Sunday evening found me on the Swift due to the yo-yo flows on my favorite Millers. Actually, I had my mind on this great little tailwater that is home to the great flat that is just above the intake down by the "pipe". I was hoping for rising trout and I wasn't disappointed. Two bent the bamboo and one look upstream revealed a half dozen other rising fish. Perfect I thought. That's when I heard them - two kayakers banging away from downstream. They paddled right through the pool by the fallen tree and proceeded upstream with no regard to the flyfisher who was working that stretch of lovely water. Next it was my turn. Up they came, splashing away, right through my stretch without making any attempt to hug the opposite shore. Needless to say, all the rising trout scattered. By the time that they hit the guage they were walking their boats right through the riffle where I took rising fish on Saturday morning. I thought that maybe they needed to get back to their car by rt 9 so I sat down and waited for things to calm down to salvage the evening. No luck!! Back they came with the same "I own the river" attitude that I saw 15 minutes earlier.Now, I can be politically correct and say that the "river belongs to all" and that their recreation is "GREEN" and all of that crap but the SWIFT IS NOT A KAYAK RIVER ESPECIALLY WHEN IT'S FLOWING AT 60CFS!!!!! "They" had a ball with their pasttime at our expense. Our recreation was ruined for the evening!!
I've had encounters with kayakers on this river before. A few are very curtious and sail clear of where a flyfisher is casting. I can live with that, I guess, but many are just oblivious to what we are trying to do. That goes for the two pinheads I had the non-pleasure of meeting last night. I've told many to stay clear in the past but I didn't want the boyfriend kayaker to feel that his girlfriend was being threatened.
BTW, a great hatch of little evening sulphurs were coming off the surface before the evening was ruined.
Ken
6 comments:
I was on the Swift yesterday and had my 2nd kayak episode in recent weeks. I was facing downstream and he came down unannounced from up above. I missed him by inches on a backcast - I think scaring me more than it did him. He did say "sorry", but I don't think he realized what a casted fly can do to one's eye. There was one other fisherman above me who was just as totally amazed as me. I see some problems coming if this isn't addressed in some manner. Perhaps all water craft should be banned from the river like they are presently on the Quabbin due to the Zebra mussel scare?
EXCELLENT POINT!! Flyfishers know what DIDYMO can do and we and our industry have taken steps to void it. I've heard that felt soled waders are on the way out. What about the kayakers and their industry?? Are they doing anything about it? I don't think they're doing anything!! What do they care as long as the water is still flowing.
I don't think that they can be stopped but maybe they should be educated (signage to start with) that others use the river and they should be aware of it.
Ken
I'm pretty sure I was that fellow fishing upstream from the author of the first post. As already stated, I was pretty surprised at this kayaker's "i own the river" mentality. This sort of behavior is discouraging to say the least. However, I am sympathetic to the kayakers and family people. Their is a "flyfishing only"/fishing only section above rt. 9. I would be a hypocrite to say the kayakers couldnt hit the water whenever they wanted to. I'm definitely surprised by people who are just inconsiderate and padal right through where you're fishing. There were also tubers/kayakers who got out of the water and walked around us when they saw us fishing. They're not all bad. Frustrating though.
This is first year I've seen yaks so far up the river. There is a serious snag/strainer configuration below Cady Lane that tends to stop most. On two occasions I've seen floaters coming downstream from Rt9 thru the pipe area without much consideration. Still, the trout seem pretty battle hardened, and though they may be put off the surface for a bit, I think tend to regroup faster than wild fish. I may be more offended by the guy who barges in to drop a line right next to me, than by passing yaks. This morning the flow gage says 400 cfs at 4 feet - i.e. almost roaring. Wonder where the fish will be today?
I checked out the spillway Friday afternoon and will post a photo soon. There is a lot of water flowing into the river. My guess is that we will not see the flow below 100cfs(a good flow) for a month.
Ken
The amount of water flowing on the swift right now is unreal. 455cfs at the moment..... this rain is killing me!!!
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