Sight versus Blind Fishing

[bruno]

With so many experienced trout fisher men and women in NZ, I would be interested to know what mix of sight and blind fishing exists.  When Shane fishes the TT or W'nui he talks about getting on to fish straight away or gets skunked!  Are the fish seen, then make the cast; or use skill and knowledge of 'fish lies' and fish blind?  Sometimes I notice tactics such as change flies to see what interests them.  if you can't see anything, then you can change flies all you like and still get skunked because there are no fish around.  It seems that water with a large population of fish per kilometre is a good target for a chuck it and chance it approach (blind fishing).  On the other hand, a rise is a clear indication of fish presence, then the challege is to match the hatch and cast to the fish (sight fishing).  The excitement of sight fishing is obvious, whether in NZ or Australia, however, the adrenalin pump behind a hook up in blind fishing is equally good.  A mix of both sight and blind seems to be the most enjoyable.  I guess for all of us just going trout fishing is great.              

[geoff_fishie]

i blind fish when the waters too deep or murky to see fish. i blind fish likely looking areas even if i dont see fish, even if the waters crystal clear like where im going for christmas you can still get suprised. something nice about the indicator being ripped under when you dont expect it. less painful spooking fish if you never knew they were there! still if you can see the fish coming towards your fly and you see a rise or a mouth flash it has to be the most exciting and visually rewarding form of fishing.

[taupof]

I am always looking for trout, wether it be on the Nui or the Tongariro. If I see one I cast to it, (just can't resist), try it guys you will become better fisherman if you try all the casts. If I can't see trout but the water looks good and is ahead of me then I will blind fish it. Both methods are fun the anticipation of the indicator going down on each drift is equally exciting, as casting to a sighted fish.Casting to rising trout is just as much fun, Its all good!!!!
In Winter there would be more Blind fishing done, (getting down deep) and in summer more Sight Fishing, (shallower clearer water, more stealth).

[bruno]

taupof, Thanks for that.  It seems a common thing is to get excited about the indicator getting ripped down when fishing blind.  I notice  you point out the stealth in sight fishing, would you say there is more skill involved here?

geoff_fishie, I would be inetrested to see ho wyou go after 

[bruno]

geoff_fishie, sorry about the fat fingers thanks for your post.  I would be keen to see how you got on after christmas.  I was interested to note your view on fishing blind even if the water is clear, that is picking your spots in likely fish lies.  I sometimes do that, on occassion, I have realised a fish is in there after I spooked it!
have a good christmas break guys.
Regards bruno.

[tie1on]

I would have to say i fish blind 90% of the time, its funny because it has taken me ages to consistantly catch fish which could be attributed to fishing crap holding water, haha but also now i can look at a piece of water and fish (what i think) are the productive parts and my catch rate has gone up alot ! (Mind you its taken me a few years). But fishing to sighted fish is awesome - so easy to spend a couple an hours or so going through the fly box to temp a wiley old waitahanui trout to take my offerings ! Hope everyone who visits this site has a happy xmas and a great new year - also thanks alot shane & leslie you have started a website that is a huge help to fishos and thanks for the help and info while you guys were at the lodge, got me fishing the waitahanui without fear of the stories about the locals you hear - awesome piece of water and so close to home !   

[geoff_fishie]

the rangetikei has made a comeback! only one of the fish i got was under a pound and majority were AT LEAST 3. fish everywhere if you know where to look, all packed to the brim with green beetles. green and black wooley buggers fished with intermediate sink leaders doing well. lots of fish taking a new nymph which i bought. not much cicada action as of yet. goldbead flashbacks taking lots of fish on dull days. fish all the water (except for the rubbish bits, which youll find out about after a few trips. and approach it carefully. oh, and when your looking at an 8 pound rainbow rising in crystal clear water in front of you, try not to stuff up the cast. how do i put photos up? definitely a worthwhile trip, pressure on this river LOW when i was there, did not see one other angler walking around for 4 days!