And that is all we wish
Are fishermen all liars
Or do only liars fish?
-William Sherwood Fox
I've gotten a lot of buzz lately concerning the Millers River and dozens of new requests for the Millers Guide. All of that gets me to thinking of my decades long love affair with this river AND the places that seem to come to mind first. So, starting from the top let's float downstream to a favorite spot.
South Royalston Pool - This section never even made it into my Millers Guide which basically started about a half mile downstream at the Trestle which is the start of the Bears Den C&R. The entire section from Pete & Henry's downstream to the end of the road is great water but very hard wading but it's the Pool at the end of the road that gets my attention.
Park your car, suit up and follow the path to the Pool. You can't miss it. At the head of the Pool you will see two sets of riffles on either side of a small island. This is a special spot because it is the place where I have caught the most 4 to 6 inch browns than any other spot on the river. (they don't stock 4 to 6 inch browns!).I like to cross over to the island (flow permitting) and work both sides.
Now, what about the Pool? When you first approach the section from the road side you will notice that the current has cut a deep channel along the bank which makes wading very dicey. The solution is to cross over at the above mentioned riffles to the other side of the river. Instead of being a ditch full of logs and boulders you will have a sandy bottom, easy wading and plenty of back casting room. NOTE: Crossing the river here is tough and I wouldn't do it with flows over 250 cfs. A wading staff is a must. You can solve this by walking down the railroad side of the river and then bushwacking your way to the river.
Three years ago I took a brown around 18 to 20 inches that was as dark as a Millers Smallie and had pectoral fins like a set of oars. A native?? I think so.
I seldom see anyone fishing this place except for a few spinning rods early in the season. This is strange because South Roaylston gets stocked a few times during the Spring. So while everyone is beating a path to Rezendes you may have this spot to yourself!
Next stop - Somewhere downstream and this week!
Ken
19 comments:
Interesting! I have friends who live right on this stretch in South Royalston and they seldom see anyone fishing there. I have tried it a couple of times but found the wading tough. The river looks moderately fishy here but I had not heard anything positive so I just gave it a quick once over before heading to the trestle. Next time I will give it a fair chance.
Ken,
careful of giving away your favorites! In a round about way on another blog site, I too gave away my favorite location on another river in Mid Berkshire county area, and now it seems like grand central station.
But thanks for the tip. I got your book on the millers a couple years back with intentions of fishing some of your suggested locations. Needless to say, still thinking about it.
I enjoy this blog quite a bit, and hope to see you up on the gorge.........Phil
Anonymous,
It's the POOL and the riffles that are the first choice. It is scary wading above and below. A friend of mine said, close to 15 years ago, that the stretch from the bridge at Pete/Henry's downstream, was where a spin fisher friend of his caught trout all Summer long. Lots of rapids with good oxygen exchange mean trout habitat.
DRYFLYGUY,
I give away spots on all of the public water, especially C&R water. Doing that means more fly fishers and that means more friends for that river. DRYFLYGUY - start fishing those locations.
Ken
Ken,
HEY, THAT'S MY SPOT!!! Wait a minute. You wrote about that place a few years ago and that's how I found it. It's a great spot with little or no traffic, not like the Swift or the Farmington which is a relief! Glad that you mention these out of the way places. I will probably fish this place alone again this year. Thank you.
Ted
I'll chime in here...a bunch of guys seem to be complaining about Ken giving up spots, some in jest, others probably not so much...aka spot burning...its a bit selfish to complain about this as these are all C&R spots that have been well established by the state...Ken has beat the bushes here and beyond to promote these fisheries which need friends, the pressure on all but a few spots on the Millers is fairly non-existent, which is a double edged sword. The more friends, the more voices in support of these places the better and more protected they will be. The more attention they will garner from the state and in the long term the better for the fishery. I am sure many of these spots are poached by the bait and spin crowd so my point is that a few more fly guys in the protected areas will better the fisheries as a whole. As the C&R spots get pressure maybe some will expand beyond these zones as there is great fishing all throughout many of these places. If you compare the Millers to the Swift, Deerfield and Farmington you should understand what I am driving at; The C&R spots get hammered and hold up because of that fact but much of the best fishing is outside of these zones.
Thank you Bob T,
I would like to see the elimination of C&R sections on the Millers being replaced by species specific C&R for that river. Instead of roping off sections why not make it C&R for browns (the best trout for that river) and have the DFW stock browns throughout the river. The rainbows disappear by mid July but the browns last. Some of the best places on the Millers never receive browns which is a shame. As some know the best riffles, runs and pools are outside of the C&R sections.
Ken
I'm all for Ken promoting fine fishing spots all over the place. My recent fishing experiences have involved not seeing anyone else out there - and that is good for me but a little depressing. We need more fly fishermen and women, not less. Let's be honest here, the Millers is a pretty big river with little fishing pressure. Go for it, Ken!
Anonymous,
We need more fly fishers!! You are right. If we can get them to fish outside of designated "CR and Fly fishing only" sections MORE would be familiar with the total river and not crowded into just a few spaces. We would have more supporters of the entire watershed than we have now.
Ken
Ken, I have fly fished in plenty of catch and keep areas, and find the "keep" fishermen never get them all. Even though I release, I don't begrudge any one keeping trout within limits so long as they don't waste them, and they paid for their license.
I love catching trout as much as anybody, but I love to eat them too. Trout I eat are bagged at BJ Wholesale club, but I won't say I'll never take one home from the stream again because I just might, most especially if for some reason I don't think it will survive release.
Keep up the good work, Ken. You have a hell of a good blog here. Best, Sam
This is the first place I ever went fly fishing on a river. Orvis Dedham brought me here as part of their fly fishing classes. Caught my first Browns here. Whenever I want to get away from the noise of the city I drive up here as I know no one will be around. Great spot.
Sam,
Yes, trout are delicious! I remember fishing beaver ponds in years ago that were jammed with brookies. I used to carry a tiny butane pocket stove, some butter and spices for a stream side lunch.
Ken
Sam,
I completely agree with you. As long as people have paid for their license and are keeping only what is allowed I don't look down on them (poachers are a different story). I think some C&R anglers go too far and are all about rhetoric. I remember when I caught my first stillwater salmon years ago. I took it home to celebrate the accomplishment. A few weeks later I was talking by the stream with a fellow fly fisher and he was appalled I took the fish home (and made sure I knew it). I have caught a few salmon since then. Every other one has been released. I rarely keep fish but every so often what is the harm.
Ken I did something similar on a backpacking trip up into the white mountains. The brookies were so plentiful we cooked up a few for breakfast. Delicious.
Mike
Mike
I agree with you, Mike, and there wasn't a darn thing wrong with you bringing that salmon home to enjoy. I hope to catch one of those rascals some day on a fly rod myself. Native brookies will always go back, but that is just me.
Speaking of native brook trout, when my brother and I were youngsters we would hit a tiny stream that basically drained out of a marsh where we lived. There were brookies living in it and if we were lucky enough to take a few home Mom would fry them up for us along with scrambled eggs. My gosh, how good they tasted. Good times fishing with my brother back then, taking our bikes everywhere to good fishing spots.
A long time ago now, but I'm glad the native brook trout are still thriving where given a chance to.
Regards, Sam
Sam and Mike C, I like you stories. I'll share a quick one. Growing up in the 70's my friend's family had a camp on Moosehead Lake and we'd spend 3 weeks there in summer. At about 9 or 10 years old our job was to catch what his dad called "camp food" for the evening BBQ. We would catch and clean about 20 small brook trout for his family and the neighbors. They'd cook them all on a BBQ with all kinds of other stuff. I tasted and didn't like trout, still don't today, but man were those the good ole days....These days I'd say I have no ethical problems with people keeping fish, though I've released all of my fish for the last 25 yrs.
I do have an ethical question for this group. If you've got a gill-hooked, or otherwise unfortunate injury that has a bleeding trout in your hand that probably won't make it. If you do not want to eat it, is it better to A) resuscitate it as best you can and release or B) Kill it yourself and chuck it in the woods or back in the water? I must say I always practice option A, but was recently told it was somehow cruel? My thinking is that it, at least, has a chance.
Spring is here!
Falsecast,
Good questions. First, If a trout caught with an "unfortunate injury" is caught in a CR section it has to be release in the water. It may die but hopefully not so you are right.
Catch and release is not a religion or moral question but a management tool, nothing more.
Ken
Got a chance to wet a line today in the Qunnipoxet. Unfortunately no fish. There was a very light stonefly hatch and a few caddis here and there. Nothing like the stoneflies when I was there a few weeks ago. There was a range of size of stones up to size 16. I think there was some midges hatching in the slower pools too. I believe since my last visit the river has been stocked but I wonder how long it takes for hatchery trout to realize that insects are food and that there no longer will be pellets coming from heaven.
The water in this stretch is mostly pockets water with some flats in between. Ken what presentation methods do you like to use in pokcet water>
Thanks,
Mike
Trout will start accepting fly offerings soon after they are stocked. High stick the pocket water and let the fly rise through the the quite sections below the pockets/riffles.
Ken
Thanks Ken. I think I have been trying to hih stick but perhaps I need work in this area. I feel this river has more than I am finding. The holdover brown I caught a few weeks ago is proof.
Mike C.
The holdover brown?? You're half way there!!!
Ken
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