Swift memories

Yesterday I went fishing with an old buddy.  Actually, I went fishing with the bamboo rod he made for me right before he passed away a few years ago.  Every time I use that rod I remember Dan.  He was a good guy, a real gentleman. I have a lot of rods. A couple I wrapped myself that I particularly enjoy fishing. But as the years go by, what I fish with means less to me. Not that I don't appreciate the high performance characteristics of the new technology.  New rods are so light and powerful, they almost cast themselves.  I also appreciate the craftsmanship of the various bamboo rods I have.  But a rod is just a tool.  How you use the tool is what counts. To me the satisfaction of fishing with a fine tool is to be able to get the most out of the tool. To fulfill the vision of the rod maker. If the rod doesn't get in the way of my fishing experience, that's enough to ask for.  When I fish with Dan's rod I know that it does what Dan wanted it to do.  The taper he designed creates the smooth action. The craftsmanship he put into the construction and finish of the rod clearly show the pride he took in his work.  A little bit of Dan is there in the rod.  He would be glad to know that his work was fulfilled on the Swift River yesterday.
Tomorrow I'll be fishing with my friend Dick on the Lamprey River. It is one of the "Three Rivers" that get a late season stocking. I hope I tie into a rainbow or two to equal the ones from the Swift.
If you are looking for some winter fly fishing entertainment, check out our events/presentation page for some ideas.

Breaking the ice on the new season

Last Wednesday I got back from Florida to a chilly homecoming.  The first five days back I don't think the thermometer got to 40F.  Finally the forecast got friendly and I needed to get my trout fishing itch scratched.  I checked all the stocking schedules, FF forums and fishing reports, as well as tapping into the informal network of fishing buddies. Cold water, no stocking, not a fish to be found.  Then I saw the MASS Wildlife stocking report and noted that the trucks had rolled to Ware and Palmer. I tied a couple flies; packed up the gear and headed to the Swift River.  After parking at the route 9 bridge area I hiked up to the Y-pool, noting any sign of trout on the way.  I counted only 6 fish - not good.  There were a few trout lethargically cruising the Y-pool, but none in the bubbler arm.  I worked my way back to the car, hooking one fish in the cable pool area.  Not a total skunking, but not what I had envisioned. But hey, it was a beautiful day, there WERE some fish to been worked, and it was just great getting onto a river again.
After checking the run from the bridge down to the duck pen, I found a couple guys working a pod of recent stockers without much success,  The fish were kind of milling around, chasing their buddys' tails and doing what recently stocked trout do.  Not much fun to be had there.  Then it was off to the always-reliable hatchery pipe - hopefully the meat hunters hadn't cleaned it out before I got there.
There were a few cars in the parking lot, but considering the usual pressure it gets, it wasn't too crowded.  Three guys congregated below the pipe and two more fishing across from each other in the run-in to the fallen tree pool.  One of them was the ubiquitous George. I was able to prevail upon the kind generosity of Dick L. to join him at close quarters in the tree pool.  George soon reel-up, but soon returned with Bob O who set up across from Dick and I.  We had a great time educating a large quantity of trout and enjoying the day and enjoying the shared experience.  After an hour or so, Dick observed that fly fishermen were really nice folks. That has been my experience, too, but when you think about it, how you you be cranky or rude in such a beautiful environment?
Dick left first, then Bob O and finally, after my feet went from cold, to numb, to painful, I took the hint and started to leave.  Well, maybe a couple drifts up by the hatchery pipe, since the folks there had left shortly before.  I got into position and where I could usually see a half-dozen or more fish, I could only spot one trout.  After about 5 drifts through the run, the chunky rainbow took the orange size 20 soft hackle.  As soon as the fish felt the hook it took off down-river on a short run. I hadn't taken any pictures until then. Although it wasn't the first trout of the year, or the largest trout, it was probably the most energetic.

 With the weather improving daily, it looks like more rivers will get a fresh supply of salmonids, so next week we should all be able to fish close to home with some expectation of success.  Have a great season, and leave a comment telling us about your local FFing experiences.
Also, our Androscoggin River package is almost booked out, but we have a couple openings if you want a shot at the Alder fly hatch, the most prolific hatch in the northeast. And if you know someone who wants some formal fly fishing instruction we still have a few openings in our Beginner and Intermediate fly fishing classes.

Fish still to be had

November has seen a real mixed bag of fishing. The Squannacook and Nissitissit were real low when the late September stocking was done and stayed that way most of October. The rivers settled down pretty quickly from Sandy, and I think the fishing actually improved a bit with more water.   I caught a few fish off and on, but my buddy Dick has done pretty well, with at least two or three fish on each outing the last week or so.  He and I had "sparse pickins" at the Cocheco and Lamprey last week.  The water was really cold and the fish had spread out from the stocking - at least that is the story I'll go with for now!
I have made three trips to the Swift River in central MASS the last couple weeks and each one has been terrific.  My orange size 20 soft hackle has been the real producer, but I tied up some other patterns that have turned out just as good:  size 22 gold-wire brassie tied with orange thread: size 24 black thread body and single turn of peacock herl collar; chartreuse soft hackle;  olive soft hackle. I use 7x tippet and a tiny pinch of tungsten putty about 7 or 8 inches above the fly.  If you use an indicator, use a white one.  If you watch the fish closely, they tend to move out of their feeding lane when they see any other color than white coming downstream.
Happy Thanksgiving!    

Like an oasis

If you took a map of New England and circled all the places with good river fishing this summer, you would see quite a few little circles separated by a lot of space. I spent most of the last 2 months trekking between the White Mountains and the Swift River, with a few side trips to the Connecticut River.  Even reports from the usually-dependable Farmington River don't hold a lot of positive news.  Same story everywhere - low flows and warm water.  It looks like the string of 90F days has been broken.  Can the rains of September be far behind?  (I guess I should be careful about what I wish for - remember Irene from last August:(
Last weekend I spent a few days in the Mount Washington Valley teaching fly fishing on the Ellis River and exploring a few cold water tribs on my own.  Here is a picture of a father/son team that learned the way of the skinny-stick, caught their first NH brook trout on a fly and had a great time together. Here is a link to a video of their trip. This was the third father/son(s) trip I had last week,  What a pleasure to share my passion/obsession/addiction with some folks that will have a lifetime of fun together in the outdoors.
Here is a picture of another fly fishing team that came to NH from Florida to hike the Whites and learn to fly fish. Quite a change in altitude, topology and just about any other thing you would like to compare between Florida and NH.  It is funny to think that our hottest summer here would be a cool one in Florida.
One observation I have is that even though there a limited choices for summer river fishing, there is still plenty of room to fish in solitude, if that is what you are after. There were times when I was almost ready to skip fishing a few of "my spots" because there were cars at the parking areas, but often they were not anglers, but dog walkers, hikers, picnickers or general sight-seers.  For the most part, we had the rivers to ourselves. even on weekends.

Gerry with typical "pipe rainbow"

This held true yesterday when my friend Dick and I headed down to the Swift River for a try at some nice Massachusetts stockers.  We went directly to the hatchery pipe area and one guy was leaving as we got there.  A couple times in the course of the afternoon another person stopped by for a while, but we had the whole area to ourselves most of the time.  (As we left to head north, there were over 15 cars spread along the route 9 parking spots, so the Y-pool probably did not offer much in the way of solitude!) The hatchery pipe run trout were very cooperative, too.  Quite a few nice rainbows fell victim to an assortment of soft-hackles, scuds, etc. I also got a brown and a couple brook trout to round out the variety of species.
The "Maven of the Millers" Ken Elmer, famous for his Millers River Fly Fishing Forum stopped by to share some ideas about fishing the Swift.  What a pleasure to meet in person an angler whose exploits I have followed on the Internet for a number of years.  He is as nice a guy in person as he comes across on his blog, and just as knowledgeable, too.
Well, this weekend will bring another trip north to indoctrinate another beginner in the way of the willowy wand.  Let's hope the White Mountain oasis continues to deliver its trouty bounty.
PS We still have a few openings in our Northeast Fly Fishing School class of September 8 and 9 in Henniker, NH. This is suitable not only for beginners, but self-taught anglers of a year or two who need help with casting, presentation, knots and entomology.
PPS Our Special all-inclusive package trip to the Androscoggin River the last two weeks of September still has a few prime dates open. Check the webpage for details and calendar of open dates.

Still in the rut

There have been a few isolated T-storms, but no real relief from the drought yet.  Last week I spent a day on the Ellis River and another on the Swift (MA) River.  The day in Jackson was with a hiker up from NYC who wanted to do some fly fishing before hitting the trail to an AMC hut.  As we all know, the Ellis, just like all the other rivers was running low, but had a water temp of 62F.  I showed my client the stonefly husks on the boulders and explained that we were going to skate Stimulators to see if any of the resident trout were looking up.  They were. We soon landed a couple nice rainbows and brookies. He had fly fished a couple times before, but had never skated a dry.  I taught him how to work the pocket water skating a Stimulator through all the likely looking spots.  I think he'll be trying that technique the next time he fishes the Catskills.
The other group was a father and two sons who wanted to learn the way of the skinny stick.  Since the only other cool water was 3+ hours away, I took them to the Swift River.  After going over the basics of the gear, dry land casting, knots, etc we stepped into the river for some practice with "live ammo."  I always like to start beginners in an area where they can make a backcast, safely wade and be away from the crowds.  That usually means a spot down river from route 9.  There were a few sulphurs coming off and some fish feeding on them.  We were able to capture a few flies to examine and learn how to identify it as a may fly and come up with a fly pattern to match the natural. A couple fish took a whack at their flies with no hookups.  After practicing in private all morning, we moved above route 9.  Surprisingly, we found plenty of places to fish over pods of rainbows. After a few fly changes, they each landed some nice fish on size 20 soft hackles and size 22 brassies.  We are lucky to have these cold water resources available to fish through a hot, dry summer.  Tonight I tied up some more soft hackles (even some purple ones) for my next trip to the Swift River. Still in the rut.  

When all else fails . . .

there's always the Swift River.  Last week I took a couple new-fly-fisher-Brits to the Swift River.  It was the only river with enough water moving to fish various techniques and also offer the possibility to catch some trout.  Mission accomplished.  Last week the flow was 48CFS.  Yesterday my buddy Stan and I figured we needed to a fish-fix and not wanting to drive 4 hours to the upper CT river, we took the 1.75 hour drive to the Swift River in Belchertown/Ware, MA.  The flow was about 125CFS and their were a lot fewer fish, but we had a great time stalking and fooling some rainbows, browns and brookies.  We started in one of our favorite runs above the route 9 bridge.  It is a fast run just below the cable pool.  I hooked three fish and only brought one to hand.  Then I moved down below a couple fallen trees and saw some nice rainbows actively feeding behind a log.  I was just thinking to myself. "I think I can get a decent drift, but how an I going to land it if I hook-up?  HOOKUP!"  Well, it only took the trout about 5 seconds to race around the log branches a couple time and break me off.  No matter - it is all about fooling the fish and I don't think a size 20 soft hackle stuck in his lip will cause any problems.
We then moved up to the "bubbler arm" and proceeded to fool a mixed bag of trout.  Once again my soft-hackles worked, and other people seemed to be getting them on hoppers and beetles.  After working that area pretty thoroughly, we briskly walked past the densely angler-populated Y-pool looking for less crowded water.  We found a few fish below the route 9 bridge, but were only able to get them mildly interested in our flies.  Then we moved down to the hatchery pipe run.  Last week I found no trout there.  Yesterday we found a few.  Landed a couple (wild?) brookies and turned over a couple rainbows.  One was down near the fallen tree and I changed flies about 6 times until I finally got a take on a parachute black ant.  Gotta love those terrestrials!  I believe the brookies probably moved in from downstream looking for cooler water and the rainbows moved downstream to get away from being harassed up above.  The way the weather forecasts look, it looks like the Swift will be the only game in town, other than a trip to the CT River tailwater. (Gotta client trip there Saturday.) If you go to the Swift, bring small soft hackles (red, orange, chartreuse, black) hoppers and and tiny BHPT nymphs. Anybody have any luck out there lately?  Also, how about the Deerfield?  Any luck there?

Reality sets in

Since returning from Labrador I have taken out four different beginner clients.  One to the Swift River and three to the Saco and Ellis Rivers.  Now I know what sports commentators mean when they say, "[insert name of all-time great star]____________ plays a different game than the rest of us."  Well, Labrador is different brook trout fishing than anything I have previously experienced.  Am I "ruined" for local fishing?  I don't think so.  It is still fun and rewarding, but definitely different.  There are contrasts in the size of fish, the remoteness and "pristineness" of the rivers, but after you get past the scale of things, it is still fly fishing. Still fun. Still connects you to the environment and still done in beautiful places.  Also, the folks that learned how to fly fish and caught their first trout on a fly were just as excited (maybe more so!) than I was catching 5+ pound brook trout in Labrador.
And just like I was out of my familiar locale in Labrador, these folks were far from their homes in Frankfurt, Germany, Brooklyn, NY and Cleveland, OH.  To them, our New England trout streams are  exotic, pristine and beautiful, and their enthusiasm and wonder are contagious.  Not a bad version of reality, huh?

Anticipation is high and optimism reigns supreme

This is the time of year that often is most frustrating - the weather is great; stream levels are great; your gear is in order; and where are the fish?  The fun now is in looking for them.  Check the old standbys. Check the spots you were meaning to check, but haven't a chance to explore before. Look for some new spots.  Chat up the anglers you run into and see what you can learn.  But, get out there and enjoy the season!
Last week Dick and I hit the Swift River and found nothing below route 9 and very few above the route 9 bridge. It was great to be out and I hear through the grapevine that it has been stocked. Monday Jim and I hit some spots around Laconia and Alton, NH killing time before the NH Guides Association meeting. We saw a few swirls and talked to some friends fishing there who said one salmon had been hooked there earlier in the day and another landed off the docks behind the Opechee Trading Post in Laconia. We fished a little while on the Merrymeeting River without seeing evidence of any fish. The fish should be up in the river now and the ice is just about ready to go out on the big lake. Things should be popping off the docks and up the Merrymeeting River for a few more days.
Yesterday I made the rounds of a few local spots. Got my first wild brooktrout of the year at my local Wild Trout Stream. The yellow perch should be into the brook any day now, but so far just a few wild brookies. I didn't see many fish or talk to any anglers who had caught any fish in the local rivers.  There were still just suckers at the Prescott Street bridge in Pepperell and no trout evident at the usual stocking points at the bridges in Townsend.  On the Nissitissit River in Brookline I saw a couple trout near the covered walking bridge near the lake, and another at the bridge at the state line on West Hollis Rd/Brookline St. Not enough to entice me to break out the gear.  We have a Northeast Fly Fishing School class this weekend, so I hope we can find some holdovers to keep the students interested, as they develop their fly fishing skills. BTW, we have added an Intermediate class, in case anybody wants to sharpen some skills.

One LAST time

Well, Dick and I squeezed another day out of the fishing year. The weather was too nice to pass up.  We spent most of the morning below route 9 in the area from the USGS gage down past the hatchery pipe.  Seemed like fewer fish - George thinks they have gone up the pipe and every now and then come back down to frolic and feed and get caught.  They better enjoy their time while they can, because come 1/1/11 they will be fair game to move into the category of food.   Speaking of food, after a quick sandwich we fished above route 9 (permanent catch and release area.)  Dick has not had much success in the past in that area, but today he landed the nice rainbow pictured here.  Congrats Dick!  I hit a couple of my usual spots with only a few small brookies to show for it.  Then I worked my way downstream a couple hundred yards and picked up a few nice rainbows.  One in particular is notable, in that I was fishing a shallow run where I could see some feeding fish. My usual rig of a small BHPT with a softhackle dropper was too heavy.  So I took off the nymph and tied on a size 20 parachute BWO as an indicator fly for the size 24 softhackle dropper.  After making about 20 drifts over a nice rainbow, he suddenly sipped the dry and the fight was on.  A nice way to cap a great season.  Stay tuned for news from Florida!

A rut? Or tenacity?

Well, you must be as tired of reading as I am about writing about ventures to the Swift River. Sorry, but I did it again. Tuesday, once again was another of those late fall days that made for an irresistible urge to feel the tug, so off to the Swift again. This time was different in a number of ways. Although I have known him for a number of years and he is a good friend and we have a lot of common interests, I had never fished with Charlie Shadan, owner of the Evening Sun Fly Shop in Pepperell. We decided to fish above route 9 until lunch and then below route 9 in the afternoon. There was only one car at the route 9 bridge when we arrived a little after 9AM. That was quickly remedied, as a number of people showed up as we got rigged up and started the short trek up to the Y-pool and bubbler. We noted a few fish at all the likely spots on our walk upstream. The thought was to start at the top and work down. Since I rigged up a little quicker, I had first choice, so I stepped into the bubbler arm. I stood studying the water for a few minutes, picking out a likely subject for my attention. Then one cast, one fish - must have been beginners luck. I caught 5 more fish out of that spot, before moving downstream a couple hundred yards and picking off a few more nice rainbows. Charlie had quite a few hookups too. After lunch we moved down to the hatchery pipe area and picked up a few more fish, before calling it a day. Last time it was the hatchery pipe that paid off, and this time it was the upper river. Go figure. Once again, it was the red softhackle, size 20 and smaller that was the heavy favorite. Also a few on the size 20 BHPT and olive softhackle. None on eggs this time. I need to sit down at the tying bench and whip out some more softhackles in case I get the urge for another tug before heading south to Florida after Christmas. Overall, it was a great day on the water and I really enjoyed fishing with Charlie. We swapped some fish tales and agreed to do it again ASAP. Drop by Evening Sun and get the straight scoop from Charlie.

The real "last best" day?

Since the last report I made a couple more trips to the Swift River; each time, figuring it was going to be the last trip of the year before winter conditions set in.  The first trip was divided fairly evenly between the below route 9/hatchery pipe run and the above route 9 catch and release area.  Plenty of fish were available in both locations, so the fishing was good everywhere, but the catching was better below route 9.  The water is a good bit faster there, so the fish have less time to study potential food from all angles and need to make the "food or not-food" decision more quickly.  The second (last?) trip was a couple days ago when the temperature peaked over 60F. That day was spent in the hatchery pipe run area.  Dick and I got there around 8AM and there were a couple guys in the "prime real estate" location, so Dick and I settled in above the fallen tree.  Dick and I both had rigged our rods the night before in the prime visibility environs of our respective man-caves.  My green copper john (18) with a red softhackle (24) dropper quickly fooled a nice rainbow, who stayed buttoned to the end of my tippet for all of 5 seconds before coming unbuttoned.  Then  it was something of a dry spell until some midges started to hatch around 9:30.  I switched to a dry set-up and after a few hundred casts, I started to have fish actual come up to inspect my  size 22 BWO dry before settling back to take the size 38 naturals.  I finally got one on a size 24 olive softhackle that I repeatedly brushed with Frog's Fanny desiccant.  After taking a walk upstream and having a bite of lunch, I was able to share the pipe run with George and Don.  My supply of sub-20 sized red softhackles began to take their toll on the heavily fished rainbows.  I got one fish on the size 20 BHPT I was using to sink the softhackle dropper, but all the rest were on the red softhackle.  Every now and then I switched to a black or olive softhackle, but tying on a red one was money in the bank.  Other flies that took a fish or two included the white diamond braid egg cluster and a pink egg.  Dick caught a few fish from the area below the crib dam down to just above the hatchery intake.  Overall, a day that will hold me until I break out the 7-wt down in Florida about a month from now.
One final comment about the fishing at the Swift.  I think I have mentioned before about how fish will quickly associate a strike indicator as something to be avoided. They will swim out of their feeding lane to avoid the pink, orange or yellow indicator after a couple of their buddies have been hooked.  Dick loaned me his tiny white Thingamabobber and not once did I see a fish swim away from it.  I need to stop by Evening Sun and pick up a couple little white indicators for next April when the Swift is the only river at a fishable level during the run-off.
Tight Lines and Happy Thanksgiving!

Too busy fishing to post?

Sorry, but too much time on the water to post - Well, that's my story and I'm stickin' too it! Here is an update for the last couple weeks:  Fished the Swift River three times with diminishing returns.  Caught fish each time, but had to work a lot harder for them each time. On two trips I explored the Bondsville section as recommended by Millerbrown on his blog.  See link on the side of this page.  On one trip I ran into Al, a regular on this blog (hi Al!)  He was also checking out the Bondsville section.  For Swift River regulars, that area is quite a revelation.  (Although the lack of crowds normally seen at the Y-pool, will be a thing of the past if all you guys head out there!)  If somebody blindfolded you and took you there without telling you it was the Swift River, you would never guess that is where you are.  Mixed pools, pocket-water, fast runs, deep slow pools, etc.  Caught some rainbows on dries and also a nice wild brooktrout.  Fishing at the usual Swift River haunts was spotty.  The hatchery pipe area was like a ghost-town!  The only fish in the entire area were tucked in behind the fallen tree about 50 yards below the pipe.  A few fish were spread out a couple hundred yards downstream near Cady Lane. Most fish are found from the route 9 bridge and upstream, and so are most of the fly fishers. With this heatwave and drought it is one of the few places to find fish.
I must confess that I have been finding some fish in the Pemigewasset River.  Had a few guided trips up there this week and last for beginners and/or out of towners.  Here is a video of a family from New Orleans, none of whom had ever fly fished, having a great time learning on the Pemi. And here are some pix/video of a trip I did today, teaching a NHer to fly fish on the Pemi.  Practicing indicator nymphing turned up some nice rainbows.  The fish were dark, perfect fins and no hook marks. Water temp was 64F in the morning and 66F in late afternoon.  Glad some freestone rivers are holding up well.
My partner Jim and friends Dick and Jerry just got back from 12 + days in Montana.  They had a great trip and I hope I can report when they will be doing a presentation about the trip at our TU chapter meeting. Jim is up north guiding on the CT and Androscoggin and Saco/Ellis rivers.  He reports that water temps are good and plenty of fish have made it through the hot, dry summer (at least so far!)
This bodes well for September and October fishing.  Stay tuned for information our September All-inclusive package trip to Errol, fishing the Androscoggin River.

Hatchery Pipe Tour

No I didn't decide to hit the Swift for one last time this year. I took a break from tying flies (more on that later) and strung together some video shots of the hatchery pipe area on the Swift. Those that are regulars there will probably not be too impressed, but you other folks who haven't made the pilgrimage yet might find it a little interesting. <YouTube Video>
Oh yeah, fly tying. I have been alternating between three themes: Major hatches for next spring (Alder fly and Hendrickson patterns, mostly); Florida; and Labrador streamers - yes a trip to Three Rivers Lodge is in the planning stages, so Clouser black ghosts and Mickey Finns have started to accumulate. In between I confess to tying some softhackles to use as droppers and also for an April foray to the Swift upon return from Florida. As soon as I finish the Florida flies, I hope to dig into my tackle bag and clean out the ratty looking flies from my fly boxes and started to get organized for next season. I have been mulling over some new ways to organize my fly boxes. Anybody have any special thoughts on that?

Frosting on the cake

Ok, this is REALLY it! Yesterday Stan and I made a final-final 2009 trip to the Swift River. And what a trip it was! One other car was at the gauge station parking area and there was plenty of room to fish. When we first stepped into the water it only took a couple drifts to hook-up with the first fish of the day. Once again, soft hackles were the hot flies - white, red, olive were top producers. Also got a couple on black BH zebra midge and an egg fly. A few days ago I noticed that after catching a couple fish, the fish started to shy away from the lane the indicator was drifting over. Once I saw that I switched indicators. Using a white indicator was the best, since it blended with the ubiquitous white foam. As the sun got high on the water, the fish headed to the shadows, even if it meant less than foot-deep water. It also got real crowded as the day went on. At noon we left to eat a sandwich and explore the area upstream of route 9. When we crossed the bridge we saw over a dozen cars in the parking areas and promptly made a U-turn and headed back to the relative solitude of the hatchery pipe run. After sharing some of our lunch with an enormous pit bull I dubbed Spike, we went down to the pipe run and caught a few more fish. You can see from this video of Stan landing a fish that we had plenty of company. (YouTube Video) The nice thing about the folks that fish this area is their general good manners and generosity. George and his grandson shared the area with us in the morning and we enjoyed the comradeship and general information (with a little gossip!) that was passed among the anglers. In the afternoon I found myself fishing next to Al, an extremely experienced and adept angler, with whom I shared the dam pool on the Newfound River numerous times this summer. Al has a place on Rattlesnake Island on Winnipesaukee and is a wealth of information about many rivers in the northeast.
Well, that's it for 2009. Be sure to tune in now and then for announcement of upcoming events in the New England area. Also, I'll be reporting on my winter fishing adventures in Florida starting in January. In the mean time I'll be filling my saltwater box with Clousers, Deceivers, shrimp and crab flies.
Tight Lines!

Another great day on the Swift River

My buddy Dick and I hit the Swift River today. We found only one other angler fishing from the USGS gauge all the way down to Cady Lane. We took up position below the hatchery pipe in the 26F air. The water temp today was about 50F which had the fish feeding actively. Once again the best flies were small soft hackles in red or olive. We lost track of how many fish we fooled in the morning. After lunch we fished above route 9 in the FFO area. I fooled a few more in the riffle/pool just above where the bubbler arm hits the Y-pool.
I'm not going to call this bonus day my "last good day" of the year, but I suspect it is. (Although Friday weather is looking good. H-m-m-m, maybe I need to tie up some more softhackles, just in case!)
I also took some video that I posted on YouTube.

Last "Bonus Day?"

Sorry for the delay in posting. I had a few obligations to attend to including new grandson Patrick, born November 11. I did make a couple uneventful trips: to the Pemigewasset River (38F water b-r-r-r-r)the Farmington River in CT (no fish landed, a couple strikes on small dries) and a few hours on the Squannacook River in W. Groton (I can still smell the skunk from that trip.) And then today Dick and I went to the Swift River and we loaded up on fly fishing junk food. I don't know how many fish we fooled (I am not a fish-counter) but it was a lot. Most were caught on Shadan soft-hackles, red, size 16 and 18. (Go to the Evening Sun Fly Shop in Pepperell and ask for some tied by Charlie. I think the special dubbing wax he uses has some secret ingredient.) Dick got a hook straightened by one fish and we both had quite a few break off the 6x and 7x tippet. The water temp was a warm and toasty 51F and the fish were real active. A lot of the fish were very dark, had no hook marks and were extremely energetic when hooked. I asked one of the regulars if they were recently stocked and he told me they were "Bondsville fish" that had migrated from a few miles downriver when it started to get cold. They moved upriver until finding the perfect spot to hang out - at the mouth of the hatchery pipe.
Every time I have gone out this fall I say it will probably be the last good day of the year - until the next last good day! I think this was my last bonus day of fishing. The next fishing report I file will probably be from Florida. Can it really be just a month until I point the car south on I-95? Well, who knows, maybe just one more bonus day may be left in the 2009 calendar, we'll see.

Swift redux

As planned, Stan and I hit the Swift River again from the hatchery pipe to the area below Cady Lane. Short report: crowded; fooled a few; had fun.
The real story is that unlike Monday (see Oct 27 report) all the "good spots" were taken. This proved to be a blessing in disguise. The hatchery pipe is like fly fishing junk food. Fish stack up there and if you are even a marginally competent "bobber" angler, you can clean up with fish after fish falling for your egg pattern or tiny nymph. The further you move from this epicenter of trout gluttony, the tougher the fishing is. Just 30 or 40 feet downstream, the successful anglers usually need to bring their "A-Game" matching the hatch, perfect presentation, etc. When I saw the big crowd huddled around the pipe run, I had to readjust my expectations. On Monday, after being satiated with junk food, I had moved upstream to fish the run from the roll dam to the gauge pool with some success. This time I chose to follow Stan downstream on shanks mare and find some solitude and tough fish - mission accomplished. The trout downstream were highly visible, since the water is clear as air and slick as didymo on a door-knob. Like all trout, when the water temperature is right and food is available, they are compelled to feed, so there was no shortage of opportunities. Conditions like this can either intimidate or inspire the fly angler. Since it was the only game in town, I had no choice but to become inspired. I would like to say that I conquered every fish I targeted, but as often as not, the most I got was a perfunctory glance before being summarily dismissed. But, often enough to keep me interested, I was able to elicit a quick strike, about half of which resulted in a break-off. I always figure that fooling the fish into a strike is 90% of the fun of fly fishing, so I wasn't too disturbed, other than with the loss of a successful fly on a number of occasions. Oddly enough, some of the successful patterns were not hatch-matchers, but the fly fishing equivalents of "Hail Mary" efforts. Who knows why these pea-brained trout Einsteins chose a skated Henryville Special after ignoring a dozen different tiny BWO patterns, but some did. In any case, fish were seen, fish were fooled and fish were caught-and a few were self-released wearing a bushy mustache, a day early for Halloween. None were caught with the benefit of an egg pattern, floated under a bobber. (Not that there is anything wrong with that! See Ken's commentary <Why I hate indicators>)

Postscript to yesterday's post

One of the hot flies on the Swift River was the Hotspot, a nymph I learned about from Ken Elmer's Miller River Fly Fishing Forum. I don't know if it is taken for a pellet, an egg, a pellet/egg sandwich, or whatever. I just know it works. Thanks, Ken!
Also, I frequently get some off-line email commenting or asking questions. That is fine, but feel free to hit the "Comment" button. This blog is for my fishing reports, but also for sharing information (thanks Eric and Bob) that advances our community of FFers. So get out of lurk mode every now and then and let's hear from you!

Fast action, then skunk-city

How can one river make you feel like king of the river and then a hopeless fishing chump, all in the same day? The Swift River does it again! Stan and I arrived around 9AM and had the entire hatchery pipe run to ourselves for over an hour. Fish were piled up all over, just waiting in line to get caught. They were all hatchery rainbows, a strain which the biologists have tricked into spawning in the fall, so they can stock them sooner. They were all full of fishy-testosterone and ready for action. Those that weren't trying to spawn were in the chow line behind the unlucky lovers waiting for a free meal. I suspect the hatchery pipe was also delivering a steady dribble of eggs from hatchery hens. Being a long-time proponent of matching the hatch, I matched the eggs. Every time I changed size or color I got a fish or two. Pink, orange, yellow all worked their magic. I also got some on white sparkle softhackles and white midge pupa. After I ran out of tiny single egg colors, I was staring at one of my fly boxes trying to select the next fly and my eyes kept coming back to a sparkle egg-cluster that I had used on the salmon river in NY to fool the steelhead. It looked so big and clunky compared to the little eggs I had used so far. "What the heck, they ate eggs and they ate white sparkle flies, why not a big clump of white sparkle eggs?" Well, three fish on three consecutive drifts had me snipping off the fly and retiring from my perch at the pipe. BTW all the fish were real chunkers - smallest over 12 inches and biggest almost 18 inches and FAT!
Well, I followed Stan downstream, who had tired of catching chunky rainbows at the pipe run. He was agonizing over the brainier cousin rainbows who were turning their nose up at smaller-than-size-20 flies in the gin-clear water downstream towards Cady Lane. I told Stan I would be fishing upstream from the gauge when he tired of bashing his head against the intellect of the pea-brained denizens of the Swift. I didn't see anything at the run/pool at the USGS gage, but landed a very brightly colored rainbow at the roll-dam pool. I also lost another after a brief tussel and fooled another that tried to eat my lime-green strike indicator. It refused to eat anything I tossed at it that had a hook in its tail. After a bite of late-lunch Stan and I retired to the Cady Lane area for another frustrating session trying to fool the trout that were rising to nearly-invisible specks just beneath the surface. Stan got one and I was pleased to miss a strike on another, but surely these must be some super-trout that have escaped from a secret government program, unlike the dunces at the hatchery pipe.
When the flow levels recede, I'll be hitting one of the local rivers later this week - hopefully the Pemi or Contoocook.

Swift River agony - November 10

Monday I took my buddy Dick on a tour of the Swift River in Central Mass. Air temp 52F, water temp 53F, light breeze, 46CFS flow - VERY low. I like to fish it about 100CFS. In the morning we went above route 9 to the Bubbler Arm and spotted some nice, spooky rainbows. Then we fished the Y-pool for awhile. Dick had heard all the stories about the tough, technical spring-creek conditions, and we certainly found them. After dozens of inspections and near-miss refusals, we worked our way down through the Hemlock and Cable runs. Down along the wing dams Dick got into the water and I spotted for him from the high bank. Here the water spreads out, is fairly shallow and the trout have a long time to inspect your fly. Once again, a few refusals from large rainbows (some looked about 20 inches.) The good news is we saw no other fisherman until we were walking back to the car to move down river. After eating some lunch on the newly dubbed "table-rock" we joined the crew settled in near the Hatchery Pipe. Dick was ready to go back to the solitude above route 9, but I assured him it wasn't really that crowded compared to other times. We settled into a spot below the fallen/overhanging tree and proceeded to get frustrated by the hyper-educated fish feeding on size 128 emerging midges. I had stocked up on some specially crafted size 26 BWO emergers at Evening Sun Fly Shop in Pepperell (thanks Charlie!), and had tied up some size 22 and 24 Shadan Softhackles, but the fish wanted something even smaller. I guess I need to get a microscope attachment for my vise and get some size 30 hooks. Just before we packed it in Dick started getting quite a few strikes and landed a nice rainbow. As always, we had a great time, but came away humbled by those pea-brained critters.