There are fish in the Swift except in the regionally famous CR section above Rt 9. Rumor has it that the DCR doesn't want a stocking truck up there until the ground dries out. The access points have been dry for a while. Maybe DCR doesn't like having a regionally famous trout stream. Maybe they like the litter dropping day hikers which seem to be overwhelming the place the last few years. In any event they have taken CR to a new level. If there are no fish then you can't keep them.
I guided Friday and Saturday below RT 9 and my guys were the only ones to catch trout. It took a while to figure it out but the rainbows were not hanging out in the usual mid stream spots but were resting in the calm water out of that 200 cfs flow. Swift Serendipities, small SJW's and size 18 turkey tops drifted right over their heads did the trick. It was a sight fishing experience!
Ken
17 comments:
Ken,
What do you think happened to all the native brookies reported to be in the swift last year. All reports since the big that indicate the swift was void of fish before last weeks stocking. I hope they've just been outsmarting us and faired last winter alright!
Lawncaster
Lawncaster,
The native brookies really show up in October and disappear in December every year. My guess is that they retreat to deeper water far downstream.
Ken
Ken, thanks for the update. I learned somewhere that the new stockies like to sit in water much like their holding pens - low flow, fairly shallow. And as they toughen up, the will move into more 'normal' lies. So that they're out of the current is not surprising. Also the Swift's flow of 200 cfs presents challenges to man and fish. Good job connecting your clients to trout!
Dismayed to learn the trucks haven't been up through the stretch to the Y pool. Rain today will not help dry things out. Tight lines.
Your very misleading post about the Swift being stocked caused me to make a wasted hour and thirty minutes trip to fish the Swift on Sunday. There were very few fish around the pipe section also.
Mike
Mike,
What misleading post???? Did I say that the Swift was loaded with freshly stocked trout that were going to commit suicide by jumping into your net?? I said that my guys were the only ones that caught trout and that is a fact! We studied the situation, adjusted the game plan and were rewarded. Did you do that?? Probably not.
I heard that the Charles was stocked. Take your minor league comment and go there.
Bob O,
Thanks for the comment. You have it spot on.
Ken
As Ken's client this weekend, I can attest that there were fish in the swift in the pipe area and we caught more than our fair share in the morning to noon timeframe. We netted six and hooked a big seventh that got away from us. Or maybe we netted seven and lost the eighth. In any case, it was a great morning fishing. There were at least a dozen fishermen and some power baiters that morning and we think maybe we saw two, at most, other hooks set (by the power bait crowd), but I can't recall seeing them pull a fish out of the water. Again: maybe.
I can say confidently that I would have been one of those other guys any other time of the year, but Ken sure as hell put me on the fish on Saturday.
Thanks again, Ken!
Ken,
A guide who sometimes floats the Swift (below Cady Lane) told me that with the hard winter we had, a lot of fish from the upper section moved downriver and were stacked up in the deep water by the dam in Bondsville - hopefully they will move back up river in due course.
Jeez, some people! An hour and a half wasted! Hey, that's why they call it "fishin" and not "catchin"!
Spring is coming, and it will only get better from here on out. We appreciate the updates, keep 'em coming!
Ken
Saw that the MA Wildlife page is showing that the Swift in Belchertown and Ware were stocked the week of April 13. Are they misleading or did they make an error? Any confirmation?
I never said I did not catch fish, I did. My point was there very few fish around, hopefully I saved someone else from making the long drive to compete for the catching rights of a couple of small pods of fish that is like catching fish in a barrel once located. Regarding your last comment I will fish the Swift whenever I damn well please.
Mike
Mike I do not want anyone take this the wrong way. 95% of fish and game is caught or harvested by 5 to 10% of anglers and hunters. Now the reason is because those individuals listen watch and ask questions from the individuals being successful. And most time its hard to get questions answered from successful people. So Mike I am telling you we have an individual Ken) willing to discus flies tactics and even send anyone years of knowledge about the Millers. Without this blog or millers guide it could take a person outside the 5% years to learn the stuff he willing to give out. All people need to do is read, and sometimes read between the lines. SO I AM ONE KEN WHO HAVE ONLY MET U ONCE BUT LIKE E F HUTTON WHEN KEN SPEAKS I LISTEN AND BELEIVE ME ITS IMPROVED MY TROUT STREAM FISHING 300% thanks again Ken for sharing I am one who listens TINCUP
Anonymous Mike,
"I never said that I did not catch fish". That's what you wrote! That's ok because I didn't think from your comment that you caught anything. Was it REALLY a wasted trip?? Why do you fly fish anyway? Others knew, from my posts, that the chances were slim BUT they came and fished ANYWAY.
Try Golf!
Mike from Andover,
That's the theory and I believe it may be correct.
Tincup,
You've been banging away on this blog for a few years now. We should have a few beers after an evening's fishing. Thanks for your input.
Jaime,
Thanks for the comment and we will see you soon!!
Anonymous and everyone else,
As of last Friday the DFW page is right. The Swift is stocked but only below RT 9.
Ken
Wasted time? Hmm. As far as I'm concerned, every minute I spend fishing is wasted time. I get home, tired and wet, and the lawn isn't mowed. Sometimes I catch fish, and sometimes I don't, but my bank account is never larger as a result. I never get less behind at work, or cross anything off my to-do list. Last Sunday, I wasted the whole afternoon exploring a small stream I'd never fished before. I caught a couple of spectacularly beautiful tiny brookies, lost a couple, and missed a few more. I caught a lot of trees with my fly, and heard a solitary viero and lots of wood frogs. When I got home, all scratched up, the dogs weren't fed and the floor wasn't swept. What a waste of time. Now that the weather is finally turning, I'm looking forward to wasting a lot more time on the rivers and streams near and maybe far. I wouldn't have it any other way.
Brad from Warwick
Haha! Very amusing string. Sometimes when the Swift is actually loaded with fish from The Bubbler to Cady Lane, it can be a frustrating time. But you are out on a river, beautiful surroundings... Catching is the icing. Eat the cake and enjoy! If you get the chance to taste the icing, even better.
Ken,
I am retired as of Jan 1 of this year and have to say that each day I am out on the rivers( Swift , Deerfield, etc) is a great day. Get to enjoy the scenery, and if by chance you catch some nice trout... well that is an added bonus.
I'll do the buying we will do the drinking you can do the talking and I will be doing the listening. Will not be out for a few weeks, going to wait for a two day trip window millers , swift or EB and EB
Tincup,
I'll do some buying and listening too. Let me know!
Ken
Ken, what are the tying instructions and materials for your "Hot spots" fly shown on your blog page?
Thx, Dewey
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