I get a lot of pleasure when one of my clients gets into a BIG trout especially when it's the first fly caught trout for that person. That happened today using a tenkara setup (a size 14 soft hackle) upstream from the Pipe around the Gauge. There are trout there and you don't have to hike down to the Pipe or the Tree Pool to find them. It was fun trying to land this MONSTER but we did it!!!
It was a GREAT fish that fought hard but was landed and released without harm.
One can feel the change of the season. The days are shorter, the nights are longer and the Swift's bows are beginning to move around. Soon the brookies will be on the spawning gravel....
And that reminds me what commentor "Falsecast" said earlier in the week: "try not to walk on the spawning gravel". This is easy to do below RT 9 by just standing on the weed beds where they don't spawn. Above Rt 9 I'm afraid that there's some needless trampling going on. Actually it's way too many fishermen and too little river!!
NOTE: Found another BIG DEAD RAINBOW in the run below the Tree Pool. That's 3 big trout in a week. We know what's happening- you play it FOREVER on 8X, then take a ton of photos usually with the fish out of water, then you release it thinking you've done the right thing. What you did was play that fish to death. 1. Stop using ultra fine tippets. The bow in the photo above was caught on 5x. 2. How many photos do you need? I can net a fish, take a photo and release the fish in 30 seconds and it never leaves the net. If you can't follow this advice then stop fishing catch and release areas!!!
Ken
11 comments:
All I can say is Holy Cow! That trout is huge! Good for your client for catching and netting that rascal. The client will be expecting trout like that with every cast now I imagine...:) Well done, Sam
Sam,
I told him " it's not like this every day"
Ken
Ken,
I spent sometime downstream of you at Cady Lane. Many brookies were there to play with (soft hackles ruled the day). The morning action was a but better but a fun day overall. I didn't see many of the larger fish down stream like my last trip a few weeks ago. I wonder if the bigger trout are moving up stream.
Mike
I am thinking of going to the Millers river tomorrow, would you suggest the Swift instead? I fished the west branch of the Swift Friday and caught nothing, the water is so low in spots that its barely flowing.
Jeff,
Fish the Swift instead.
Ken
Greetings Ken:
Firstly, I have to say that your booklet on the Miller's River is an excellent resource. Thank you for doing that! I generally fish the Squannacook, but have ventured to the Miller's the last few weeks as well as a few times last spring. Needless to say, the difference between the Miller's in the springtime and now is astounding. In the spring, if my memory is correct, the river was too treacherous to even wade into no less cross. Now, you can walk across it without even getting wet.
Fished the thousand acre run earlier today. Nothing but dozens of fallfish. I then decided to investigate Thousand Acre brook, thinking that maybe some of the trout were still seeking cooler waters. I worked my way upstream to where the brook enters the meadow (upstream of the beaver dam) and there they were! Water depth was maybe 18 inches at most. Dropped in a few nymph patterns, but only caught Creek Chubs. I sat down on the bank just to watch and admire them. They were brookies and were in groups of two to three. Several would position themselves on the gravel bottom and lie motionless for several minutes at a time, presumably feeding on nymphs or ambushing Chubs.
I made my way back to the main stem of the Miller's and back upstream to where I parked, tossing a foam grasshopper pattern at a few inviting pools. Nothing but fallfish though.
Ken, where are all the trout?
Ken,
I fished the lower Swift yesterday afternoon and caught two brook trout, one was a beautiful 12"er that hit the deer hair caddis right next to a brush pile. Absolutely blasted the dry fly in the brief time it was getting a good float just before drag would take over. Later I casted a parachute adams just off the opposite bank and got a good long drift with it. At the end of the float a big brown took a swipe at the fly and darn near came out of the water, but didn't hook up for reasons I don't understand. Still fun seeing the nice fish go after the dry fly though I didn't connect.
Most of my action lately is in hard to cast to spots next to brush piles, banks and boulders.
Regards, Sam
Sam,
Sounds like a great day and I bet you may have had the place to yourself!!
Ken
Hello ken,
I was wondering if there are any fly shops you recommend near the swift. I'm goin fishing tomorrow and was hoping to pick up a few extra flies.. any suggestions from anyone are welcome
Thank you,
Tom
See the millers is up with the 3 inches of rain in the royalston and orange area. Its a start but I feel not enough. Fish and game is thinking Deerfield and swift for fall stocking ONLY(rivers) and ponds and lakes through out the state.
Tincup,
We need another storm like that. One more like that and the Millers will be fine.
Ken
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