September 2, 2013

Delaware River Report / Condtions September 2, 2013

Another day that didn’t quite turn out as planned. With good clouds, and fairly steady pressure, there were olives popping throughout the day yesterday, but the fish did not seem to notice for whatever reason. Later on, there were definitely ants on the water (#18 black), and even sporadic risers could be tricked into snacking on them, but the key word there was sporadic – even into the dark there was not much in the way of steady, rising fish. Very strange for sure. We are expecting another warm, humid, cloudy day today, which will hopefully let the olives continue. I am also praying that the fish realize that they are food, because if they do, it will be a rip-roaring day out there today!

Dave Price with a nice brown taken in Home Pool this weekend. I think he caught it on a nymph, so I am not sure if that really counts. Photo: Jeff Biller

What’s Hatching:

Ephemerella dorthea – Sulphurs – #16 & #18 – starting to wane

Epeorus vitreus – PED / Pink Lady – #14

Isonychia bicolor – Iso – Slate Drake – #12-2XL, #12

Stenonema species – Various Light Cahills – #14

Pseudocloeon species – BWO – #22 – sporadic

Heptagenia hebe – Olive Sulphurs – #16

Current Flow Conditions:

September 1, 2013

Delaware River Report / Conditions September 1, 2013

Apologies on the delay this morning – rural internet connections are always fun.

When Mother Nature decides to put on a light show, she sure means business! We had some serious thunderstorms roll in throughout the late afternoon and into dark that many were wise enough to hide from. There were breaks in the weather that allowed you to get back in the water, but unfortunately there was not a ton of activity during all those crazy pressure changes. Those heathens….I mean fishermen throwing nymphs actually did quite well, as the fish seemed very eager to feed, but the bugs did not cooperate. That being said, those in certain areas were able to see an amazing sight – HUGE clouds of Iso spinners, going up 50+ feet into the sky. The picture below hopefully does it some justice. Unfortunately, they were blown back off the water before they could have a chance to fall. Today, we’ve got high water as a result of the rain, and quite a bit of color as well. It is definitely not as bad as early in the week, but it will take a little bit to clear throughout the day. The weathermen were completely off yesterday insofar as amount of precipitation / storm prediction goes, but what is new there. Today they claim we will be warm, with little wind and the “possibility” of afternoon t-storms. Basically the same call as yesterday. That being said, if they are correct, we could certainly see some decent action throughout the day in the cloud cover, and as the river clears up.

Those are Iso Spinners. What a beautiful sight! Photo: Bart Larmouth

What’s Hatching:

Ephemerella dorthea – Sulphurs – #16 & #18 – starting to wane

Epeorus vitreus – PED / Pink Lady – #14

Isonychia bicolor – Iso – Slate Drake – #12-2XL, #12

Stenonema species – Various Light Cahills – #14

Pseudocloeon species – BWO – #22 – sporadic

Heptagenia hebe – Olive Sulphurs – #16

Current Flow Conditions:

August 31, 2013

Delaware River Report / Conditions August 31, 2013

That did not go as expected yesterday. The cloud cover never really materialized, depressing the afternoon hatches / action, and even when evening rolled around there were fewer bugs than expected, and certainly fewer fish than expected. Some did see good flushes of Isos once the sun dropped down, but the fish never really got too excited about them, much to everyone’s chagrin. This morning there are plenty of olives, stenos, and flying ants on the side of the house, so the bugs did hatch at least a little – we just need more. Hopefully we will get it today, as they are actually calling for clouds all day, and the possibility of a few thunderstorms thrown in for good measure. No real extremes of precipitation to bring up the river(s), but hopefully enough of a pressure change to get the bugs rocking.

A newly-molted Steno spinner with its shuck. More of this please! Photo by: Jeff White

What’s Hatching:

Ephemerella dorthea – Sulphurs – #16 & #18 – starting to wane

Epeorus vitreus – PED / Pink Lady – #14

Isonychia bicolor – Iso – Slate Drake – #12-2XL, #12

Stenonema species – Various Light Cahills – #14

Pseudocloeon species – BWO – #22 – sporadic

Heptagenia hebe – Olive Sulphurs – #16

Current Flow Conditions:

August 30, 2013

Delaware River Report / Conditions August 30, 2013

While the river did not clear as quickly as we anticipated yesterday (due to another bit of storms up by deposit late the previous night), it did drop and clear enough for the fish to see the bugs popping off. We had good numbers of dark Blue Wing Olives early, then the sun decided to make an appearance, which curtailed the hatching activity until the clouds rolled in yesterday evening. We had big flushes of BWOs at night (size 18 to 22), with a good number of Isos popping off in the mix. The fish were seeing the bugs through the colored-up water, and some folks had a pretty decent night. It does appear that the East Branch Basin caught a good amount of water last night, which has brought up the Main significantly both in flow and temps. That should drop quickly as well, but due to the higher water temps, I would avoid the upper Main for a bit. With more clouds predicted today, and just the right amount of color in the West Branch, it has the potential to be a great day – let’s see how it turns out!

Just the perfect amount of color – it means we might be able to get away with 5X all day! Photo: Bart Larmouth

What’s Hatching:

Ephemerella dorthea – Sulphurs – #16 & #18 – starting to wane

Epeorus vitreus – PED / Pink Lady – #14

Isonychia bicolor – Iso – Slate Drake – #12-2XL, #12

Stenonema species – Various Light Cahills – #14

Pseudocloeon species – BWO – #22 – sporadic

Heptagenia hebe – Olive Sulphurs – #16

Current Flow Conditions:

August 29, 2013

Delaware River Report / Conditions August 29, 2013

Interesting does not begin to cover the weather yesterday. There was a localized thunderstorm that just sat over Deposit yesterday afternoon, and completely blew out Oquaga creek, which in turn blew out the West Branch. That being said, the river did not look completely like chocolate milk, and there were risers looking up in the evening. Overnight the river did hop back up again, and is already on  its way back down. If we have the clouds predicted today, even with the discoloration the fishing should be pretty dang decent, and the river will be wade-able again by mid day.

Wow! Bruce Miller knows how to smile for a picture!

What’s Hatching:

Ephemerella dorthea – Sulphurs – #16 & #18 – starting to wane

Epeorus vitreus – PED / Pink Lady – #14

Isonychia bicolor – Iso – Slate Drake – #12-2XL, #12

Stenonema species – Various Light Cahills – #14

Pseudocloeon species – BWO – #22 – sporadic

Heptagenia hebe – Olive Sulphurs – #16

Current Flow Conditions:

August 28, 2013

Delaware River Report / Conditions August 28, 2013

The weathermen did it to us again. Our “very cloudy’ day turned into a bright, sunny, perfect August afternoon. Which, while great for the rest of the populace, isn’t the best for us crazy fisher-folk. As a result, there was not too much bug activity during the day on the West Branch, and when we got to the evening, there were some pretty substantial pressure changes as thunderstorms tried (and failed) to form. This limited the hatching to just a few short windows, but fortunately the fish were definitely ready for it, and took full advantage. This morning we also had a good variety of bugs on the side of the shop, including some funky looking steno spinners (light cahills). As for today, we are supposed to see another cloudy day, and some scattered rain thrown in for good measure, with a fairly steady barometer. If this holds true, we will be in for a great day, and an even better evening!

A very unusual Steno on the porch yesterday. I obviously lack Jeff’s talent for Bug Photos. Photo by: Bart Larmouth

What’s Hatching:

Ephemerella dorthea – Sulphurs – #16 & #18 – starting to wane

Epeorus vitreus – PED / Pink Lady – #14

Isonychia bicolor – Iso – Slate Drake – #12-2XL, #12

Stenonema species – Various Light Cahills – #14

Pseudocloeon species – BWO – #22 – sporadic

Heptagenia hebe – Olive Sulphurs – #16

Current Flow Conditions:

August 27, 2013

Delaware River Report / Conditions August 27, 2013

The clouds did not offer up the amount of action that we were so greatly hoping for yesterday. There were certainly olives around, and sulphurs here and there throughout the day, but there were few fish up and rising steadily until we moved into evening. We had some decent thunderstorms right in the “magic” hours of 6-8, which while normally kills all chance of a good hatch, did the opposite – those who waited (from the safety of shore!) for the storms to pass were rewarded with a pretty decent flush of bugs right at the buzzer, and many did well. There was a nice steady rain after dark here on the West, but fortunately it did not jump us up too much, and the water clarity is still fantastic (at least in front of the club). The Beaverkill shot up quite a bit, taking the East with it, very likely muddied up. As for the weather, with similar conditions today, I would normally expect a fantastic day of fishing – and I still hope it will be!

Wesley Smith showing off a nice brown! Full disclosure – a nice MONTANA Brown. But, he’s representing in the DRC hat, and we love that! Photo courtesy of the angler.

What’s Hatching:

Ephemerella dorthea – Sulphurs – #16 & #18 – starting to wane

Epeorus vitreus – PED / Pink Lady – #14

Isonychia bicolor – Iso – Slate Drake – #12-2XL

Stenonema species – Various Light Cahills – #14

Pseudocloeon species – BWO – #22 – sporadic

Heptagenia hebe – Olive Sulphurs – #16

Current Flow Conditions:

August 26, 2013

Delaware River Report / Conditions August 26, 2013

Happy  Monday! While yesterday was not stellar, it was certainly an improvement over Saturday. The bright sun definitely depressed insect activity, aside from areas of shade, and the evening. There were folks that saw sporadic sulphur hatches on the mid-West Branch during the day, but they were short lived until the evening hatch. While short (7PM on), the evening hatch was definitely fun, and the fish were eager to eat. The real good news is the weather over the next three days – clouds, clouds, and rain. No complaints at all. This incoming system should provide some great daytime bug activity, and will certainly extend our evening fishing as well. The air temps will be a little warm, so if we do get evening thunderstorms, there is always the chance for a bunch of fog to appear, so be ready!

A KILLER photo of an Isonychia bicolor (aka White Gloved Howdy) female dun. Hopefully the clouds will bring more of these guys out to play!  Photo by: Jeff White

What’s Hatching:

Ephemerella dorthea – Sulphurs – #16 & #18

Epeorus vitreus – PED / Pink Lady – #14

Isonychia bicolor – Iso – Slate Drake – #12-2XL

Chimarra species – Charcoal Caddis – #16 & #18

Stenonema species – Various Light Cahills – #14

Pseudocloeon species – BWO – #22 – sporadic

Heptagenia hebe – Olive Sulphurs – #16 – starting

Current Flow Conditions:

August 25, 2013

Delaware River Report / Conditions August 25, 2013

Man, it was tough out there yesterday. Realize “tough” is shop-guy speak for kinda sucked. The bright sun depressed much of the activity, all the way until just before dark. There were even clouds of Tricos early in the morning (finally!) here on the Lower West, with many of them falling – no fish up to snack. It could be the result of the drop in flow, but typically a drop from to a 500 release from a 600 release rarely has an adverse effect. Perhaps it did this time, I only have speculation. Today we are expecting another sunny, “pleasant” day (at least by the normal world’s standards – we love clouds and rain), which will hopefully be a bit more normal, with bug activity up high early, shifting down stream as the day progresses. Very little wind as well, which is always nice – let’s hope the Tricos decide to fall again as well (but with more action from the fish this time!).

Hey! Trout! This is food! Photo: Jeff White

What’s Hatching:

Ephemerella dorthea – Sulphurs – #16 & #18

Epeorus vitreus – PED / Pink Lady – #14

Isonychia bicolor – Iso – Slate Drake – #12-2XL

Chimarra species – Charcoal Caddis – #16 & #18

Stenonema species – Various Light Cahills – #14

Pseudocloeon species – BWO – #22 – sporadic

Heptagenia hebe – Olive Sulphurs – #16 – starting

Current Flow Conditions:

August 24, 2013

Delaware River Report / Conditions August 24, 2013

It physically hurts me to type this next bit: yesterday, they wouldn’t eat an Iso. At least not for me, or those I talked to. The good news is there were plenty of bugs to be had in the evening, especially sulphurs and small olives, and while spotty, the fish were up and rising with some degree of regularity. The old standby of tossing a cheeseburger over them did not have the desired effect, unfortunately. Also, NYC has dropped the release from Cannonsville back down to 500 cfs, as the reservoir level is down under 84%. We should stay here for the foreseeable future, and the smaller drop should not adversely affect the fishing or bugs. As for weather, today is supposed to be a mirror-image of yesterday, sans wind (thankfully). Bright sun, patchy clouds will likely make daytime fishing a bit challenging, but evening should certainly light up again!

This nice bow was caught at half past dark-thirty (8:27 or so) last night. Photo: Pat Regan

What’s Hatching:

Ephemerella dorthea – Sulphurs – #16 & #18

Epeorus vitreus – PED / Pink Lady – #14

Isonychia bicolor – Iso – Slate Drake – #12-2XL

Chimarra species – Charcoal Caddis – #16 & #18

Stenonema species – Various Light Cahills – #14

Pseudocloeon species – BWO – #22 – sporadic

Heptagenia hebe – Olive Sulphurs – #16 – starting

Current Flow Conditions:

August 23, 2013

Delaware River Report / Conditions August 23, 2013

Great cloud cover made for some really good daytime fishing yesterday, with folks seeing sulphurs, olives, and flying ants (which the fish ignored for some unknown reason). As the day went on, a series of pretty good thunderstorms rolled through, and they definitely affected the hatching activity – by curtailing it quite a bit. As they came through, the bugs stopped for a bit, then a big wall of wind made its way downstream, and the river lit up, with fish up and eating anything going over top of them. This lasted for about 5 minutes, then the rain started in earnest and shut everything down for the evening. While it was pretty much a downpour off and on for an hour or so, the river level is fine, and clarity is still amazing. Today, we’ve got mostly cloudy skies predicted again, and with less humidity I wouldn’t worry too much about the thunderstorms in the afternoon. Could be another great day out there!

Once this burns off, we’ll be in great shape! Photo: Bart Larmouth

What’s Hatching:

Ephemerella dorthea – Sulphurs – #16 & #18

Epeorus vitreus – PED / Pink Lady – #14

Isonychia bicolor – Iso – Slate Drake – #12-2XL

Chimarra species – Charcoal Caddis – #16 & #18

Stenonema species – Various Light Cahills – #14

Pseudocloeon species – BWO – #22 – sporadic

Heptagenia hebe – Olive Sulphurs – #16 – starting

Current Flow Conditions:

August 22, 2013

Delaware River Report / Conditions August 22, 2013

Not quite as productive as I had hoped out on the river yesterday, with the bright sun putting a bit of a kibosh on activity throughout the day, and the bugs never really popped en masse in the evening. There were some very nice flushes of sulphurs and epeorus, and the fish were definitely interested, but they never came off in strong enough numbers to get the river really lit up. Today we’re going to have some possible t-storms rolling around with warm air temps, which means (in all likelihood) we’ll have some good stop-and-go hatching throughout the day, and likely some fog if the rain ever materializes. Cloud cover is supposed to be be thicker as well, which does bode well for active fish during the day. Still hoping for those flying ants to show as well!

These guys were sporadic, but the fish were still taking the 12-2XL Comparaduns! Photo: Bart Larmouth

What’s Hatching:

Ephemerella dorthea – Sulphurs – #16 & #18

Epeorus vitreus – PED / Pink Lady – #14

Isonychia bicolor – Iso – Slate Drake – #12-2XL

Chimarra species – Charcoal Caddis – #16 & #18

Stenonema species – Various Light Cahills – #14

Pseudocloeon species – BWO – #22 – sporadic

Heptagenia hebe – Olive Sulphurs – #16 – starting

Current Flow Conditions: