It was an olive kind of day - only without the olives - never saw a one. Fished two pools on the upper east.The first had no bugs and no fish up. The second was one of the pools that on Tuesday was full of big fish gulping Hendrickson spinners. This time the fish that were up were sipping midges and they were nine and ten inchers.
Fished a pool on the big east, two boats went by giving me a wave...
Angler 119's Delaware River Fishing Report
It is what it is.
Posted on May 13 2016
Over fifty years ago Robert Traver in his famous "Testament of a Fisherman" wrote "---because mercifully there are no telephones on trout waters; because only in the woods can I find solitude without loneliness---".
Clearly those words don't apply to the Delaware River as we know it today. The Delaware is the best trout fishery east of the Mississippi River. It is also the most heavily fished....
Clearly those words don't apply to the Delaware River as we know it today. The Delaware is the best trout fishery east of the Mississippi River. It is also the most heavily fished....
Spinners save the day
Posted on May 12 2016
Tied spinners and march browns to prepare for what I was sure would be another all day fishing bonanza. If you had sent me to an arroyo I would have gone willingly, sure in the knowledge that I could float a fly and catch fish. The feeling was enhanced at my first stop on the big east when a nice bow ate my march brown.
And then - The frosty morning turned into a hot sunny day. I never saw a march...
And then - The frosty morning turned into a hot sunny day. I never saw a march...
It was a good plan after all !
Posted on May 11 2016
MondayI had a plan - Start early fishing March Browns on the big EB. Be on the upper EB at three to fish the last of the Hendricksons. When the Hendricksons shut down head for the WB spinner fall.
Monday turned out to be a little bit too bright, way to breezy and it got too cold too quick for the spinners to do their thing. I caught two fish.
Tuesdayit still seemed like a good plan so I tried it...
At least the yard looks good
Posted on May 10 2016
Left for camp early hoping to get the lawn mowed before the bugs started hatching. I did.
Set out to fish at about one - tried two places on the lower EB and found March Browns and Cddis hatching with fish showing no interest. Moved to the upper EB around 2:30 and sat on the bank in the sun watching Yellow Warblers and Myrtle Warblers catch bugs in the Multaflora roses. By 3:00 there were Apple...
Set out to fish at about one - tried two places on the lower EB and found March Browns and Cddis hatching with fish showing no interest. Moved to the upper EB around 2:30 and sat on the bank in the sun watching Yellow Warblers and Myrtle Warblers catch bugs in the Multaflora roses. By 3:00 there were Apple...
Musings on the balance of nature and it's effect on the Delaware River trout
Posted on May 08 2016
Finally got around to adding up Aprils catch and comparing it to those of the last twenty-five years. This year ranked fourth for number of fish caught. It is clear that the best April fishing occurs when the reservoirs aren't spilling and there is plenty of sunshine to warm up the lower water flows. This of course gets the bugs going sooner
which results in better early fishing.
Exactly fifty...
which results in better early fishing.
Exactly fifty...
Rain and cold put damper on hatch.
Posted on May 07 2016
Left the camp with good intentions. After four days on the upper WB it was time for a change. I drove up the EB from Hancock to Downsville in the pouring rain, stopping at every vista looking for bugs and risers. There weren't any. It was Friday afternoon and the fishermen who had filled every pool from the Sunoco station to
Downsville last Friday were also missing. I saw one in the water at
Downsville last Friday were also missing. I saw one in the water at
Troutfitter Anglers Fish "The Hatch"
Posted on May 06 2016
Fished the upper WB again today - same old - same old, Paraleps, Quill Gordons, Red Quills, Hendricksons. Olives and Apple Caddis, all accompanied by a steady breeze. It was still cold. The sun has not made an appearance over the river all week.
The hatch seemed somewhat sparser than previous days (at least until the Hendricksons got going around three.
Found rising trout more willing to take my...
The hatch seemed somewhat sparser than previous days (at least until the Hendricksons got going around three.
Found rising trout more willing to take my...
And the hatch goes on - - - -
Posted on May 05 2016
The HATCH - now nearing biblical proportions (biblical is one grade up from epic if you were wondering) continued - starting at twelve thirty and going 'til almost five. Got in at the start this time but saw little feeding until I found a spot out of the wind where the fish were on top chowing down.
Noticed something Mondayand confirmed it yesterday. Hooking a fish from a pod puts the rest of the...
Noticed something Mondayand confirmed it yesterday. Hooking a fish from a pod puts the rest of the...
Too much of a good thing!
Posted on May 04 2016
It wasn't bug soup, it was bug stew and it was served the length of the West Branch.
Monday I arrived at three to find the water covered with Hendricksons and the big fish gulping like hogs at the troth. This went from three 'til six.Tuesday (being no fool) I arrived at two - only to find an even heavier hatch with fish casually picking just the choicest morsels to eat.
When things slowed down I...
Monday I arrived at three to find the water covered with Hendricksons and the big fish gulping like hogs at the troth. This went from three 'til six.Tuesday (being no fool) I arrived at two - only to find an even heavier hatch with fish casually picking just the choicest morsels to eat.
When things slowed down I...
You gotta go to know!
Posted on May 03 2016
When I left for the river it was raining and forty-seven degrees. The forecast said a high of fifty-nine in Hancock, which would bring bugs. At Binghamton the sun broke thru and the temp hit fifty-six. Oh boy! Heading east on seventeen, however, it grew darker and colder. Arrived at the river at 3:00 with light rain and a temp of
fifty-one.
With the release on the WB lowered to one-fifty, there...
fifty-one.
With the release on the WB lowered to one-fifty, there...
Upon Further review
Posted on May 01 2016
I looked at the Delaware River Club fishing report for yesterday. Wow, wish I was there, " The river was the definition of bug soup". "The river doesn't fish much better than it did today". etc, etc. So what happened? First I'm sure there was a good hatch, most probably in the upper and middle portion of the WB. I was there Wednesday and had a very good day. Recommended the area to some...
My waders are hanging upside down in the garage
Posted on May 01 2016
At 10:00 the temp was sixty on the porch. Then the clouds rolled in. When I left to fish the car said it was fifty one - too cold for bugs. With cars filling all pull offs and anglers lined up like slalom gates for boaters, I took myself to a seldom fished pool on the lower Beaverkill. Saw brown caddis, cornuta, small Hendrickson
duns spinners and yes, March Browns.
The first riser I saw was a...
duns spinners and yes, March Browns.
The first riser I saw was a...
Not Much You Can Say
Posted on April 30 2016
Heavy clouds, high temp of 50 degrees, rain late. To cold for the bugs to hatch. No fish rising (they don't do it just for practice) Fishermen everywhere (mostly sitting on rocks). If there is sunshine today it could be great (that double hatch thing again).
A Note on upper East Branch Etiquette.
At yesterdays level of about 150 cfs at Harvard, The Upper East Branch becomes very hard to fish. The...
Never The Same Day
Posted on April 29 2016
Wednesday I had three pools to myself, today three of us shared a pool. Wednesday with the sun on the water bugs were hatching between 2:00 and 7:00. Today it was a 3:00 to 5:00 hatch. Yesterday the spinners did not come until late, today with no sun and cooler temps they fell during the hatch. Yesterday over half of the fish I landed were over 17". Today over half were two year old's.
The big...
Twofers
Posted on April 28 2016
With the hatch depressed Tuesday by cold water temp, the forecast for sunshine and warmer weather had me hoping for a double hatch (yesterday then today). The air was cold in the morning but the sun did its job.
I got to the upper West Branch at 2:00 and found the water covered with Paraleps. The fish, however. were unimpressed. About 3:00 the Hendricksons joined the fray and the fish seemed to go...
Skunk smell in the air
Posted on April 27 2016
After four days off I was ready to fish. Driving to the fishing camp the temp hit a low of 43 (too cold for Hendricksons). Decided to try the WB in hopes that the 400 cfs release had slowed the hatch. Left the camp at 1:45 pm and drove up the Big River and WB stopping at the usual places - saw no bugs and no risers.
Chatted with Hornbeck in Deposit (while buying some hooks) and at 2:45 left to...
A comeuppance!
Posted on April 22 2016
It had been seven days of really good fishing, capped off by the 11/11 outing on Wednesday. I might have been a little full of myself.
Then there was today. The fishermen who took Tuesday and Wednesday off returned in force - the weather got hot again - the breeze actually felt good as I got heated up walking up and down stream banks looking for risers (there weren't any). I drove from Hancock to...
Then there was today. The fishermen who took Tuesday and Wednesday off returned in force - the weather got hot again - the breeze actually felt good as I got heated up walking up and down stream banks looking for risers (there weren't any). I drove from Hancock to...
Love to see heads!
Posted on April 21 2016
Tried following the Hendrickson hatch up the Upper EB - found bugs and rising fish but the first fish hooked, spooked the rest of the fish in the thin water.
Moved downstream to where there was more water and found Hendrickson and paralep duns and spinners on the water and fish up eating on top! Will attempt to attach pictures of the two best ones (22" and 21").
After two days of losing over half of...
A Hendrickson Wind
Posted on April 20 2016
Mother Nature served us a dose of reality today. After 70 degree weather with light zephers the past few days, the weather returned to near normal and the "Hendrickson Wind" kicked in at 15 to 20 mph from the west making the WB and the Big River the best option for floaters. Those who chose the EB are probably still rowing (it's 9:30 pm)
The cooler weather also put the bugs back on schedule with...
The cooler weather also put the bugs back on schedule with...
So how was Angler 119's day?
Posted on April 19 2016
He hooked over a dozen large trout and cast at six or eight more that were vary particular about what they ate. At one point he had landed only two of eight and ended the day six for fourteen.
The fish were found, for the most part, in fast moving water with difficult wading. It was hard to see rises in the heavy water. It was a challenge to wade close enough to make a cast to many of the fish. If...
The fish were found, for the most part, in fast moving water with difficult wading. It was hard to see rises in the heavy water. It was a challenge to wade close enough to make a cast to many of the fish. If...
What a difference a day makes
Posted on April 18 2016
Saturday will almost certainly be a top 3 day for me this season.
Today- was a little bit warmer - the water was a little bit lower - the sun was a little bit brighter - the Hendricksons didn't come as early or as well as yesterday - and they popped off the water MUCH
faster in the hot sun. The fish never really got going anywhere I fished (6 different places). During the peak part of the hatch I...
Today- was a little bit warmer - the water was a little bit lower - the sun was a little bit brighter - the Hendricksons didn't come as early or as well as yesterday - and they popped off the water MUCH
faster in the hot sun. The fish never really got going anywhere I fished (6 different places). During the peak part of the hatch I...
It's all about the Dandelions!
Posted on April 17 2016
Thursday there were a few Hendricksons on the water. Friday there were more. Today, just the right amount - enough to get the fish going good but not so many that the fish couldn't see your fly.
There were heavy Hendrickson hatches below Long Eddy the last few days but very few fish up. Apple caddis are already on the EB up to Fish"s Eddy,
with egg layers in Hancock.
Fishermen are hammering the "A"...
Sunshine on my shoulders
Posted on April 16 2016
Heavy frost at day break quickly gave way to bright sun and warm temps. I drove around from 12:00 'til 2:15 when I saw the first splashy rise. Got in the water but didn't hook my first fish until 2:50
The water was lower and warmer. The bugs hatched better but got off the water quicker with the warmer air temps. There was better feeding (still mostly subsurface) but it was over quick. A one hour...
The water was lower and warmer. The bugs hatched better but got off the water quicker with the warmer air temps. There was better feeding (still mostly subsurface) but it was over quick. A one hour...
Born Again!
Posted on April 15 2016
Opened the camp -- everything worked -- even the mouse trap -- one floated in the bucket.
Drove up river and found risers at the junction pool being set upon by four pontoon boats and one drift boat. DRC home pool had risers with nobody fishing.
Started fishing on the WB below monument where there were good numbers of bugs (paraleps, red quills, hendricksons, caddis, and stones), but just a few...
Drove up river and found risers at the junction pool being set upon by four pontoon boats and one drift boat. DRC home pool had risers with nobody fishing.
Started fishing on the WB below monument where there were good numbers of bugs (paraleps, red quills, hendricksons, caddis, and stones), but just a few...
Dandelions and oxeye daisies
Posted on April 13 2016
Returned to upstate New York last night with snow flakes swirling in the air. With predictions for better weather in the forecast, I've packed the car and if the hot water heater and fridge work at the camp, I'll be ready to provide meaningful reports on Delaware River fishing conditions starting tomorrow.
In the course of gathering up supplies for the camp opening, I stopped by the Troutfitter to...
In the course of gathering up supplies for the camp opening, I stopped by the Troutfitter to...
Done too soon
Posted on April 13 2016
"Doc Pete" Bousum ,a tireless and effective advocate for all things good on the Delaware river passed away on March 26th.
Back in the early 2000's he could be found weekend evenings, after fishing, at his cabin " The Knight Watch" where over a glass of wine (or two) he was eager to discuss the many problems facing the river as well as the means of best making improvements.
When the flood of 2006 put...
Back in the early 2000's he could be found weekend evenings, after fishing, at his cabin " The Knight Watch" where over a glass of wine (or two) he was eager to discuss the many problems facing the river as well as the means of best making improvements.
When the flood of 2006 put...
Coming Soon!
Posted on April 09 2016
For those of you who may be concerned about the absence of Angler119's Delaware River fishing reports, relax. I've just wrapped up a couple of weeks of spring training in the Bahamas. I feel like
I'm ready to go but the powers that be have assigned me to a rehab stint on the South Holston. Probably a good thing as there was no finesse work casting weighted flies at bones in 20 mph winds.
In any...
I'm ready to go but the powers that be have assigned me to a rehab stint on the South Holston. Probably a good thing as there was no finesse work casting weighted flies at bones in 20 mph winds.
In any...
Should have fished more places.
Posted on October 22 2015
Spent a fruitless couple of hours searching for a lost fly box, asking anglers fishing the pool where I last used it and checking fly shops to see if it might have been turned in - no luck.
By the time I finished, the best Beaverkill pools were all filled with multiple fishermen. Drove up and down the stream using the "three rise rule" in deciding where to fish. Found a pool with six or eight...
By the time I finished, the best Beaverkill pools were all filled with multiple fishermen. Drove up and down the stream using the "three rise rule" in deciding where to fish. Found a pool with six or eight...
The "last one shirter"
Posted on October 21 2015
It wasn't pseudo weather but with the temperature pushing up towards 80 degrees, it was a beautiful day to be on the water.
Fished the big river, the big EB and the Beaverkill. Didn't see twenty mayflies all afternoon. There were caddis (both brown and black) in the air. Those little black midges the trout were on yesterday? Never made an appearance. At least I now have a half dozen in my fly...
Fished the big river, the big EB and the Beaverkill. Didn't see twenty mayflies all afternoon. There were caddis (both brown and black) in the air. Those little black midges the trout were on yesterday? Never made an appearance. At least I now have a half dozen in my fly...
It ain't over 'til it's over
Posted on October 20 2015
This is my third trip down to the fishing camp since my September 30th report. The other two were nothing to write home about - so I didn't..
The high, muddy and warm (yes, warm) water being released from Cannonsville has adversly affected the fishing. So has the low, clear and until the last few days, warm water in the East Branch. Has all that changed? No!. The WB is still high, dirty and warm....
The high, muddy and warm (yes, warm) water being released from Cannonsville has adversly affected the fishing. So has the low, clear and until the last few days, warm water in the East Branch. Has all that changed? No!. The WB is still high, dirty and warm....
Be careful what you ask for
Posted on September 30 2015
Well, I finally got my rainy day. It was a perfect "olive kind of day", starting with a foggy mist and then a light rain on and off all day. I was on the river by nine thirty and pretty much fished all day.
The DEP had dropped the WB flow to 300 cfs in anticipation of the predicted rain so I fished several places in the lower WB as well as two places on the big river.
How'd I due? Not well. Except...
The DEP had dropped the WB flow to 300 cfs in anticipation of the predicted rain so I fished several places in the lower WB as well as two places on the big river.
How'd I due? Not well. Except...
No one else was fooled!
Posted on September 29 2015
With all of the weather forecasts calling for substantial rain this week both the DEP and I took action. DEP cut the WB flow down below 300 cfs and I (with a good many items crossed off my "Honey do" list at home) headed back down to the river.
It didn't rain. Not even one drop. As I write this (at 6:45 am), it still hasn't rained. Everyone else knew it wasn't going to rain or they would have...
It didn't rain. Not even one drop. As I write this (at 6:45 am), it still hasn't rained. Everyone else knew it wasn't going to rain or they would have...
I've got better things to do!
Posted on September 24 2015
No, the fat lady isn't getting ready to sing. BUT, there have been far too many hot, dry and sunny days this late summer/ early fall.
Today my heart just wasn't in it. I've caught fish this week but the places where I can, under these conditions, (see yesterdays report) can be counted on one hand without using the thumb. So I set out on a journey, doomed to failure, to confirm what I already...
Today my heart just wasn't in it. I've caught fish this week but the places where I can, under these conditions, (see yesterdays report) can be counted on one hand without using the thumb. So I set out on a journey, doomed to failure, to confirm what I already...
It's fall
Posted on September 23 2015
What does this mean?
You have less time to fish. I've been heading home by seven fifteeneach day this week.
If it's a dry year, (for sure this one is) you have less water to fish. The WB is high and muddy, the big east is low and fishless, the big river below Buckingham has very few fish and the upper East Branch is at around one hundred ten cfs ( take one step and your wake puts the fish down. The...
You have less time to fish. I've been heading home by seven fifteeneach day this week.
If it's a dry year, (for sure this one is) you have less water to fish. The WB is high and muddy, the big east is low and fishless, the big river below Buckingham has very few fish and the upper East Branch is at around one hundred ten cfs ( take one step and your wake puts the fish down. The...
Upon further review ----
Posted on September 22 2015
If you are going to give advice on where to fish you should follow it, right? Well that's what I set out to do. It was too cold for Trico fishing in the morning so I tried a spot on the lower EB just to see if the fish have started moving back up from junction pool. They haven't.
This afternoon I headed for the big river. Crossed the bridge at Lordville (four fishermen) and headed up the Pa...
This afternoon I headed for the big river. Crossed the bridge at Lordville (four fishermen) and headed up the Pa...
Where to fish?
Posted on September 22 2015
It's always the question on the Delaware system and after two weeks away touring the western part of the country, I didn't have a clue. Opened up the camp and was ready to fish a little after three.
The West branch is high, off color and full of weeds. NOTE - There have been reports of a bear that has been following anglers in the game lands area. I don't know if it has been fed and is looking for
The West branch is high, off color and full of weeds. NOTE - There have been reports of a bear that has been following anglers in the game lands area. I don't know if it has been fed and is looking for
How bad is it?
Posted on September 07 2015
With the West Branch being bumped up another seventy five cfs to meet minimum flow requirements there is little likelihood of good surface activity again today. To add insult to injury the weatherman is predicting ninety degree temps for the area on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. I fished an olive in a good run on the WB yesterday just before the cloud cover disappeared. Saw a couple olives...
Maybe they're tired of the breakfast special
Posted on September 04 2015
Next to summer sulfurs, the tricos are probably the most consistent hatch on the river. During the month of August if it doesn't rain hard all night and if the wind isn't blowing a gale, there will be a trico spinner fall when the temperature "approaches" sixty nine degrees and
the fish will be up eating them.
Yesterday they didn't wait for me to arrive. There were a half dozen pods of fish in...
the fish will be up eating them.
Yesterday they didn't wait for me to arrive. There were a half dozen pods of fish in...
Sometimes they don't play fair.
Posted on September 04 2015
I know trico spinners fall at sixty nine degrees. Yesterday it was foggy and sixty one when I got up. Two hours later it was still foggy and sixty one. Got in the car and drove to a trico pool where it was sixty one degrees and sat for an hour watching the mass of tricos go up and down thirty feet above the water while the waxwings had themfor breakfast.
Today it was foggy and sixty four when I...
Tricos make the day!
Posted on September 02 2015
With the lawn mower fixed and the lawn cut, There was no excuse for not taking a trico trip. So I did. It wasn't cold but there was heavy fog and until it burned off the temp hung in the low 60's. This was enough to keep the little rascals pumping their wings and staying aloft. When the fog burned off the temp skyrocketed and the tricos crashed. The trout were ready and waiting. They paused only...
At least I didn't skin my knuckles!
Posted on September 02 2015
Had to forego my trico fishing this morning and attempt to fix the lawn mower. Monday when I was cutting the grass a tree root I have mowed over for twenty years took revenge and bent both blades. The job went better than expected. Got the blades off and was able to get new ones at a mower repair shop in town (even got an invitation to park at the shop and fish the pool). Put the new blades on...
If you're thinking of fishing the Delaware this week - - - Think again.
Posted on September 01 2015
They increased the release from Cannonsville last night by one hundred cfs, presumably to meet minimum flow at Montague. The water beneath the thermocline has been depleted (in part because of the three weeks of 1,500 cfs during the drawdown). This is causing the "gray water" lying above the thermocline to color the WB. The water is a little warmer than under the thermocline but not a threat to...
Too much time on my hands
Posted on August 29 2015
Was uploading pictures from my camera and putting them in the "2015 trout" file when I saw a familiar face. The brown in the top picture ate the wrong olive on August 21st. He ate the wrong steno back on August 11th (bottom picture). I guess it's a good thing he lives in the no kill. (If you have any doubts about it being the same fish,compare the spots on the gill cover).
This morning I opted for...
This morning I opted for...
Time for a change
Posted on August 28 2015
It's been three weeks since the flow was cut back to five hundred in the WB and one hundred forty in the EB. Flows have stabilized, hatches have become predictable and fishermen have learned to be in the right place at the right time. The fish? They have taken a beating, their mouths are cut up and sore. They fight like a punch drunk fighter in the fifteenth round of a fight he doesn't want to be...
A nip in the air
Posted on August 26 2015
No there wasn't a frost. It wasn't really that cold (53 here), but the sun took it's sweet time burning through the fog and when it did it didn't do much of a job warming things up. My trico fishing which one day last week started at seven am, didn't get going until after ten ( most of the spinners don't fall until the temp approaches seventy) and it lasted until almost two. I was in deep water...
Being a young trout isn't easy
Posted on August 26 2015
The weatherman is calling for no rain over the next ten days with temps climbing into the high eighties early next week.The tributaries are very low and the two year classes of trout residing in them are at increased risk from predators. Humphrey's Brook has gone underground in places trapping fingerlings and yearling trout. Herons and kingfishers have moved in and are dining on the trout trapped...
"Sometimes they just can't seem to get that fly in their mouth".
Posted on August 24 2015
When I was in college I worked summers at the Syracuse DPW. One of the office workers (who has long since left this world) was a trout fisherman and a commercial fly tyer. For some reason he took a liking to me and kept me well stocked with flies. On Monday morning he always wanted to know how I did with the flies he had tied. Very often our fishing results were much the same. When we both had a...
Timing, it's every thing.
Posted on August 22 2015
t rained last night. Got up this morning and looked at the Harvard
gage. It had peaked at three hundred and was on the way down. With
nothing else to due I got in the car and drove up to Harvard. Put on
my waders and walked down to the stream. It was high and muddy.
Drove home and looked at the gage again. Sure enough it had started
down then went straight up to over five hundred, game over.
Fished...
gage. It had peaked at three hundred and was on the way down. With
nothing else to due I got in the car and drove up to Harvard. Put on
my waders and walked down to the stream. It was high and muddy.
Drove home and looked at the gage again. Sure enough it had started
down then went straight up to over five hundred, game over.
Fished...