Winter update and spring preview

My winter vacation is two/thirds done. This February has been the best month in the years I have been coming to Florida. My wife Joanne enjoys going to the beach and I enjoy it like I enjoy a root-canal - well, maybe not that much fun. It is hard for me to sit still for more than a few minutes, so I take a long walk, sometimes with fishing rod in hand to give some purpose to my efforts. Saturday we went to Barefoot Beach in Bonita Springs. It is often written up as a top-10 US beach. Well, it is now in my top-10, since I caught a nice snook there Saturday morning. When we sit on the beach together in Florida I always tell Joanne to enjoy it while she can, because when we get home it will be my "busy season" and I'll have to get back to "work." She won't see a whole lot of me until late July. I'll be heavily involved in the Northeast Fly Fishing School at Evening Sun Fly Shop on weekends in April and May. I already have some mid-week dates booked in May for the Mayfly hatches and beginning of the caddis hatches. Also, our "virtual fishing lodge" on the Androscoggin River the last two weeks of June is booking nicely.
While I am slaving away at hard labor on the beaches of SE Florida, my partner Jim has been hard at work on the fly fishing show circuit with gigs at the Marlboro Show, and many TU meetings and library seminars. He's also chairman of one the top fly fishing shows in New England and the ONLY fly fishing show in NH - The Fly Fish NH Show this weekend- March 5 and 6 - at Pelham Fish and Game Club. This show is a lot of fun, since it has many local shops and guides. There are bargains to be had, but most importantly, you can rub elbows and swap lies with fellow fly anglers in the area. Be sure to stop by the NH Rivers Guide booth and say hi to Jim. He'll have a lot of pictures of our trips and will be happy to share information about NH fly fishing opportunities.

A winter in paradise fishing expedition

Stan and I were tired of striking out in our Florida fishing, so we hired a pro to show us the ropes. On the recommendation of some our fishing neighbors we contacted Capt. Shawn.  He took us out on his 24ft center console boat.  There wasn't any sight fishing to be had, so we switched off between spinning gear to cover water and fly gear when we found a concentration of fish.  We did not catch a huge amount of fish, but plenty to keep our interest.  We also caught quite a variety - speckled sea trout, Spanish mackerel, bonnet shark, and lady fish.  Here is a video of the trip with Stan landing a bonnet shark.  In addition to the fish, we saw quite a few dolphins and cormorants that tried to steal our fish.

"Cold" weather fishing

The cold weather you folks at home in New England have been having has also invaded south Florida.  Although "cold" here is a bit different than cold there.  In any case, the Gulf water temps are around 60F and the fish are sluggish.  They like 70F and above. The best places to fish are the back country shallow water around mangrove islands and water discharge areas of power plants.  On Friday Stan and I rented kayaks and fished the inside islands near the mouth of the Caloosahatchee River in Fort Myers. This is across San Carlos Bay from Sanibel Island. It is the closest place for us to do some fishing and a place we have been wanting to try.  It was fun kayaking through narrow mangrove tunnels and looking for fish.  We had a few hits in some of the deeper channels between islands, but no hookups.  Then on the way back we were fishing the deeper boating channel and Stan had a couple redfish follow to the kayak and take a whack at his fly, but still no hookup.  I had the same thing with a good-size snook, but still no hookup. It was a fun trip and we'll be back when the water warms about 10 degrees. Next time we'll try the Orange River near the power plant discharge area.

Marlborough Show

Anybody going to the Fly Fishing show in Marlborough?  My guiding partner Jim Norton is giving our new presentation today at 1:00; Saturday at 2:00 and Sunday at 1:00 in the Destination Theater.  If you go to the presentation, be sure to introduce yourself to Jim.  (Click the blog title for the show program.)
I always enjoy going to these presentations to hear about both local and remote fly fishing locations.  I have planned a lot of trips based on information I got at these shows.  Southwest Montana, Delaware River, and Farmington river are some of the places I was inspired to travel after viewing FF show presentations.  I also like to see what other people say about places where I have fished.  Sometimes you can learn a lot from the "Grip-and-grin" fish-porn.  Let me know if you see anything interesting at the show.

Reporting from Florida

Today was the first day I was able to get out and sample the local fishing.  Stan and I departed at 6:30AM for the canals along the Tamiami Trail (US41) in the Everglades.  We hit some of our usual spots and a couple new ones.  The day started out a little brisk (53F) and warmed up to a little over 70F with a bit of a breeze.  We started in the big canal at the end of the Everglades National Park volunteers RV camping area. As we were rigging up I saw a couple snook and some bass cruising around in the shallow end of the canal.  My small crab pattern drew some immediate interest and  brought in a 12-inch bass.  Many follows and some short strikes, but no more hook-ups there.  We checked out a new spot I had spotted on the satellite view of one of the online mapping programs.  A few follows and short-strikes from bass, but no hook-ups.  We then moved down to the maze of canals behind the seagrape visitor center.  As always, lots of manatees and a few 'gators.  We thought we saw a few tarpon roll.  I caught the smallest snook I ever saw and Stan got a small, but respectable, redfish. That is the first redfish I have seen caught in these canals.  We hit a couple other places, but the wind picked up and the fish weren't cooperative, so we knocked off early.  This week I think we'll rent some kayaks and fish the Orange River. Here is a video of the seagrape canal.  Watch for a couple manatees surfacing.

To-do list for 2011

I have been wrapping up stuff I have been putting off since the "busy-season" ended in October.  I cleaned out a lot of ratty-looking flies from my fly boxes.  Then I took inventory of what was left and began tying to fill in the blanks.  I tied a lot of girdle-bugs, which worked real well for me on the Androscoggin in September.  My buddies Jim and Dick spent a couple weeks in Montana in July and swore by the pattern, so I tied up a few and they worked like a charm where ever there are large stone fly nymphs.  Then I tied up a bunch of caddis dries (Alder fly pattern) and even a few hex in my favorite parachute pattern with the antron trailing shuck. Then I added a few various colored wooly buggers - a lot of rootbeer, a few olive, a few chartreuse for the early season stockers, and then a couple yellow/olive.  Right in the middle of taking inventory and tying, my guiding partner Jim and I began working on our new fly fishing presentation.  We usually do presentations about specific rivers and/or areas, such as Large rivers of NH, the Moosehead Lake area, or Rangeley Lakes, Androscoggin, SW Montana, etc. We decided to take a different approach.  We looked at a typical season in New England and picked out our "go-to"  flies - ones that we seemed to always be successful with.  Then we looked at where and when we used them and put together a presentation we call "The New England Fly Box - Fly Patterns and the Hatches they Match." We just finished it yesterday and will probably tweak a bit here and there. This brings up another point about the "To-do list" title of this post. Time to update the calendar for 2011.  Jim is going to be giving our new presentation at a few shows/events starting in a couple weeks, including the mega-fly-fishing-show in Marlboro. MA the weekend of January 14-16. Here is a link to our current schedule.  (If you have a club looking for speakers let me know.)
While you have your calendar out, take a look at your fishing plans for the year.  We are well on our way to booking our Androscoggin River All-inclusive Special Package for the last two weeks of June. If that is something you have been thinking about, better check the open dates. Also, if you start getting a bad case of the shack-nasties this winter, you can go to that page to look at some pictures and videos of previous trips with Alder fly swarms, big brook trout, etc.
Next on the "To-do list" is pack for Florida.
Flats booties - check
8-wt rod - check
saltwater reel - check
saltwater fly box - check
sun block - check
30-pound fluoro leader material - check

Have a Merry Christmas and Happy 2011!

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!

Fly fishing crack

The Swift River should be a controlled substance.  Couldn't resist going again yesterday and might go tomorrow. Air was almost 40F and water was 46F.   Didn't see more than a couple tiny insects and very few rises (stray pellets?) but a size 20 BHPT with a size 20 and smaller softhackle dropper did the trick.  When they got tired of the red SH I took a couple on the olive and one on a small pink egg. This is one of my small soft hackles.  It is nothing more than appropriately colored (red, black, olive, yellow, etc.) thread, thin gold wire and two wraps or less of partridge hackle. The hackle is a little longer than ideal, but on a 20 or smaller fly, it is a challenge to find and wrap a proportionate soft hackle.  The fish don't seem to mind.
For a Serendipty, I substitute elk hair tips. For a midge pupa I don't use hackle, just a couple wraps of peacock herl or ostrich herl.  A quick tie and effective.  I tie the soft hackles in slightly larger sizes (16 and 18) to use as droppers throughout the season.

Lake Ontario tribs - a fishing gold mine!

Most of us have read about and many New Englanders have made the drive west on I-90 to partake of the fishing in the Lake Ontario tributaries, the Salmon River around Pulaski, NY being one of the the most famous. FFNE regular Matt lives in the Rochester, NY area and sent me an email with commentary and pictures about fishing some of the smaller tribs. Here is an extract of his report. (The name of this tributary is not mentioned to avoid "spot-burning" but there are probably 20 or more rivers that fit this description.

"In years like this one, where there is enough water, the fish disburse throughout the system and will stay in the creek all winter. We will catch them again in the Spring when they drop back to the Lake. It is mostly big brown trout and fall run rainbows, which in the spring will be augmented with steelhead coming in to spawn. The season begins in late October when the Chinook run and spawn, creating an orgy of salmon eggs. The browns and rainbows come in following the salmon eating the eggs. We catch fish on small egg patterns (10-14s) usually under a strike indicator with a little weight added. It is mostly sight fishing to specific fish or pods of fish. The male browns show up first and we see them fighting for territory on gravel. The fishing is best when the females come in to spawn. Spawning is unsuccessful for the salmon and the browns, but the rainbows and steelhead that get up to the cooler headwaters do successfully reproduce. The Atlantics are quite new—seeing more of them each year for the past 4 years. The theory is that they are from Ontario, which is now stocking solely Atlantic salmon on their side of the Lake. The charter captains will never let NY stock only atlantics because their business is dependent upon trolling for big pacific salmon in the Lake in the summer—but we do stock some Atlantics as well.

Once the spawn is over-usually about Thanksgiving—we catch these fish with big streamers either dead drifted or on the swing (much more fun). No subtle takes but a lot more prospecting in deeper pools."
Matt, thanks for the reports and pictures.  You might see me out there next November!

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!

Yesterday I took George for a tour/fishing trip to the Swift River.  We got to the gage station parking lot by 8:00AM and there was only one person at the hatchery pipe run.  We had a brief chat. He had caught a few fish already and moved down toward the fallen tree pool.  We lost count of how many fish George fooled.  After losing a few fish on the small flies he was using, George got the hang of setting the hook and then letting the fish run a bit before bringing them in for the release. One of our objectives was to show George the various fishing areas/access points, so after an hour or so we took a walk down to Cady Lane, spotting fish and pointing out some pools and runs to fish on subsequent trips on his own.  Then after a streamside lunch at the goose-pen pool we parked near the route 9 bridge and fished the upper river in the afternoon.  There were lots of fishermen in the Y-pool, so we fished a couple spots in the bubbler run.  George fooled a couple fish and landed this nice rainbow. There were lots of big fish in the run, but with the low water, they were real difficult to approach with any kind of presentation.
The Y-pool continued to be crowded, so we hit a couple other spots on the way downstream back to route 9.  George got a nice male brooktrout at the hemlocks and then fooled a few rainbows at Stan's favorite nymphing spot.   Overall, the best flies were the soft hackles (red, black, olive.) Other successful flies were the green copper John, and pheasant tail nymph - size 20.
The water was about 53F and the air was over 60F - a really great day. Can't be too many days like this left in 2010!

Veteran's Day Trout on the Squannacook River

Yesterday I paid a visit to the Squannacook River in West Groton.  I ran into some good friends there and took this video of their fishing exploits. I am sure many of you will recognize their handsome faces.  Enjoy!




Today I took George (of broodstock salmon fame - see the earlier report) to the Swift River. He had a fantastic day there.  Report and pictures in process.

Next stop: Farmington River

Today Stan and I made the run down to Riverton/New Hartford, CT to fish the Farmington, one of my (many) favorite rivers in New England.  After a few days of rainy, blustery weather, the skies began to clear and it was great to be out on the water.  As the day began to warm a bit (air temp 59F and water 50F) we saw a few BWO hatching and one solitary tan caddis in mid-afternoon.  Very few rises, and so sporadic that we couldn't target any particular fish. We made the rounds of many of our usual haunts: Beaver pool, Whittemore, Church Pool, Greenwoods, Central Riffle, Boneyard and Ovation.  After all that we each had a couple strikes with missed hook-ups and we each landed a fish.  Stan got a nice rainbow pictured below and I got about a 15 inch brown.  Stan got his on a white sparkle softhackle and I got mine on a white diamond-braid egg cluster.

George called me to have me take him and a friend fishing this Friday. We haven't totally dialed it in yet, but we'll probably do a tour/lesson/fishing of the Swift River.  Tomorrow, I'll be somewhere, but haven't decided where yet.  Any suggestions or requests?

NH seacoast bonanza

Yesterday Stan and I paid a visit to the "Three Rivers" of the NH seacoast area - the Lamprey, Cocheco, and Isinglas.  The Three Rivers Stocking Association raises money to buy fish from a private hatchery and stocks the Lamprey and Cocheco rivers in October.  Waste Management Inc has large facilities that abut the Isinglas River and they stocked it last week. You won't find a lot (or any!) dry fly action, but a well-drifted nymph or egg pattern, or a skillfully stripped woolly-buggerish pattern can be deadly.  We caught fish on each river, with the Lamprey tops in both quantity and quality of fish. Of course, the next time it could be the Cocheco or Isinglas that comes out on top.  I think one key is to find a seam, slot, or depression that has not been pounded by anybody else for a few hours or a day or so.  At this time of year that often means being first into a pool or run.  In summer, it is good to get out early to take advantage of cooler water temps, but at this time of year, cool water (or air) temperature isn't an issue, but fishing pressure is. 

Another key tactic is to show them something they haven't seen before.  For the first few days after stocking, trout are "testing for food" - meaning that they will bite almost anything to see if it is good to eat.  After getting caught by olive woolly-buggers and prince nymphs, they pretty soon take those off their preferred menu.  Sometimes something as simple as going smaller or bigger, or using a weird color is enough to arouse curiosity.  Trigger colors like red or chartreuse often will bring a strike, when brown and gray flies are ignored.  Yesterday I had success with red serendipities and white diamond braid egg clusters, but tomorrow those could be forsaken in favor of yellow softhackles or chartreuse/black woolly buggers.  Get creative at the tying bench and you might get lucky on the river.