Fly Fishing Tip # 115. Tandem Flies. (3/19/10)

I often fish two flies on my leader. Sometimes there will be a small fly on top with a larger fly “Chasing” it or a highly visible fly on top with a drab shrimp pattern behind it. A nymph or tiny minnow fly behind a popper is a time honored tradition in the South where we fish poppers for Bass and the nymph provides lots of action with bream and lots of fine fillets for the fryer. Trout, Mangrove Snapper and Pinfish eat a fly behind a popper with great regularity.

I usually Snell about 18” of 8# Monofilament or Fluorocarbon to the hook of a popper to attach the nymph.

Lefty Kreh uses a tiny solid SS ring to attach 2 separate tippets to while attaching his main leader to the ring also. I often substitute a tiny swivel for the ring Lefty uses. The swivel is more visible but it also adds extra weight well ahead of the fly. My son Rhett’s fishing buddy, Bill Rhodes, uses a tiny 3 way swivel and he kicks Rhett’s butt soundly most days.

Most often, I tie one fly about 18” up my leader using a 4-turn Clinch Knot then add a second fly at the end of the leader. I never go lighter than 8# test when rigging this way because doubles are common.

Whatever theory you ascribe to for fly choice for a tandem rig, you certainly increase the chance of a fish seeing a fly.

My standard fly rigging for fresh water trout is almost always a big fluffy dry fly on top and then I tie a 18-24 inch dropper off the hook to attach a nymph of some sort. You never know when they want top water or below. However, on windy days you can spend quite a bit of time getting this rigging untangled

Some days you have to take what you can get and that is especially when fly fishing from a yak on a windy day. I used a tandem rig to catch diner and then some. These are all nice fish. Bluegills, Redbreast and Shellcrackers.


My casting wasn't pretty but the Bream didn't seem to mind. I'm no purist, especially on hard days when I want fish for dinner. Those suckers are fun to catch and great to eat.