Lost Reel - A reader is looking for an older Hardy reel in a light green neoprene case lost on the Swift on 7/10/20. There is a reward for its return
Gartside Soft Hackle Nymph
There are three fly tyers that make it into my Hall of Fame and not in this order - Polly Rosborough, the author of Tying and Fishing the Fuzzy Nymphs , John Betts, a pioneer in the use of synthetic materials and Massachusetts son Jack Gartside.
I was having lunch with friend Brad when I asked how his morning went on the Swift. " Took six bows on a Gartside Soft Hackle Streamer". Whenever I hear the name Jack Gartside I get triggered to spend the next day at the vise working up, or attempting to work up, some of his creations. It was about 30 years ago that I tied a few of his marabou streamers for Merrimack stripers. "These powder puffs will never work" I thought. After a few hours I had the triple crown, a striper (many), a bluefish (many) and a shad (only one). Today 90% of my streamers are marabou!!
My favorite is the Gartside Soft Hackle Nymph because it just looks so buggy, uses natural materials and is easy to tie.
Hook - size 8 to 12 nymph hook
Weight - non lead wire
Thread - 6/0 and the color of your choice
Tail - a tuft of brown marabou
Body - tan rabbit dubbing with a flashabou rib
Hackle - oversized partridge hackle
Head - brown ostrich
It's a stonefly, it's a leach, It's a crayfish, it's a damsel fly. It's everything. Years ago I used to fish Wachusett Reservoir with a sinking line and this fly and always catch smallies.
River Update (8:00am 7/8/20) And an open note to the DFW
Millers - 125 cfs( fishable in the evening)
EB - 64 cfs (pray for rain)
Swift - 112 cfs yesterday it went from 45 to 144 in the morning and now it's dropping again. They electroshocked on Monday and I heard they plan to do it again this week.(Note:they did on 7/8) That begs the question WHY????? You know the fish are there and you're not doing them, or anglers, any favor.. In one week this river has had its flow increased twice, decreased twice and now electroshocked (twice). If this is worthwhile then tell us why and tell us the results of last years science experiments!
Ken
15 comments:
Ken:
1.) Shocking - I believe it's part of a study to see how stocked fish move in the river, so a minor inconvenience for fisherfolks, but longer term, good info will come of it for us to better understand the river.
2.) Gartside = Legend. Did the guy create a fly that's not awesome? And to think, many were created sitting at the wheel of his cab driving around bean town. Amazing Character, tier and fisherman... A personality missed in our passion. Absolute legend!
3.) Wholly population surge on the swift batman! I fished it several times in June and astonishingly had the Y to myself several times in the evening - it was blowing my mind! Had a chance to go yesterday, and figured "hey, things are opening a bit, folks will be working maybe and if I get there earlyish, Ill be able to fish some clean water before folks arrive..." FALSE! I dont remember seeing that many folks on a pleasant spring Saturday. Guys all over, all ages, I saw one woman (if you see this, we didnt talk but it's awesome to see women taking up this sport!)... It was pretty wild. I still managed some fish drifting big chernobyls, but the recent stocking or something has definitely drawn the folks out, so if you go, consider being ready to check out Bondsville or what not, it's a zoo...
That said, it was still fun as heck and feels good to stand in that cold water on a warm to hot summer day!
Stay well
Will
Will,
I disagree on point 1 and point 3. Last year they stocked the upper CR and then about 4 days later shocked it with a net dam blocking fish from getting into the Y Pool. They herded a few hundred trout up to that net. They, the trout, didn't go anywhere. Same with below route 9. We KNOW that they don't disappear. We just don't catch them.
Point 2 - It depends on where you fish. I don't see too many fisher folks where I go or when I go.
Ken
Ken,
I think you mean Point 2 as point 3 - lots of people. I'd agree, that's true. Just shocked me yesterday to see so many folks after a month or so of what felt like very few folks.
I'm good with more research to see how things go, doesnt seem to be a negative, so ce la vie.
Gartside was a legend though. Those marabou streamers of his, the Gurglers, lots of amazing flies, and stories.
If I had only one streamer...it would be the Gartside Soft Hackle Streamer...I used to observe him tying at lunchtime shows in downtown Boston I have all of his little self published books and a few originals that I knew I would want to be keeping forever...great tyer great stories
Ken,
I attended a presentation by the Mass Biologist at Concord Outfitters this past Winter. He had data from the shocking over time. The goal of the data is to understand where the fish go. The numbers drop quite a bit going out a week, month, 3 months after stocking.
During the presentation, one person mentioned if the data could be used to do spread out the stocking overtime (I think New York State does this) to keep the numbers more steady.
What I thought was interesting was that for a state like Massachusetts with so many Colleges and Universities we have been doing stocking for a long time, but didn't have the data to know where the fish go.
The same presentation had some info on the radio tagged brown trout in the Deerfield.
JonBoxboro,
They did a study back in the 1970's on fish movement on the Swift and back then they felt that the fish really didn't move around that much. You mentioned NY. About 70% of what they stock are browns as does CT. Ma DFW people have told me that browns don't move around that much and I believe them. MA DFW stocks about 65% rainbows which like to wander. Why not stock more browns I asked? "Fishermen like bigger fish and bows grow quicker" they said. "They're not complaining in NY or CT" I said.
I'd rather fish for browns and brookies than clonebows any day!
BobT,
Took about a dozen brookies on a Gartside SH nymph yesterday. An nice fly.
Ken
Had the pleasure of having dinner with Jack years ago (of course I paid). What a character! His patterns are time tested. Simple but sophisticated!
His "Sparrow", just like Better's Usual, has served me well across the country.
I fished the Swift on Tuesday morning. Second car at Cady Lane (6:45am). Walked upstream. Half dozen brookies and one bow on a. Snipe & Purple, b. Partridge & Olive in #16-#18. When a few kayakers and other fishers arrived, @ 8:30am, I moved to Bondsville. Only one other fly fisher there. Small SH flies first and then small dries (Adams, Wulffs)- a number of small (6-8") brookies. One brookie was about 11" and fought hard for its size. A blue heron was there and feeding often.
Love those Gartside flies, Ken. Often times when I am not getting hits with soft hackles or nymphs, I will tie on a Sparrow and that will entice some interest right off the bat. I had excellent action last fall on them. Most times I put a split shot or two 8" above the fly to get it down some. DFW sure put in some nice rainbows this last go around didn't they? Real bruisers.
Best, Sam
Good to hear from you Sam. Hope that Bondsville has been good to you.
Andrew,
No bows? Hmm....
Ken
Hi Ken,
Thanks for reminding us about Jack Garside's contributions to fly fishing.
My favorite Gartside flies are the Sparrow, Gurgler, soft hackle streamer, and Gartside Pheasant Hopper. I used to run into him at Stoddard's in Boston in the 1990s, hanging out with Ed Hawley and Phil Klug. They were always trying to get Jack to stop smoking in the store. I've heard that some people found him prickly, but I found him generous with advice on fly tying and striper hotspots. His tying sessions at the Marlboro fly show were worth the price of admission for the whole show.
Jack's little book on where to fish for stripers around Boston Harbor is a classic. Your generous and valuable online book about fishing the Millers River is very much in the same tradition.
Loving this rain!
Best wishes,
John
John,
Thank you very much.
Ken
Those of us who were lucky enough to know and fish with Jack miss his attitude and his flies. He was the best mudflats walker you"ll ever find. Never sank a 1/2 inch into the mud while the rest of us sank up to our necks. Always caught more fish than whoever he was with. I do miss him. And appreciate your keeping his memory and his flies alive.
I caught a salmon parr/smolt about 6 inches long in the Swift yesterday (above route 9). Timing is about right for it to be a fish spawned during the overflow two winters ago and born in the Swift, though it could also have washed over this spring. Anyone else catching any of these? I wonder if the electroshocking surveys have turned up any? Make you wonder if the Swift could support a self-sustaining salmon population. Probably not, but...???
Incidentally, that fish completed my first ever grand slam of a brookie, brown, rainbow, and landlocked salmon caught on the same day.
JohnD,
Jack will never leave those of us that loved his flies, his lifestyle and his attitude. He was one of a kind and I feel great that so many remember him and what he did for our sport. When I see the "new flies" that have sprung up over the past 10 or so years all I can think is what Jack would of thought of this stuff. He was the master of NATURAL materials which is the soul of fly tying.
Brendan,
Good question. My guess is that it was a wash over unless the DFW says overwise.
Ken
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