Tonight was a classic late summer evening on the West Branch. Of course, I say that, but it's the first time I've actually experienced a night like this first hand. First off, the water was clear and low (~85 CFS), but very cool for this time of year. When we arrived in Walton at a little after 5pm, fish were lazily rising all over but I targeted faster water where it entered into slower, deeper water figuring that's where the trout would congregate. I pretty much assume anything rising in slow water during the day has got to be a chub.
Despite the near constant rises and the ability to actually see trout holding in certain spots, I could not figure out what the fish were eating. I threw a dozen different flies at them with no result. Based on the lazy rises, I figured they were after something dead or at least not very fast so I tied on a rusty spinner. Finally, I got a take: a chub. 20 or so casts later I finally caught my first small brown trout on the same fly but not much more interest than that.
Giving up on the holding trout, I decided to see what was rising in the slower water. Pretty much as expected, the only thing I could interest in my spinner was the occasional chub. Why couldn't I figure out what they were eating? I didn't see any bugs flying around or on the water, but apparently I didn't look closely enough. Finally, while standing beneath some trees during a passing downpour, I noticed tiny flying ants on my arm. A-ha! Too bad I had nothing like that in my fly box. Best I could do was a #16 dubbed ant-like thing I had attempted, failed, and abandoned. The naturals were at best #20s or smaller. Still, I went with it. No trout, but the chubs were definitely more interest in this than anything else.
Thankfully, the passing downpour I mentioned and the oncoming dark stirred things up nicely. Soon I noticed small Pale Evening Duns rising from the riffles. Excitedly, I tied on a mayfly imitation and headed back to the riffles where I saw the trout holding before. Still nothing! Frustrated and having trouble seeing, I decided to go with a #14 Light Cahill just because I'd be able to see the damn thing. Man! Was that ever the right call! First cast hooked a 17" male brown trout.
Darkness was really settling in now, but I couldn't leave, especially since I noticed an increasing number of mayflies rising from the riffles and aggressive rises all around. For about 15-20 minutes, I could do no wrong catching another 4 or 5 trout including a pretty 16" female. By the end I was casting blind in the dark and lifting my rod at the sound of a rise. I missed a few takes to be sure, but I caught a couple more as well. Magic.
Soon, it was too dark and I was no longer hooking up. Turning on my headlight revealed a blizzard of Light Cahills like I've never seen. The water surface was littered with them and they swarmed around my head and landed all over me in the lamp light. I quickly turned off the light and decided to fumble my way out before I swallowed anymore mayflies. Save 'em for the trout.
And you better believe I looked into some flying ant patterns as soon as I got home!
Showing posts with label Delaware river. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Delaware river. Show all posts
Wednesday, August 20, 2014
Sunday, August 17, 2014
Upper West Branch Report
The water on the Upper West Branch is low (~80 CFS at Walton) and clear and amazingly cool for mid-August. Bob Wikoff and I headed out to fish the stretch between Hamden and Delancy and take advantage of the fall-like weather. We were hoping the fish were of a mind to do the same and weren't disappointed.
There wasn't a whole lot of activity during the afternoon, though Bob nabbed a few browns on a Red Quill and I caught one small-mouth on a CDC emerger. I did receive a major jolt when a three-foot carp pursued my CDC emerger as it swung in the current. Ultimately his senses were too keen and he decided to let it go, but not before my heart rate shot through the roof.
As evening fell, things started to pick up. There were quite a few different bugs out on the water including some big yellow mayflies which I think were golden drakes, small charcoal caddis, tiny BWOs, summer stenos and some light cahills. I had good luck with a #16 blue quill as well as a #14 Parachute Adams, releasing at least a half dozen browns, though Bob out-fished me 2 or 3 to 1. He started out with a dark brown deer hair caddis and moved to a Red Quill which caught several fish just prospecting. As rises began he switched to a light Cahill and finally to a Pale Evening Dun, both of which he used to deadly effect. Beneath one tree which was leaning very low over the water, he side-armed several casts and pulled quite a few trout out, 2 or 3 of which were in the 16-17 inch range. I could hear him chuckling, "Ha! Thought you were safe under there, eh?"
There wasn't a whole lot of activity during the afternoon, though Bob nabbed a few browns on a Red Quill and I caught one small-mouth on a CDC emerger. I did receive a major jolt when a three-foot carp pursued my CDC emerger as it swung in the current. Ultimately his senses were too keen and he decided to let it go, but not before my heart rate shot through the roof.
As evening fell, things started to pick up. There were quite a few different bugs out on the water including some big yellow mayflies which I think were golden drakes, small charcoal caddis, tiny BWOs, summer stenos and some light cahills. I had good luck with a #16 blue quill as well as a #14 Parachute Adams, releasing at least a half dozen browns, though Bob out-fished me 2 or 3 to 1. He started out with a dark brown deer hair caddis and moved to a Red Quill which caught several fish just prospecting. As rises began he switched to a light Cahill and finally to a Pale Evening Dun, both of which he used to deadly effect. Beneath one tree which was leaning very low over the water, he side-armed several casts and pulled quite a few trout out, 2 or 3 of which were in the 16-17 inch range. I could hear him chuckling, "Ha! Thought you were safe under there, eh?"
Wednesday, August 13, 2014
Upper West Branch Report
It's been cool and a little rainy around here leaving the water conditions much better than normal for this time of year. The West Branch Delaware at Walton was at around 100 CFS tonight, up a little from the recent rains, but still quite clear. I'd love to see it up around 200-250 CFS, but the water is cooling off nicely so I took a break from warm water fishing and headed down to Walton to try out some hopper and cricket patterns and a few comparadun variations I had worked up.
There wasn't much in terms of surface activity and no obvious hatches going on tonight, but I found a few fishy spots (mostly fast riffles emptying into deeper runs) and did some prospecting. Sadly, I lost my hopper fairly early on to a fly-eating multiflora rose. I found that particularly painful as I had no backup and the damn thing took me a good 20 minutes to tie. The black cricket pattern I based it on worked well though. I had three hook-ups and landed two, both browns.
Being black and riding low, the cricket was very hard to spot in the fast water, so I tied on my trusty comparadun, a mahogany colored size 12, and went back to work. Again, the fly performed and landed several more browns, a 10" small mouth bass, and few river chubs, just for good measure. The trout and bass were all caught in faster water where the Isos like to hatch and the oxygenation is higher. Wading back to my car, I saw fish rising in a long, slow-moving run. I had a feeling they were chubs, and I wasn't disappointed. With the water so low and clear (and probably a bit warm and stagnant), the trout head elsewhere for their food, shelter, and comfort.
There wasn't much in terms of surface activity and no obvious hatches going on tonight, but I found a few fishy spots (mostly fast riffles emptying into deeper runs) and did some prospecting. Sadly, I lost my hopper fairly early on to a fly-eating multiflora rose. I found that particularly painful as I had no backup and the damn thing took me a good 20 minutes to tie. The black cricket pattern I based it on worked well though. I had three hook-ups and landed two, both browns.
Being black and riding low, the cricket was very hard to spot in the fast water, so I tied on my trusty comparadun, a mahogany colored size 12, and went back to work. Again, the fly performed and landed several more browns, a 10" small mouth bass, and few river chubs, just for good measure. The trout and bass were all caught in faster water where the Isos like to hatch and the oxygenation is higher. Wading back to my car, I saw fish rising in a long, slow-moving run. I had a feeling they were chubs, and I wasn't disappointed. With the water so low and clear (and probably a bit warm and stagnant), the trout head elsewhere for their food, shelter, and comfort.
Monday, June 23, 2014
West Branch Report
The gauge at Walton was down to 300CFS so the water was looking pretty decent tonight. It was still a little cloudy, but any clearer probably would just make the approaches harder at this point. As the weather has been a bit cooler as well, I was hoping the conditions would be ideal for a good night on the water.
JBP and I didn't get out to the river until after 6pm so we missed the afternoon hatches and surface activity was pretty much non-existent until dusk. I puttered around with a nymphing rig (light cahill dry above a gold-ribbed hare's ear) for a bit, but only managed a couple of chubs on that. Once dusk came on, things started picking up as there was a solid hatch of light cahills in about a size #14 coming off of the riffles.
I managed to land a couple of small browns, one on a mahogany dun and another on a light cahill, in the fast water and had at least one nice fish throw my fly. The prize of the night came at dark when a 17" brown gently slurped my cahill from a current seam leading into a large, slow eddy. At first it swam right towards me and I thought it was a smallish chub, but once it got a look at me, the fight was on. Thanks to JBP for manning the net and helping me land it. You shall have your reward, grilled with Lawry season and bacon!
Wednesday, June 18, 2014
West Branch Report
The gauge on at Walton had the upper West Branch at close to 800 cfs, but Wednesday night is fishing night, so JBP and I were not to be deterred. As expected, 800 cfs is pretty high and rather muddy but somewhat wadeable if you know the area. Rises were few and far between this evening and I had no luck prospecting sub surface with a "Maple Syrup" streamer nor on top with a Mahogany Dun or a Light Cahill.
In a desperate attempt to save the evening, I walked to a bridge abutment that's definitely over-fished, but is always good for at least a few smaller browns. Tonight was no exception, and predictably the rises began picking up right around dusk. In less than an hour, I landed a half dozen or so small browns in the 8-10" range. Perhaps not the classiest fishing I've ever done, but after a couple of hours of getting skunked, sometimes it's nice to just land a fish.
In a desperate attempt to save the evening, I walked to a bridge abutment that's definitely over-fished, but is always good for at least a few smaller browns. Tonight was no exception, and predictably the rises began picking up right around dusk. In less than an hour, I landed a half dozen or so small browns in the 8-10" range. Perhaps not the classiest fishing I've ever done, but after a couple of hours of getting skunked, sometimes it's nice to just land a fish.
Wednesday, June 11, 2014
West Branch Report/Lesson in Humility
JBP and I headed down to Hamden for some evening fishing and this time were joined by Bob Wikoff, founding member of TU Chapter 210 and all-around smart-ass and fishing legend. The weather was cool and over cast, and the stream had dropped 100 or so CFS overnight but was still a little murky. I would've thought the conditions were perfect. However, to quote Bob, there wasn't much going on tonight. That, of course, was after he had caught 20 fish in two hours. I myself caught 4 (a chub, and three browns 12" or less) and JBP caught a nice 15" brown, a 13" brown, and a small mouth. So basically, Bob out-fished us 3 to 1 all while taking time off to dole out pointers and smack talk and fly selection/tying advice.
And this is why I recommend to anyone interested in fishing, to get involved with your local TU chapter and/or Rod n Gun club. You meet some cool people and many are more than happy to show the ropes. Bob has 50 years of fishing experience from all over the globe and spent a decade or more as a guide, and yet he happily joined two rookies on a local stream just for the fun of catching stocked browns and the occasional chub and passing on a lot of knowledge and history in the process.
Beyond his knowledge of where to find the fish and which flies to use, the most impressive thing about Bob's fishing was his presentation and accuracy. When a fish rose, his fly was landing delicately a foot or two above it, first time, every time. Actually, I lied. The most impressive thing is that despite his history and skill, he was genuinely happy to be out there with us fishing and he doesn't care if it's a chub or trout, he just loves catching fish and bestowing knowledge.
And this is why I recommend to anyone interested in fishing, to get involved with your local TU chapter and/or Rod n Gun club. You meet some cool people and many are more than happy to show the ropes. Bob has 50 years of fishing experience from all over the globe and spent a decade or more as a guide, and yet he happily joined two rookies on a local stream just for the fun of catching stocked browns and the occasional chub and passing on a lot of knowledge and history in the process.
Beyond his knowledge of where to find the fish and which flies to use, the most impressive thing about Bob's fishing was his presentation and accuracy. When a fish rose, his fly was landing delicately a foot or two above it, first time, every time. Actually, I lied. The most impressive thing is that despite his history and skill, he was genuinely happy to be out there with us fishing and he doesn't care if it's a chub or trout, he just loves catching fish and bestowing knowledge.
Wednesday, June 4, 2014
West Branch Report
With last night's rain, the water levels were up a bit (~450 cfs at Walton) and the water was a bit more cloudy than its been for a few days. According to the pros, the higher water and cooler temps should be good for fishing so here's hoping. While out on the West Branch near Hamden I did see some decent bug activity, though the surface feeding was sporadic for most of the evening.
Best guest at what I was seeing is that we had Hendricksons, Blue Quills (dark bodied, dark winged mayflies), and the occasional bright green apple caddis. I fished a few different patterns throughout the evening, starting with a basic March Brown wet fly, and then progressing to a Hendrickson parachute, a blue quill, a BWO with CDC wings, and a rusty spinner. Dark flies definitely seemed to be the most effective tonight. I had trouble seeing the small #18 blue quill though I think it was probably the best choice based on color and size of the naturals. I tied on the #14 BWO since it was a little bigger and floated a lot better making it far easier to spot. It caught a beautiful 16" brown that casually slurped it from the foam. I admit, I knew he was there, but I thought he was a much smaller fish when I casted to him.
Best guest at what I was seeing is that we had Hendricksons, Blue Quills (dark bodied, dark winged mayflies), and the occasional bright green apple caddis. I fished a few different patterns throughout the evening, starting with a basic March Brown wet fly, and then progressing to a Hendrickson parachute, a blue quill, a BWO with CDC wings, and a rusty spinner. Dark flies definitely seemed to be the most effective tonight. I had trouble seeing the small #18 blue quill though I think it was probably the best choice based on color and size of the naturals. I tied on the #14 BWO since it was a little bigger and floated a lot better making it far easier to spot. It caught a beautiful 16" brown that casually slurped it from the foam. I admit, I knew he was there, but I thought he was a much smaller fish when I casted to him.
Sunday, June 1, 2014
West Branch Report
After several sunny days in a row, the water levels have dropped quite a bit on the Upper West Branch to ~325 cfs at Walton and the water temperature has risen a bit as well. At around 5:30 it was breezy with little to no insect activity and a few intermittent rises on the surface. That all changed as the even went on. The wind calmed and a huge spinner fall (either red quills or march browns I think) made for a fun evening.
The PFD rusty spinner in size 14 proved a killer landing nearly a dozen fish on the evening. To be fair, most were chubs, and of the brown trout I caught, the larges was 13 inches. Still, it was a lot of fun just casting to rising fish and being rewarded time and again.
The PFD rusty spinner in size 14 proved a killer landing nearly a dozen fish on the evening. To be fair, most were chubs, and of the brown trout I caught, the larges was 13 inches. Still, it was a lot of fun just casting to rising fish and being rewarded time and again.
Wednesday, May 28, 2014
West Branch Report
I hit a few more spots upstream from Walton this evening. Stream flows are quite nice at ~500 CFS. Still a little sedimentation in the water, but clearing up fast. The evening was cool and breezy so I got a lot of work on my side arm cast and double-haul to tuck that fly under the wind. I also spent some time fishing an area where the current was slow on the near bank, fast in the middle, and slow on the far bank where the water drained from one pool to another. To fish the seems I got a lot of practice on my aerial mends. I definitely recommend checking out Peter Kutzer's video for some tips on this:
Perhaps it was the breeze, but I didn't see much surface activity until after dusk. I fished the same patterns as Monday for the most part, though I did try my hand at nymphing with an indicator and a pheasant tail and I spent some time swinging an Adams wet fly. The nymphing didn't last long as I don't much enjoy casting the rig in the wind. Someday I will give nymphing a more thorough go. I know it is one of the most effective ways of catching trout, but I haven't had much luck with it to date. Swinging wet flies through riffles can be relaxing and easy, especially if the current makes get a drag-free float on your dry difficult.
In the end, it was a slow day for me with only a few small fingerlings and river chubs. My buddy did land a nice 13 incher on a hopper pattern of all things.
Perhaps it was the breeze, but I didn't see much surface activity until after dusk. I fished the same patterns as Monday for the most part, though I did try my hand at nymphing with an indicator and a pheasant tail and I spent some time swinging an Adams wet fly. The nymphing didn't last long as I don't much enjoy casting the rig in the wind. Someday I will give nymphing a more thorough go. I know it is one of the most effective ways of catching trout, but I haven't had much luck with it to date. Swinging wet flies through riffles can be relaxing and easy, especially if the current makes get a drag-free float on your dry difficult.
In the end, it was a slow day for me with only a few small fingerlings and river chubs. My buddy did land a nice 13 incher on a hopper pattern of all things.
Monday, May 26, 2014
West Branch Report
Thanks to the men and women of our Armed Forces who fought and died for us, I was priveledged to be able to go fishing with my buddy on Memorial Day. I think war is a terrible option to have to take, and I hope we never have another, but I have nothing but respect for all those who have gone to battle to defend our freedom throughout history.
Back home in central New York, Memorial Day was beautiful, sunny and warm. The Upper West Branch near Hamden was running a bit high (USGS says 650 CFS at Walton and it seems best at 300-400), but it's starting to clear up and should be perfect in a day or two if the thunderstorms don't muck it up again.
I hit the water a little after 5PM and the insect activity was moderate. I noticed quite a few small caddisflies dipping and diving to deposit their eggs (dark dun Chimarras) and there were Hendricksons out and about. A few fish were feeding at the surface in select spots, but I had to cover a lot of river to find them.
On the evening, a Biot Parachute Hendrickson pattern in size 12 seemed to draw the most interest. I landed a nice 15" brown, an 8" chub, and had a few takes that I wasn't quick enough to connect with on that fly. I also had a strong take on a CDC & Elk caddis pattern. I was swinging it as a wet fly when the strike occurred, but my tippet gave way. It didn't raise any fish as a dry, which led to the switch to the Hendrickson Pattern.
As night fell, there were a few vicious outbursts where browns jumped clear out of the water after a meal. My guess is that they were hitting caddisflies based on the violence of the takes, so I switched again to a CDC Biot Caddis Emerger. It did draw a strike, but I lost the fly and the fish when I set the hook - something I clearly need to work on.
Back home in central New York, Memorial Day was beautiful, sunny and warm. The Upper West Branch near Hamden was running a bit high (USGS says 650 CFS at Walton and it seems best at 300-400), but it's starting to clear up and should be perfect in a day or two if the thunderstorms don't muck it up again.
I hit the water a little after 5PM and the insect activity was moderate. I noticed quite a few small caddisflies dipping and diving to deposit their eggs (dark dun Chimarras) and there were Hendricksons out and about. A few fish were feeding at the surface in select spots, but I had to cover a lot of river to find them.
On the evening, a Biot Parachute Hendrickson pattern in size 12 seemed to draw the most interest. I landed a nice 15" brown, an 8" chub, and had a few takes that I wasn't quick enough to connect with on that fly. I also had a strong take on a CDC & Elk caddis pattern. I was swinging it as a wet fly when the strike occurred, but my tippet gave way. It didn't raise any fish as a dry, which led to the switch to the Hendrickson Pattern.
As night fell, there were a few vicious outbursts where browns jumped clear out of the water after a meal. My guess is that they were hitting caddisflies based on the violence of the takes, so I switched again to a CDC Biot Caddis Emerger. It did draw a strike, but I lost the fly and the fish when I set the hook - something I clearly need to work on.
Wednesday, May 21, 2014
West Branch Report
Last night down in Walton, NY the water was high and stained at ~1000 cfs, but somewhat wade-able in certain areas. Despite the turbidity, there was decent insect activity starting at around 5:30 and continuing on into dark and there were fish feeding at the surface in certain areas.
I had a solid evening of fishing with 5 hook-ups, though I only managed to land 3. I'm not sure what my deal was, but knot failure accounted for two lost fish. This is the first time I've had issue with the Davy knot, but I still find it quicker and more reliable than the clinch.
I began the evening with a light Hendrickson dry as a dropper and a MGC (brown body, dun wing & hackle) as the point to test the waters. The Hendrickson landed me a small brown and drew a strike from a second fish who unfortunately made off with it and the MGC. I tied on a second Hendrickson but didn't have any luck. After one particularly loud refusal, I switched to a PFD Rusty brown spinner which landed me two nice fish (14" and 15" browns) and hooked a third who ended up with some lip jewelry.
I'm surprised to find that I haven't posted the PFD Rusty Brown Spinner pattern, but I'll tie a few more up and post a pattern shortly. It's a great pattern for dusk fishing because it has a nice silhouette that the fish seem to key in on and is fairly visible giving you have a decent chance of tracking it in low light. (EDIT: Here's a PFD Rusty Brown Spinner pattern)
I had a solid evening of fishing with 5 hook-ups, though I only managed to land 3. I'm not sure what my deal was, but knot failure accounted for two lost fish. This is the first time I've had issue with the Davy knot, but I still find it quicker and more reliable than the clinch.
I began the evening with a light Hendrickson dry as a dropper and a MGC (brown body, dun wing & hackle) as the point to test the waters. The Hendrickson landed me a small brown and drew a strike from a second fish who unfortunately made off with it and the MGC. I tied on a second Hendrickson but didn't have any luck. After one particularly loud refusal, I switched to a PFD Rusty brown spinner which landed me two nice fish (14" and 15" browns) and hooked a third who ended up with some lip jewelry.
I'm surprised to find that I haven't posted the PFD Rusty Brown Spinner pattern, but I'll tie a few more up and post a pattern shortly. It's a great pattern for dusk fishing because it has a nice silhouette that the fish seem to key in on and is fairly visible giving you have a decent chance of tracking it in low light. (EDIT: Here's a PFD Rusty Brown Spinner pattern)
Monday, May 12, 2014
West Branch Report
I spent a couple of hours on the waters between Walton and Delhi tonight and while there were definitely bugs out and about, there wasn't nearly the surface activity I expected. I netted a few Red Quill (male hendrickson) spinners and saw quite a lot of small dark dun caddis (Chimarra, I believe) and slightly larger greed caddis (apple?) out and about, but the fish seemed to be feeding elsewhere. Perhaps I arrived too late for the main feast. Even so, I did manage to hook up with a few small browns. I'm guessing the stocking truck came through recently because the fish I caught were in the 6-8" range and were pretty pale.
Once again, the dark dun CDC emerger was a killer, as was the Madison Guide Cripple in red quill coloring. While the CDC Emerger is deadly, it's tough to fish in that it's hard to see and a little fish slime pretty much trashes it. I fish it mostly as a dropper off of a larger, more visible fly (a Hendrickson or klinkhamer for example) unless the water is fairly calm. Last night it was my go-to for sight-casting to a rising trout. I stuck with the MGC for prospecting in the faster water since the parachute made it easier to track and it's far more durable.
Once again, the dark dun CDC emerger was a killer, as was the Madison Guide Cripple in red quill coloring. While the CDC Emerger is deadly, it's tough to fish in that it's hard to see and a little fish slime pretty much trashes it. I fish it mostly as a dropper off of a larger, more visible fly (a Hendrickson or klinkhamer for example) unless the water is fairly calm. Last night it was my go-to for sight-casting to a rising trout. I stuck with the MGC for prospecting in the faster water since the parachute made it easier to track and it's far more durable.
Thursday, May 8, 2014
West Branch Report - Get your dries!
My first fish on a dry of the season _and_ my first fish on a fly that I tied EVER _AND_ it's my largest trout to date (at just shy of 20")! I am disgustingly proud of myself.
Last night was a beautiful night for fishing with temps in the 60s and no breeze to speak of when I arrived near Hamden at 5:15PM. There was a lot of insect activity with Hendricksons mating in the air, blue quills drifting past, and clouds of small, dark dun caddis flies everywhere. I also noticed nymph shucks floating past in the water. The surface activity wasn't phenomenal, despite the bugs, but there were fish rising. Based on the slow rises and what I was seeing in the water, fish seemed to be slurping up spent caddis flies (dark dun, size 18 or so). The Hendricksons weren't yet depositing eggs and there wasn't a spinner fall so perhaps tonight will show some more action on that front.
The above fish was caught on a dark dun CDC emerger pattern, size 16 with a stripped peacock herl body. I'll tie a few more up and post a pattern soon. It's an easy fly to tie, though the CDC requires a lot of maintenance to keep it floating (many thanks to Hareline's Amadou fly dryer!) and it was pretty much toast after the tussle with the fish pictured above. I tried a few other flies including a more traditional Hendrickson pattern, a blue quill, and even a pheasant tail nymph over a few risers but they weren't interested. A dark Madison Guide Cripple (brown with grizzly hackle, size #14 or 16) drew a savage take from a nice looking fish who managed to get away. It popped my tippet during a brief lapse in concentration as I tried to get into a better position to land it. Unfortunately, I didn't have a spare in dark coloring and the remaining rising fish had no interest in the cream colored variation I showed them next.
All in all, an excellent evening spent on the water and with the warm temperatures continuing, I expect things will only pick up from here.
Sunday, April 27, 2014
Charlotte Creek and West Branch
Saturday morning was a different story on the Charlotte Creek near Davenport with my buddy and I pulling out a pair of 13 inchers and a nice fat 15er. All brown trout, all on salted minnows.
Sunday, April 6, 2014
Upper West Branch Report
Output at Walton: 1500 cfs
Output at Delhi: 600 cfs
Water conditions were poor but fishable. The water was muddy with visibility of only a foot or two and the water was much higher than I like. Weather wise it was a beautiful spring day with temperatures in the 50s. I fished from 11 am to 2 pm using salted minnows (emerald shiners). The riffles were extremely fast and even the runs were flowing fast so I needed a lot of weight to get the minnows down.
I was hoping to use a sink tip and fish streamers but I foolishly left my fly box on my tying desk.
Saturday, September 21, 2013
Fall fishing, wet flies and streamers.
I can't tell you how thankful I am fall is upon us! It's been an incredibly rough summer and my fly fishing pride has taken a beating. The local streams were too warm, or at least, that's what I'm telling myself, and I just didn't have the skills to have much success on the lower East and West Branches of the Delaware. I guess I'll chalk the summer up to a nice learning experience and a great time out on beautiful water.
Now that the evenings are cool and the water levels are back near ideal, I spent a couple of hours on the upper West Branch near Hamden, NY. Talk about a beautiful fall day. I had no idea what the fishing would be like, but it didn't matter. Being outside on a day like this in central NY is why I moved here. As an added bonus, I had one of my most successful days yet fly fishing and actually managed to get some of the techniques I've read about to work on the water. It's nice to get some positive feedback after a dismal couple of months!
I arrived and the stream just before noon with blue skies and full sun. I didn't notice any surface activity at all so, figuring dry flies were out, I went straight to an olive wooly bugger. I found a fishy looking spot where a fast riffle entered a deep run with large rocks on the far bank for cover. The run continually deepened until it emptied into a large pool beneath a bridge. Earlier in my career, I would have fished the calm waters beneath the bridge, but I keep reading how aggressively feeding trout will be in moving water since it's generally colder, more oxygenated, and that's where the food supply tends to be.
With that in mind, I fished my wooly bugger starting at the beginning of the run and working the length of it. I basically used the wet-fly swing technique casting it straight across or slightly downstream and letting it swing in the strong current. I varied it up by switching the rod tip or sometimes stripping in some line. I tried to work it so that the fly would be in the seam between the fast run and the slower water on the side of the stream when it finished its swing. Within 5 casts, I hooked my first and nicest brown of the day. Delighted with myself, I fished the wooly bugger for another hour without any more success. Looking back, I don't think I was getting it deep enough. Even as a weighted fly, it was riding high in the fast current and the run was extremely deep towards the tail end. I just don't think I had it where the fish were feeding.
At any rate, I decided to switch to a wet fly. I had been reading scouting reports saying that leadwing coachmen could be deadly in riffles and runs, but to date I'd had no success. At this point, I should mention that I noticed some mayfly activity. What to me seemed like small blue-wing olives were appearing on the water, but I still didn't see a single rise. Based on all that winter reading, I guessed there must be nymphs emerging and that the trout must be keying in on those subsurface. Hence, wet fly time. And this time, I added some split shot to get my fly down in the water current.
Swinging a wet fly is about the easiest thing you can do. Just cast it across or slightly downstream and let it swing. Again, I held my rod so that the swing ended in the seem. The strikes came like I've never seen. Most of the trout were little guys (8-10"), but after the summer doldrums, I didn't mind in the least. I did notice that I seemed to catch a lot of fish after the fly had swung downstream and I had left it in the water while moving my position. That made me realize that it pays to let your fly drift in the downstream position for longer than I would've thought useful. Reading a bit, it seems that allows the fly to rise up towards the surface making it really look like an emerger. Whatever the case, it caught a lot of fish. Over the course of 4 hours I caught close to a dozen fish, which, for a beginner like me, made me feel pretty damn good about myself.
Now that the evenings are cool and the water levels are back near ideal, I spent a couple of hours on the upper West Branch near Hamden, NY. Talk about a beautiful fall day. I had no idea what the fishing would be like, but it didn't matter. Being outside on a day like this in central NY is why I moved here. As an added bonus, I had one of my most successful days yet fly fishing and actually managed to get some of the techniques I've read about to work on the water. It's nice to get some positive feedback after a dismal couple of months!
I arrived and the stream just before noon with blue skies and full sun. I didn't notice any surface activity at all so, figuring dry flies were out, I went straight to an olive wooly bugger. I found a fishy looking spot where a fast riffle entered a deep run with large rocks on the far bank for cover. The run continually deepened until it emptied into a large pool beneath a bridge. Earlier in my career, I would have fished the calm waters beneath the bridge, but I keep reading how aggressively feeding trout will be in moving water since it's generally colder, more oxygenated, and that's where the food supply tends to be.
With that in mind, I fished my wooly bugger starting at the beginning of the run and working the length of it. I basically used the wet-fly swing technique casting it straight across or slightly downstream and letting it swing in the strong current. I varied it up by switching the rod tip or sometimes stripping in some line. I tried to work it so that the fly would be in the seam between the fast run and the slower water on the side of the stream when it finished its swing. Within 5 casts, I hooked my first and nicest brown of the day. Delighted with myself, I fished the wooly bugger for another hour without any more success. Looking back, I don't think I was getting it deep enough. Even as a weighted fly, it was riding high in the fast current and the run was extremely deep towards the tail end. I just don't think I had it where the fish were feeding.
At any rate, I decided to switch to a wet fly. I had been reading scouting reports saying that leadwing coachmen could be deadly in riffles and runs, but to date I'd had no success. At this point, I should mention that I noticed some mayfly activity. What to me seemed like small blue-wing olives were appearing on the water, but I still didn't see a single rise. Based on all that winter reading, I guessed there must be nymphs emerging and that the trout must be keying in on those subsurface. Hence, wet fly time. And this time, I added some split shot to get my fly down in the water current.
Swinging a wet fly is about the easiest thing you can do. Just cast it across or slightly downstream and let it swing. Again, I held my rod so that the swing ended in the seem. The strikes came like I've never seen. Most of the trout were little guys (8-10"), but after the summer doldrums, I didn't mind in the least. I did notice that I seemed to catch a lot of fish after the fly had swung downstream and I had left it in the water while moving my position. That made me realize that it pays to let your fly drift in the downstream position for longer than I would've thought useful. Reading a bit, it seems that allows the fly to rise up towards the surface making it really look like an emerger. Whatever the case, it caught a lot of fish. Over the course of 4 hours I caught close to a dozen fish, which, for a beginner like me, made me feel pretty damn good about myself.
Saturday, July 6, 2013
Early morning on the West Branch
I had backup lined up to watch the kiddos (my mom-in-law, sis-in-law, and future bro-in-law were visiting) so I snuck out before sunup and headed to Hamden to try my luck.
No trout came my way and I suspect the water is getting to be a bit warm coz this big fella was lurking in one of my favorite trout runs (caught on a muddler minnow):
Saturday, June 8, 2013
Upper West Branch
We've seen a fair amount of rain this week and the reports seemed to indicate water flow would be a bit high on my usual streams so I ventured upstream on the West Branch to Hobart, NY. One of my goals is to net a wild brook trout and I figured now was the time to do it. The farther upstream you go, the faster the flood waters tend to recede, and the DEC says there's a good population of wild brookies up that way so off I went.
I'd be lying if I said I was good at fishing pocket water and prospecting for trout when none are rising, but I gave it a go. The water looked fishy to me, but I didn't see a thing. I went with a wooly worm, a small caddis imitation, and a royal wulff but to no avail. I did finally use the old "face the trees, forward cast through the gaps, and fish your back-cast" trick. Works like a charm.
Back in town, I fished in the park where they have the stream dammed off. There were a few fish rising on the still water so I figured I'd give it a go and at the very least, work on my casting. The results speak for themselves:
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