October 24, 2011

Delaware River Report / Conditions October 24,2011

As the water continues to drop on the WB, it is making it increasing more difficult to float, that said the entire lower half of the WB is now wadable in all locations. Yesterday was tough out on the water, the scarcity of bugs resulted in little surface action. Wind should not be a factor today, so if the bugs are present the fish should show themselves.

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 23, 2011

Delaware River Report / Conditions October 23,2011

The West Branch is finally clear and wadable again below Hale Eddy down. With the colder temps that we are receiving overnight expect much of the hatching activity to occur mid to late afternoon, as the sun has time to warm up the water. The water levels on both the East and West Branch should remain fairly consistent for some time since we are not expecting a substantial amount of rain in the near future. Be sure to have small Olives, Stenos and Isos in your box if you decide to head out on the water today!

Bart using his nightvision skills to locate and catch this very nice rainbow in the dark. Photo By: Ramone Lovegod

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 22, 2011

Delaware River Report / Conditions October 22,2011

The WB continues to drop reflecting the 224 cfs release, while the East Branch remains steady. Even with the winds the past couple of days, fish are still being caught on top with fish taking smaller steno’s, olives, and isos. The clarity on the East is gin clear while the  West Branch remains slightly off color but continues to get clearer everyday. The forecast for the next couple of days is calling for lighter winds which should yield more surface activity.

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 21, 2011

Delaware River Report / Conditions October 21, 2011

The West Branch and EB are holding steady with runoff from the recent rains, while the Beaverkill and slowly drops.  Winds have been tough, but the weather has held so far.  There is some color on the WB and Main, but it is fishable.

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 19, 2011

Al Caucci’s new Mayfly ID Guide is Here!

After many months of anticipation, we are proud to announce that the DRC is the first fly shop to offer copies of the revised standard in mayfly identification: The Mayfly Guide by Al Caucci.  This is a complete revision of the 1986 book The Instant Mayfly ID Guide – the standard in streamside mayfly identification.

The new, full-color edition sports hundreds of mayfly photos (adults and nymphs), new text and descriptions, as well as the new up-to-date entomological names. It uses the same style of ‘keys’ to identify the both the nymphal and adult life stages of the insects that made the original so easy and reliable to use, with the addition of red ‘size bars’ next to each picture that let you compare the insect to aid in identification.   The book is 100% waterproof, ready for the stream!

We have a limited number of signed copies available as well – feel free to call the shop and order, or place your order in our new online fly shop at: www.thedelawareriverclub.com/flyshop/ – for a limited time, we are offering both copies at the cost of $24.95, a $2/copy savings to our loyal readers! Get yours now!!

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