Let's compare it to a similar river. The Squannacook River, as I write this, is flowing at 87 cfs and has a decades old median flow for this date of 180 cfs. The Mill River is flowing at 63 cfs and it's median rate is 133. They are similar in size but let it be known that the Mill wasn't ravaged by last summers drought like the Squannacook was. It's trout made it through the entire summer.
Where do I fish it?? Get Google Maps and look up River Road in Haydenville/Northampton. That's all you need to know. April and May are perfect throughout the entire river with the slower, deeper pools holding trout through the heat of summer. Most of my trout have been taken with reliable comparaduns and with Tenkara presentations.
So if you still have a few casts left in that arm after a day on the EB stop and try the Mill River or just fish the Mill. You will have it to yourself no doubt!!!
I had to reprint the quote from Tom Dorsey of Thomas & Thomas fame after hearing more about "artificial bait fishing" (nymphing). As I wrote not too long ago if you are fishing with mostly mono beyond the rod tip you are probably not REALLY fly fishing but pulling a page from the stream bait fishers manual. It's the same style I used as a kid until I fell in love with the look and feel of an unfolding fly line. One gets the feeling that Dorsey has in mind those beautiful casting wands that he makes as opposed to butt heavy hinged weight throwers.
Just my opinion!
Ken
17 comments:
Even trout in the Mill above Puffers made it through the drought despite being a boneyard
Lenny
Lenny,
Trout are tougher than wee think!
Ken
Looking forward to fishing this river. I'm hoping the section behind Look Park is good since I'll be living in that area all year.
Ross,
Just above and below Look Park is good water. The river fishes well down into the "Baystate" section. Trout have been found down by Smith College!
Ken
I'll be working at the golf course on the other side of that river... the bottom of the dam/waterfall is right outside my office door. Looking forward to it now!
I think you are right, Ken, that the trout are tougher than we think plus I believe there are more springs seeping into valley streams than we might imagine and the trout know how to find them.
Despite how tough last summer was, I saw trout in the Scantic River bridge pools, which are pretty deep, swimming around very actively. There was a very nice brown hunkered down in the shade of a pipe that the fire department uses to access water at times.
I don't fish the Scantic as much as I used to preferring the Swift instead, but time would be well spent there, especially in the fall.
OK, I rose and took the bait! Reading your post, I find it ironic that T&T has come out with the lightest "Euronymphing" rod on the market, for us non-flyfishermen! Just so you know I'm not prejudiced I also regularly exercise my Winstons and canes.
Can you fish it (the Mill River) if you park in Look park? Or is the park off limits? We take the kids there to play some times in the summer, and especially in the fall for the "spooky train"... I could stash a rod and get 10-20' in :)
Will
Anonymous,
HaHa!!! Porsche makes an SUV but deep inside they probably wish they didn't have to!! I like the feel of 30 feet of fly line in the air with a wisp of a fly at the end. Beats chucking and ducking weighted stuff.
Sam,
The Scantic is on my list for this year!
Ross,
I know a local fish hawk who hits that place often.
Ken
Will,
The duck boat pond used to be full of bass before 2011 when they drained it but no fishing was allowed. I believe that the river is the park boundary so if you are IN the river you are OK.
Ken
Ken: If you are chucking and ducking you aren't euro nymphing! Try micro nymphs on a 18' tapered leader...that's euro nymphing and in fact you can also toss drys with the same setup. I do!!
Anonymous,
Give me a break! Euro nymphing (Czech, Polish, French, Spanish) uses weight and and you know it. 30 ft. Spanish leaders are almost always rigged with beadheads. I experimented with 20ft plus leaders in late 2015 and wrote about it on this blog. I basically wrote it off as a novelty and somewhat ungainly. They will NEVER replace fly lines for accurate presentation even in the fine and far off realm. And they suck with dry flies compared to a well matched rod and fly line.
Ken
Last comment: yep I agree Czech and Polish styles are chuck and duck with short leaders. French and Spanish, using those long leaders, not even close. And I agree that if you want to fish drys use a dry rod, but in a pinch those tapered leaders work OK with small flies, at least for my fishing.
First time poster, but the Mill post brings back memories. Four years at UMass 93 -97 and an avid fly fisherman with just a bike for transportation the Mill was fished constantly. Taken browns, brookies, and rainbows from this river at all times of year. The section behind the sports fields at Umass was always the best for bigger Browns and bigger then you would expect. Great Hopper and terrestrial fishing in late summer. There is naturally producing browns in sections of this river.
Good fun last night, Ken, in the brief time I got out after work. I made a beeline to the last place I saw fish rising Saturday when I last got out, and sure enough there was some top water action again, not quite in the same zone, but pretty close.
Within a 15 foot area amongst brush piles, fish were working with some sipping and one taking bugs with hits that sounded like a wine cork getting pulled out of a bottle, same as Vincent Marinaro accurately described in his great book Modern Dry Fly Code. A very tough area to get a drag free float even for a short distance, but trying different angles and over shooting the zone and pulling back slightly, finally got a good drift and hooked a pretty rainbow that sipped the elk hair caddis same as it was taking the naturals.
Released, I pursued the cork puller who was still in action after the commotion, but never did get it to hit. I spent the full hour and a half before dark in that one small zone, and enjoyed every minute of it.
I was just in Edinburgh for work and had a chance to get time with a guide on a grayling stream. We fished with the Czech setup, and yes, euro-nymphing involves LOTS of weight. Tungsten bead head flies with lead wraps behind the bead. And then shot on the leader.
Umass Anonymous,
Sounds like you're talking about the HADLEY/AMHERST Mill River and not the one in Noho. Glad you did well.
Sam,
Rising trout on the first week of Spring!!!!!
YellowstoneBound,
THANK YOU for the timely comment!!!
Ken
Post a Comment