Techniques: Two-Handed Rods for Trout

Big waters demand powerful line control and greater reach — things two-handed rods have delivered in spades for steelheaders. So perhaps it was inevitable that trout anglers would end up adding a further twist to the tradition by figuring out how to make two-handed rods a fixture of trout fishing. Fact is, longer rods offer an immediate distance boost and enable longer drifts — ideal for folks hunting up big trout in tailwaters or large Western rivers. This week, in his article “Long Shots,” Zach Matthews offers highly specific instructions for how to turn a two-handed rod into a magic wand for big trout.
Excerpt: “Imagine yourself in a very common position. The fish you had been targeting close to the bank have wised up. They’ve left the safe holding water you are standing in, and they’ve moved to midchannel — too far to reach and still get a drift with a standard cast. You know the trout are still feeding, if only you can drift a nymph to them. Here’s where a two-hander shines.”