> Trout Fishing > Trout Fishing Tackle

Brown Trout Fishing Tackle

The tables below offer some general recommendations on suitable tackle for wild brown trout fishing on the lochs and rivers of the Northern Highlands. Monofilament nylon is the leader material assumed here, but you can substitute copolymer, or fluorocarbon of a higher strength:

Trout Fishing Leaders

Below are sketches of recommended leader set-ups for different fly fishing tactics for wild brown trout when boat fishing. Click on the images for larger versions.

Loch Style Wet Fly Tactics

Nymph Tactics

Dry Fly Tactics

Buzzer Tactics

Droppers
We recommend the water knot, also known as the surgeon's knot for all droppers. It can be made in 2 ways: by attaching short droppers to a single length of leader; or by overlaying sections of leader such that the lower part of the upper section becomes the dropper. These instructions describe this latter method:

  1. Overlay 2 pieces of nylon (e.g the piece connected to your braided loop, and the next section that you want to join), such that they overlap by a sufficient length to tie the knot and leave the required dropper length (typically about 1ft length).
  2. Form a loop with both pieces of nylon.
  3. Bring the lower ends of the 2 pieces of nylon through the loop 4 times. Pull all 4 ends to tighten, then moisten with saliva before seating the knot.
  4. Trim the upper short end, leaving the LOWER end for the dropper.
^