It has been a long period of good terrestrial fishing. It pains me to see in heading down hill. After five months of the fish eating the crap out of Cicada's, Ants, and Hoppers, they have decided to up the refusals. As the days go on and the weather gets colder and wetter I find myself relying more and more on the nymph game. Through the August and the first week of so of September I was finding success fishing a small black chernobyl ant in the first six miles of river, and a larger brownish-tan chernobyl ant imitating a hopper in the last mile. But as the weather turned to more of a fall-ish pattern my nymph game has been what has carried the days.
The fish have been responding well to nymph rigs of a wooly bugger trailed by a smaller nymph of some sorts in the faster shallower water. And in the slower deeper water either a deep somewhat heavy rig with either a worm and an emerger or a small gray bead and an emerger. This is definitely the time of year when patience and persistence are paying off. We are not seeing the spring nymphing days of 30-50 fish in a day, and are seeing more days in the teens and low twenties to the boat.
We are still seeing some quality fish, this has been attributed in my mind to the improved health of the fish from higher flows and abundant populations of scuds and aquatic worms in the water.
In the evenings a fairly prolific caddis hatch has been happening in the last few miles of A through a bit of B, but the fishes major food supply has shifted back to midges and the small fall Blue-Winged Olives.
As the season makes it's shift towards the end. I encourage all to come and fish the river to get some of those lingering feelings out of your soul before the cold drag of winter comes upon us.
I look forward to this winter, tying; trying to update my stash with more bugs, and more varied. As I explore the intricacies in tying I look forward to keeping you updated with the new bugs that I am going to be playing with.
Keep in Touch,
John
