October 19, 2011

Delaware River Report / Conditions October 19, 2011

Well, once again NYC DEP appears to not have followed the White Paper – we have gone from a 1,500 CFS release down to 225 CFS on the West Branch, while we SHOULD have been at 700 cfs the second the reservoir got below 100%. Instead, we have had a precipitous drop that will very likely affect the fishing, and in a worst-case scenario expose a whole bunch of Redds from the spawning brown trout. Let’s hope the browns are taking their time in procreating…..

Otherwise, the East fished fairly well yesterday, with fish on the lower stretches as the water temperature warmed up throughout the day. We are expecting rain today, but so far no significant amounts of precipitation have been predicted. Also seen yesterday were Heptagenia hebes in pretty good numbers – the fish focused on them at times, but were keyed in to the psuedos and downed iso spinners for the most part.

Hatches:

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

Pseudocloeon – Little BWOs- #22-#26

Stenonema sp. – Light Cahill #12-#14

Ephemerella deficiens- Blue Wing Olive #14

Brachycentrus sp. (Dark Grannom – Charcoal) #16- #18

October 18, 2011

Delaware River Report / Conditions October 18, 2011

The release from Cannonsville Reservoir has dropped! With the lowering to a flow rate of 696 CFS, the West Branch remains floatable, and hopefully will clear a bit as it makes its way down to us and the open sections of the river. The high winds yesterday put a bit of a damper on the fishing in general, but calmer days are predicted for the remainder of the week, with some rain in the forecast as well.

Hatches:

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

Pseudocloeon – Little BWOs- #22-#26

Stenonema sp. – Light Cahill #12-#14

Ephemerella deficiens- Blue Wing Olive #14

Brachycentrus sp. (Dark Grannom – Charcoal) #16- #18

October 17, 2011

Delaware River Report / Conditions October 17, 2011

Amid the clouds and occasional showers yesterday, the East Branch cleared, and so did the main stem. Plenty of fish taken on streamers, but by the afternoon, there was a pretty substantial hatch of the smaller stenos we have been seeing for the last week or so, and the rainbows in particular were VERY interested! Photos to follow soon, and we are expecting a partly-cloudy day today, still in the low 60s – should be great out there!

Hatches:

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

Pseudocloeon – Little BWOs- #22-#26

Stenonema sp. – Light Cahill #12-#14

Ephemerella deficiens- Blue Wing Olive #14

Brachycentrus sp. (Dark Grannom – Charcoal) #16- #18

October 16, 2011

Delaware River Report / Conditions October 16, 2011

The wind decided to not beat us down yesterday as much as was forecast, and the fishing was pretty good to boot (on streamers!) with an unexpected visitor (as seen below) to the West Branch. Also as an FYI – the upper west is now CLOSED to all fishing to protect the spawning browns, but there were still plenty of active fish below monument pool. A few risers were found in the slower waters, when the wind laid down for a bit.

Wha-WHAT? That's right folks, Colin caught a Largemouth on the WEST BRANCH! This was a first for him, and everyone here at the DRC. Who says high water doesn't have some benefits? Photo by: Bruce Miller

And in other important news:

Go Texas! East Branch Rainbows are happy to see the Rangers win the American League Pennant! Photo by: Bart Larmouth

Hatches:

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

Pseudocloeon – Little BWOs- #22-#26

Stenonema sp. – Light Cahill #12-#14

Ephemerella deficiens- Blue Wing Olive #14

Brachycentrus sp. (Dark Grannom – Charcoal) #16- #18

October 15, 2011

Delaware River Report / Conditions October 15, 2011

Rain! Well, yesterday. It has cleared up overnight, but the East System (Beaverkill, Willow, Lower East) are pretty much blown out. The West is still turbid, but visibility is better than the East, and even the Main Stem. The rivers as a whole are dropping quickly and we do expect the dry fly fishing to pick back up once they have cleared a little bit. ALSO – today is the last day of legal fishing from Cannonsville Dam down to the PA border (Monument Pool) before the season closes to protect the spawning browns. The upper East will also close tomorrow down to the Shinopple bridge.

Hatches:

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

Pseudocloeon – Little BWOs- #22-#26

Stenonema sp. – Light Cahill #12-#14

Ephemerella deficiens- Blue Wing Olive #14

Brachycentrus sp. (Dark Grannom – Charcoal) #16- #18

October 14, 2011

Delaware River Report / Conditions October 14, 2011

Bugs! A sporadic, but steady stream of small stenos was present from about 3PM until dark yesterday, and the fish were quite happily munching on them. No Isos to be seen, but I am sure the rain and cloud cover will bring them back as well. Also, the heavy rain overnight has not affected the flows too greatly, with the exception of the Beaverkill which is now in 800 CFS range, but this should not greatly change the clarity on the East / Main.

Hatches:

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

Pseudocloeon – Little BWOs- #22-#26

Stenonema sp. – Light Cahill #12-#14

Ephemerella deficiens- Blue Wing Olive #14

Brachycentrus sp. (Dark Grannom – Charcoal) #16- #18

October 13, 2011

Delaware River Report / Conditions October 13, 2011

Despite a nice, steady rain throughout the evening and into the night, the rivers saw remarkably little increase in flow, which bodes quite well. Several people had a decent day yesterday, with rising fish to be found during sporadic Iso hatching during the afternoon. There are also a large number of pseudo spinners hanging on the side of the shop today, which lets me know that we could be in for a great day / evening today.

Hatches:

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

Pseudocloeon – Little BWOs- #22-#26

Stenonema sp. – Light Cahill #12-#14

Ephemerella deficiens- Blue Wing Olive #14

Brachycentrus sp. (Dark Grannom – Charcoal) #16- #18

October 11, 2011

Delaware River Report / Conditions October 12, 2011

Cloud cover yielded the expected bugs yesterday, and the fish responded as well! With cloud cover, rain and warmer temps over the next few days, there is a great chance that we will have some excellent fall dry fly fishing this weekend.

Hatches:

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

Pseudocloeon – Little BWOs- #22-#26

Stenonema sp. – Light Cahill #12-#14

Ephemerella deficiens- Blue Wing Olive #14

Brachycentrus sp. (Dark Grannom – Charcoal) #16- #18

October 10, 2011

Delaware River Report / Condtions October 10, 2011

Happy Columbus Day! I hope some of you are able to get a day out on the water instead of in the office today! Yesterday, the fiberglass hatch (read: boat) was in full swing on the lower West, Lower East, and Main Stem as plenty of folks were taking advantage of the unprecedented Indian Summer we are having. There were isos and some small stenos about, and psuedos later on in the day once the sun got a bit lower. We are expecting another beautiful day here, so hopefully we’ll see a carbon-copy of yesterday!

Hatches:

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

Pseudocloeon – Little BWOs- #22-#26

Stenonema sp. – Light Cahill #12-#14

Ephemerella deficiens- Blue Wing Olive #14

Brachycentrus sp. (Dark Grannom – Charcoal) #16- #18

October 9, 2011

Delaware River Report / Conditions October 9, 2011

Not bad yesterday! Fishermen were able to find rising fish, with good numbers of Isos, psuedos, and some smaller stenos thrown into the mix as well. It wasn’t like Hendrickson time, but it was still good to hear that there are hungry fish still rising in the river. The warmer weather continues today, so we expect to see similar activity throughout the system. The West is still high and cloudy, so it will still be likely a streamer-style day on the upper stretches.

Hatches:

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

Pseudocloeon – Little BWOs- #22-#26

Stenonema sp. – Light Cahill #12-#14

Ephemerella deficiens- Blue Wing Olive #14

Brachycentrus sp. (Dark Grannom – Charcoal) #16- #18

October 8, 2011

Delaware River Report / Conditions October 8, 2011

Although we are currently beset by a thick fog, we expect it to roll on out of here shortly, as it is supposed to get near 80 (!!) today here in Starlight. Not quite sure how this will affect the bugs or the fish, but we are expecting more clouds than we had over the course of the last two days, which should make both the insects and the fish happier! There were some rising fish later on in the afternoon, but as soon as the temperature dropped, they shut off like a light switch. I would expect the same to occur today.

Hatches:

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

Pseudocloeon – Little BWOs- #22-#26

Stenonema sp. – Light Cahill #12-#14

Ephemerella deficiens- Blue Wing Olive #14

Brachycentrus sp. (Dark Grannom – Charcoal) #16- #18

October 7, 2011

Delaware River Report / Conditions October 7, 2011

BUGS! Ok, before you get excited, let em explain: a) there were bugs yesterday  b) for only about an hour. Out of the entire day. c) the fish were as surprised as we were. d) we were on the East Branch. That being said, for all the mayflies out and about, there were relatively few fish up and taking them. There were caddis, several different size and species of Isos, as well as a small, size 16 mayfly of indeterminate species – we weren’t able to catch one, something I intend to remedy today. The color was VERY off on the upper East Branch, possibly the result of construction going on near Downsville, but it improved as the clear water from the Beaverkill came in. Overall, the day was a pretty big beating. We rolled MAYBE fish on streamers across a 10+ mile float. That’s unacceptable, but the little burst of dries dulled the pain a bit.

The levels are dropping, so hopefully clarity on both it and the West Branch will continue to improve.

You can tell by my expression what a beating the day was until this point. Photo by: Jeff White

Henry Lingenfelder with his first Delaware Rainbow (He thinks. The memory is the first to go). Photo by: Jeff White

Hatches:

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

Pseudocloeon – Little BWOs- #22-#26

Stenonema sp. – Light Cahill #12-#14

Ephemerella deficiens- Blue Wing Olive #14

Brachycentrus sp. (Dark Grannom – Charcoal) #16- #18