fly dragging since an active feeder will usually hit the fly the second it hits the water if placed well. If you are not seeing a fish sipping bugs off the top but want a fly to get a decent drift across to see if you can bring one up to the surface it is relatively easy as well. Cast your fly into the pocket then do an upstream mend with the line in the faster water so it won't grab the leader and start to drag your fly across the surface. As you practice your mending you will be able to repeat several upstream mends until your fly has been able to do a natural drift thru the pocket.

[marmot]

Big upstream mend should do the trick.

Riffles and faster water is ideal for dry flies because the fish doesn't get a really good look at the fly.

[maverick]

If you are going to try one large mend be careful how much line you try to move at one time or you will yank your fly out of the pocket  your trying to drift with the mend. I would suggest a few smaller mends to allow the fly to have a natural drift thru the pocket, watch the fly and if it starts to drag do another quick mend and then keep the frequency of the mends up till the fly drifts thru the pocket. It is also easier to keep a tight line if you do smaller mends. A large mend will put so much belly in the line that you will have to strip in the slack and it will tend to pull your fly out of the pocket into the faster seam.

[btree]

Ya, hard one.

If you can find some videos on youtube or elsewhere, see if you can master a reach cast, or putting an aerial mend in your line as part of your cast.  This take a lot of practice, especially if you are limited to doing some sort of modified roll cast as we often are in tight streams.  I've found the timing for an aerial mend is best just as the tip of your flyline hits the water but the rest is still in the air, settling.  Use the adhesive tension of the water to your advantage.  The tip of your fly line becomes an anchor point from which you can flip the belly of your flyline upstream before it too has settled on the water.  If you do this correctly, you will not have to apply as much force as a regular mend which requires you break the surface adhesion/tension of a lot of the line as opposed to none in this case.  I'd like to say it's all in the wrist... but any way, a reach cast is easier though, but can cut down on the amount of line you may shoot.

If you have your heart set on targeting that water (and not other spots as speculated on by others), the first place to start however seems to be choosing the best place to stand and deliver your cast given the currents and conditions.  Mending can solve as many problems as it solves as mentioned in previous posts with bellies in the line, but often it's the best option.

Good luck.