I decided that it is just too darn hot to fish, the Trico hatch and spinner fall would last about 20 min's at best and that is just not enough time to zero in on a good fish, then plopping beetles while you sweat- no thanks!
This coming weekend looks to be more of the same, 90+ degrees daytime temps and 75+ at night, might be a good time to swim some mice in a few of the larger pools in Spring Creek or Bald Eagle but I'm really not into that crap. Yes you can catch some fish and a lot at that with beetles and ants but with the tress of playing them you run the rish of killing them after you release them. Was at Spring Creek park on Sunday the 24th and saw a wonderful 15" brown dead on the path, no idea how it got there but what a loss, it made it that long in that area before it died? We took a lab into the water for him to cool the water felt cool but factor in the stress of playing them and you'll have certin death as a result.
As I said last week I'll go over an experiment we did 35 years ago, Sherwin Albert and myself took the time to collect a bunch of stoneflies both yellow Perla's and big black Tarnus (sp) we took each one and released them in the water and watched what they did and any other actions that might help us tie flies. Here are the results, Perla's moved their legs ( a crawling motion) in an attempt to try and swim but floated and desended in the water until they bounced off the bottom a few times befoer they got their footing and dissepeared under a rock. The big black (very dark brown) Tarnus (sp) did nothing but float in a fetal position till they hit the bottom once and with their very powerful legs and claws grabbed hold and moved under the rocks- Results all your Perla (yellow stoneflies) need to be on straight hooks with legs that move in the currents, hen hackle works the best as does the aspect of the fly in the round, trout see all side of this, the different colors that are seen are triggers for this are very important, The larger very dark guys are quite different, a curved hook with legs that do not move seem to be keys for this guy, a stiffer fly will not hurt your results only be very sharp on the hook sets because the rejection time is fast on these guys, this fly also needs to be fished in some very heavy riffles.
I also said that I'll talk about Charlie Meek and I using blue flies, well here goes. Charlie worked for PSU and would visit my store from time to time and we would review ideas that we had and compare results. We both read somewhere that the color blue was visible deeper into the water column, we talked about it by darm we both came up with different ideas to try. I tied some sparkle winged spinners from size 14 thru 20, both light and dark, took them to the Hepner Hole and waited for the next sulphur spinner fall, well a few took but not anything that we thought would happen, I tried them the entire summer even tying some 24's for Trico's- no big deal. The next time Chalie came in, he had the same results, well maybe we need to go under the surface, OK let's tie some nymphs! I tied some of my Perla stonefly nymphs in blue using the pattern that has been very successful but using blue rabbit fur for the bodies- gave them a bath and not much worked- took it off and put on a standard Perla and got into fsh. I guess Charlie had better luck because the next time we fished together on Elk Creek he had the Patriot as a dry dropped rig and it worked- go figure.
Monday, July 25, 2011
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Beetles Again
Fished Spring Creek Saturday July 16th, started in Spring Creek Park and fished upstream with very good results in the shaded areas but as I got into the fields leading up to Route 26 Sheetz & TCO fly shop intersection the trout stopped coming to the plop, results 12 nice fat browns and a 300 yard wade with no results. I had lunch at Sheetz (the best hot dog bargin in the East) and went back at it. If I stayed in the woods with good tree cover and shade they ate the beetle but if I was in the sun, not so much. Next time I'll try a dry dropper with a wet black ant under a emerger and see if that makes any difference. Not much hatching but a few #20 BWO's and the usual craneflies but no rising fish.
A Trico update, not quite yet and if it did happen with the soaring temps and dew points the hatch & spinner fall would last about 20-30 min's at best. The main hatch will happen any day but if it is this week you'll have to be there very early and pick the best one of the bunch to cast to and hope you line it up. Here's a story about Trico fishing with Vince Marinaro, A Modern Dry Fly Code author about 35 years ago. We were introduced to Vince tru Milt Wiest of Pillow, PA and would drive to Carlisle and pick him up at his home after stopping at the Dunkin Donut shop to get breakfast, yes we did it then! We would drive to Chambersburg to fish Falling Springs, we assembled in the meadow and Vince held council telling us what to expect and at what stage the fish would be feeding on as far as the time of day was concered. We would take our Vince assigned spots and wait till we saw the fish feeding on nymphs and fish to them, well a size 24 nymph was not and is not a pleaseure to fish but hey if Vince said it we did it. When the spinners came the fish would rise in a pleasant rythm, I would look at him and wonder how in the heck he could catch so many fish because it always appeared that he was casting, well I asked him if I could watch and he grumped but said ok! What he told me is a lesson we need to remember, when a dun hatch or spinner fall occurs and the surface is covered with them the fish will tend to move up in the water column thereby reducing their field of vision, there is no need for long floats! Cast just above the fish 6-8" is plenty and if it gets to their tail get it off the water and back in line, it is a one back cast motion and nothing more, the more you float over the more you catch. After the trout stopped we would all assemble in the Meadows to have lunch, Vince, Milt, Sherwin, Russ and the Meyers boys from York,PA we ate bologna and cheese and Vince would tell us how we did and why we did good or why we did bad, it is a wonderful memory but an experience that helped many times with fish high in the water column. I do remember asking to see his flies and was told no! I do remember one summer after his trip to England and his introduction to their knife blades in the butt end of their bambo rods, he built a few over the winter and used one with us, well the next year he told us he dam near stabbed himself when he fell going over a fence. There is no way to ever forget this stuff, it has helped me and I hope it helps you, by the way yes all my books are signed and noted by Vince in the meadow.
By the way you never see tout in Penns come up that far in the water column until the light fades so keep those long floates to those guys but with Trico's in Spring and Bald Eagle keep the floats short.
Next week I'll talk about Sherwin & I collecting stone fly nymphs and throwing them back into the water and watching how they moved or didn't move and how many times they bounched off the rocks before they grabbed hold, I'll also tell you about the Charlie Meck & I with our blue flies experiments!
Jim
A Trico update, not quite yet and if it did happen with the soaring temps and dew points the hatch & spinner fall would last about 20-30 min's at best. The main hatch will happen any day but if it is this week you'll have to be there very early and pick the best one of the bunch to cast to and hope you line it up. Here's a story about Trico fishing with Vince Marinaro, A Modern Dry Fly Code author about 35 years ago. We were introduced to Vince tru Milt Wiest of Pillow, PA and would drive to Carlisle and pick him up at his home after stopping at the Dunkin Donut shop to get breakfast, yes we did it then! We would drive to Chambersburg to fish Falling Springs, we assembled in the meadow and Vince held council telling us what to expect and at what stage the fish would be feeding on as far as the time of day was concered. We would take our Vince assigned spots and wait till we saw the fish feeding on nymphs and fish to them, well a size 24 nymph was not and is not a pleaseure to fish but hey if Vince said it we did it. When the spinners came the fish would rise in a pleasant rythm, I would look at him and wonder how in the heck he could catch so many fish because it always appeared that he was casting, well I asked him if I could watch and he grumped but said ok! What he told me is a lesson we need to remember, when a dun hatch or spinner fall occurs and the surface is covered with them the fish will tend to move up in the water column thereby reducing their field of vision, there is no need for long floats! Cast just above the fish 6-8" is plenty and if it gets to their tail get it off the water and back in line, it is a one back cast motion and nothing more, the more you float over the more you catch. After the trout stopped we would all assemble in the Meadows to have lunch, Vince, Milt, Sherwin, Russ and the Meyers boys from York,PA we ate bologna and cheese and Vince would tell us how we did and why we did good or why we did bad, it is a wonderful memory but an experience that helped many times with fish high in the water column. I do remember asking to see his flies and was told no! I do remember one summer after his trip to England and his introduction to their knife blades in the butt end of their bambo rods, he built a few over the winter and used one with us, well the next year he told us he dam near stabbed himself when he fell going over a fence. There is no way to ever forget this stuff, it has helped me and I hope it helps you, by the way yes all my books are signed and noted by Vince in the meadow.
By the way you never see tout in Penns come up that far in the water column until the light fades so keep those long floates to those guys but with Trico's in Spring and Bald Eagle keep the floats short.
Next week I'll talk about Sherwin & I collecting stone fly nymphs and throwing them back into the water and watching how they moved or didn't move and how many times they bounched off the rocks before they grabbed hold, I'll also tell you about the Charlie Meck & I with our blue flies experiments!
Jim
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Beetles are Best if Plopped
Fished July 9th, wanted to try Bald Eagle but after having quite a few floaters pass me by and seeing more on the way I decided to try Spring Creek, I'll do The Eagle when the Trico's are on. I went to a favorite secluded spot on Spring and knotted on a large black beetle and got instant results. Moving upstream and casting in shallow water first then into the gut of the holes gave me great results, just make sure the beetle plops. Remember that all land based insects do in fact fall into the water and not gently but with a discintive plop, even if the trout do not see the fly they will feel it and are conditioned to come look for the food in the summer months, if the black raspberries are ripe it's time for terrestrials to be on the water. Took fish from 4' to 14" all nice fat browns and willing to attack the beetle. This is really not hard and does not require a lot of tackle, beetles, ants and crickets some tippets- that's all. Be warned that you can not fish the same water over and over again and expect to fool them, think change of patterns or locations. I love to use a small chest pack and wade light, yes I'll still use waders I'm not that brave to think that I would not get poison. The type of beetles and ants that I use are foam and are easy to tie and hold up well enough but with the larger browns teeth they will get battered, so tie a bunch. If you need instructions, just ask.
I'll comment on a few new products that I have been using and give you a run down on them. First is SA Sharkskin fly lines, when I first used it I loved that it added about 10 yards to every cast and it handled like old silk, I did not mind that it sings as it moves in and out but my love affair has come to an end. I have had a heck of a time trying to find a leader combination that turns over well and it seems to want to not fall as I want it to. I keep holding back and do not get the accuracy that I want, also the dam cuts to my finger are getting old- yea you try to remember to take a bandage along every time. the line is about one size heavier than it is marked. Ok I know what your saying, well this past weekend I used my XPS New Zeland Grey WF3F and it was wonderful, the line acted just as I wanted it to, not that I'll give up on the Sharkskin I'll just use it less- sorry I do like the music it provides.
Next item is Simms new Vibram Streamtread wading shoe soles, tried them a few times and looked as if I was wading on ice but I felt great walking to and from the stream, really nice support and spring in them but not for our streams. I called Simms and they suggested I use Hardbite Studs, well ok. Received the studs and installed them (really easy) and Wow what a difference, great grip and no noise when you walk in and out and when your wading- they clearly have a winner, I give them the best ratings that I can give!
Another item of note is Trout Hunter tippet material and leaders, if Rene Harrop tells me it's good, take it to the bank it is. Fine tippet material made in Japan and the size of the spools make it easy to carry and the material comes off the spool with little effort. Trout Hunter leaders have been a good addition, I tried them with the Sharkskin lines and was not happy with the results but using them with the SA XPS line made a difference. Yes I'm to lazy to tie my own leaders and I do not like George Harvey's formula, Barry Beck got me hooked on Doug Swisher flat butt leaders 30 years ago and it's hard to stop now. As a side lite the Swished leaders seem to have gotten softer butts on them and just do not turn over that well.
As I promised here is the results of a test we did 30+ years ago, we wanted to see how trout in Johnson's Hole took crickets and hoppers, well we collected them and threw them in and watched. All the crickets were taken upstream with little or no inspections a very confident take, hoppers on the other hand were taken downstream only after considerable inspection. Our conculsions are that crickets are something they see from time to time but hoppers are just not that normal and our wood land hoppers are not that evident along Penns- so try Crickets and be happy.
Yes I know I told ypu that I'd get the Black Rat snake mating pictures and post them well I just have not see Posey Bowersox yet! I'll make an effort to get them and share it with you.
There seems to be a fly shop war going on and if you read between the lines the Swarm guy is telling us the other shops need to stop their customers from fishing while he does something else- BS! The water in Penns is getting too warm but Fishing Creek, Spring Creek and Bale Eagle are fine, just don't play them to death. Yes other fly shop do emblish the facts but they will not insult like the Swarm fellow will, this guy always seems to catch more and bigger fish than his customers- not smart. Fly shops must remember they are in the service industry not I'm better than you are mode. Make sure your customers expecitations are not over sold or that you do not get on a soap box and tell everyone how great you are, for heavens sake measure your fish!
I'll comment on a few new products that I have been using and give you a run down on them. First is SA Sharkskin fly lines, when I first used it I loved that it added about 10 yards to every cast and it handled like old silk, I did not mind that it sings as it moves in and out but my love affair has come to an end. I have had a heck of a time trying to find a leader combination that turns over well and it seems to want to not fall as I want it to. I keep holding back and do not get the accuracy that I want, also the dam cuts to my finger are getting old- yea you try to remember to take a bandage along every time. the line is about one size heavier than it is marked. Ok I know what your saying, well this past weekend I used my XPS New Zeland Grey WF3F and it was wonderful, the line acted just as I wanted it to, not that I'll give up on the Sharkskin I'll just use it less- sorry I do like the music it provides.
Next item is Simms new Vibram Streamtread wading shoe soles, tried them a few times and looked as if I was wading on ice but I felt great walking to and from the stream, really nice support and spring in them but not for our streams. I called Simms and they suggested I use Hardbite Studs, well ok. Received the studs and installed them (really easy) and Wow what a difference, great grip and no noise when you walk in and out and when your wading- they clearly have a winner, I give them the best ratings that I can give!
Another item of note is Trout Hunter tippet material and leaders, if Rene Harrop tells me it's good, take it to the bank it is. Fine tippet material made in Japan and the size of the spools make it easy to carry and the material comes off the spool with little effort. Trout Hunter leaders have been a good addition, I tried them with the Sharkskin lines and was not happy with the results but using them with the SA XPS line made a difference. Yes I'm to lazy to tie my own leaders and I do not like George Harvey's formula, Barry Beck got me hooked on Doug Swisher flat butt leaders 30 years ago and it's hard to stop now. As a side lite the Swished leaders seem to have gotten softer butts on them and just do not turn over that well.
As I promised here is the results of a test we did 30+ years ago, we wanted to see how trout in Johnson's Hole took crickets and hoppers, well we collected them and threw them in and watched. All the crickets were taken upstream with little or no inspections a very confident take, hoppers on the other hand were taken downstream only after considerable inspection. Our conculsions are that crickets are something they see from time to time but hoppers are just not that normal and our wood land hoppers are not that evident along Penns- so try Crickets and be happy.
Yes I know I told ypu that I'd get the Black Rat snake mating pictures and post them well I just have not see Posey Bowersox yet! I'll make an effort to get them and share it with you.
There seems to be a fly shop war going on and if you read between the lines the Swarm guy is telling us the other shops need to stop their customers from fishing while he does something else- BS! The water in Penns is getting too warm but Fishing Creek, Spring Creek and Bale Eagle are fine, just don't play them to death. Yes other fly shop do emblish the facts but they will not insult like the Swarm fellow will, this guy always seems to catch more and bigger fish than his customers- not smart. Fly shops must remember they are in the service industry not I'm better than you are mode. Make sure your customers expecitations are not over sold or that you do not get on a soap box and tell everyone how great you are, for heavens sake measure your fish!
Monday, July 4, 2011
Ants in your pants
Saturday July 2 found me fishing on Spring Creek, looking for the Beetle & Ant time of the year. Stream levels are getting at the stange on Penns that it is just not advisable to continue to fish, same conditions as all the other years, too much water then not eounght! I checked Bald Eagle and if there was any rising fish you would be hard pressed to wade it, it's just a bit high and a few weeks early for the Trico'sbut it will come down.
Checked a few spots on Spring and no rising fish, tried nymphs but sometimes you want to fish dries and that's what is in your head and you might as well just do it. Tried caddis and olives but only dinks were looking at them. Tried a trusty #12 black beetle and no takes. Tied on a red foam ant found it was the ticket. Dead drift was the key, slow easy takes were the norm, a few of the fish were decient but it was just nice to lay a nice cast and follow the drift and see the take, it's want we want some times, not numbers just the thrill of the take. I would try Tony Delong's dry with a black wet ant dropper the next time, he has told me time and time again about how great a combination it can be during summer terrestrial time. We are not officialy in the zone till Trico's come on, ant, beetles and maybe a black cricket fished early in the morning. I'll post an experiment we did many years ago on Penns about crickets vs. hoppers and how the fish take them, the crickets won out big time. This is the time out the years you get ants in your pants to fish them.
Checked a few spots on Spring and no rising fish, tried nymphs but sometimes you want to fish dries and that's what is in your head and you might as well just do it. Tried caddis and olives but only dinks were looking at them. Tried a trusty #12 black beetle and no takes. Tied on a red foam ant found it was the ticket. Dead drift was the key, slow easy takes were the norm, a few of the fish were decient but it was just nice to lay a nice cast and follow the drift and see the take, it's want we want some times, not numbers just the thrill of the take. I would try Tony Delong's dry with a black wet ant dropper the next time, he has told me time and time again about how great a combination it can be during summer terrestrial time. We are not officialy in the zone till Trico's come on, ant, beetles and maybe a black cricket fished early in the morning. I'll post an experiment we did many years ago on Penns about crickets vs. hoppers and how the fish take them, the crickets won out big time. This is the time out the years you get ants in your pants to fish them.
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