The Swift - First Day Of Fall

No rain at home during the night but 20 minutes into a 30 minute drive to the Swift I had the wipers on. When I arrived at the Pipe lot there were puddles and a light rain. So goes the first day of Fall. The upside of this was that at 6:45am mine was the only car there. That means there's only one thing to do: Hit the PIPE.

This 120 cfs flow gave me the opportunity to fish LARGE meaning size 14 and 16 soft hackles and the trout agreed. In three hours I landed 21 and missed another half dozen. The top of the food chain came to the net with some 14 to 18 inch DARK bows followed by some 8-10 inch fish of the same species. These guys reminded me of this past Spring when the place was crowded with them. Maybe they stocked some recently or this high water made those Spring fish come out of hiding. Bob O. (who was the second to show up at 9ish) floated the theory that maybe these guys are young stream bred fish which intrigues me. Then came a few 4 to 6 inch brookies. The top soft hackle was a size 14 olive and partridge tied on a scud hook. This short, heavy hook gets the fly down AND it looks buggier than a standard hook. Overall, a good morning.

I left at 10am leaving only Bob and a new arrival to have the place to themselves.

Rain - In short supply recently. The EB is low but the cool days and very cool nights have saved this place. One storm of about 1 inch of rain will fix this place up quickly. Let's hope this happens!

Ken

September - What The Rivers Are Doing And A Lost Camera

I managed to be on all three rivers over the last week and for the first time this season I'm looking for a little rain for the EB. All is not lost and in fact I like the flow flow because of the dry fly possibilities. If swinging sunken offerings is your game than the going will be a bit rough. But the water temperature is in the mid 60's at mid day but lower very early in the morning.

The photo above shows the great isonychia nymph which is all over this river. A quick, darting swimmer this nymph acts like a stonefly by crawling up onto rocks to hatch and then flying away usually around dusk. There are plenty of imitations that you can find online so I will not bother with the recipe. The dun is dark colored with smokey grey wings (unusual for this time of year) and trout will take that surface imitation EVEN THOUGH it doesn't ride the surface like most other mayfly duns. Don't leave home without them!

The other photo is of the great Hemlock Pool. As the Eastern Flyfishing Magazine article pointed out it also has another name: Les's Pool. I believe I met that man years ago when he was a driving force behind TU (when it was a driving force) in Massachusetts. I'll call it by the latter name going forward. Anyway, fish this pool and the riffles at it's head. The gate is still closed so it's a 15-17 minute walk to get there but well worth it.

The Millers - I love this low flow and I love the fact that darkness falls at 7:30 instead of 9:00. You don't have to wait f o r e v e r for surface action. Again, water temperatures are fine. Even the rainbows made it through the Summer. Don't forget to bring some large light colored flies so you can see them in the failing light. They have worked the last few times out.

The Swift - Every thing works at the Gauge down through the Tree Pool from 30's to #14 soft hackles. Also, weekend evenings have been sparsely attended by fly fishers in this section. On Wednesday evening I saw only two other anglers which appears to be the norm over the last few weeks. Spend an evening down there before our evenings are gone.

I have some open dates through late September and October. October Fridays are mostly open (weird) with a few weekend dates available. First come, first served.

Summer is winding down with Fall right around the corner. Fish the next two months before everything shuts down (except the Swift).

Ken

9/12 Update - The lower gate on the EB is open so you don't have to endure the 15 minute walk to get to Les's (formally called the Hemlock Pool) Pool. It was windy as hell which made dry fly fishing dicey but worth it. I rose 4 and landed 2 in the 3 hours there. Long floats through the pool brought 3 up with 1 hooked and then 1 in the riffles at the head of the pool. Ok under the windy conditions. Probably could of caught more with a nymph BUT I like dries. Rises were on and off and If you see a rise cast to it.

Update #2 - The lower gate was closed on Wednesday evening BUT was open on Friday morning. Go for it!!

This Just In: a camera was found on the way to the Y Pool. Email me and I'll connect you to who found it.


Ken

Swift Weekend

I've been bouncing around the Millers this past week and needed something a little less robust. I've still got tiny flies on the brain or maybe it's the cold water that has now doubled in volume. Saturday and Monday morning were spent on the Swift.

Saturday - It started off with swinging an old reliable Grouse and Orange that accounted for two trout. Then I gave a test run to a size 20 something that my friend Brad created and two more came to the net. Then it was McPhail Buzzer time in size 20. Three more but many misses and break offs was the result. The high water (107 cfs) still had the trout trying to find the surface because surface action was sparse.

Monday - Started with Mc B's and managed one below the gauge. As I rounded the bend I could see that there was one fellow at the Pipe but the Tree Pool was empty. That's where I headed. It had been a foggy start but now it was clearing and with that the hatch came on. Fog kills hatches on this river and it only took 5 minutes before a half a dozen trout began working the pool.

Now, I had a good time Saturday watching Dan and Gary nabbing the occasional riser on #32's. The smallest fly that I had was a #28. I was hoping that it would be close enough if the same insect was on the water today. It worked and in the last 15 minutes that I had to fish I took three, 2 bows and a brookie.

It was then that I realized that I had fished and caught trout in everything from a size 12, size 20, to size 28 in a 48 hour period. Not something that happens with a wet size 12 in the mix. So when someone asks me whats working on the Swift what do I say? Everything, I guess.

Ken

New Guiding Dates, A River Update And A Lost Vest

First things first - Fridays have always been a day that I have had trouble springing myself free to guide someone. THAT'S CHANGED! Fridays are now open with 9/5, 9/16 and 10/3 free and clear. 10/31 is open and every Friday in November is the same. November is a great time to fish the Swift and the EB. My evening trips are very popular and we have about 1.5 months of those before it gets too dark. Right now 4:30 to 7:30ish is perfect.


What a week!! Perfect weather and perfect flows. It started Sunday with a quick trip to the Swift in the early afternoon. The usual parking lots were only half full which seemed odd for such a nice day and that meant that I had the gauge to the intake all to myself. 4 bows, 1 brown and two gorgeous brookies made it to the net in those 2 1/2 hours. In a few weeks those guys will really be taking on their Fall colors making them even more beautiful!!

The Millers - With flows below 250 cfs this river is producing with surface action in and around the lower C&R with the best action at sundown. The darker it gets the better it gets. Just make sure that you are fishing a dry that you can see. #12 light colored comparaduns, bivisibles, HW Adams, anything that you can see. Casts don't have to be long as the trout will rise almost a rod length away. Some rain is in the forecast later this weekend so check out this site for the flow.

The EB - It could use a little rain but we are still finding willing trout. Trout are still everywhere from the pools to the riffles and fishing pressure has been light. Brad and I were their last night and saw 1 other angler. This Labor Day weekend will mark the end of the swimmers for the year which means we will have it all to ourselves until freeze up.

A Lost Vest - Someone lost a vest in the Swift River parking lot over the last week or so. If you found it and would like the owner to reclaim it then email me at ken.elmer9@gmail.com and I'll have that person contact you.

Have a Great Labor Day Weekend! The Autumn season is almost on us.

Ken

All Three Rivers Are PERFECT Now!

Ok, I'm back. All that I will say about the 10 days between posts is that I like the Madison but like the Gallatin more!!

As I write this ALL the rivers (Millers, EB and Swift) are in prime condition. Even the reluctant Millers is down into the 200cfs range which is where it should be historically. I guided there Thursday evening with all of the action occurring at sundown. Lots of rising trout and some massive mayfly hatch of some light colored fly that I couldn't identify because of the darkness. Because of the low light (sunset and heavy cloud cover)I opted for a size 14 Millers Bivisible, a big hairwing creation that floats high and can be seen at dusk. It took all of our trout. BTW, 2/3 of our catch were RAINBOWS! That's what a wet summer will do for you!

As the comments from my last two posts show, the EB has been spectacular! Flows have been great all summer with mid August water temperatures being in the low to mid 60's at mid day. It seems that every style of fly has produced if fished carefully and patiently. And for those few who think that I write too much about this river I will say that I was there last night with a friend from the Boston Area. We saw ONE other flyfisher. That's normal for this river.

The Swift is what it is - always good, always challenging!!

Let's hope that the Millers stays low.

Best,

Ken

A Saturday EB Trip And A Stream Forecast

Saturday was a late start. Not for my wife but for me. Mornings in August mean a start time on the EB at no later than 6:30am. We started at 9:30am. That's ok because it was just meant to spend some time together, getting out on the water with a light lunch of sliced tomatoes and cheese and just exploring. The "exploring" meant fishing some places that I've overlooked over these years. Catch something? Maybe, but just a day in a good place.

I rose 7 and landed 3 while missing a brown that I would like to describe as Sparse Grey Hackle did about a brown on the Beaverkill 80 years ago: "It was the size of a railroad tie". I'll never tell you where I missed it and that's a first for the 7 years of this blog!!!

How did the wife do: hooked 2 and landed 1 on her tenkara outfit. Now, she is from greater NYC who never fished BUT she is a quick study. I gave her some instruction on where trout are found, she fished those spots and then found other runs and pools to fish. Then she said that her fly was too small (#12 soft hackle)and wanted a larger fly. I said "ok" and tied on a goofy bivisible creation and she hooked up. Now she doesn't think she needs a guide!!!!

Big, fluffy clouds kept the temperatures down and at noon the water temperature was 64 degrees. The only problem was the sunbathers and their stick fetching dogs that kept me from one good place.

Tenkara technique is great for someone new to fly fishing. It teaches you to fish up close studying the water. It's not equipment heavy and is never a frustrating experience compared to a beginner with conventional equipment.

Overall a good day.

The forecast - big rain starting Tuesday night and running through Wednesday. Say goodbye (again) to the Millers. God only knows how far the EB will rise BUT it will drop quickly. Saturday (maybe Friday) will be ok. If it's at 500fs the games begin. They are predicting 2.5 inches of rain. Dial in on my site to get the flows.

I have posted some poor photos of what I've been fished for dries on the EB. They are size 12 and 14 hairwing Adams that seem to hook more trout than the hopper patterns that I've used. Those EB trout seem to rise gently to the larger flies instead of the big take and that results in some misses. The big Adams gets their attention and they can take it in. As the evening wears on we go to smaller flies. You know the drill!

I think I've got to perfect my "dry fly in fast water" technique. Too many misses.

Ken

A Short Post - FISH THE EB!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ok, you've seen the posts and the comments. Fish this river. I had a great night last night and a comment from another spoke of a great day floating hoppers earlier in the day. I guided a newbie who rose 8 trout and if reflexes had more experience he would of hooked more than the two. Same for the guided trip the week before. TROUT ARE RISING ON THE EB!!!!!

Get up early and get there by 7:30. Catch trout until noon or so, sit on a rock, take in the environment that you are in, have lunch and a cigar and then do it again after the shadows begin to cross many pools by 4pm. You will be there for the evening rise where the hoppers downsize to generic olive comparduns in sizes #14 and #16. You cannot spent a better day in Massachusetts on a summer day than on the EB!!(if you flyfish)

Trout are everywhere here. Fish for them!!

Ken