Selecting the right strike indicator can be overwhelming and confusing with so many different strike indicators available today. Not only are there so many different types of strike indicators, but each type often comes in a few different sizes as well. The size of your strike indicator is very important, but can easily be summed up by the following rule: use the smallest strike indicator that you can that still maintains buoyancy.
Buoyancy is always the most important factor to consider when selecting a strike indicator. Your nymphing rig will pull your strike indicator underwater if it is too small and is ineffective because your nymphs are not at the desired water depth you want them in, and you will miss when a fish takes your nymphs because you can’t see the strike indicator. However, too big of a strike indicator causes a mess of other problems. You want your strike indicator to float on the river’s surface just enough that you can still see it.
Bigger strike indicators are more difficult to cast and will cause more tangles than smaller strike indicators. Since bigger strike indicators are heavier and have a greater surface area, they tend to make casting more difficult and tangle up your line easier. Furthermore, wind will affect a bigger object more, so bigger strike indicators are much harder to cast when it’s very windy.
Bigger strike indicators spook fish. No matter how well you cast, strike indicators always make some disturbance as they land on the water’s surface. This splash often spooks weary trout and you want to minimize this splash as much as possible by using the smallest sized indicator available. Even if the splash doesn’t spook a trout, bigger strike indicators draw more attention than smaller ones. A trout may see a big indicator and then see your fly line and run for cover. Furthermore, trout are very associative and if you’re fishing a highly pressured stream where trout are used to seeing strike indicators and fly line, they’ll associate it as a threat.
Bigger strike indicators also have more resistance when being pulled underwater. When a trout takes a nymph into its mouth, you do not want them to feel any resistance because if they do, they’ll spit your nymphs out. Unfortunately, the resistance of your nymphs in a trout’s mouth with your strike indicator is how your indicator tells you that a fish took your nymphs, so some resistance is necessary and unavoidable. However, you can minimize this resistance by using a smaller strike indicator. I’ve used really big strike indicators before and found that some trout can’t even move them or pull them underwater and didn’t realize a fish took my nymphs until it was too late.
More information on trout nymphing can be found in my guide book SIMPLE NYMPHING FOR TROUT IN RIVERS & STREAMS.
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