Posted on August 17 2026
Home in Lafayette resting up after some yard work and figured it was a good time to answer questions.
James gets the Dennis Molter award for most questions asked. I measure the trout by holding it up against my rod where the nice people at Winston put little white lines every two inches. If the fish is 20 inches or above and I'm near shore I lay the fish on my landing net which has an inlaid tape measure to get a more accurate measurement. The drift boats coming and going on 191, (and 97), are almost certainly on smallmouth bass trips down river. I've not done it, but have heard that the bass fishing is very good. Cold nights help cool the water down so fish return to their home pools which opens up the entire river system. Rainy days should help bring on the olives. Fish are not happy rising on bright sunny days.
John H - October usually offers pseudos, isos and hebes, the colder the weather the better. A 15 year old, (really any trout over say 6 or 7 years), is as big as the combination of genetics and food supply dictate. Caught the same fish three years in a row, it was 20 inches the first year and 20 inches the third year. Assuming the big fish glut we are now experiencing came from the 2018 and 2019 year classes I would say that most browns in the Delaware River system top out between 19 and 20 inches. Of course there are exceptions in both directions which is attributable to both genetics and reservoir washovers.
Harry Luke - The Algae Zone like the Sulfur Zone are creations of my pen. Started calling the Deposit area the Sulfur Zone sometime during my first years writing the blog. Somehow the Algae Zone just appeared in one of my reports this year. The algae comes out of the reservoir and is in suspension as it flows down river. It hangs up on submerged sticks, rocks and other obstructions. It also settles out along shore lines and in deep slow pools. It is tolerable below Hale Eddy and it becomes a non issue by say Balls Eddy. Algae needs nutrients and sunlight. The nutrients are in the water, as the sun gets lower in the sky the algae blooms will decrease but some will always be present.
Don Von and Ron K - I use Trouthunter 12' finesse leaders tapered to 5x to which I attach a 3' piece of Courtland's ultra premium fluorocarbon 6x tippet. I'm not a "gear guy" and often times, during a flurry of fly changes, I'll end up tying a fly onto a stub of the 6x that's no more than eight or ten inches long. I also screw up the leader by tying in a piece of 5x, (sometimes even 4x and then 5x), as my fly changes eat up the Trouthunter leader. I have never tried the George Harvey leaders.
Bob Flynn - I use whatever flies I see on the water wherever I'm fishing. The iso and March Brown were always my go to attractor flies. There effectiveness has been diminished greatly in recent years because everyone is using them and most fish have learned not to eat the duns.
Thank you for answering my question . One last question if I may . At 75 years old , I’m really have trouble tying in size 20 sulfur dry fly . Do you have a specific big eye hook you recommend or a good threader that can accommodate flies thuds small that’s good for tiny sulfurs and tricos ?
Thank you Mr.119 for answering my leader question. I use basically the same 16 ft. leader. One more question. Do you use a 4 wt 8’6" or 9’ 4 wt or 5 wt. or something lighter and do you think that makes a big difference for late season technical fishing. I use a sage ZXL 9 ft. 5 weight. It’s a slow rod supposed to be designed for subtle dry fly fishing. 26 years on the WB and still refining things. experimenting at the vise. Thank you for sharing all of your stories and knowledge, it’s very generous
All best!
Thank you once again for taking the time to answer my questions! I know I’ve said this before, but you have really shortened my learning curve on the river system.
I use the same leader as you ( shortened learning curve …..) but have been using 3-4’ of 5.5x Trouthunter fluorocarbon tippet for years. This past spring, I used 6x TH Fluorocarbon in some of the slower tails of the pools for the first time. I kept it short and tied it to the 5.5×. Turned out to be a refreshing reminder to always test your knots. Will try some more 6x this fall.
I have some bonefishing questions but will save them for the holidays.
Take care!
Thanks Dennis. I would gladly accept that award.
James I would be more than happy to autograph the award for you. Keep asking the questions A119 is a wonderful teacher. I have learned a lot from him.
Thank you. I have some questions about the algae after reading your response to Harry’s question. Was it always there? Is it beneficial or detrimental to river/fish?