Bad Advice

Decided to fish Friday evening, read the stream gauge for Penns and at 850+ it seemed to be a fair idea. Hey the swarm guy has been down playing his exploits but still tells us that he fished till 2 AM- sure hope not in the FFF area? Stopped at a fly shop and heard "Do you want the good news or the bad news", told the callers that The Drake is coming off along with Sulphurs, PE Duns, Caddis, Drunella, Stone Flies and Crane Flies but did not tell anyone that none of these were strong enough to bring fish up. Questioned him about seeing Drunella and he admitted that they have seen "1" dun, to say it's a stretch is about all I want to say. Decided to fish an area that I have not fished for 20 years, checked the trees for duns and spinners- picture attached. Water was high and not safe to wade, all I did was look and saw dinks taking a few? There was nothing of merit to talk about, then the heard came 1st one guy then another and another, all wanting my spot- not so much. No Green Drake duns and no spinner clouds, nothing, stayed till 8:00 PM and walked up along the bank at Stan's pool and saw a huge brown take 2 duns? then he stopped, a good mark for a mouse later in the season, it is truly a giant fish. Long story short I do not see anyone telling the entire truth about the conditions and the hatch was a bust in Coburn Friday night. That said lets get on with the Slate Drakes and the Drunella spinner falls of June and say goodbye to the non fisherman that showed up that night.

What to like about the Green Drake

Any new fly fisherman or woman for that matter need and should experience at least one full blown Green Drake emergence in their fly fishing life, it is a spectacle. The sight of seeing insects that are 2" + in body length and the entire surface covered with them is a spectacle that one can simply not convey to anyone with words alone. If you look at the surface of the stream it seams as if every square foot has at least a dun on it and the trout simply gorge on them, that is the problem. In a world that demands the trout eat as much as they can with the least amount of energy necessary to eat it seams as if there is no rhythm to the feeding habits but step back and pick the fish that pushes the most water as they feed and key on the timing of their rises, cast to that one fish till you get it lined up or you miss em. All this coaching is a mute point to some anglers that get into a funk and really never pick just one fish, these guys seem to broadcast to every fish they see rise and therefore never really catch anything. I'm not one for fishing late into the evening, just can't see that well and the frustration is too much to take when you hear some of the boys feeding! This is an experience that you need to take part in and see for your self but the biggest problem is the crowds that the hatch brings, not the kind of anglers that have good manners, you have to pick a spot and guard it well or you will have a clone fishing along side of you in your pocket. Go enjoy the sheer numbers and sight of mother nature at her best feeding our beloved trout.

Are back to 2011 Weather Patterns?

After a long and wonderful prolonged pre Spring and actual Spring it seems as if the Green Drake has raised it's ugly side and given us a return to 2011 weather patterns. Our streams were so nice this year, low and fish able with cold nights to keep the water temperature down, great complex hatches to test our skills now Penns is at 2700 cfs and it might go higher. Yes the Drakes hatch in very high water and the trout are easier to catch but any attempt to wade is foolish at best. Our beloved Sulphurs are on hold till the water returns to a descent level. Penns is not a straight up and straight fall down like Spring and Bald Eagle, it is a long slow process that can be helped with strong winds to achieve maximum evaporation, not seeing that pattern develop. Looked at Spring Creek on Saturday and it was packed with people just waiting for the Shulphurs to hatch, not till 6:45 PM, sad to say grab a spot and hold off all comers, we need more water for all of us. Has anyone tried to park in the FFF parking lot at Penns, you need a number on the weekend.  We need the Drake to come and go so we have a return to the water without the crowds.

Guess Where?

Attached is a photo of a 23 1/2" Brown that I took Saturday May 5th, down deep and no indicator was used- any guess where he came from?

Rainbow Mystery Solved

Fished Penns Wed May 2 at GP's secret spot, "Korten's" both below and above, the rainbows are there also. Talked with a fellow that has a cabin and he informed me that the Fish Comm. is the one who stocked them, all in the 15 to 17" range and few larger but most in that slot. They seem to have spread out and really like the food factory that Penns offers. All that I saw was a sparse hatch of Gray Fox (this is what all the fish took), small and large stone flies, yellow crane flies and Invara & Rotunda (large sulphurs), most of the fish would come at least a foot to take a Gray Fox emerger. The sun came out and I drove to Johnson's to find rising fish, not many but 1 large brown and "2" rainbows, the bows have taken up residence mid pool and head and tail everything that floats to them, line the emerger up and they ate! The clouds came and the Invara/Rotunda hatch became more evident but sorry to say my time was up. Did see a few small sulphurs but it was too early for a good emergence. Summary is, if it's cloudy they are up all day if not it's an evening game, The entire stream is getting very crowded so be patient with your selection of where to fish, think a small not well know section to find peace and quiet.