September 30, 2013

Delaware River Report / Conditions September 30, 2013

What a difference a day can make (at least on the West Branch!). The higher flows were as hock to the system early on, but the fish have certainly adapted. The Browns were highly aggressive for the majority of the day on streamers and wet flies, and the late afternoon turned into some great dry fly fishing, with the trout up and after the psuedos, cahills, hebes, and isos that were coming off. Much to my delight, Bob had great luck just throwing the cheeseburger (Iso) last night – convincing fish that were obviously sipping the psuedos to come and eat the big flies instead. Today, we’ve got a bit more cloud cover predicted, which can only help both the streamer fishing as well as olives popping more throughout the day. The release has also been bumped up to 950 cfs, which should not make too much of a difference in where the fish are hanging out. Time to put in the boat!

Self Explanatory.

What’s Hatching:

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

Stenonema species – Various Light Cahills – #14

Pseudocloeon species – BWO – #22 – sporadic

Ephemerella lata – Dark BWO – #18

Heptagenia hebe – Olive Sulphurs – #16

Current Flow Conditions:

September 29, 2013

Delaware River Report / Conditions September 29, 2013

Well that was disappointing. Despite some better flows and a bit of good color in the water, the fishing yesterday was mediocre at best. The browns were certainly not as aggressive as they were the previous day, and even though there were very good numbers of Stenos hatching, they did not entice the fish to rise until the very last light of day. Looking in the crystal ball for today, it remains just as foggy as the air outside currently is here at the club. The  flows have been bumped up again to help with Montague flows, so there will be another good surge of cold water making its way through the system today. This increase could depress the action a little bit, or it could also mean that the fish will be more active during the bright sunlight predicted for today. Fortunately, there is a way to find out – go forth and fish!

Geoff Adams caught this funny looking trout on the West Branch yesterday. Just look at that kype! Photo: Nate Eckhaus

What’s Hatching:

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

Stenonema species – Various Light Cahills – #14

Pseudocloeon species – BWO – #22 – sporadic

Ephemerella lata – Dark BWO – #18

Heptagenia hebe – Olive Sulphurs – #16

Current Flow Conditions:

September 28, 2013

Delaware River Report / Conditions September 28, 2013

Definitely an interesting day on the river Friday. With a small bump in release, there was great color in the water, and the browns were very active, and chasing streamers on the West Branch. Emphasis on “chasing,” as hooking them seemed to be a challenge at times! The dry fly action was pretty slow throughout the day, with a big flush of bugs around 3PM, but nothing else until about 20  minutes before dark – likely a result of all the sunshine hitting the water. Today we are in for an interesting day. The release has been brought up to 763 CFS to meet the Montague minimum flow level. This will certainly be flushing a bunch of vegetation down, and certainly affect where the fish want to hold in the river itself. It should also make for some excellent streamer fishing while the water is high with a bit of color, and the browns being as aggressive as they are, could definitely be a boon for everyone!

Jeff Biller showing one of the reasons he leads our customer contest. He rocked this colored-up Brown yesterday on an olive and white streamer. Photo: Bart Larmouth

What’s Hatching:

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

Stenonema species – Various Light Cahills – #14

Pseudocloeon species – BWO – #22 – sporadic

Ephemerella lata – Dark BWO – #18

Heptagenia hebe – Olive Sulphurs – #16

Current Flow Conditions:

September 27, 2013

Delaware River Report / Conditions September 27, 2013

Well, it definitely did not turn out as planned yesterday. The fish were hunkered down for much of the day, ignoring streamers and nymphs for whatever reason, but turned on briefly during the evening. “Briefly” is a euphemism for about 20 minutes right before dark. Certainly a tough day, as we did not get the active behavior we were expecting from the fish, but I guess that’s why we call it fishing! Today, we’re looking at a slightly cloudier day (excellent), with temps in the mid-70s. I would postulate that we will see more dry fly and sub-surface action today than yesterday due to the break from the sun, but if all my predictions came true, I would have been the guy with the $400M Powerball ticket last week!

Even the Von-Behr browns are getting colored up!  This guy was dang near blue with orange spots just on the tail (not visible). Killer photo by: Bob Lewis

What’s Hatching:

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

Stenonema species – Various Light Cahills – #14

Pseudocloeon species – BWO – #22 – sporadic

Ephemerella lata – Dark BWO – #18

Heptagenia hebe – Olive Sulphurs – #16

Current Flow Conditions:

September 26, 2013

Delaware River Repor t / Conditions September 26, 2013

Did you know that the fish will actually eat a Pseudo? Well last night they were definitely into them, up and down the West Branch, as well as the Main. There were definitely good numbers of Stenos and Isos out yesterday as well, and the fish were keyed in on them at times. Today we’ve got a pretty much an identical, beautiful day on par, with bright sun, and warmer (high 60s) temps. While normally we cringe and the sun, this time of year it can certainly warm up the water a bit and actually get the bugs and fish working, so don’t be surprised to see hatches right in the middle of the day today.

The  Browns are still here, and certainly moving around in anticipation of the spawn!. Photo by: Jeff White

What’s Hatching:

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

Stenonema species – Various Light Cahills – #14

Pseudocloeon species – BWO – #22 – sporadic

Ephemerella lata – Dark BWO – #18

Heptagenia hebe – Olive Sulphurs – #16

Current Flow Conditions:

September 25, 2013

Delaware River Report / Conditions September 25, 2013

Hey! The fish were looking up yesterday! We had a good mix of bugs when the wind quieted down, and the warmer air temps were a nice respite from the previous day, that much is for sure. The browns were definitley interested in streamers (in the shade at least), while the ‘bows were up and taking Isos and Stenos on the Main, with a few eating the plentiful Pseudos on the West. Today, we’ve got pretty much a carbon-copy day in the works, albeit with (mercifully) less wind. I would anticipate the bugs showing up late morning, with the possibility of a good Trico spinner fall around 11 or so. Regardless, the evening should be a fun time to be out there as well – good luck!

An outside wall of the shop this morning – covered with everyone’s favorite tiny BWO – the Pseudo! 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:

September 24, 2013

Delaware River Report / Conditions September 24, 2013

60 degrees yesterday? The weathermen need to check the mercury in their thermometers. The wind blew steadily downstream yesterday, and it definitely made for a bitter, biting day on the water. As the afternoon progressed the bugs did come out to play – especially the Pseudos which hatched en masse for the majority of the afternoon. The fish on the other hand were having a hard time seeing these critters as the wind was futzing up the surface tension. The Isos they saw were definitely gobbled, but the rises were definitely sporadic and slow, unfortunately. The fish never seemed to get as active as they should have been with the number of bugs on the water. Today, they are calling for a much warmer day, with hopefully a whole lot less wind than yesterday!

Brian Pocrass fights a nice Main Stem Brown as Bruce Miller readies the net. Photo: Frank Howard

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 23, 2013

Delaware River Report / Conditions September 23, 2013

What a difference a day can make. Sunday was a 180 degrees change from Saturday, literally in the case of the wind! There were bugs and fish active throughout the day, especially the times when the wind quieted down. Folks were seeing good numbers of fish on the West and Main, pretty much from Hale Eddy all the way to Buckingham and a bit beyond. It was a good mix of bugs, with huge numbers of Pseudos going untouched, but the Isos, big stenos, and white flies certainly made up for it! Today we have another shift in weather, this time to bright sun. We’ll still have some wind out there, but the temps are supposed to stay in the low 60s, which will hopefully mean the bug activity continues, possibly with some Trico action thrown in for good measure. Otherwise, it will likely be an evening game when the sun starts to drop behind the mountains. The cold nights is also starting to bring out the colors in the trees, so if nothing else, things are going to get beautiful around here in a hurry!

Our other kind of favorite fall colors! Photo: Steve Shen

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 22, 2013

Delaware River Report / Conditions September 22, 2013

Well, that sucked. That’s pretty much the only way to describe the fishing yesterday. It had potential early on, and several folks had good hatches of isos early on in the day, but then the wind came up ( the air pressure also began to fluctuate wildly), and the fish just quit for the rest of the day. Nymphs, streamers, dries – it basically didn’t matter, the fish just didn’t care, and hunkered down. We did have a good, steady rain as well, which bumped us up infinitesimally, but definitely did not color up the water in the slightest. The hope for today is that overcast skies and cooler temps (along with a whole lot less wind) will entice the fish to come back around today. The atmospheric pressure balancing out will also help us. Although the fish were not cooperative, there was some excellent hatching yesterday – with some crazy stuff like Ephoron Lukon – White Flies on the Main, along with decent Isos, and hebes as well just for good measure. If they keep popping, the fish should start looking!

The day wasn’t a total loss for Frank Howard, as he caught this big rainbow yesterday with Bruce. Photo: Bruce Miller

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 21, 2013

Delaware River Report / Conditions September 21, 2013

More summertime fun out on the water Friday, with bright, HOT sun, and temps into the 80s (if you weren’t in the shade!). Many of the bugs could care less, and were hatching during the day – including some smaller olives. The fish on the other hand, were not that impressed with the hatching, and laid fairly low until the sun started to drop in the afternoon, when they started paying attention, and fed well on the Lower West, and in places on the Main Stem. Big changes are afoot today insofar as weather is concerned, with rain predicted throughout the day, as well as some pretty windy conditions at times as this warm front moves out of the area. Sounds prime for Olives, but I would fully expect to see Isos and Stenos kicking around as well, river-wide.

Steno….. mmmmmm yummy! 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:

September 20, 2013

Delaware River Report / Conditions September 20, 2013

Mixed bag out there yesterday, with some folks having lots of luck, and others seeing really picky, annoying fish. Regardless, there were plenty of bugs to be found, on every river. The fish were not too keen on the bright sun on the Main, but there were some steady fish rising on the lower West in teh heat of the day. Tricos did fall later than usual (noon), and those out in Methodist Pool seemed to see the majority of them. Today we are looking at more of the same – bright sun, and Indian Summer weather – highs around 77! We will see what that does to the fish today, but it should make for good evening fishing, as there is not supposed to be a large temp drop once the sun goes down.

Dark-thirty pictures are tough, but not as tough as this big Rainbow Doug Ewing landed last night! Photo: 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:

September 19, 2013

Delaware River Report / Conditions September 19, 2013

Another beautiful day out on the river Wednesday, and the bugs definitely showed themselves again. The fish were not as enthusiastic in the bright sun as they have been lately, but as it dropped in the sky, they certainly became hungrier and active. There were good numbers of Isos on the Main, as well as olives and the occasional hebe and steno. Today we’ve got a warmer day predicted, with similar amounts of sun expected. Yesterday, that brought decent trico action in the morning, and I would suspect the same today. Hopefully the fish have acclimated to the slightly lower levels in the West, and will be looking up for a tasty treat in the mid-day sun.

Rich Baker with a colorful Main Stem fish! Photo: Bruce Miller

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: