No rain at home during the night but 20 minutes into a 30 minute drive to the Swift I had the wipers on. When I arrived at the Pipe lot there were puddles and a light rain. So goes the first day of Fall. The upside of this was that at 6:45am mine was the only car there. That means there's only one thing to do: Hit the PIPE.
This 120 cfs flow gave me the opportunity to fish LARGE meaning size 14 and 16 soft hackles and the trout agreed. In three hours I landed 21 and missed another half dozen. The top of the food chain came to the net with some 14 to 18 inch DARK bows followed by some 8-10 inch fish of the same species. These guys reminded me of this past Spring when the place was crowded with them. Maybe they stocked some recently or this high water made those Spring fish come out of hiding. Bob O. (who was the second to show up at 9ish) floated the theory that maybe these guys are young stream bred fish which intrigues me. Then came a few 4 to 6 inch brookies. The top soft hackle was a size 14 olive and partridge tied on a scud hook. This short, heavy hook gets the fly down AND it looks buggier than a standard hook. Overall, a good morning.
I left at 10am leaving only Bob and a new arrival to have the place to themselves.
Rain - In short supply recently. The EB is low but the cool days and very cool nights have saved this place. One storm of about 1 inch of rain will fix this place up quickly. Let's hope this happens!
Ken
14 comments:
Were you fishing 2 soft hackles fished tandem?
Troy,
No, just one fly.
Ken
Ken, congrats on such a productive 3 hrs.!
I went to the EB Sunday morning. Super-low and gin-clear water and had to work hard. Landed some good fish, incl. a 17" tiger trout, which was quite fat and had a beautiful blazing orange belly.
Was grateful to be out on the water amidst such beautiful New England scenery. We all really are lucky to have these rivers so close to us....
When you drive between the gates on the EB, how do you know that the gate will still be open when you get back in the dark?
Thanks,
Ernie L
Ken when you talk about the pipe pool on the swift is. It the outflow from the dam above the Y pool or below the bridge near hatchery out flow. The tree pool below the bridge or 600 yards below bridge. Also will they keep this flow 100 to 120 range up until we get rain and conn. River goes up. Thanks.
I can field these questions ... the Pipe is the outflow from the state fish hatchery; the tree pool is the pool below the Pipe; yes, this flow will probably be maintained until the Ct River flow increases (it is based an old agreement made when the Quabbin was created).
Fishing is good. And will only improve with the fall infusion of new fish. Enjoy.
That about does it.
Bob O
Ernie,
You don't. The gate is left open for turkey hunters in the Spring and for deer/bear hunters in the Fall. the gates are open 24/7 (I believe) during that time. Chances are you will not get locked in. Don't stay late.
Tincup - The PIPE is off of River Rd (downstream from the rt9 bridge). Take River Rd and take the third dirt turnoff across from a large wrought iron gate. Walk downstream and you are there. The tree Pool is 40 yards downstream from the PIPE.
The flow will stay where it is until we get enough rain to bring the CT. River up.
Ken
Thanks bob o and ken got a chance to go tomorrow some rain maybe but need a fix
Anybody fished the Millers lately. any sections fishing particularly well? If so, how are the hatches?
Thanks
Ken,
Does the Swift get a fall stocking of trout sometimes in the next month? I know some of the larger, deeper ponds get some new trout, but I can't remember if the Swift gets any.
Thanks, Troy
Troy,
The answer is yes. Go to the DFW website for Fall stocking info.
Ken
Saw a tweet just now from the DFW that fall stocking is under way. They no longer post a scheduled, however--only the rivers/ponds that are fall stocked.
Has the lack of rain affected the EB and Millers to the point that they can't be stocked until levels come up?
Myles,
There's enough water in the lower Millers to stock trout (my opinion).
Troy,
Check the Ma DFW website to see which rivers are Fall stocked.
Ken
Ken & Co.,
I don't know about stocking on the Millers, but I agree that there's enough water for fish in the lower section of the Millers. Micheal from Winchester - you might check out the section between the trestle and Orcutt Creek in Erving. I fished with great success (at least for me) in that area this past week. Hatches were sparse, but drowned ants were producing good sized browns.
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