"A trout's brain is very small. It is sometimes said that dry-fly fishermen "pit their brains against those of the trout". No-one has ever leveled a bigger insult at us." Dermot Wilson - Fishing The Dry Fly
The results were fairly predictable with a 9 foot 5 weight rod being number #1 and that is even on the diminutive Swift. When I fish the Swift I will go as short as a 6ft 3 inch 4 weight bamboo (rocket launcher), then to a 7 foot 3 inch Orvis bamboo 4 weight or my F.E. Thomas 7.5 foot 4 weight. I like these "shorter" rods due to their quick action and great casting properties. And there is no place on the Swift where I can't cast across the river which means that line control and mending will not suffer. I'm also able to cast into close quarters and I don't leave a lot of flies and tippet in the trees. When Winter comes I put away the cane (bamboo doesn't like cold weather) and take out the graphite and fiberglass that range from 7 feet to 8 feet. The weight range is from 5 to 6 weight to toss the occasional weighted fly. Glass is totally overlooked as a material when there is ice in your guides. Glass is a tough ass material whether you are fishing the cold or bushwacking through the brambles or both.
Where do I fish a 9 foot 5 weight rod ?
On the Millers, the EB and the Ware. I never throw weight with cane because cane doesn't like tungston either. (Let's face it, bamboo is for REAL FLYFISHING!!!!) The bigger rivers will require longer rods and somewhat heavier payloads. You can fish the larger rivers with a short rod but there will be times when you will be under gunned. The solution is to keep that 9 ft 5 wt and get something in the 7 foot something range for the Swift and those thin blue lines.
Book Me
Every river on the Fall list has been stocked except the Swift and every river is coming down so get out there and fish. Just get ahold of me (email) to schedule a trip!!!
Ken
6 comments:
Has anyone frequenting this board ever fished the Nashua river at the outflow of the Clinton dam? Does this qualify as a tailwater?
Chico,
Sorry but no dice. It may have had at one time something like a bottom release but that was plugged years ago. They (MDC) felt it made more sense to send the water to the east and maybe generate some electricity while filling the system for greater Boston with more water. What comes out of the dam isn't anywhere near a bottom release.
Ken
Good morning Ken- My go to rod over the past 5 years is a 7’ 3” 3 weight. There are times I wish I had more reach but overall the length works really well on most of our over hung local waters. For special circumstances I have a 5’ 3” glass for thin blue line brookies and a 9’ 5 wt when I know I’ll be casting larger flies or fishing deeper water requiring weight. I recently purchased a bamboo blank 7’ 6” 3 weight which I will be completing this winter. Once done I’m hopeful it will replace my 7’ 3” as the fly rod I use most often.
Dean
Dear Ken,
I agree with you that the Swift River is an ideal river for bamboo rods. Although I most often fish the Swift with a 7½-foot 3-weight graphite rod (St. Croix Legend Ultra), I also use a 7-foot Phillipson Peerless 4/5-weight bamboo rod.
My Phillipson has enough 'backbone' to handle both long casts and larger trout with aplomb, and its understated beauty is a tangible bonus when on the stream.
-Mike
Mike,
The Peerless was one of the great production rods of the mid 20th century.
Dean F,
Looks like a good winter project.
Ken
I've never casted cane but an old timer once told me that when I did I wouldn't go back... I usually only keep one rod on hand for years it was a 9 foot #5 BVK by temple fork I would recommend this rod to anyone it handles 8x and midges with ease and can punch large flies through the wind no problem, the past two years I've been fishing a loop cross S1 9 foot #4 it's got more of a medium action and isn't the best with huge flies but is an excellent rod for fishing dries and soft hackles and can still plop a good size bugger across the stream when needed
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