Fly Fishing for Lake Runs – Birthday Edition

A big post spawn female lake run brown trout

Once again I had the opportunity to get out for my birthday and share some water with a few friends.

Small but feisty lake run brown

Denver on the net for Matt

Bait

It was certainly a day to remember as a warming trend over the past few days put the lake run trout on the bite, with many, many Lake Run giants coming to the net.

Leif's huge hen lake run brown

Leif on the net for Ethan's lake run brown

Matt with the release

Jessie with a nice Kyped out male

Jessie tries to control a steelhead

Fish landed!

Denver, Matt and Leif started their morning at an upstream section of a favorite WNY tributary and enjoyed some fantastic streamer action, landing quite a few nice brown trout on the swing.

I started out fly fishing at a downstream location on some private water before everyone else showed up and quickly put two fish in the net, one of which was easily over the twelve pound mark. The other, a smaller post spawn female, took a lot longer than expected to find the net. In fact, many of the fish on this day would follow its example and put us and our gear to the test over, and over, and over again. 

Ethan with a nice female taken on the swing

Matt tries to make his 4 piece into a five....again!

Denver and Matt with a double

By late morning Jessie, Ethan and the rest of the upstream gang met up with me on the private section of water. We each continued to find our own fish, taking a break here and there to grab a cup of coffee, share some stories and catch up on the goings-on in each other’s lives. The only stop in the fishing came during lunch, when our gracious host Jim provided an amazing homemade venison stew. But, as good as the lunch was, the fishing had been better and we needed to get back on the water.

Jessie with a nice post spawn hen

Over the next few hours more and more fish came to the net. Mostly all brown trout, save one nice steelhead that Jessie landed to ruin the curve. And with his landing the only bit of chrome of the day, he maintains his perfect yearly “birthday” steelhead batting average. A tradition that I don’t think he’ll relinquish anytime in the near future.

Add caption

Colored up post spawn female

The fish were everywhere. The riffle sections, pools, pocket water, and slower tail-outs and slack water all held fish. The spawn had been done for a couple of weeks and with the warmer weather, they were on the search for food before the cold started to settle in.

Our fish on the day were on par for the average for lake run trout in any of the Lake Ontario tributaries, which is right around seven pounds and somewhere between twenty four to twenty six inches. Many of us were fortunate to land fish over ten pounds with a few in the low teens. Even then, I still managed to find a pod of lake runs here and there that held one or two fish that were easily pushing the twenty pound mark. A truly massive fish that never found the bottom of my net.

The end of my day finished just as it had started, with two more brown trout to the net. And that was it! I then said my good-byes, shook hands with the guys that were left, and spent the next twenty five minutes on the drive home replaying the day in my head.

My last fish of the day.

Kyped out male brown trout

When the catching is as good as the fishing, you try and hold on just a little bit longer to the memory of each fish. Hoping that they remain separate and don’t bleed together into one big mess. 

Thanks again Denver for sharing a birthday with me, and to the rest of the guys who did their best to drag themselves out there to celebrate with us!

Birthday Fishing trip

My largest fish of the day with Matt Smythe on the net

Matt S. releasing a future lake run giant

Every year right around my birthday or sometimes the day of, I take the time to get out and fish. I guess you could say it’s a birthday present to myself. And when I can, I try and take a good portion of the day, as I usually only get an hour or so if I’m lucky.

In years past, my trips have been regulated to walking the banks at public access points. These spots have provided plenty of great fishing and some pretty amazing trout, but more often than not, you don’t get to choose who you share a stretch of water with.

Jessie Hollenbeck with a nice buck steelhead

Earlier this month I got the chance to fish some private property on one of my favorite Lake Ontario small tributaries for giant lake run trout. And I got to do it with some great people who I have gotten to know through the past 4 or 5 years, or more. 

Most of the guys were already there by the time I arrived. Their Cars lined up in the gravel parking area by the barn, with lift-gates and back doors adorned with all kinds of fly fishing stickers and such. It's one of those visuals that if you weren't already "in the know" of who took up driving said vehicles, you would turn tail and run. But fish need catchin' and I was more than ready to answer the call!

Post lunch photo of the crew

Water had been released from the Erie Canal earlier that week, pushing water flows up, and bringing in new fish every day. To say my expectations where a bit on the high side would be accurate, even with a cold snap that usually puts fish off the bite.

My good friend Bob Burrows and I headed down to the water in high spirits.

By the time we met up with everyone at the water’s edge several nice steelhead and brown trout had already been brought to the net.

Another future giant

Each of us worked through the various sections of stream that bordered the private property, taking turns at each spot, and then warming up by the streamside fire. We spent time sharing stories of fish tales past and present, talking about our families and showing off flies from our boxes. Only breaking the conversation every once and a while to help net a fish and take some photos.

Denver Miller snaps a photo of Matt S.with a colored up buck brown. 

Chris on the net

Our fish filled afternoon was only brought to a halt by an amazing lunch, which was provided by our wonderful host family. Venison stew, hard rolls with butter and a nice birthday cake in celebration of Denver Miller and my Birthday were on the menu. The delicious food and short rest off our cold feet was more than welcome and we were soon ready to head back down to the water.

The rest of the day was filled with much of the same, great conversation and large lake run fish.

It was an honor to spend a day on the water with all those guys. And in the end, I think almost everyone landed at least one fish, with several of us putting multiple fish in the net.

Leif Mermagen with a big hen

As Denver said “That’s what happens when you put a bunch of great fly anglers all together in one spot!”

Special thanks to Jim Metcalf and family, Bob Burrows, Jessie Hollenbeck, Denver Miller, Matt Smythe, Leif Mermagen, Ethan Law, Jake Kwap and anyone else I may have forgotten, for making it such a great day.

See you on the stream.

Matt S. putting the screws to big hen brownie with Leif M. looking on and Jessie H. on the net.

Matt's big hen brownie

WNY Spring Tributary Season

Drop Back brown in the Stream Walker net

Spring seems to have arrived a little early this year. Warmer than average temperatures have cleared up all the ice and started to warm up the water in all of our WNY tributaries. Add in a good steady stream of precipitation, and you have the perfect ingredients to help draw in plenty of fresh steelhead from the big lake.

And if you just happen to be in the right place at the right time you can intercept both the newly arriving steehead and the drop back brown trout that have wintered over in many of the area tributaries. In fact, just after ice out is probably one of the best opportunities you will have to get into good numbers of brown trout. 

White woolly bugger did the trick - Photo by Tony Horton

Male steelhead in spawning colors

As temperatures start to climb a good bit above the freezing mark, thus warming the water, and all the spring run-off has run off, the brown trout numbers will continue to diminish as they drop back into the lake. By the end of April they are all but gone, with the steelhead soon to follow.

Ice out drop back brown

Maybe the weather pattern will revert back to what is normal for WNY, with cold and snow, and prolong our spring tributary season. But I’m not holding my breath.

So get out there and enjoy….I’ll see you on the stream!