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

October 6, 2011

Delaware River Report / Conditions October 6, 2011

Brutal. That describes my day on the Main Stem yesterday. Mostly due to the near-constant 30 – 45 MPH downstream wind at my back, but also the lethargy that apparently gripped the fish throughout the day. A high pressure system moved in, and brilliant sun without a cloud in the sky also contributed to their lack of movement. When the wind would lay down (for oh, the 20 minutes total it maybe did) we did see good numbers of caddis and pseudos, along with a handful of the white-gloved howdy (Isonychia). Today, the wind is expected to be a non-issue, and partial cloud cover should bring more bugs to the surface 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 5, 2011

Delaware River Report / Conditions October 5, 2011

The rivers are slowly dropping, and clarity in the Beaverkill, East Branch, and Main Stem are all improving daily. The West Branch is still quite turbid due to the sediment in the reservoir, but the fish are still active, and risers can be found in the still waters. Warmer weather moves back in, so we expect the bug activity to increase even further. While it is still too high to wade, but as evidenced below, the fish are there and they are hungry!

David with an awesome pre-spawn brown caught in a top-secret location on his own creation. Photo by: Bob Lewis

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 4, 2011

Delaware River Report / Conditions October 4, 2011

It was definitely a much tougher day out on the river yesterday with the colder temps and sporadic rain. Fish were interested in streamers but did not seem too keen on taking dries – mostly because the mayflies and caddis felt like staying in the water. With warmer temps starting today, we’re looking forward to a bit more action out there, hopefully with both caddis and Isos.

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 3, 2011

Delaware River Report / Conditions October 3, 2011

It is CHILLY out there! We are looking at a high in the mid-50s, with some rain possible. Yesterday turned out to be rather pleasant, both from the weather point of view as well as the fishing! There were fish rising to charcoal caddis for a large chunk of the afternoon in the still water, and quite a few made it into the boat. Not sure how the overcast skies and possible rain will affect the fish, but we’ve got a few guys going out to check on it!

Pat Regan with a nice WB Brown. 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

October 2, 2011

Delaware River Report / Conditions October 2, 2011

Well despite the rain and off-colored water, there were still fish to be found yesterday on the West Branch – both with streamers and also on dries (albeit few and far between!). Black appears to be the streamer color of choice, while fish were found eating both Isos and Pseudos when they could be found – which was typically in calmer, slower water. Today is calling for scattered rain showers, so we expect similar conditions to yesterday, hopefully with more hungry, pre-spawn browns!

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 1, 2011

Delaware River Report / Conditions October 1, 2011

Happy October! Fall has definitely arrived here at the DRC, with cooler temperatures hitting the area overnight, and our high today is slated to be around 57. That being said, the rivers continue to drop, and the color on the West Branch, while not great by any stretch of the imagination, has gotten significantly better during the last 36 hours. Streamers are still your best bet, and wading is still a no-go for the foreseeable future (at least this weekend). With the spawn quickly approaching, the fish will still be active and feeding heavily in anticipation of that big energy burn. Strangely enough, they have also been purchasing cigarettes in anticipation of the post-spawn……….

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

September 30, 2011

Delaware River Report / Conditions September 30, 2011

Well the rain has gone for at least ONE day (so they tell us) – we are looking at sun and mid-sixties today – it appears that fall has finally reached us! That being said, the rivers are still running VERY high, and there is more rain expected for this coming weekend. I mean, it’s a weekend, so therefore it will rain. We will call this the Fishing Season 2011 Proof.

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

September 29, 2011

Delaware River Report / Conditions September 29, 2011

Seriously Mother Nature? It’s going to be like this huh?

More stinking rain, and the rivers are starting to rise again. The East Branch system (East, Beaverkill, Willowemoc) are all blown out, and really rising, where the West has just leveled out at “only” 4,200 CFS – needless to say, not wadeable, and might not even be decent for streamer fishing, due to the color of the water. While hopeful they will suddenly drop for the weekend, we are not optimistic.

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

September 28, 2011

Delaware River Report / Condtions September 28, 2011

Rain. Always before I have a trip planned. As you can see from the graph below, we got hammered last night with thunderstorms and rain, jumping all of the rivers up substantially, while also blowing out the once-clear Beaverkill and East Branch. All are dropping quickly, and will likely clear by the weekend (the West Branch stayed about as turbid as it has been, and will likley remain so), but today looks like a tough one 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