Wet Lines & Good Times: First For 2013

Great outing today. Limited on time, I ran out the door with Tess to grab what little river time I could get. The first fish came quickly, and although it was small, it was that wonderful first fish of the season that seems to set the precedent for the rest of the season. Nothing beats that first take, that first tug - especially when it's still early for a hatch, and yet you manage to get them to take a dry. Today's magic was the ubiquitous Adams parachute indicator - one of my favorite go-to flies. I did see, and subsequently try to fish, some small cream midges, but to no avail. The brown pictured was my second fish, and if it's any indication of the healthy life in the river, this season's going to produce a lot of good fish and great memories. I'm sure with the coming week's warming weather, the bugs should be emerging and the fishing is sure to heat up.

Easter Stoneflies

Headed out for a short mid-day woods and water jaunt with the pooch - my constant fishing companion. I nymphed the riffles for a bit and threw a March Brown/Hendrickson dry with an emerger to see what was what. I had three takes on the dropper set up, but blew my hook sets (a real fisherman can admit that). Around 12:00ish, I noticed some bugs flying around and happened to capture this guy (pictured left). I quickly switched to a quill-winged Stonefly, but a few casts in, my efforts were cut short with a phone call, requesting that I pick up Easter goodies for the kiddies. Remembering again why I try to stay off the grid when venturing out . . . until next time . . .

First Casts of 2013

Had some time to head out today for a nice hike with my furry, four-legged friend and hit the river for some more scouting and general soul-cleansing. Blackbirds were out and buds are on the trees, so not much longer now until the hatches start. BWOs and Stoneflies have been seen and the river was green and flowing at 152 cfs. I threw some deer hair-winged black stones to fish the riffles mid-afternoon, but didn't have much luck. The water is still in the mid-30s and the few fish I spotted didn't have much interest in moving. The wind was my nemesis today, but as always, it still felt good to get out.

Pre-Season Scouting

Cabin fever leads to funny things - trying to fill the void between hunting and fishing seasons without losing your mind. Whether it's tying your own flies, attempting to become an amateur bourbon aficionado, researching loading your own ammo, or trail running with the pooch - whatever it may be - it's all a futile attempt to stay sane and satiate the need to get outdoors and do what you love. I guess the upside of some of the hurricanes and weird weather patterns we've experienced lately is that it alters your home river(s) - effectively making the old new again - with new holes, more structure and changed runs. I took the opportunity recently to venture out this winter to explore my stomping grounds and strategize . . . even if that first tug is a few months away.

Freestone First

 

Just got back from an amazing vacation in Lake Pacid - one of my favorite places on Earth. I managed to get in one good evening of fishing with my friends at The Hungry Trout, on a private, catch-and-release, fly fishing-only section of the Ausable River. This freestone river was vastly different than my home tailwater and was as equally challenging as it was exciting. I now understand why so many fisherman were so bummed when felt soles were banned, as my rubber-soled, carbide-studded boots did little in the way of traction. I relied heavily upon a wading staff to navigate the combination of current and slick rocks. I caught four nice browns and lost as many (plus two I missed on slow hook sets at the start). The Adirondacks provided a gorgeous backdrop, despite the pouring rain and thunder.

A Man, His Dog and Some Fish

Another incredible night on the river. Weather cooled off just enough and I headed out after dinner to fish until it got too dark to see. Had Tess with me and she enjoyed full run of the trails and river. I have to leash her when I'm fishing though - trying to keep a Lab out of the water is like trying to have the sun rise in the West. She was not pleased being restrained. I caught a few good fish and somehow lost my Dr. Slick clamp (argh!). I toggled between a rusty spinner, sulphur spinner and sulphur. Much of the action came right at sunset and I even fished in the dark for a bit trying to hook up just by listening for the take.

Father's Day Browns

Awesome Father's Day fishing jaunt. Headed back to the same hole as the other day - this time with my headlamp - preparing to stay until I couldn't see my fly anymore. Early on, things started off slow and I picked off a few smaller ones here and there using sulphurs, spinners and caddis. The action picked up two-fold as it got closer to sunset and I caught some really nice-sized browns using a size 16 Royal Coachman.

Rusty Spinner - It's What's For Dinner

Hit the river tonight from 4:00 p.m. until dark. I spent the first chunk of time feeling things out - looking for bugs, rises, etc., but it was slow going for a while. A few sporadic takes from mostly small browns like the two pictured above. I lost quite a few fish too - hook sets were too quick and I even had some issues with fish trowing the hook (lost what was probably THE biggest brown I've ever caught just as I was about to net him). I switched it up a lot between orange-bodied sulphurs, spinners and rusty spinners. I was expecting more of a spinner fall, but not much was going on bug-wise. The action picked up around 8:30 p.m. and I was getting into bigger fish (it really is true when they say the big boys come out to play when it gets dark), but ultimately had to bail since I was in a new non-trail area and forgot my headlamp. Gorgeous evening though and I shared the river with a huge beaver and a heron, who were only feet away.

Sulphurs and Spinners

Another gorgeous night on the river. I hit a new spot around 5:30 p.m. and fished until 8:00 p.m. Despite not seeing any naturals at the outset, I still fished a sulphur dry and after a few casts, they started to rise. I noticed some small cream midges and ultimately some big orange sulphurs. I hooked but lost four or five initially (due to bad knots and dull hooks - argh!). I settled in, however, resharpened some hooks and laid into them with sulphurs and spinners. 

The Gunpowder Ghillie

Hit a new section of the river last night with friend and guide Jason DuPont, for a solid four hours or so of fishing. Despite the reports of severe thunderstorms, it turned out to be a gorgeous evening. We started off swinging nymphs/emergers in the shallow riffles for a few takes, then switched to sulphur dries and absolutely laid into them. We even saw a few caddis. Lots of naturals and lots of big takes, replete with loud slurps and big jumps.

Out With Hendricksons, In With Sulphurs

I stopped in my local fly shop, Backwater Angler, this morning to pick up some flies after seeing a report on an early Sulphur hatch. As always, they were dead on and I had an epic morning. If I brought to net every fish I caught, I would have made it to eighteen. The takes were awesome too - super noisy and aggressive. I can't think of a better way to spend a beautiful spring Sunday morning and plan to hit the spinner fall later!

San Juan Special

Went to some new spots along a catch-and-keep section of the river tonight with Coke and caught a few nice trout. The weather was gorgeous and we wrapped up just before a big storm. I had some luck with a light pink San Juan Worm. We had a few suckers and fall fish as well. And despite the general lack of quality substrate in this area, there are a few holds and there is a bit of structure. I turned over some rocks and even found some Mayfly nymphs.

Fish On . . . With Conor

Hit the river with Conor this morning after dropping Owen off at school, to squeeze in a few casts on this 71 degree March day. I caught two very nice browns, again on a 24 Adams parachute/indicator. They seemed to be hitting emergers hard, but I didn't have the right arsenal. I had Conor help reel in the fish. First one broke off at the net, but we landed the second one. Conor held it for a second then we let it go. What a way to spend the morning! On the way out, I ran into the Commandant of the US Naval Academy and we chatted about our flies and successes. He was hittin' 'em hard with BWO emergers as I suspected.

The Stink is Off

Got out this afternoon for some solo fly fishing - first time this year. Hit the Gunpowder down from the dam at a nice hole. After some experimenting with a small stonefly and then a tandem midge rig to no avail, I sat and watched the water for a bit. I noticed some surface activity around 3:00 or 3:30. They seemed to be eating little gray midges, so I tied on a 24 Adams parachute indicator and caught four nice browns in short order. Tess sat on the banks in a patch of warm sunlight and watched. Each fish got a sniff and then I let them go. Gorgeous day.

First Fly Fishing Foray of 2012

Well, I finally had my first fly fishing foray of 2012 this past Thursday. Couldn't help but take advantage of the late spring-like temps before things got cold again. Hit a catch-and- keep section of the Gunpowder with my friend and outdoor sage, Coke. I'm not a fan of catch-and-keep areas - they're stocked and attract a less-than-savory crowd who fish with worms or corn niblets, etc. There's a blatant lack of quality substrate and those that don't get caught wind up migrating to the more quality catch and release sections of the river anyway. Either way, it's still fun to get out with a good friend, listen to the river and once again polish up my casting skills after the winter hiatus - especially on a week night. Coke's seen here with three nice trout - two rainbows and a brown.

Goosebreast Rendezvous

Hit our goose pit today with Greg, Coke and Rich. We managed just two geese and had a fair amount working our spread. It was cold and gray, with clear skies and a touch of drizzle to make things perfect. The migration's been off a bit this year. Normally we'd have crushed them by now. Apparently, the first Canadian clutches of the spring were devastated by an early bad weather system, so the migration cycle's been off by a month or so. They finally seem to be here now and I look forward to ruffling some more feathers.

Backstrap Boogie

This doe was taken with my bow at Coke's Camp in November, 2011, during the rut, just before Thanksgiving gun season. I hunted alone and used my climber. I hunted half over freshly cut soy bean fields and half into the woods. Now enjoying her in family-sized portions!

Savage River Retreat

Went on a great three-day fly fishing trip this spring (2011) to the Savage River with some fellow Maryland Trout Unlimited board members. Incredible time. Water levels were crazy high, so we fished most of the tributaries of the Savage and crushed the native brook trout. Fishing, camp fires, good friends, adult beverages . . . does it get any better?

Gunpowder and Lead . . . and Owen

Took Owen out with Uncle Greg to brush the goose pit for the 2011 season. Owen got to take his first ATV ride and shoot his first 12 ga. shotgun. Awesome bonding with my future hunting buddy.

Sulphurs on the Gunpowder

Hit the Gunpowder this evening for the Sulphur hatch - first fish of the night with the new Winston BIIx 9' 5 wt. and Hatch 3 Plus reel. Cast like a dream - can't wait to try this rig on some Western Maryland pigs!