Reply To: Recommendations for Sinking Tapered Leaders

If your fishing most of the Missouri rivers which typically can have high banks and lined with trees I personally would stick with a floating line and add more weight if you need to get your flys down faster so they’re in the zone longer.  My reasoning is I do a lot of roll casting in these streams when nymphing vs back casting.  I don’t have to worry about snagging a Tree Trout and I can roll cast pretty much the whole width of stream if I want to.  With a sink tip it makes it more challenging and sometimes impossible to roll cast because your actual fly line along with leader and tippet are below the waters surface in deep runs or holes.  If your fishing a river that gives you a lot of room to cast behind you then a sink tip could work.  I don’t find myself for the most part in that scenario when fishing the Missouri Trout Parks or outside the parks.  May be able to get away with it at Taneycomo.  That’s just my take.  Maybe others have a different view.