Rig it right for trout, anywhere.
A sortable, source-cited reference for indicator nymphing and dry-dropper rigs: leader & tippet specs, split-shot placement, a 186-entry two-fly combination database by season, and a printable depth-adjustment cheatsheet. Currently covers Colorado's tailwaters and freestones alike, from the South Platte and Fryingpan to the Eagle River, Gore Creek, Taylor River, and the Yampa near Steamboat — with more regions coming as we expand.
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This guide covers a lot of ground. Pick where you want to start.
Live river conditions
Real-time streamflow (CFS) and gauge height from USGS Water Services for the rivers covered in the rig combinations below. Refreshes automatically. No account needed. Every tracked river is also re-picked for today's live flow: tap any card to flip it and see our recommended rig of the day.
Green "Prime conditions" and red "Tough fishing" highlights reflect general wade-fishing flow ranges published by local outfitters and guide shops near each gauge. Hover a badge for the specific range and source. These are rules of thumb, not a guarantee; always check current reports before heading out.
Why these numbers matter
- Rising flow: dislodges insects and feeds fish, but the window is short before visibility drops and the bite shuts off (Gink & Gasoline, River Reports).
- Falling & stable: usually the best window, as scattered fish resettle into predictable seams (River Reports).
- Clarity below ~2 ft: trout move to shallows and bank edges, closer but spookier (Outdoor Life).
- Before you wade: judge depth and current by eye, not the gauge alone; a sharply rising flow is a cue to fish from the bank (Angler's Covey).
186 proven point + dropper combinations
Up to two pairings per river are always free to browse in full — the rest are listed with season, depth, and rig visible, with fly names, leader/tippet spec, and source unlocked by .
Collected from Colorado fly-shop reports and guide-written columns. Filter by season, water depth, and rig type, or sort any column. Rows marked inferred pair flies recommended in the same discussion without an explicit point/dropper assignment from the source. The Leader & Tippet column is a computed suggestion, not part of the original fishing report. Leader is the length to fish; Point and Dropper are X-ratings: the same diameter spec described in the 4X/5X cards further down this page (an "X" number literally is a diameter, e.g. 5X = 0.006 in), just sized per-fly here using Orvis's "rule of 3" (hook size ÷ 3 = tippet X-rating, see Orvis Tippet Chart), with the dropper tied one size finer when no dropper hook size is given, plus the rig-type and depth guidance covered later in this guide.
| Save | Season ▲ | Point Fly ▲ | Dropper Fly ▲ | Depth ▲ | Rig ▲ | Leader & Tippet ▲ | River ▲ | Hatch | Source |
|---|
Tell us your situation, we'll rank your best setups
Answers filter and score the same 186-entry dataset above against your skill level, river, season, and goal. Free to try — your #1 and #2 matches unlock with Pro; the next-best rig we can show for free comes with the same explanation Pro members get.
How scoring works: an exact river or season match adds the most weight; a statewide tip gets a smaller boost when nothing river-specific applies. From there, skill level nudges the rig type (Dry-Dropper for stealthy/fast beginner re-rigging, Indicator Nymphing for advanced anglers wanting precise depth control), and your stated goal — simplicity, presentation, versatility, or technical control — adds further weight toward rigs that suit it. No black box: every unlocked card lists the specific factors that ranked it where it landed.
Fly Finder
The individual flies behind the rig combinations above: what each pattern imitates, what size to carry, and a direct link to buy it. Browsing is free; save your go-to flies to My Favorites with TroutTips Pro.
Fly Shop Locator
Independent fly shops and guide services near the 12 rivers this guide covers — browsing the full directory is free. Pro sorts the list by distance from you.
Choose Your Rod
Browse 27 real fly rods from $70 to $1,100 across every action and line weight — browsing is always free. Pro answers a few questions about your skill and goals, then ranks the rods that fit you best, with the reasoning behind every pick.
| Rod | Price | Length & skill | Weight | Action | Best for | Buy |
|---|
Tell us about your fishing, we’ll rank your best-fit rods
Answers score all 27 rods against your skill level, primary water, budget, and goal. Free to try — your #1 and #2 matches unlock with Pro; the next-best rod we can show for free comes with the same reasoning Pro members get.
How scoring works: your budget narrows the field first (we fall back to the full lineup if nothing fits). From there, your primary water and stated goal — presentation, distance/wind, an all-arounder, or technical nymphing — weight each rod’s action, length, and use tags, and skill level nudges toward more forgiving or more demanding blanks. No black box: every unlocked card lists the specific factors that ranked it where it landed.
My Favorites
Save rigs, flies, fly shops, rods & rivers as you browse to pin them here for your next trip. Saving favorites is a Pro feature.
Free to use. Pro to save, sync & unlock everything.
Every lookup tool on TroutTips — rig guide, river conditions, Fly Finder, depth calculator — is free, no account needed. Pro adds saving, syncing, alerts, and the full 186-entry Fly Pairings database. Both plans start with a 7-day free trial; cancel anytime before it ends and you won't be charged.
- Full rig-building guide & leader/tippet reference
- Live river conditions for 15 Colorado rivers
- Fly Finder pattern library
- Depth calculator & printable cheatsheet
- Up to 2 fly pairings per river, always free to browse in full (33 of 186)
~$2.50 / mo, billed yearly
- Everything in Free, plus:
- Unlock all 186 fly pairings — every fly name, leader/tippet spec & source
- Rig of the Day — today's live-flow pick, fully sourced, for all 15 tracked rivers
- Save favorite rigs, synced across every device
- Save favorite flies from the Fly Finder
- Email alerts the moment a river you're watching hits prime conditions
Cancel anytime before day 7 and you won't be charged.
Two rigs, one goal: get in the strike zone
Trout spend the majority of their time feeding below the surface (Hatch Magazine), which is why indicator nymphing anchors winter tailwaters, but a well-tuned dry-dropper often out-fishes it in the 1–4 foot water that defines most freestone rivers between late June and first frost.
Indicator (strike-indicator) nymphing
A weighted point fly and dropper suspended below a floating indicator, fished with an upstream cast and dead drift. Built for depth: leaders commonly run 10–12 ft in slow winter water, and it's one of the most effective techniques on Colorado's technical winter tailwaters like the South Platte, Blue, Taylor, and Fryingpan (Fly Guys N Lies, Rise Daisy).
Dry-dropper
A buoyant dry fly doubles as both a strike indicator and a fish-catching fly, with a nymph trailing beneath it on 12–30 in. of tippet. Its sweet spot is riffles, runs, and seams 1–4 ft deep; deeper than that, "consider nymphing" instead (Nerd on the Fly). It's a go-to option through Colorado's hopper season, which typically runs from late June through the first frost (Fly Guys N Lies).
Which rig, and when: sort the decision matrix
Click any column header to sort. Filter by rig type to isolate every scenario where one setup clearly beats the other.
| Water Depth ▲ | Velocity ▲ | Recommended Rig ▲ | Indicator / Dropper Setting | Leader & Tippet | Why (source) |
|---|
Full qualitative comparison
Every dimension, side by side, sourced to fly-shop and guide-education writing.
| Dimension | Indicator Nymphing | Dry-Dropper |
|---|
Indicator nymphing: pros
- Suspends nymphs at a precise, adjustable depth: a 2–3 in. slide "can unlock an entire run" (Drifthook)
- Handles heavy double-tungsten rigs and depths beyond 8 ft with slip indicators (Fly Guys N Lies)
- Works year-round and is a proven cold-water technique, with slower presentations and heavier flies as water temps drop (Rise Daisy)
- Two aligned indicators reveal drift quality in real time (MidCurrent)
Indicator nymphing: cons
- Bobber-style indicators are "not much fun to cast" and are a poor strike sensor (MidCurrent)
- Hard indicators can spook heavily pressured fish as they float overhead (California Fly Fisher)
- Weak in very shallow or very fast turbulent water vs. tight-lining (Rise Daisy)
- Most subtle takes are still missed even with a good drift (Rise Daisy)
Dry-dropper: pros
- Fishes two feeding zones at once: "out-fishes a single dry roughly two-to-one" (Nerd on the Fly)
- Fish are often attracted to, not spooked by, the dry, the opposite of a hard bobber (California Fly Fisher)
- Reaches trout that are looking up during hatches or terrestrial season, when they aren't feeding deep (Hatch Magazine)
- Fast to re-rig: clip and re-tie a pre-cut dropper in seconds (About Trout)
Dry-dropper: cons
- The wrong tool in deep, fast water: the dropper never reaches bottom in time (Nerd on the Fly)
- Depth isn't easily adjustable: you need to add or subtract tippet length between casts (California Fly Fisher)
- Choppy water sucks the dry under, killing the strike signal (Fish Untamed)
- Big dries with a heavily weighted dropper can be genuinely difficult to cast (Montana Angler)
4X and 5X configurations
The two tippet sizes that cover the vast majority of trout water. Orvis's shortcut: divide the fly's hook size by 3 to land on the right X-rating (Orvis Tippet Chart).
4X Tippet
Bigger flies, dirty water, larger fish
- Breaking strength
- ~6 lb Orvis Super Strong nylon
- Diameter
- 0.007 in 0.18 mm
- Leader length (indicator rig)
- 9–12 ft 10–12 ft in slow winter flows
- Leader length (dry-dropper)
- 9–12 ft trim to 7–9 ft in wind
- Point-fly tippet
- 2–5 ft fluorocarbon below the taper
- Dropper tippet
- 12–24 in above the point fly
- Best for
- Flies #12–16 choppy/dirty water, big fish, streamers
Sources: Orvis, Fly Guys N Lies, Wild Water
5X Tippet
The all-rounder: clear water, technical fish
- Breaking strength
- ~4.75 lb Orvis Super Strong nylon
- Diameter
- 0.006 in 0.15 mm
- Leader length (indicator rig)
- 9–12 ft 10–15 ft on technical tailwaters
- Leader length (dry-dropper)
- 9–12 ft 6X dropper off a 5X taper
- Point-fly tippet
- 2–5 ft longer for water over 3 ft deep
- Dropper tippet
- 12–24 in one size finer than the leader
- Best for
- Flies #14–18 delicate drifts, selective South Platte / Fryingpan trout
Sources: Orvis, The Essential Fly, Rise Beyond, Troutbitten
When you need it, and exactly where
Split shot is essential for indicator nymphing in deep or fast water: "even weighted nymphs often need an extra boost to stay deep in heavy current" (Cast and Fly). It's usually unnecessary, and often counterproductive, on a shallow dry-dropper.
Use split shot when…
- Indicator nymphing deep pools or fast runs: light flies wash out without it (Cast and Fly)
- Your indicator never ticks bottom or bounces: a sign you're not deep enough (Drifthook)
- Flows exceed ~700 cfs on a Colorado freestone: add two AB shot or tungsten putty (Fly Guys N Lies)
- A light dropper rides above a heavy point fly in a fast trough: shot between the flies gets both down (Gink & Gasoline)
Skip split shot when…
- Fishing a shallow dry-dropper: use a small bead or unweighted emerger instead, "just enough weight to break the surface tension" (Hatch Magazine)
- You can adjust bead size instead: 2.0–2.5 mm tungsten shallow/slow, 3.5 mm+ deep pools (Drifthook)
- Fishing skinny, technical Colorado water: "single size B shot or none — let 2.3 mm tungsten beads do the work" (Fly Guys N Lies)
- You're already snagging every cast: remove a shot before adding flies (Cast and Fly)
Shot size and recommended use
Shallow water, slow/delicate currents
All-around sizes for medium runs & pockets
Deep pools and very strong, heavy currents
Sizes and weights: Cast and Fly. "BB" is the largest practicable size for most fly fishing; beyond that, consider a sink-tip line (Switchfisher).
Placement distance above the point fly
| Condition | Distance |
|---|---|
| Fast, deep pockets | 4–8 in |
| Winter starting point | 6–10 in |
| Standard / moderate current | 6–12 in |
| Very slow, calm water | up to 18 in |
Source: Cast and Fly, Drifthook, Wild Water
Single vs. multiple shot
- Start light, add as needed: it's easier to add a second small shot than remove one that's too big (Cast and Fly)
- Two small often beats one large: they roll over rocks and snag less (Trout and Steelhead)
- Cap it at two, spaced apart: more than that gets unwieldy, and spacing shot apart (rather than stacking it together) cuts down on snags (Orvis News)
- Placement by rig: heavy point + light dropper → shot between the flies; light point + weighted dropper → shot above both (Gink & Gasoline)
Dial in indicator position & dropper length
Set your water depth, current speed, and rig: the calculator applies the multiplier rule guides use in the field.
Slide to match the run, riffle, or pool you're fishing.
Baseline current: typical run or riffle.
Depth-adjustment reference card
Pre-calculated indicator distances, dropper lengths, and split-shot sizes for common depths and current speeds. Tuck it in your vest.
Indicator Depth & Dropper-Length Cheatsheet
Generated for trout water ·
| Water Depth | Indicator distance above point fly (Indicator Nymphing) | Dry-Dropper Length | Suggested Split Shot | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Slow (1.25×) | Moderate (1.5×) | Fast / Turbulent (2×) | |||