My plan was to flyfish at least once a week until we move the clocks ahead in early March and then I will flyfish more!! That meant that I will fish the Swift which doesn't have ice that you can walk across like the other rivers that I fish. Those rivers are asleep and we should keep them so. The Swift is not asleep. I will fish it. I went to the Y Pool.
So, it's 7:30 am with a temperature of 2 degrees as I slog my way up to the Y pool. I know what's going to happen: my line will freeze to the guides for hours which will start me worrying about my bamboo tip. The line froze to the guides which caused me to loose the only real hit that I had. It was terribly cold. So be it!
I left at 10 am. I guess that a later start, say NOON onward, would have been better because of warmer conditions BUT I was driven to get there early. I had to do it. I'm glad that I did. I just described the definition of compulsive behavior.
Daylight Savings starts on March 9th. Winter's back will be broken by then except for the occasional bad day. Rivers like the Swift and the Farmington will call you. The Millers, the EB and other freestones will be a month away.
Good Days Will Come,
Ken
15 comments:
Hats off to you, Ken, for braving those temps. I've turned into a wimp in my incipient old age. When my guides freeze, I'm off the water. Can't wait for warmer temps ...
Ha - that's understood Ken. I hit the swift saturday - getting there about 10. Figured the Y would be clogged with guys, but felt like fishing upstream from rt 9 anyway so went for the powerlines/hemlocks. 3 guys there (a guide and 2 guys) but amazingly no one was in the Y. I dont remember the last time I fished the Y becuase it's always pounded... So I went up and had the Y to myself for 10-15' (unfortunately most of that was changing out the furled leader which became a sink tip made of frozen water pellets in about 2') and then Bill (swift river regular Bill) and we shot the breeze as the only guys in the Y for probably 1.5-2hrs. He managed a few on a white egg left resting on the bottom. I had a few takes on a large fuzzy scud I'm refining but managed to miss everything after a brief hook up. I left at 1... having braved that whole time with a right foot full of water from a leak that apparently happened late last season and I forgot about I guess... I think it took me the full hour drive home with full heat on to get feeling back in that foot! Fun to be out though.
Will
I managed to get out and to land a couple of fish earlier today just above the foot bridge. It was too cold to last very long, but as I was walking out I stopped to check a spot I've been meaning to fish about half way between the Y pool and the bridge. There were two 'bows dead as a doornail sitting on the bottom. I pulled them out to take a look and couldn't find any obvious cause of death…Any ideas?
Will,
I was just too cold but I have feel some redemption because the guys that I saw (there were 4) were half my age. The fish that I saw just didn't seem interested in anything. I think I know the "Bill" that you speak of. He catches a lot of fish although fishing on the bottom just wasn't worth it that day. The "Bill" that I know would of liked to see a scant mid day hatch on that February morning. Not in the cards on THAT day. I've had good dry fly fishing at that spot in past februarys. Things will get better!
Muggs,
I don't know what caused the demise of those trout. Maybe someone knows.
Ken
What type of hatches occur in February on the Swift? Size 26 midges?
Mike
You might see a few size 26 midges, but in my experience most of the midges that hatch on the Swift in winter are much smaller than that. A size 26 dry fly in the right pattern with the right triggers might still catch you some fish though.
I'm impressed with all you guys who have gotten out there the last couple days!
Ken sounds like the same guy - older, retired, fished the river daily for decades and enjoys a zero to 2wt and that mid day midge hatch for sure...
Bill is a "regular" on the Swift, a nice, friendly gentleman - and he seems always to catch fish.
As far as midge sizes are concerned, the last two times I was on the Swift I caught a few with a size 24 Zebra midge, but there was one guy there (not a regular) who was doing very well. He said he was using something yellow, size 14! I don't get it - if I throw anything bigger than a 20, it seems the fish run the other way ...?
Herm
Bill and Dan are regulars and know how to catch trout on tiny flies. Dan is especially good at this on the Swift.
Very small flies - I go as small as HOOK SIZE 26. I mention hook size because I try to tie a size 28 fly on a size 26 hook. The "fly" is smaller (that's all that counts) but the hook is larger which gives better hooking potential. It works!
Ken
Fishmeister, my favorite swift fly is a #14 McPhail Bug which has a yellow floss body and orange wire rib. The back is varnish or UV resin colored olive and black... It's a very yellow fly that works great on that river most of the time... I've actually done well in the bubbler arm with a #12 of the same fly.
Will
Will, thanks for sharing that pattern. I'll check it out.
Herm
I think you might be talking about Bob. He is on a Sage 000 and fishes a 30-32 CDC midge and gets results. I cant even get them on the tippet! He is usually the first one there. Dan tells me they cast enough to create their own hatch, that's the theory anyway.
Hey fischmeister, where was the pontoon fish trip ? from the video clip ?
Anonymous,
what pontoon trip? not clear what you're referring to ...
Herm
Oh, that. I once put a short video of friend fishing at Profile Lake on YouTube and it must be on the same Google account as these blog comments...
Post a Comment