August 29, 2017

Delaware River Report / Conditions August 29, 2017

Yesterday was really just an extension of the previous few days.  Nymphing was the most productive method early in the day. We’re still fishing a lot of small nymphs to match the size of the little blue winged olives.  On the upper river sections we are seeing decent olive hatches with a mix of cahills, sulphurs, golden drakes, and a few isonychias.  There are some yellow drakes up there too.  The Mainstem has fished well on days the water temperature holds.  It’s almost the same mix of bugs we’re seeing on the upper West.  Today will be a little cooler with more clouds moving in as the day goes on.  We may see some showers in the evening but right now Accuweather has them hitting after dark.

Join the Pig Farm Ink Crew, and Flylords team in Central Park this Tuesday! Casting lessons will be taking place on the Great Lawn Softball Field #3 in Central Park. Afterwards, join the crew at a local bar for drinks and food. 6:30 PM

Hatching:
Slate Drake #12-2xl – 12 – Isonychia bicolor
Sulphur – #16 – 20 – Ephemerella dorothea
Golden Drake – 12-2xl – Potomanthus distinctus
Light Cahill – #14 – Summer Sulphurs, Stenocron spp.
Little BWO – #22 – 26- Pseudocloeon sp.
Blue Wing Olives – #18 – Baetis sp.
Tricos – #22 – 26 – Tricorythodes
White Flies – #12-2xl – Ephoron lukon
Little Tan Sedge – #16 – 18 – Glossosoma sp.
Green Caddis – #16 – Ryacophilia sp.
Tan Caddis #16 – 18 – Hydropsyche spp.

Click on the gauge below for the most recent update:

August 28, 2017

Delaware River Report / Conditions August 28, 2017

Yesterday was as advertised.  Sun, a few clouds, and no wind.  On days like that look for the coldest water to find daytime hatching.  The olives hatches have been good over the last few weeks. The fish are eating a lot of them just under the surface or in the film so watch the rise forms carefully.  Otherwise nymphing or swinging wet flies will be your best shot.  There are a lot of small olives on the rivers so keep that in mind while choosing the sizes of your wets and nymphs. If Accuweather is correct today’s weather is going to be a copy of yesterdays.  So far in the forecast Thursday is the first day we have with any rain potential.

Hatching:
Slate Drake #12-2xl – 12 – Isonychia bicolor
Sulphur – #16 – 20 – Ephemerella dorothea
Golden Drake – 12-2xl – Potomanthus distinctus
Light Cahill – #14 – Summer Sulphurs, Stenocron spp.
Little BWO – #22 – 26- Pseudocloeon sp.
Blue Wing Olives – #18 – Baetis sp.
Tricos – #22 – 26 – Tricorythodes
White Flies – #12-2xl – Ephoron lukon
Little Tan Sedge – #16 – 18 – Glossosoma sp.
Green Caddis – #16 – Ryacophilia sp.
Tan Caddis #16 – 18 – Hydropsyche spp.

Click on the gauge below for the most recent update:

August 27, 2017

Delaware River Report / Conditions August 27, 2017

Yesterday felt like Fall was here.  Some clouds came through but most of the afternoon was sunshine.  Again nymphing was the best daytime tactic on the mid to lower sections.  We’re trying to matching the majority of the hatching insects sw we’ve been fishing so smaller nymphs and wet flies.  If you don’t want to nymph you can blind cast cahills or isonychias on the lower sections.  The Upper West Branch and Upper East Branch both seem to offer the best opportunity for daytime dry fly activity.  Small olive and sulphurs are the predominate mayflies but you will see some golden drakes, yellow drakes, and summer steno / cahills on the West.  Patience is the key.  The fish on both rivers seem to be eating emergers just under the surface.  Today will be cool again with more sun.  Winds will be light.

Hatching:
Slate Drake #12-2xl – 12 – Isonychia bicolor
Sulphur – #16 – 20 – Ephemerella dorothea
Golden Drake – 12-2xl – Potomanthus distinctus
Light Cahill – #14 – Summer Sulphurs, Stenocron spp.
Little BWO – #22 – 26- Pseudocloeon sp.
Blue Wing Olives – #18 – Baetis sp.
Tricos – #22 – 26 – Tricorythodes
White Flies – #12-2xl – Ephoron lukon
Little Tan Sedge – #16 – 18 – Glossosoma sp.
Green Caddis – #16 – Ryacophilia sp.
Tan Caddis #16 – 18 – Hydropsyche spp.

Click on the gauge below for the most recent update:

August 26, 2017

Delaware River Report / Conditions August 26, 2017

The water levels have dropped back a bit more and everything looks good this morning.  The cooler air temperatures helped the water temperatures a bit but the afternoon sun kept them from dropping too much.  We’re waking up to air temperatures in the 40’s this morning and should only reach 70 this afternoon.  It feels nice to be outside.  We’ll have sunshine again but the winds should be lower.  Nymphing the heavier riffles seemed to be the answer below Hale Eddy.  If you’re looking for dry fly action follow the water temperatures.  We’ll have sun again today so the higher you fish the more likely you are to see daytime activity.  There is still a lot of algae in Deposit so check your fly often.  If you don’t see risers blind casting cahills may work.

Hatching:
Slate Drake #12-2xl – 12 – Isonychia bicolor
Sulphur – #16 – 20 – Ephemerella dorothea
Golden Drake – 12-2xl – Potomanthus distinctus
Light Cahill – #14 – Summer Sulphurs, Stenocron spp.
Little BWO – #22 – 26- Pseudocloeon sp.
Blue Wing Olives – #18 – Baetis sp.
Tricos – #22 – 26 – Tricorythodes
White Flies – #12-2xl – Ephoron lukon
Little Tan Sedge – #16 – 18 – Glossosoma sp.
Green Caddis – #16 – Ryacophilia sp.
Tan Caddis #16 – 18 – Hydropsyche spp.

Click on the gauge below for the most recent update:

August 25, 2017

Delaware River Report / Conditions August 25, 2017

Yesterday seemed a lot like the day before with a few less clouds.  Some river sections had decent olives, cahill / stenos, some golden drakes, some yellow drakes, and sulphurs.  The fish were happy and rising- very picky but happy.  The definitely got less picky towards dark so keep you sinner patterns ready.  The flows did drop back a bit more and everything looks normal this morning. There was a bit of color on the lower West Branch yesterday so some people were throwing streamers with mixed results.  If you want to nymph stay below Hale Eddy due to the algae in Deposit.   We’ve had most of our success on smaller flies. while nymphing but it pays to change it up if something isn’t working.  We have some awesome weather today with air temps reaching 70 degrees today and dropping into the mid 40’s overnight.  Some sun, some clouds, and winds under 10 mph.

a dry fly eater from last night

Hatching:
Slate Drake #12-2xl – 12 – Isonychia bicolor
Sulphur – #16 – 20 – Ephemerella dorothea
Golden Drake – 12-2xl – Potomanthus distinctus
Light Cahill – #14 – Summer Sulphurs, Stenocron spp.
Little BWO – #22 – 26- Pseudocloeon sp.
Blue Wing Olives – #18 – Baetis sp.
Tricos – #22 – 26 – Tricorythodes
White Flies – #12-2xl – Ephoron lukon
Little Tan Sedge – #16 – 18 – Glossosoma sp.
Green Caddis – #16 – Ryacophilia sp.
Tan Caddis #16 – 18 – Hydropsyche spp.

Click on the gauge below for the most recent update:

August 24, 2017

Delaware River Report / Conditions August 24, 2017

The West Branch has dropped back and cleared since yesterday morning.  We are in a cooling trend with nights dropping back into the high 40’s / low 50’s.  Now that the runoff has subsided the water temperatures should drop.  Even daytime temps will stay in the low 70’s with sunshine.  The Wunderground forecast doesn’t show any rain in the forecast for the near future.

By afternoon / early evening the West Branch was clear enough for bugs to hatch and fish to eat on top.  The clouds gave way to sun for a while and finding shade banks definitely helped.  Some sections had decent hatching of olives, sulphurs, a few cahills / Stenocrons, and golden drakes.  Fish were eating but patience definitely paid off.  A lot of fish were eating just under the surface so small wets or emergers in the film could make a difference.

One off the top last night

Hatching:
Slate Drake #12-2xl – 12 – Isonychia bicolor
Sulphur – #16 – 20 – Ephemerella dorothea
Golden Drake – 12-2xl – Potomanthus distinctus
Light Cahill – #14 – Summer Sulphurs, Stenocron spp.
Little BWO – #22 – 26- Pseudocloeon sp.
Blue Wing Olives – #18 – Baetis sp.
Tricos – #22 – 26 – Tricorythodes
White Flies – #12-2xl – Ephoron lukon
Little Tan Sedge – #16 – 18 – Glossosoma sp.
Green Caddis – #16 – Ryacophilia sp.
Tan Caddis #16 – 18 – Hydropsyche spp.

Click on the gauge below for the most recent update:

August 23, 2017

Delaware River Report / Conditions August 23, 2017

Well the weather channel was correct and we had a pretty decent thunderstorm overnight.  The West Branch at Hale Eddy hit 1,700 cfs but is dropping quickly and is 1,200 cfs this morning.  We’ll continue to drop throughout the day.  As it gets lower it will level out a bit and not drop as fast.  We should be in fine shape for the weekend.  Judging by the bugs on the door this morning the rain pushed lots of olives, sulphurs, and isonychias to hatch.  The best news is that we are on a cooling trend. The high will be in the 70’s today and the nights are going to be in the 50’s.  The runoff is warmer than the release but the rivers will cool as the water drops.  Today looks like a good streamer day but bring a dry fly rod for the big slower pools.

Les Hughes sent us this picture of Anne from the weekend. Awesome fish!

Hatching:
Slate Drake #12-2xl – 12 – Isonychia bicolor
Sulphur – #16 – 20 – Ephemerella dorothea
Golden Drake – 12-2xl – Potomanthus distinctus
Light Cahill – #14 – Summer Sulphurs, Stenocron spp.
Little BWO – #22 – 26- Pseudocloeon sp.
Blue Wing Olives – #18 – Baetis sp.
Tricos – #22 – 26 – Tricorythodes
White Flies – #12-2xl – Ephoron lukon
Little Tan Sedge – #16 – 18 – Glossosoma sp.
Green Caddis – #16 – Ryacophilia sp.
Tan Caddis #16 – 18 – Hydropsyche spp.

Click on the gauge below for the most recent update:

August 22, 2017

Delaware River Report / Conditions August 22, 2017

A big thanks to Pig Farm Ink.  Five guys jumped in a van and drove 15 hours straight to pull garbage out of a river they’ve never seen before. Our river.  Their next stop is a river cleanup Saturday August 26th in Swanton, VT at the Missisquoi Wildlife Refuge.  Followed by a flytying event in Central Park on Tuesday August 29th.  These guys are driving around introducing people to flyfishing and cleaning rivers.  Let’s help them keep it going.  To support them shop for Pig Farm Ink gear here http://pigfarmink.com/ or just Paypal them some beer and gas money to us at flyfish@thedelawareriverclub.com.  Put a note on it for Pig Farm and we’ll get it to them.

All the volunteers did an awesome job. 71 tires and a dog house

Today looks like it will be a mirror image of yesterday.  Fog in the morning with sun breaking through.  It’s going to be hot with highs in the mid 80’s.  Luckily we are on a cooling trend beginning tonight setting us up for great weather over the weekend.  We should have some nights down in the high 40’s which should cool some of the river sections out of reach of the WB 500 cfs release. Small olives still seem to be the key with some sulphurs and cahills mixed in.  There have been some fish landed on tricos in the morning but be patient- it’s been tough to pin down the timing of the spinner fall.

Hatching: Slate Drake #12-2xl – 12 – Isonychia bicolor Sulphur – #16 – 20 – Ephemerella dorothea Golden Drake – 12-2xl – Potomanthus distinctus Light Cahill – #14 – Summer Sulphurs, Stenocron spp. Little BWO – #22 – 26- Pseudocloeon sp. Blue Wing Olives – #18 – Baetis sp. Tricos – #22 – 26 – Tricorythodes White Flies – #12-2xl – Ephoron lukon Little Tan Sedge – #16 – 18 – Glossosoma sp. Green Caddis – #16 – Ryacophilia sp. Tan Caddis #16 – 18 – Hydropsyche spp. Click on the gauge below for the most recent update:

August 21, 2017

Delaware River Report / Conditions August 21, 2017

Yesterday started off with decent fog and clouds blocking the sun.  That gave way to sun in the afternoon.  The West Branch fished well with streamers before the sun broke through.  We’ve been starting with dark patterns and then switching to light based on the fish’s mood.  In the afternoon people were catching some fish blind casting bigger olives and cahills.  The river flows have dropped back to better levels and we are clearing.  We are definitely clear enough to fish and the West should continue to drop slowly this morning.  It’s going to be a mix of clouds and sun today and a little warmer than yesterday.

Bruce with a nice one yesterday. Photo by Bob Lewis

Hatching:
Slate Drake #12-2xl – 12 – Isonychia bicolor
Sulphur – #16 – 20 – Ephemerella dorothea
Golden Drake – 12-2xl – Potomanthus distinctus
Light Cahill – #14 – Summer Sulphurs, Stenocron spp.
Little BWO – #22 – 26- Pseudocloeon sp.
Blue Wing Olives – #18 – Baetis sp.
Tricos – #22 – 26 – Tricorythodes
White Flies – #12-2xl – Ephoron lukon
Little Tan Sedge – #16 – 18 – Glossosoma sp.
Green Caddis – #16 – Ryacophilia sp.
Tan Caddis #16 – 18 – Hydropsyche spp.

Click on the gauge below for the most recent update:

August 20, 2017

Delaware River Report / Conditions August 20, 2017

Thanks to all of the people who joined the River Cleanup yesterday.  There is a lot less garbage in the river his morning due to all of their hard work.  Dette’s won the competition with a lot of tires and boats full of trash.  In total there is dumpster less trash out there plus 71 tires removed from the system.  Thanks to all of the participants, Pig Farm Ink, Troegs Brewing, Costa Del Mar, and Simms.  It was pretty awesome to see 40 people who love the Delaware get out there and make good things happen for the system.  Next year’s cleanup will be bigger and better!

Yesterday was a mix of weather.  We had fog and decent clouds in the morning.  Add in the off color water and it was perfect for streamers.  The rest of the day was a mix of sun and clouds trading back and forth for a bit. After dark we were hit with a brief storm that was heavy for a bit.  That’s why the West Branch is flowing at 900 cfs this morning.  It has peaked and is dropping back already this morning.  This is going to be a good morning to get out there before the fog burns off and throw streamers.  We should see some sun today mixed with a few clouds.  Winds will be under 10 mph with air temperatures reaching the high 70’s.   There are a lot of olives on the building this morning so definitely keep that box handy in case of risers.

Jeff and Dave with a big Tiger yesterday morning. Photo by Bruce Miller

Jared found some tires, toys, and lawn furniture in the river!

Hatching:
Slate Drake #12-2xl – 12 – Isonychia bicolor
Sulphur – #16 – 20 – Ephemerella dorothea
Golden Drake – 12-2xl – Potomanthus distinctus
Light Cahill – #14 – Summer Sulphurs, Stenocron spp.
Little BWO – #22 – 26- Pseudocloeon sp.
Blue Wing Olives – #18 – Baetis sp.
Tricos – #22 – 26 – Tricorythodes
White Flies – #12-2xl – Ephoron lukon
Little Tan Sedge – #16 – 18 – Glossosoma sp.
Green Caddis – #16 – Ryacophilia sp.
Tan Caddis #16 – 18 – Hydropsyche spp.

Click on the gauge below for the most recent update:

August 19, 2017

Delaware River Report / Conditions August 19, 2017

Yesterday we had a nice steady rain with a couple of periods of heavier stuff.  The ground soaked up most of it and the rivers held together well. It finally caught up to some of the feeder creeks in the late afternoon and we had some color and the West Branch shot up to 1,400 cfs at Hale Eddy.  Once the rain stopped the West Branch dropped back just as fast and we are already down to 756 cfs this morning.  The WB above Oquaga Creek barely budged and is in normal shape. This looks like a good streamer morning if you can get out before the sun burns through the fog and hits the water.  We should see a mix of sun and clouds today with negligible winds.  There is a chance of an afternoon storm but the precipitation should be .04″.  Hopefully we see more clouds than sun and it pushes the olives to hatch on the lower WB.

Today is our river cleanup day so stop by if you’re in the area to meet some cool people from Pig Farm Ink and Troegs Brewery.

Hatching:
Slate Drake #12-2xl – 12 – Isonychia bicolor
Sulphur – #16 – 20 – Ephemerella dorothea
Golden Drake – 12-2xl – Potomanthus distinctus
Light Cahill – #14 – Summer Sulphurs, Stenocron spp.
Little BWO – #22 – 26- Pseudocloeon sp.
Blue Wing Olives – #18 – Baetis sp.
Tricos – #22 – 26 – Tricorythodes
White Flies – #12-2xl – Ephoron lukon
Little Tan Sedge – #16 – 18 – Glossosoma sp.
Green Caddis – #16 – Ryacophilia sp.
Tan Caddis #16 – 18 – Hydropsyche spp.

Click on the gauge below for the most recent update:

August 18, 2017

Delaware River Report / Conditions August 18, 2017

We woke up to a light rain this morning but so far it’s soaked into the ground.  It looks like the first round of heavy weather went south of us.  There is the potential for a few storms this afternoon but they’re going to be isolated so we’ll have to wait and see.  It’s nice to see the clouds and light rain after the last few days of sun.  This has been The Summer of Olives and this definitely feels like another olive day.  Hopefully the weather pushes a few more sulphurs, isonychias, golden drakes, and cahills.  We’ve seen isolated decent hatching of those but it would be nice to see it river wide.  These humid days always have to potential to bring out the flying ants too.

Hatching:
Slate Drake #12-2xl – 12 – Isonychia bicolor
Sulphur – #16 – 20 – Ephemerella dorothea
Golden Drake – 12-2xl – Potomanthus distinctus
Light Cahill – #14 – Summer Sulphurs, Stenocron spp.
Little BWO – #22 – 26- Pseudocloeon sp.
Blue Wing Olives – #18 – Baetis sp.
Tricos – #22 – 26 – Tricorythodes
White Flies – #12-2xl – Ephoron lukon
Little Tan Sedge – #16 – 18 – Glossosoma sp.
Green Caddis – #16 – Ryacophilia sp.
Tan Caddis #16 – 18 – Hydropsyche spp.

Click on the gauge below for the most recent update: