When my good friend Austin Lindsey told me about a new style of fly he had been fishing at Pyramid Lake last year, a design that was absolutely hammering fish, I had to check it out. He kept talking about the subtle presentation when the fish were in close — that they couldn’t help eating it. Austin had been slaying the fish in the mornings with good wave action using what he referred to as a “Carpet Leech,” because it looked like he pulled it off of the floorboard carpet of his truck. He had been experimenting with this style of fly for almost the entire season and had the pattern just about figured out. He had been tying a perfectly balanced fly using a sewing needle or push pin and a 90-degree hook to achieve a horizontal presentation when the fly is fished under an indicator. The fly pattern he was referring to is now known in the industry as a Balance Leech. When I first saw the creation, it resembled a big marabou streamer crossed with the more cylindrical shape of a Woolly Bugger, but with the hook eye set back a little from the front.
While filming for Wild Fish Wild Places last May at Pyramid Lake, we wanted a segment on fly fishing, and what would a show on Pyramid Lake be without someone standing on a ladder for an entire day and catching fish?
In May at Pyramid Lake, the fish are just coming off the spawn and are taking advantage of a variety of meals available at that time of year. The Balance Leech fished under an indicator can represent several of those options at once. Due to the horizontal presentation achieved while the fly is methodically moving up and down in the waves, it looks more like a natural baitfish or damselfly.
When we first arrived, as we strapping on our waders at first light, we could see that the wave action was perfect, and we knew the fish were in close. As we secured our construction ladders just back from the sandy drop-off, we could see fish moving in and out right in front of our feet. As we positioned ourselves on the ladders with 8-weight rods and floating lines complete with indicators, we started working the water only 30 to 40 feet in front of us. One of the common techniques using this type of setup is adjusting the indicator to position the Balance Leech slightly off of the bottom, so when a fish is moving on and off of the ledge, the fly is presented right in its face.
The first fish came only two casts into the day. A set of big Pyramid rollers came through, lifting the leech in perfect cadence, a couple feet up and down, and at the bottom of the second wave the indicator went under hard, and the first fish of the day was hooked. It was a beautiful Lahontan cutthroat of average size — around 20 inches — a healthy specimen of the Pilot Peak strain of cutts.
As the day progressed, we were catching fish, but as the sun warmed the water and the bugs started to hatch, the fish seemed to back off of the bigger Balance Leech. However, Austin had a plan. The second part of his system is tying a small nymph off of the Balance Leech as a dropper. On this day, we added red Mahalo Midges under our Balance Leeches, and the fishing picked up again, as if they were still attracted to the bigger fly, but were keyed in on the smaller bugs. The guys fishing just the midge patterns were not doing as well, so it proved to us that the bigger Balance Leech was still attracting the fish from a farther distance, even though the cutts were eating the midge patterns.
The entire day was filled with fast action, and the Balance Leech proved to be much more productive than the traditional nymphs that anglers near us were fishing that day.
The Balance Leech is a relatively new fly design, and it can be an amazing way to fish still waters, not just Pyramid Lake, when the conditions are right. On a recent trip to a favorite lake, the fishing was slow, but the wind was up, and the wave action was perfect, so I decided to give the Balance Leech a try. It wasn’t long before I had a sizeable rainbow beside the boat. The fish were keyed in on damselfly nymphs, but they were not interested in the fast-strip retrieve that usually fires them up. A smaller Balance Leech under an indicator was the key, and it changed the day for me. Experiment with materials to adapt the pattern to your local fishery. You might be pleasantly surprised at the results.
Tying the Balance Leech
When tying the Balance Leech it is necessary to use a jig hook that has a 90-degree eye, such as the Daiichi 4660 or the Mustad 32756. What balances the fly is a push pin tied to the shank, but cantilevered out in front of the eye. Wrap the entire hook with thread to make an even body.
When you have tied the push pin in place, wrap lead wire both behind and in front of the eye. This will give you the weight distribution needed to achieve horizontal balance.
Tying the rest of the fly is just like tying any other pattern related to the Woolly Bugger, with a marabou or a rabbit or squirrel tail and dubbing for the body.
Some like to add a bead at the end of the push pin, and some just wrap the dubbing to the end of the pin and tie it off.
Check the balance of your Balance Leech when starting to fish, because every fly is slightly different in the way it suspends in the water. We usually have to cut off some of the tail to achieve the proper balance.
