It’s hard to believe, but yesterday was the first time this year I got out on the Farmington River — and most of the afternoon was dedicated not to fishing, but errands and work. Poor me, having to spend an afternoon in an office that included shirtsleeve weather, sunshine, Hendricksons, trout, and good company!
Besides fishing errands — new boots and two nets on the item list — I spent some time distributing info sheets on gathering fly patterns and photos for the book. Then I hightailed it to the river to get some shots of guide Steve Hogan with his client. Finally, I spent an hour idly swinging a team of three wets. I’d missed the earlier hatch window, but I stuck a pile of juvy Atlantic salmon and then finally a rambunctious stocker rainbow.
I’d given Steve a tungsten bead head soft-hackled Hendrickson, and later in the day he sent me this photo, taken upriver. Well done, Mark! While there were some Hendricksons in the air, the hatch has progressed to north of the PTMA. Church Pool was devoid of anglers at 3pm, so there’s your proof.(Photo by Steve Hogan)
This one’s only about a year old, but in case you missed it, it’s certainly a must-listen — especially if you like to swing wets, if you’re considering learning how to do so, or even if you need a refresher course. Here’s the link to the original post, and within that you’ll find a link to the podcast. Enjoy, and beware: you’re about to start catching more fish.
You should be fishing this pattern, the Dark Hendrickson winged wet, right now.
I ventured with #3 Son Gordo to ye olde steelhead mill, AKA Pulaski, NY’s Salmon River, for two days of post-spawn steelhead fishing. Due to an unusually mild winter, the spawn was very early this year. what should have been prime time numbers was picking away and scrapping for every fish. The weather was chilly, but bright and sunny, and predictably the fish were holding in the deepest, fastest, most bubbly water they could find. I was 2-for-3 on Monday and 3-for-4 on Tuesday with a couple skippers in the mix. Gordo, who was spin fishing under a float, put one in the hoop each day. All steelhead are special, so it was a treat to have our hard work and persistence rewarded. See you in November!
This post-spawn hen slammed a size 6 olive Woolly Bugger in a fast-moving slot near the head of the run. Moments before, I’d taken a two-pound skipper on the same fly as I was stripping it in to recast. Thank you both for playing!
Fly fishing for striped bass isn’t all steely eyes, fierce focus, and grim countenance. Sometimes the jester shows up, and hilarity ensues. You can read all about it in the newest issue of Surfcaster’s Journal, number 83 to be exact. SJ is an e-zine and you need a subscription, but it’s only 20 bucks for a year. This one’s a good one, folks — cue the laugh track!
With all this high water, and some warmer temperatures, it seems like a good time for a refresher course on streamers. I wrote this after interviewing George Daniel, Chad Johnson, and Tommy Lynch, but really, they’re the ones doing the talking. I just showed up and asked good questions!
I’m super-excited to announce that I just signed a book contract with Stackpole. The working title is Fly Fishing Guide to the Farmington River. This will be a comprehensive resource for the West Branch, from the river to trout to maps to access to hatches to how-to-and-when. I plan on including information from local experts and guides, as well as a selection of must-have fly patterns. If you have any of Stackpole’s “Fly Fishing Guide To” river books, you know the level of detail I’ll be delivering.
The final manuscript isn’t due for over a year, so it’s going to take some time for this to get to press. In the meantime, please wish me luck as I set off on this big adventure. As always, I thank you for your support and readership, and of course I’ll keep you updated as the project progresses.
Coming soon to a bookshelf near you! While this isn’t the working title or cover shot, the description is spot-on.
Yeah, baby, it’s getting to be about that time. OK, maybe not for a couple more weeks. We’ll see what Ma Nature has in mind as far as warmth and rain are concerned. But indeed it is coming. And right now is the perfect time for you to stock the box with your favorite Hendrickson patterns.
If you’re not fishing under the Hendrickson hatch with wet flies, you’re missing out. In fact, you’re missing out on some of the best trout-on-the-fly action of the year. Tie these up, place them over a rise, and hold on. Oh. And be prepared to clip one or two flies off your three-fly team. Such are the travails of the angler getting doubles and triples!
On the surface, you may be unthrilled (rather than enthralled) by this topic. But I think it’s worth your time, especially if you tie soft hackles. I get a lot of questions about hen hackle types, and this article covers the subject nicely.
There’s something very satisfying about finding a top-shelf hen cape. While the price of both has gone up, you still occasionally see these in deep discount fly shop and show bins..
Looking back at this post, I can happily say that I’ve given many of these patterns far more than a test drive. I find it highly satisfying that the flies that Leisenring fished with confidence on his beloved Pennsylvania streams work just as well on the Farmington River. The post is formatted so that if you click on a pattern title, you’ll be taken to the recipe, along with a little blurb about the fly.
Hot tip: try Liesenring’s Old Blue Dun in a size 12 during the Hendrickson hatch. The original works, but if you want to make it a little truer to the natural, use dark dun for the tail and hackle.
Today’s question comes from Jim B., who asks. “How about a greased line swing with a 4 foot Airflo fast sink leader? Would there be any advantage to this? “
The shortest answer is, “Sure.”
The more complete answer is, “Yes… No… Maybe.”
And my best answer comes in the form of a follow-up question, which is: “What do you want the fly to do?”
When it comes to solving some of fly fishing’s thorniest problems, “What do you want the fly to do?” is about as close as it gets to a universal solution. It’s especially applicable in this case. If you want to fish a shorter tippet and give the fly some depth — you’ll achieve depth on the mends because the sinking leader will act as split shot — then have the fly rise toward the surface as tension is introduced — then yes, you have an advantageous situation.
You could fish a neutrally buoyant fly on a longer leader, and have the fly present somewhere between the film and a greater depth. (If that’s what you want the fly to do.)
If you want the fly to sink just below the film and fish it at a depth of 1 foot, then no, it’s probably not advantageous.
You can see where this is going. There are multiple answers because there are multiple possible situations. Which line? Which leader? Which leader material? Which leader length? Which presentation? You can answer them all by determining what you want the fly to do. Hope that helps!
We were fishing in a canal with current. I told the guide that I wanted the fly to sink a bit, then rise as it moved past a likely ambush point. I used a floating line and about a nine-foot leader. A cast upstream, 2-3 big mends, then come tight so the current grabs the line, introduces tension, makes the fly rise up, and WHACK! What do you want the fly to do? Photo by Capt. Mark Giacobba.
currentseams.com 