Posted on August 09 2025
It's noon on Friday, wasn't going to fish this morning but I will be heading back to Lafayette this afternoon to pick Jean up at the airport so I decided to give the tricos another try. Yesterdays early spinner fall brought into serious question the Orvis pronouncement that trico spinners fall at 69 degrees. Some of them do for sure but a good many run out of gas earlier in the morning. Arrived streamside at 8:45am today with the car showing it to be 64 degrees. Found tricos on the water and fish rising.
How'd I do? Fished about as well as I an capable of fishing. Hooked ten fish, two came unstuck right away, two more were lost during the fight. Landed six fish, five rainbows and one brown. In previous years, my trico fishing was mostly to pods of yearlings, (8 to 10 inchers), with an occasional hatchery holdover and rarely a wild brown to add excitement to the event. This year I'm fishing to adult rainbows, and haven't hooked a juvenile fish. As was the case Tuesday, two of the 'bows measured 18 inches, with the smallest fish being a 14 inch brown. When it's on, it is really exciting, yesterday morning, not so much.
Will try to do a post this weekend with the aim of shortening the learning curve if you plan on trying a little trico fishing.
Stayed in a nice home on Main St Deposit on Tues and Weds this week. From the back yard I could see the WB from above the Red Barn down to the Bridge. Both evenings the river was dead with no fish rising. No fishermen after 5:00pm. I’m not as good as 119 but what am I missing?
Interesting day. Nice hatch 130-230PM. Fished at well known location on Upper WB and nary another fisherman in sight! Despite having my flies sucked in off the surface, (used sulfur emergers and duns), by at least 30 fish, could not hook a single one. Was like they were tasting the flies and spiting them out. Looked like they were feeding subsurface with them taking an occasional dun.
After a break at 4PM to pick up fresh corn, nap and eat dinner, hit the water for 7-8 PM hatch. Almost same action except landed a 12 incher and had a large fish tear off with my ISO and break the line.
I think I need to find a new spot with less educated fish.
BTW the green slime is back and would occasional foul the dries.
On leaving spoke with local spin fisherman whose son was using a spinning rod with a black stone fly “rubber” reproduction. I watched as he stood on shore and was jigging it and caught a few trout and walleye as it was getting dark. His father said just heard some local who caught a 32 inch brown at the ….. on the river.