July 28, 2013

Delaware River Report / Conditions July 28, 2013

The rain definitely came late yesterday, right as the light finally faded, but right before it did there was a huge bug-splosion, and if you shined a flashlight on the water, you saw a TON of different bugs coming off. We had caddis, midges, mayflies galore, even yellow sallies and giant yellow stones thrown in for good measure. Were the fish on them? A bit, but we could only guess from the slurping sounds in the distance. Earlier, there was a good flush of Isos on the West, which definitely turned fish on, and those out there throwing them did very well. Today we are starting with a wet overcast morning – never a bad thing! It may push back the early hatches upstream, but should make for a great day otherwise. There are “strong” thunderstorms predicted, but the weathermen’s track record with those as of late is less than stellar. That being said, keep your eye to the sky today just in case!

Ron Reedy with a beautiful brown caught at dusk. Photo: Jim Swift

What’s Hatching:

Ephemerella dorthea – Sulphurs – #16 & #18

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

Hydropysche species – Tan Caddis – #16 & #18

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:

July 27, 2013

Delaware River Report / Conditions July 27, 2013

Interesting day yesterday, with lots of good bugs early in the afternoon both upriver and down, but they definitely tailed off towards evening, leaving the trout a bit unsatisfied. That was a good thing, as those still out were able to throw Isonychia duns and drum up the fish feeding on the bugs straggling towards nightfall. Definitely a fun night! Today, we’ve got warmer temps predicted, and the possibility of some thunderstorms as well. We do not expect to see them until evening, but the good news is that there should be plenty of cloud cover throughout the day, which will hopefully induce some decent, all-day insect activity. Assuming they don’t get lazy again and quit early!

Good friend of the shop Fred Nelson holds a DARK West Branch Brown from his recent trip! Photo: Deb Nelson

What’s Hatching:

Ephemerella dorthea – Sulphurs – #16 & #18

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

Hydropysche species – Tan Caddis – #16 & #18

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:

July 26, 2013

Delaware River Report / Conditions July 26, 2013

It was a mixed bag yesterday, with some folks having decent luck, and others having a hard go of it. There were flushes of bugs up and down the West Branch sporadically throughout the day, with the fish deciding to be quite difficult during that period. Around 6:30 or so, a good hatch started in earnest, first with Stenos (Cahills) in #14 and #16, as well as some bruiser #12s thrown in for good measure. Some fish were on these, and anglers did well with the appropriate sized comparadun for sure. As the evening progressed, the bugs shifted to dortheas in #18 and a flush of psuedos towards dark, although those out right until the end had the best luck with #12 Iso patterns. Today we’ve got warmer weather on par, with “partly sunny” skies. I would expect a more “normal” summer day, with bugs early up top, and moving on down as the day progresses. The water is definitely starting much cooler today thanks to the clear skies and overnight lows, so be ready for a little later start river-wide.

From the Great North, Norm Price rocks his DRC hat while holding an Alaska Sockeye! Photo Courtesy of the Angler

What’s Hatching:

Ephemerella dorthea – Sulphurs – #16 & #18

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

Hydropysche species – Tan Caddis – #16 & #18

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:

July 25, 2013

Delaware River Report / Conditions July 25, 2013

Strangely enough, yesterday turned out pretty much how we thought it would, with early afternoon action up top, moving down river as the day progressed. There were definitely more bugs than fish at times, and those that were rising definitely got up on the wrong side of the rock, as they were tough and picky (well, more than usual at least). Today the air temps are supposed to warm up just a bit into the mid 70s, and we should lose a little cloud cover. There should be enough to make for decent hatching up in Deposit, but we might then taper off until later in the evening, when the whole system should fish. Keep your fingers crossed, and maybe the clouds will stick around a bit longer!

Ed gets around – here he is with a nice WB Rainbow! Photo: Bob Lewis

What’s Hatching:

Ephemerella dorthea – Sulphurs – #16 & #18

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

Hydropysche species – Tan Caddis – #16 & #18

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:

July 24, 2013

Delaware River Report / Conditions July 24, 2013

Scattered rain and cloud cover were the main news yesterday, and good news at that! The fish were happy, and the rivers have come up a little bit thanks to the influx of rain, but not enough to adversely affect the fishing, which made everyone happy. The sun did pop out a bit in the late afternoon, slowing the activity until evening, which turned into another perfect July night. Today, we’re looking at partly cloudy skies, and much cooler temps in the low 70s (hallelujah!). This coupled with the cooler water temps should give us a more “normal” summer fishing day, with bugs up top early, moving down river as the day progresses.

A tough fish comes to the net! Photo and catch by Bruce Miller

What’s Hatching:

Ephemerella dorthea – Sulphurs – #16 & #18

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

Hydropysche species – Tan Caddis – #16 & #18

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:

July 23, 2013

Delaware River Report / Conditions July 23, 2013

Apologies on the delay this morning, our server was down early this morning. I love technology.

Rain! It started late last evening, but we definitely had some decent showers throughout the night, which have brought the rivers up just a little bit (about 100 cfs on average), and we have a tiny bit of color down in Home Pool, but definitely the good kind of color (that which makes the fish less picky!). There is scattered rain and t-storms predicted throughout the day today, but I doubt that we’ll get any kind of real blow out from this system. It is doing us a favor by filling the feeders back up, and stabilizing the overall level of the river. As for the fishing yesterday, we had good bugs during day (thank you overcast sky) and the fish were definitely up and on them, but they were even pickier than usual. You have to love it! With the stained water and cloudy skies, that attitude should wear off pretty quickly today!

Always beware flying fish! This is why you hold them over the net for photos (he fell right in the basket!).  Photo: Frank Audino

What’s Hatching:

Ephemerella dorthea – Sulphurs – #16 & #18

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

Hydropysche species – Tan Caddis – #16 & #18

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:

July 22, 2013

Delaware River Report / Conditions July 22, 2013

We woke up to a bit of a surprise this morning- a nice, gentle rain falling outside. It appears to be a little patch that materialized around 7 AM, and will likely hang out for a bit prior to dissipating. It is definitely good news for the guys who are heading out to look for some morning fishing, as it will definitely help push some psuedos to the top. Otherwise, yesterday was actually pretty mediocre for no good reason. Fishing was decent in the mid-afternoon up by Deposit, and then the bugs decided to go on hiatus towards the evening in a totally uncharacteristic way. There were a few fish found and taken, but definitely not the numbers you would expect considering the conditions we had. Today there are some scattered thunderstorms predicted, with a mostly cloudy day, which should produce well, but as usual, we will just have to wait and see!

A beautiful, dark West Branch Rainbow will always please! Photo: Bob Lewis

What’s Hatching:

Ephemerella dorthea – Sulphurs – #16 & #18

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

Hydropysche species – Tan Caddis – #16 & #18

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:

July 21, 2013

Delaware River Report / Conditions July 21, 2013

Cloud cover all day yesterday, but absolutely zero storms reared their heads. A bit of a curse and a blessing. A blessing for those fishing, but a curse in that we would like our feeder streams to fill up a little bit more! Otherwise the fishing was pretty decent – good activity up top early on during the day, albiet the fish were not as active as you would expect with weather like we had. The warmer water temps (And cooler air temps) did mitigate our fog problem, so those who headed out late were able to see all the way until dark, and take advantage of the evening hatch. There were definitely some Pseudos mixed in with the sulphurs, and the fish were up on them. Today we’re expecting fewer clouds, and similar “cooler” temps in the low 80s, so with no acute air pressure changes, expect a very similar day to yesterday, which is not a bad  thing!

Ed has his hands full with this nice brown! Photo: Bob Lewis

What’s Hatching:

Ephemerella dorthea – Sulphurs – #16 & #18

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

Hydropysche species – Tan Caddis – #16 & #18

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:

July 20, 2013

Delaware River Report / Conditions July 20, 2013

The drop in flows did affect the fishing a bit upstream yesterday, even though it was “ramped” down as opposed to immediately dropped. There were bugs, but the fish were not immediately interested, until much later on in the day. The hatches were also a bit sporadic at times, but as evening came, folks started seeing more targets, and more eager fish. The heat wave has finally broken it appears, but that also means that we will have a front moving through, creating storms and cloud cover throughout the day today. The former is concerning, but the latter is excellent. With temps in the low 80s, it is going to be a definite respite from the hot weather this week. The fish should have settled again, so hopefully they will be up and ready to feed with that big ball of fire in the sky hiding behind the clouds!

Mike Darcy with a nice West Branch Brown caught in the fog.  Photo: Jim Swift

What’s Hatching:

Ephemerella dorthea – Sulphurs – #16 & #18

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

Hydropysche species – Tan Caddis – #16 & #18

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:

July 19, 2013

Delaware River Report / Conditions July 19, 2013

Despite the heat, yesterday was a good day out there! Lots of bugs, and quite a few fish to be had as well, especially once the afternoon was upon us. There were some big, loud peals of thunder in the evening, but no rain or lightning really materialized from it. The influx of humidity did bring some thick fog unfortunately, so there were folks who were forced to call it a bit early, despite the fact that fish were still rising happily. Today we are looking at a duplicate day weather-wise, but our flow has been brought back down to 600 cfs as of 9:00 AM this morning. The lower river will stay high and cool until dark most likely, but the upper stretches will drop back down earlier in the day. The bugs should not be affected greatly, but the fish might be a tad put-off, we will just have to go out there and see!

Intern Billy Rivellini wanted to get artistic with this photo of his great brown. Photo: Bob Lewis

What’s Hatching:

Ephemerella dorthea – Sulphurs – #16 & #18

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

Hydropysche species – Tan Caddis – #16 & #18

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:

July 18, 2013

Delaware River Report / Conditions July 18, 2013

Good news everyone! It looks like PA Fish & Boat has come through for us, and Ball’s Eddy will be back open either late today or tomorrow! Along with that, it was pretty good news on the river yesterday (at least in the PM) as well, with some great hatches down river, and fish up and actively feeding much earlier than they have been as of late. Upstream the fishing was tough, as there were tons of dorthea coming off, but almost no fish up and taking them – most likely a result of the sudden influx of water. I would expect the fish to be settled by today, and a bit more eager to feed. The fog did roll in a bit earlier as well, due to the high temperatures, but was definitely more patchy than usual, allowing anglers to have some shots during the clear periods that we had been missing lately. We have some thunderstorms in the forecast today, but we will see if they materialize or not. Otherwise, it looks be to be another great summer day out on the West Branch!

Chris Fielding holds a nice Brown she took this past Monday! Photo: Bob Lewis

What’s Hatching:

Ephemerella dorthea – Sulphurs – #16 & #18

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

Hydropysche species – Tan Caddis – #16 & #18

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:

July 17, 2013

Delaware River Report / Conditions July 17, 2013

After a bunch of clamoring, NYC has finally put a bit more water down the West Branch in order to help cool the lower river and the Main Stem (where Lordville had reached near 76 degrees the last two days), bumping it up to 900 CFS as of midnight last night. We should expect that to remain in place for about 48 hours or so. Yesterday was another bright, hot day here on the river, but again we had some fantastic action towards dark, and sporadic action throughout the day (when the clouds rolled through). Today we are looking at even warmer temperatures (92+), but the cool water should help produce some more daytime bug activity further down the river. The fog may decide to show up as well later on in the day – let’s hope it doesn’t!

Jerry Hustak with a Brown that looks like it swallowed a Nerf football! Photo: Bob Lewis

What’s Hatching:

Ephemerella dorthea – Sulphurs – #16 & #18

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

Hydropysche species – Tan Caddis – #16 & #18

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: