The Bench Of Redemption Has Put Splinters In Lots of Keisters.

It being the last day of my fishing week, I decided to give it my all, groin pull be damned. Encouraged by all the empty sulfur nymph husks floating by the Hale Eddy Bridge last evening, I wanted to give the sulfurs a chance to redeem themselves. About 1:30 I drove up route 8 to Stilesville and then down river road all the way to the men's club. Saw a few bugs hatching and a fair number of rising fish. Surprisingly it wasn't crowded, YET. The little Stilesville lot still had room for two more cars and there were only three cars at the red barn. The Men's Club lot was filling up and I didn't drive down to barking dog. Found a place between barking dog and the Hale Eddy Bridge, waded in, sure I'd find both bugs and rising fish, (it's just the way we fishermen think). Saw some risers in the tailout of a pool just upstream, but in my chosen spot, in almost two hours, I saw one rise and not enough sulfurs to entice a single Cedar Waxwing to swoop in for a meal. I hooked the riser and one yearling who is working as an apprentice fort the chamber of commerce this summer.

Quit at 3:45, had a nice chat with an experienced angler who said there was a really good sulfur hatch downstream from here last night, (I told him about the husks I saw). He then told me about all the rising fish and how well he did. Watched him wade across the stream and then let the air out of his passenger side rear tire.

It was too late to go back to the fishing camp, and too early to head for a night time hot spot, (relax Jean there are no nighttime hot spot like you're thinking about that would even let me in - I'm in waders after all, and if they did let me in, then what?).

Decided to try a good, but empty pool during the "Dead Period". On my very first cast a 17 inch hatchery holdover ate my fly like he hadn't had a meal in two weeks. Two hours later with a few sulfurs starting to hatch, a nice rainbow ate my fly and tore all over the river until, in the slow current area I had led him to be netted, he went around the end of a submerged log, the leader caught on the log and he popped the tippet.

The evening "Hot Spot", featured size 22/24 olives, the occasional steno, and as usual, some rising fish just about the time you couldn't see your hand in front of your face. Landed three rainbows and a brown. An 18 inch 'bow was fish of the day.

Do not come if you need to catch lots of fish to have fun. If you want to go one on one against some of the toughest trout on the planet, this is where it's at.