More Weight!?!?

A recent discussion with a friend has prompted me to share some ideas with all of you. Our discussion was centered around nymphing, and more specifically the use of weight. My friend was sharing a story about fishing a deep run that he was nymphing with another friend. Neither of them were catching fish with the nymph rig that they were set up with. My friend, who was unsatisfied, added more weight! He then proceeded to hook up several times in that run and take some nice trout while the other friend caught nothing. What they couldn't see at the time, was was a little drop off in the run that the trout were holding in.The one friend who didn't add weight was drifting right over the fish.

This is a tough topic because so many people that I meet on the stream fail to recognize that they need more weight when nymph fishing. And for what ever reason, they have trouble accepting that fact. I think it is because of a number of reasons. But perhaps the biggest is that they probably have caught many fish before without the use of a lot of weight. Why change? And this is where most people get stuck....including myself!

For slow, shallow and even runs the need for more weight isn't usually a factor. But in every other nymphing situation, I have found that the addition of more weight has made a difference.A huge difference. It can make a day of a few nice fish into a day to remember.

I recall such a story from a year ago....we were all fishing a nice deep pool with a good current at the head that seemed to drop off sharply. We were fishing the middle and tailout of that pool with good success. The only problem was, we could see some really nice fish holding on the other side of the pool sitting near a cut in the stream bead. We would drift and drift trying desperately to get our flies in front of the fish. We would even cast further upstream to try and give our flies more time to get down. The trout just sat there finning away in the current. Then a friend and I added more weight. An additional small split shot was added just above the other. This was they key. It put the fly in front of the fish and soon we were hooking up with these larger trout holding on that cut. The addition of weight made a day of 8" to 12" inch fish into a day with some really nice wild 15" and 16" inch browns.

More often than not the addition of extra weight will get your fly to the fish faster and keep it there longer. And in my book that means more opportunity to catch that nice trout, and more of them.

What I start off with when nymph fishing, is a size bigger split shot than I think would I need. I then adjust my indicator to keep that weight bouncing along the bottom. I add the weight about 4 to 8 inches above the fly(sometimes closer), and adjust accordingly. Some fish will need that fly right on the bottom. If this is the case, put the weight just a few inches above the fly. If you can't get the fly in front of the fish or you aren't getting any strikes...Instead of casting further upstream(to give it time to sink) add more weight! Add a small amount of weight at a time. Until you get that fly in front of the fish. I have found(for me) that casting further upstream to give your fly the time to sink doesn't work as well as adding more weight. Any little current or lift of the rod will move the fly out of the range of the fish, and by the time the fly is on the bottom again, it has drifted well past the fish. That little bit of extra weight will keep that fly in front of the fish longer!

I know that not every situation will require the addition of more weight. But more often than not, it does! And I am only talking about dead drifting a nymph here. With the upcoming summer months, when trout will often start to pool up and will not move as far to take a fly, it will often require precise dead drifts to regularly take fish.

Photos by Lucas Carroll

Oatka Creek; June 16th

Yesterday morning I was able to fish Oatka creek in Scottsville for about an hour or so. And It started with taking a few stream samples to find out if the rumors are true. The rumors of golden stones! I had heard reports of some guys seeing some stones flying around in the evening as of late, and based on what I found, the rumors are true!

My samples turned up the standard march browns and crayfish, but also some really big golden stone fly nymphs. I'm talking a #10 or better. And plenty of them. A lot of fun to watch them crawl around. And they are really fast too!

Now the fishing - I could see fish rising in the flat water above the bridge in Scottsville. The trout were gently sipping away at something I couldn't see. Midges? Small mayflies? I made a guess and put on a small mayfly emerger. It soon became apparent that I did not have the right fly, as not one fish even moved to look at my fly. I then went to a small midge emerger. And this too was ignored by the trout. I then remembered that the trout have been seeing lots of mayflies come off the water in the evenings. And again the next morning if the conditions are right. This prompted me to tie on a #14 hair wing march brown dry fly(even though the trout were feeding on something much much smaller.) This change seemed to work. I was now getting trout to look up and even move towards the fly. But still no takers. So what do you do when you seem to have the right fly, but still no taker? You go down in size of course! So on went a #16 march brown dry. Boy was that the difference. Almost every trout was now moving to the fly and many fish came up to take it. But I had to be right on with my cast and it had to lay softly on the water.

I think the reason why the march brown pattern worked so well was because the trout have been so conditioned to seeing them and feeding on them for several weeks now that they just can't resist taking advantage of a well placed dry. This tactic has worked well for me in the past too. In fact I have had some of my best dry fly fishing in the mornings. I am beginning to realize that the trout may just be more willing to take a properly presented mayfly during peak hatch periods in the morning, than during any other time during the day. But, like anything else it probably requires more research.

Look for golden stones in the evening along with everything else. That means you can probably start fishing a #10 or #12 stimulator during the evening hatch.

Enjoy the photos!

Oatka & Spring creek beat down

Luke has been putting his time in lately at Oatka and Spring creek. A lot of time. Enough time to make me a little green in the gills. He has even been joined on occasion by Jessie and his wife for some fly rod bending action. In fact since the 1st of this month he has logged more hours on the stream than the New York state senate has in Albany. Oh wait a minute....do we still have a New York senate?

Anyway...the fishing has been great! At least that's what I've been told. Dry flies, emergers, nymphs, scuds, midges....it really doesn't matter, the fish need to eat and those guys have been feeding the trout a regular diet of what they want.

Prolific evening hatches have the trout feeding on sulphurs, march browns, light cahills, midges and of course caddis. And there have been some green drakes as well. Which means that if you hit it right, you could catch some nice trout with a very large dry fly. And compared to some of the smaller mayflies we will be dealing with late next month....these green drakes are like sailboats on the water. Huge tom HUGE!!!

Both Jessie and Luke had a good time fishing together last week for an evening catching some fish on dries and bugs in their teeth. Or at least it seems that way from some of the pictures I've seen. Oh well, I guess a little extra protein wouldn't hurt. Speaking of photos....all the photos you see here were taken on his new camera.

If you can't get out there for the evening hatch....don't worry, Luke has that covered as well. Nymphing with small flies, and I mean small, like size #26 midges to be exact, has been a great fly fished deep. It must be nice to be able to see the hook when you tie those things up Luke. I guess those days are over for me. I'm lucky if I can tie on a size #20 fly! Anyway....Luke and his wife went out this past week as well, and each caught a number of fish in the "Honey Hole." And if you don't know where the "Honey Hole" is...well let's just say it's a prime piece of water. Especially in the summer. And I'm not giving the "Honey Hole" location away....ha! Ummm, I just remembered that I think everyone who reads this already knows where the "Honey Hole" is.

Enough about the "Honey Hole" lets talk about Spring creek...or is it Spring brook? I forget. Like the name, the trout seem to confuse most anglers. But not Luke. Or Jessie for that matter. Those boys have put a beat down on those spring creek fish like what the Orlando Magic did to the Cleveland Cavaliers. Cleveland, like Spring creek has(or had) a reputation of being tough, the best the east had to offer. In steps Orlando(Luke and Jessie) and systematically destroys Cleveland leaving them to ponder what went wrong. I would have used the Yankees vs. Red Sox analogy, seeing as I am a big fan of the Yankees. But after what has happened recently, I don't really feel like it's worth getting into. Bloody Red Sox!!! Okay enough about sports. Luke took a few photos earlier this week of an obscenely large brown trout that is now swimming around the creek terrorizing both fish and man alike. A fish that he was unable to catch. It seems as though it was the only fish to escape the fly fishing stylings of "cool" hand Luke. Hey wait a minute here....is that the fish Jessie hooked on our May fishing trip in the Oatka? The now fabled 40" incher? Anyway....Luke again caught many trout using smaller than normal flies. Size #26 midge larvae I was told. Hey, what would be the word for more than one larvae....larvie, larvy, larveas? Just a simple question really...isn't it? Sorry about the tangent. Back to fishing news....Luke also caught a very nice brook trout. A fish that seems to have eluded me at spring creek. But then again I don't get out to spring as much as I would like. But that's okay. At least that's what I tell myself. And I must say that I do really enjoy hearing all the fly fishing reports from everyone. Bob, Jessie, Luke, Rich, thanks for not indulging too much! I can only take so much....ha!

Please spend some time looking at Luke's award winning photography!!!

Oatka creek; June 2nd

This morning I spent an hour fly fishing at a new spot on the Oatka. The Wheatland Center road access.

As soon as I walked down to the water I could see both sulphurs and march browns coming off. There were a few fish rising here and there sucking in mayflies that stayed too long on the water. It looked like it would be a fantastic hour of fishing....right? Well, only sort of.

After a few casts to a spot that a fish was rising, my fly disappeared and I set the hook only to find no resistance and a missed fish. I fished the flat section of water for 15 more minutes with no more hookups, and when I came to a series of good looking riffle sections I changed to a #16 flashback PT nymph. I cast and I stepped down, I cast and I stepped down. I worked every inch of those riffle sections with no pull downs. And as I came to another flat section and saw more fish rising, I changed to a #16 march brown dry. This seemed to be the right fly as every natural that was coming off was the right size and color of my imposter. I worked the upper section of the flat water getting some good takes after a good cast. But it was not to be, as every fish that took my fly, I missed. I then switched gears and worked the lower end of the flat water below the tailout. I was now casting upstream to fish. This was working much better and soon I had a good fish take my fly under. I set the hook and felt resistence. But a quick head shake and he was gone. I did that one more time before I checked the hook and found that it was bent. After I bent the hook back to it's normal shape I began to cast to more rising fish just a bit further upstream. And again my fly disappeared. And again I felt a good fish and then nothing. It was gone. Another examination of the hook revealed the same bend. Off with this fly - I will never use light wire dry fly hooks with my 4 weight anymore. Lesson learned!

The action slowed a bit and I moved back upstream. I tied on a "standard" wire #14 march brown dry fly and began to work some fish in a riffle section. This was the key!! Soon I started to get some takes but I was still missing fish. I took a deep breath and slowed down. The next fish that took my fly was a solid hook up. And I finally landed a nice 12" wild Oatka brown. Whew!

I worked those riffle sections cast by cast. Taking a step every time. And yes...I lost a few more fish before I had to go. But, the point is that the dry fly action was great this morning! The fish were really turned on to the march browns. I had the right fly. I put in front of fish without spooking them and they took the fly. I just couldn't get my act together today. But, that's okay! I have had so many really fantastic mornings, afternoons and evenings, that I have to realize it's "fishing" not "catching" that is the joy of fly fishing. At least it is for me.

Bass & Carp from Black Creek

Due to time constraints I have been only able to fish near my home these past few weeks. That means I haven't had the time to go and fish the Oatka or Spring creek for trout. And I am really hurting for some great trout action right about now. And even though I miss the trout fishing, I still have to take advantage of the opportunities that I do have. And that means fly fishing Black creek for now.

This morning I met James, a good friend of mine, for an hour and a half of fly fishing below the dam in Churchville, NY. I wanted to show him one of the spots that I have come to enjoy through the years. And even with the rain it turned out to be a good hour and a half.

We caught smallmouth bass and rock bass just below the dam, just like we have for the past few weeks. But today there was something else that caught our attention. Carp!! They were everywhere. Feeding near the shallows and kicking up mud trails with the tips of their tails sticking up just above the water. It almost reminded me of picking out redfish or bonefish in the saltwater flats. We took off the clouser minnow and put on a weighted crayfish pattern. Then we slowly moved into position and cast just above the fish and used small strips to get the fly near the fish. We couldn't see the take, just tension on the line. Fish On!! Line peeled of the reel and I handed my 8 weight to my 3 year old son Ethan. He played the fish for a while, letting the carp take out line, and then reeling it back in. And with a little coaching from Dad, he soon slid the carp on shore. I took a photo and he released the carp back into the water.

We then met up with James and walked to the East side of the creek near the dam. Here is where we saw at least a dozen or so carp moving in and out of the riffles below the dam. They were right in close, just a rod length or so away. I stripped out some line and began putting the fly in front of fish. A little twitch is all that it took and one of the carp swam forward and took the fly. Ethan again took the fly rod and played the fish well, but Dad had to step in and bring it to hand, as it was a bit bigger than the last one we landed. Now it was James' turn. I gave him some flies, including the same crayfish pattern I was using. And as he tied it on, the carp came back into the riffle section. Ethan and I had to leave, but we left James in a perfect spot to sight fish to some even bigger carp. I can't wait to hear his report later today! And thankyou James for taking a photo of me and Ethan together!!!!

And, I can't wait to get out there again for some carp on the fly!!!

3rd Annual Fly fishing trip; May 15-17

Let me start this little blog entry with a few words about the people who attended this years event who I consider to be my friends and great fishing partners!

Luke is a friend I met at work a few years back and was just starting to get into fly fishing. Now he has become a fly fishing and fly tying machine. He is also the one who volunteered to get this show on the road for this years event. So thank you very much for giving me a little break. And you did an excellent job!!! He is also the one who fishes more than the rest of us...at least for now! He also has provided some great photos of our trip. He has mastered the art of catching lots fish on really small flies.

Jessie is a long time friend of Luke's who I met a few years back, and is someone who I now call a great friend. He and Luke have spent many hours systematically picking apart all the little mysteries of spring creek. He is also the one who provided a good quantity of "meat" for this years event. He fishes hard and often goes on crazy hot streaks where he catches 10 fish in 10 minutes. He is also a very good story teller.....you should ask him about the 48" brown trout he almost caught.

James is a friend who I have known for a while. We met at church when I was first dating Colleen back in college. When I learned that he liked to fish, I knew I had found another fishing buddy. His easy going style fits right in with everyone. In fact he's so easy going he doesn't need to show up at 6:00am in the morning to catch fish! He's that good!! And thanks for helping me remove that #22 midge out of my finger!!!

Bob is the man who seems to be prepared for just about anything. In fact he has earned himself the reputation of having everything we need on our trip even when we didn't know we needed it. Don't have a can opener? Bob does! Don't have wet wipes? Bob does! Need a coffee table? You get the idea. Anyway Bob and I have been fishing together for years and he has been instrumental in getting me well acquainted with Rochester's best fishing spots.

Okay now that we have that out of the way, lets talk fishing!!!

Friday evening I met Lucas and Jessie at Spring creek for an hour of fishing before we headed back to the campsite to meet up with Bob. There were some bugs coming off, but not a lot, and there were only a few trout splashing at the surface. We all caught fish in that last hour. Most were caught on nymphs. Including a nice 15" brown taken by Lucas just before we had to leave.

The next morning we drove to the lower part of the creek in Scottsville where we searched for the stocked brown trout that had been put in weeks before. I did well fishing under the bridge where I landed 4 trout that included a nice 15" brown. But it was Lucas who had the hot fly and proceeded to take a number of trout that included 4 nice 15" fish out of a nice stretch of water above the bridge. When the action slowed a bit we all headed upstream to a "no kill" artificials only section of the Oatka. And even though there is a lot of natural reproduction throughout the whole stream, this section receives no stocking from the state and is totally dependant on natural reproduction. Here again we all got into some nice fish including a few small 5" inch wild trout that had been the product of natural reproduction. Anyway, it was Jessie's turn to have the hot hand and he caught a good number of trout on a #20 hare's ear nymph. He also told us of a monster brown trout that he hooked downstream. It was the biggest trout that he has ever hooked on the Oatka.....like 20" inches.

After a great lunch back at the campground we headed back out fishing. This time we decided to go back to Spring creek in the hopes of getting into a hatch and some dry fly fishing. Spring creek is a great little stream. It is a tributary to the Oatka and it's water temperatures remain around 50 degrees all year round. It is also nice because there are only trout that inhabit the stream and they are all wild naturally reproducing fish. There is also the chance to get a brook trout every now and then. Our evening went great. And again, everyone got into fish. This time it was James' turn as he hooked trout after trout in a small run downstream from the railroad trestle. And as I moved downstream I found my own little runs and found many willing takers. But it wasn't until Lucas and I went downstream further, did I see an amazing sight. He wanted to show me a unique spot he had fished a number of times that held a lot of fish. And boy did it. Looking into the super clear water I could see at least 50 fish holding in this pool. And at the head of the pool there were some very good sized fish. I didn't catch those fish so I couldn't tell you for certain how big they were. But, I can say with confidence they were much bigger than 16" inches! And I would even venture a guess that some would be over 20" inches. The truly amazing thing about this spot is there were two sets of currents to deal with. On the far side of the stream there was a bend that would shoot all current towards the middle of the stream in the deep parts. The tricky thing was that the main current from the center of the stream would wash over the top of that deeper part . So in essence the fish would be holding along the bottom one way and your drift would be going another. I finally found a position that seemed to work and started to catch some fish. Someday soon I will go back and work on getting the hang of that current. And then maybe I can catch some of those really big ones.

We also had the pleasure of meeting Jessie's brother Casey, who came out to join us for the tail end of our trip. And even Casey, who had never fished spring creek, caught a fish! A truly great evening of fishing. And to top off an already stellar evening, Bob managed to catch a really nice 14" or 15" brown before we headed back to camp. All the fish we caught that evening took small nymphs dead drifted along the bottom.

We then retreated back to camp where we prepared a feast....a "meat" feast. Moose, venison, pork chops, Italian sausage and a big pot of baked beans. We cooked, we ate, we told stories, we ate some more. And then, as Jessie put it, we all slid into a "meat coma." I seem to remember a story about a boat, a broken oar and 3 foot swells. But, that might have been the meat talking. Oh yeah....I almost forgot, Jessies epic fish that he hooked on the Oatka is now a 44" inch monster!

Sunday was cold, very cold. A front had moved into the area over night and I'm pretty sure it was close to 30 degrees. At least that's the way it felt! Yeah....I'm sticking to the 30 degree morning. It makes us sound more though. We new we were in for a rough morning due to the front and cold temperatures. But again we caught fish. We just had to work a little harder for them. Small nymphs and midge larvae were the key.

The whole weekend was great. We were truly blessed with great weather, and the fishing wasn't bad either. Even if there weren't any good hatches going on we all caught fish. We had to keep adjusting and work on finding what the trout wanted.

Here are some photos from the trip. I hope to get some more as I get them from friends. And when I do, I'll post them in another blog. I hope you enjoy! And don't forget check out Lukes photos and Jessies photos too.

Brian

Backyard mayfly

Found this guy in the backyard yesterday. A #14 March Brown. I only wish I lived closer to the stream.

I wonder what is hatching on the Oatka?

I did fish the Oatka this morning for an hour. We went in at the Union street access point. Hooked up with five trout. Almost all of them fell to a well placed flash back PT nymph.

Most fish were taken out of the "cement block" pool....you know, the one upstream of the Union street bridge. The one where you have to have a 6 foot tippet section below the indicator to get it on the bottom.

Hey...all I know is the trout liked what I was throwing.