Alone part 2 or is it part 3

Another early morning and alone on the river, no signs of anyone. Fish were busy rising to some bug or this or that. Birds singing, a family of geese out for a swim with the young goslings getting a little too close for me, mom and dad. Caught a few fish, lost a few fish just enough action to keep me busy. Upstream I fished what I now call frustration pool, lots of hits no takers and as suddenly as it started it was over. Time for one more try down stream then home and the long wait till the next time out.

Summertime?

Pictures from the Connetquot Outing of a few years ago. Ivan, yes the Ivan! Angler, arborist, fly tyer and gentleman

Furled Leaders

Nymphing Techniques for Alewives

Just kidding!

Keeping a Secret

Notice how we see pictures and no locations or nebulous fishing reports posted? Once the word gets out everyone wants to crash the party! I've had many successful early season outings and why? I move around and scout less frequently fished locales, I am observant and I take my time to work out the solutions! Fly fishing is an art, with a bit of science and a study of animal behavior. What works today will change tomorrow and if you don't do your homework you wont catch fish. If you carelessly release fish they will die and if you keep every fish you catch (particularly in a stocked river) eventually there will be no fish.

Betrayed, Again!

Never trust a politician, and a fishery manager who doesn't fish! Boy do we feel like real A-holes, sold a bill of goods for what purpose to help write someone's thesis and dissertation? Maybe we should be filling in our anglers diary with just blank pages. So what's got Art's shorts in a bunch this time?

Lets's start with the sensors to read the fish tags, trouble is the only fish tagged are some alewives transplanted from the Peconic River. All this time I thought they were studying trout movements, and how the brook trout are surviving. Seems the purpose of the fish ladder was to see how many invasives can enter our stream. Yes, alewives by definition are invasive. The invaded the Great Lakes and the solution was to stock salmon to reduce and control alewives. Maybe we need to stock some Atlantic salmon here? The demonization of brown trout and the subsequent lack of stocking of larger browns, saving the brookie's ? No limiting the number of trout in the river. What's next striped bass up at the dam?

What has to happen and happen today is the end of all the tinkering with our fishery! They're going to save the Carmans from what. At the rate their going it's going to be a sterile playground. The last bastion of the brook trout and under a full assault, from air, land and now sea!

A Walk in the Sun

Early morning sun on the river

How to Measure a Fish

Wow! A touchy subject, after looking at photos of fish with captions like 20" Brown (name a species) I can't believe all fish grow to an even size? Or our we rounding up ( never down ) to the nearest inch or two or three? I find it more believable to just state or say it was a nice fish, or a really nice fish!
So after yesterday of catching a half dozen (rounding up of course) fish and losing a dozen or more (you figure that one out) I did have a couple of really nice fish. Gave them a quick release (even though I really wanted a picture of that really, really nice one), oh they just slipped the hook and out of my hand before I could think about it, I think I need to start carrying a net!

A question? If you catch a really, really, really big fish and no one is around and the camera is back in the car, does it count?

A 62" Brown ;-)

Light weight Canoes

My recommendation is Wenonah I have owned two, the latest one in kevlar weighs about 38 LBS.

The Drakes, The Drakes, The Drakes

Remember that show with the suave man dressed in white and the dwarf crying out "the plane, the plane"? Unremarkable trite and boring as I recall ! The cry of the drakes holds the same for me, the annual appearance of giant mayflies that crowd our tiny river with the annual influx of "fly fisherman" who will make their only appearance never to return till next season is just as boring! The skill and problem solving element that is the Carmen's the rest of the season suddenly turns into what bus has pulled up and when is the first show of the circus!

Sounds harsh, meant to be, most of the year no one can be found because the fishing is "too technical" or the flies are really tiny! but give some easy picking here they are. I say show up in August when a small cadre are tossing size 24 or 26 bwo or ants in a pocket 6inches wide through a window of branches, brush and grass a foot wide and catching fish! Maybe show up before the season starts to help clean up the river of junk and garbage left behind!

It's not always about the catching, it's sometimes about the conservation, the education and the preservation of the resource. For most leave the heavy lifting to us and enjoy the drakes, they will soon be gone and so will you.

Knots not nots!

Simple to tie knots, except when the fish are rising and you need to change flies and add more tippet!

Or maybe the good reliable Turtle Knot

Or the surgeons knot

Fun Times

So the fish have started to cooperate and the bugs are popping. A recent sulphur hatch was ignored at first glance, then I realized that they were taking the nymphs as they came off the bottom. Just ignoring the duns! As the weather improves, so will the fishing.

Comparadun

antron for the shuck

coastal deer hair for the wing

sulphur ultra fine dubbing for body

thread pale yellow

size 16-18 dry fly hook

Just Fooling Around

Crisis Management

Alewives fishing for is prohibited, the sign says. But nowhere does to say "all Brook Trout must be released" or catch and release area. The hideous tracking stations have become an eyesore, original to study trout movement was actually to study how the alewives invade a river. I lived in the Midwest and fished the Great Lakes and the tributaries in the late 70's and early 80's and alewives were a disaster and the main reason they imported west coast salmon to control them. So what will next follow the alewives up the fish ladder? Stripers imagine a striper at E!

Got Ants in the Pants

West Branch Angler almost a month from now! Can't wait, hope the water levels tame down and the hatches  are there. For a preview click here West Branch

Midweek Blues

Back to work! Mind on the job? No trying to figure out furled leaders out of thread, confusing. Emptying the inbox and filling the outbox. Out of the blue a customer calls with a question about ....fly fishing! Amazing stuff!

Light at the End of the Tunnel

Seems the vacant river does have some life after all, maybe the fish the rushed down have made their way back up. Better to lay on the bottom of a quiet hole and munch on the passing bugs than be chased around some lake avoiding the big guys and the birds. Mmmmm, let me just lie here and blend in, oh that's a caddis yummy! What's that a scud? Noooooo, a hook!!!!

Weekend Warrior part2

Not a happy camper

Wishing for Some Large Fish,

But happy to catch anything...

Fishing Report

Any body have any fishing reports or pictures they wish to share send them to me artflick2014@gmail.com

Closing in on the Weekend

For those who must or still work. We are the weekend warriors dashing from stream to stream during those precious two days of fishing. We often wonder if in our absence the fish get bored waiting for our weekend ritual.

The Time of the Fly

Is now at hand! The next six weeks will be telling for what hatches and where the fish are. The mayflies should be coming off with regularity filling the air with clouds of duns and spinners.

Mother's Day Caddis

Just seems like Easter and a quick look at the calendar says Mothers Day is just up ahead. Will those caddis show up ? Last season they were absent or tiny, later on some caddis showed up but mostly in the evening at dusk.

Alone

At last, the entire river to myself . The fish didn't seem to mind my presents and the egrets enjoyed my company being fellow fishers. The trout upstream eager grabbed my offerings and downstream they were leaping and fighting over whatever I chose to fling in their direction. Sensing the solicitude would soon end, I packed up and left. Leaving more than a few fish with sore jaws and a few put upstream to explore the broad flats and brushy undergrowth.

Fly Lines

Picking the right line for your rod is important.

Float Tubes for Dummies

Familiar Waters

Attention all anglers report from up north!! The ice is out on the ponds and the trout are hungry!