This Blog
month of May giving timely stream flow updates to help flyfishers prepare for all the high flows. So, many thanks to the COMMENT providers (all comments are volunteered and not coerced) and KEEP THEM COMING!!!
The Millers
Yes, the Millers has begun to recede breaking the 500 cfs barrier for the first time in months (it's at 541 as I write but it will go down with little rain in the forecast). We've taken some good browns and bows at Bridge Street and actually nailed some bows at Erving Center which always seems to be the last place to find fishable water on this lower part of the river. The Kempfield Run has yielded one lonesome brookie in two trips and the Upper Trestle is still too deep/fast to fish.
I know this river having spent 34 years fishing it. It's a favorite summer evening river!!!!
The EB Of The Westfield
I'm beginning to feel that the lost TU weekend on the EB was a good thing. No camping party, no hordes of anglers, no schools of freshly stocked trout means a more natural experience. I've been catching trout, so far all bows, which is ok with me. This river has been fishable for two weeks (that means you can cross in most places) and it will only get better. Some of my best Summer flyfishing has been on the EB. BTW, I fish the EB about once a week from May through October. I know the place!!!
Make sure you are there on the first real sunny warm days in early June to catch the damselfly hatch. This insect in its nymph stage, looks like a dragonfly nymph and will act like one by crawling out of the water onto a rock or log to shed its case and become an adult. And what an adult!!! The drab two inch nymph transforms into a three inch long light green thing of beauty. It's not the dry fly that we are concerned with but the nymph. This critter moves rather quickly through the water and a small (#12 or #14) size brown or olive or a combination of the two wooley bugger cast up against the rocks or shore will get action. I've seen browns BEACH themselves trying to catch this insect. The EB and the Millers (especially the EB) are loaded with them.
The Swift
Talk to you when it gets down below 200 cfs. I could use a tailwater fix but the prospect of getting the time to hit the Farmie is out of the question with my guiding schedule. I have found that the best time to avoid the mob is in late July/August on a Monday, Tuesday Wednesday. Camp out and fish your brains out!!!!
The WARE
My clients and I have been doing well here. It's a good river to split a day on between it and the Swift.
I love the quote (at the top of the page) from the folks at Upcountry. There's a lot of truth to that!!!!
Book A Trip
June is the top month for fly fishing in Massachusetts as far as I am concerned. The water has warmed to a point where trout are most active and the flows are still good (especially this year). Just email me to secure a date. I guide on seven rivers so there is plenty of trout to fish for!!
Ken
11 comments:
Eager to start fishing now that the rivers are coming down. Would like to try the Ware. Never fished this one before. Any suggestions as to where to fish on the Ware River would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
Hi Ken - I hit the Swift today and it is great to have it so empty! The water is still high, but coming down and much lower then when i went over a week ago. The good news is that when I put on a LaFontainne loop wing Caddis emerger I caught about a dozen or more tiny Brook Trout with parr marks still. I take this as a good sign the spawn still went on with the high flows. Exciting find! Outside of that I was unable to get any other fish to the net, but lost a nice Bow on a big, articulated streamer and wasted way too much time trying to get big LLS to bite my nymph. They are tough right now.
Andrew
Linda,
River Run, Gilbertville, Barre, Church Street
Falsecast (Andrew)
I don't think they were last Falls year class since they only hatched in January/February and would still be tiny. My quess is that they are d
from the Fall of 2017. Good to see that they made it so far.
Ken
Ken,
I also hit the upper Swift today from 12-5 - must have been Falsecast showing up when I was leaving as he had the place to himself! Very light fishing traffic during the afternoon and there were lots of fish to be seen/caught. I started out swinging WBs at the end of sinking line. Water is still moving fast but I was able to get in and wade in a couple of sections. Had a couple of hookups by the "bench" area but nothing to the net. Moved upstream and was able to get in just below the high tension wires and wade downstream comfortably for a good distance. One of my favorite pools at the top of that section seems to have been "remodeled" significantly with high water. Had one nice rainbow on for a bit but most of the water is still moving through there pretty quickly to be productive.
I got up the Y pool around 2:00ish and there was a very nice hatch underway with lots of surface feeding. Switched out the gear and moved to small mayfly emerger patterns and had some nice fish including small brookies, a small brown of 6-8 inches which was a surprise- they must have stocked a bunch these size fish since the guy across from me got a few too- and a couple of fat energetic bows that put on some impressive arial performances. It was fun to be able to visually target feeding fish for the first time in months! As the surface action died down, I switched to an attractor pattern - size 14 royal wulff- which I never fish- and nailed a couple more beautiful fish - brown & bow. Interestingly, I also tried dangling a few different small nymph patterns below the dry, but did not get any action in them.
Water temp in spillway arm is still good at 57 and I only saw one smallie- but it was a monster that looked pretty beat up in the body from surfing down the spillway. One experienced swift fisher told me he saw 6-8 smallies in the eddies on near the banks as he walked is way up the right bank from rte 9.
I'd been away the last couple of weeks (as an aside - while hiking, found a crystal clear stream (Anapo river valley)in eastern sicily with (native?)brown trout - wish I had my rod, but never thought that was a possibility- go figure!) and it was impressive to see how much the woods surrounding the Swift had greened up. I never get tired of standing in that water and soaking up that beauty.
Paul
Paul,
Thanks for the good and timely comment about the Swift. I'm still working the freestones because they are prime right now BUT should hit the Swift next week. I believe those were native browns with an Italian accent!!!!
Ken
bigmster,
This blog is about FLYFISHING, not spin fishing! Don't post here anymore!!!!
Ken
1st of all, a shout out to Mass Wildlife getting the fish they did into the rivers this spring, great job. Now, on the EB at 7am this morning out at 9:30 I went there looking for big and found it, fooled a monster bow with a #12 pats rubber legs great fight and all my knots held and it threw the hook when it entered the net. The last 2 weeks I have been exploring the upper regions of the EB right thru to the knightville gate, in my opinion it received fish in most of the areas it usually does and there are fish in the out of the way places I tend to visit also. Out of the way places? there is a road right next to the river isn't there. 6.6 miles of pretty water. Also been on the MB and WB with #10 streamers fooling fish in the fast high water, but the water is coming down so there be more switching flies to match what they might be eating. This past thurs fished both, caught a nice brown on the MB on the WB not much, finding the fish on this river has been challenging at times this spring but hard work will find them.
Being this blog is about fly fishing, Ken, I would like to share with you and your fellow fly fishers and followers that the part of the Ware in Three Rivers is a place to fish right now. I measured the water temperature and saw it was 62 degrees, pretty much prime time. The action is good enough to be explored, both sub surface flies and on top yielded hits.
Due to the dam in Thorndike, I have to believe this water warms up plenty as evidenced by a couple of blue gills I caught. Right now though, trout are doing fine and they are there to connect with.
Easy wading and fun to be had. In my case I still bring a wading stick.
Regards, Sam
Sam,
Thank you Sam for the info!! I fished that area once years ago.
Gary,
There's plenty of trout on the EB. People just have to look for them. It's just like the Millers where we have also been catching big fish with nobody around!
June will be a good month.
Ken
Any one know what's up with the new No Trespassing sign at Church St.? It's wired over the sign that says fishing allowed.
anonymous 6:37
The owner doesn't want you on his property but you can enter NEXT to the bridge because that is TOWN property.
Ken
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