Shorter days, longer nights, cooler weather…I’m definitely in the mood, baby! We do need some rain, but as you read this, Great Lakes Steelhead are staging at the mouths of rivers and creeks. I think this thought train all started when I saw that Jeff Blood was going to be one of the tyers at the International Fly Tying Symposium (you’re going right?) on November 16-17. Jeff’s Blood Dot Egg has been my new favorite egg pattern since steelhead guide extraordinaire Bob Packey introduced me to it three years ago. It works on both Erie and Ontario steelhead (not to mention trout in CT). I’ll stand by the title of the article linked here: The best egg pattern for steelhead might be Jeff Blood’s Blood Dot.
Give that man (Jeff Blood) a ceegar! This is a Salmon River fish from last November taken on Jeff’s fly.
Once again, I’ll be appearing at the International Fly Tying Symposium this November 16-17, 2024, at the Hilton Doubletree in Somerset, NJ. This is great opportunity to mingle, mix, and see some of the best fly tiers on planet earth: Thomas Baltz. Jeff Blood. Bob Clouser. Tim Cammisa. Tim Flagler. And that’s just one partial alphabetical column. Oh! There’s also a well-stocked marketplace that always has common and hard-to-find items. There are classes, seminars, and featured tying demos. The last two are free with your admission, and I’ll be one of the featured tiers on Sunday at 11:45, which will get you home in time for football. The demo is “Matching the Hatch with Wet Flies.” I hope to see you there!
Many thanks to the men and women of the Hammonasset Chapter TU for being such gracious hosts. They’re a passionate group of fly fishers, and we had fun before, during, and after the presentation. This group understands that a fed presenter is a happy presenter, and a very hoppy IPA was an added bonus. We talked about Fly Fishing CT’s Small Streams, and right about now is prime time for thin blue lines. We could use some rain, though.
On Tuesday night I fished a top secret location in LIS with surfcaster extraordinaire Toby Lapinski. We thought we might be in for a treat when Toby connected on one of his first casts with a metal lip plug — decent fish, 15 pounds — but sadly, ’twas not to be. Toby had three more hits, converting one, and I had a nice swipe from a decent fish, but no tug or pull. It was a gorgeous night for fishing, with a favorable wind, but there was precious little bait and no schools of fish.
So it goes…
I’d eat this…this is Ken’s Sure Thing, a three-feather flatwing about 8-9″, a fine choice to swing over a reef in the fading moonlight on a crisp fall night.
I’m kicking off my 2024 fall/winter speaking season Thursday night, September 12, 7pm, at the HCTU meeting in Meriden. The topic will be Fly Fishing CT’s Small Streams, a subject that I’m really passionate about. We’ll talk when, where, how, tackle, flies, tactics, conservation, and more. The meeting is open to the public, so I hope to see you there!
Fishing small streams returns you to the very soul of fly fishing.
I’m way late on the draw here, but there’s still a lot of September left. Ken Abrames’ September Night is by far my favorite finger mullet fly, and you can tie it longer as the mullet get bigger and fatter. I have received confirmed, reliable reports that at least one RI salt pond is loaded with mullet, and that school bass have been harassing (if not enjoying) them. Here’s a good link with tying instruction from yours truly so you too can tie the September Night.
If you think this fly looks good on the vise, wait until you add some water and current. I also tie a variation with a ginger marabou collar. The stripers approve.
The DEEP electroshocking crews will be on the Farmington River Weds through Friday. The river has already come down into the double digits cfs. Not to worry! This isn’t the MDC playing games with our fishery. Crews will be sampling within the PTMA. If you see them, please give them a wide berth, as they are collecting broodstock for trout you will catch in the future. I’ll be on the river Thursday taking photos for the book. Now back to our regular programming.
This can be a tough time of year to fish. A lot of what is hatching is small. Usually flows are low (not the case in either river) and warmer (ditto). Over three days, I saw very little bug activity, and the feed bag was never on. Still, there were some bright spots in all the dreariness.
Monday, August 26: Housy (Slower). I fished with fly tier extraordinaire and fellow smallmouth bum Lou Di Gena from 3pm to 8pm. It was not good. I managed to hook four smallies in five hours of fishing. I should be hooking four smallies on consecutive casts. Bug activity was minimal (small caddis) and there were no fish in some incredibly sexy new water we fished. We ended up in a pool where I once landed 50 smallmouth in an evening. Painfully slow that night. Of course, it’s hard to be bitter when you land your biggest bass of the summer…even if it was in the first 10 minutes of fishing.
This slob went 17″ and somewhere between 2 1/2-3 pounds. Taken under an indicator with Lou DiGena’s CE Crayfish, a small (2″) weighted pattern. A real forearm burner!(Photo by Lou DiGena)
Wednesday, August 28: Farmington (Slowest). This was a photo shoot day with fellow Farmington River guide Antoine Bissieux. He fished from 3pm-7pm with dry flies — I joined in for the last hour with wets — and it was disaster slow. We fished a mark below Riverton, and hatch activity was slim to none. I don’t think I counted even a half dozen rises in three hours. Antoine blanked (to give you an idea of how pathetic the action was, it was his first skunk of the year) and I managed only four bumps and one fish to net. The bumps were half-hearted, and the one I did land was arguably the worst hit I’ve had all year on a wet fly. (Insert heavy sigh here.)
Take your time, Antoine. You’re not missing anything.
Thursday, August 29: Farmington (Slow). I gave a wet fly lesson to Corey and his son Matt from 3pm-7pm. We started off in the bottom end of the PTMA, but that was not a happening place, so we headed north. Another mark, although quite fishy, was disappointing. Both Matt and Corey had some bumps, but no real hookups. Farther north was the call, and I’ve never seen the area below the dam so crowded. My best guess on the crowds is that anglers thought there might be pre-Labor Day stocking? (There wasn’t.) But we found a very nice section to call our own, and had at it. Ding-ding-ding! It was the winner bell and the dinner bell. Both Matt and Corey brought fish to net, and it was gratifying to see their hard work pay off. Well done, gentlemen!
They’re not big, but wild brookies on the Farmington are always a treat.
currentseams.com 