General Fishing Report July 4, 2019
General Fishing Report July 4, 2019
Happy Fourth of July anglers! As if on cue, warm weather is in full force this week. It should go with out saying, but your thermometer should be getting a workout now! As a reminder, if you are practicing catch and release with trout, water temps should be below 70 degrees. There is plenty of cold water out there, so I suggest leaving the stuff that you know gets warm until we get more significant cool weather. It’s also a good idea if you are hitting some water that might get warm later in the day to go super early as that is when the coolest water temps are to be found. Otherwise, fishing has been solid. I had a great guide trip last weekend, with fish ignoring the dry part of the dry/dropper so we went to the tight line rig for most of the day. It was mostly wild fish that we got into, and they seemed to be keyed in on smaller mayfly nymph imitations like iron lotus and Perdigons (Quilldigons). I did see a few smaller mayfly adults in the air that day. In addition, we’ve been seeing a bunch of yellow and lime green sallies on our mountain waters. The nymphs of these stoneflies are super slender as well. One of the other patterns of note this time of year that I actually haven’t fished in a few years, but plan to is a simple zebra midge. I don’t know if its a profile thing or the contrast with the body ribbing, but I’ve found that these bugs can catch some fish. Ive had success with black and red in sizes 16-20. It is a great pattern to get used to fishing small and also a good pattern to tie to get used to tying small. Two other thoughts to keep in mind as we get into summer trout fishing: tippet size and stealth. If you haven’t done so already, downsizing tippet can really make a difference, as can switching to fluorocarbon. As far as stealth goes, dressing in drab (or camo) colors is the way to go, and being aware of your approach and closeness to possible fish.
We will be hosting the movie, Artifishal, the Fight to Save Wild Salmon at the Marquis in downtown Middlebury on July 10th. All proceeds will be donated to the New Haven River Anglers. Sure to be a great time, so come on in out of the heat for a cold drink and a fun evening.
As always, feel free to send me questions, dave@mmvt.com. Otherwise, enjoy summer, whether fishing is involved or not and hope to see you out on or in the water!
Cheers,
Dave
Previous Reports
Greetings Anglers! May the fourth be with you. For sure it’s been a wet April out there. I heard today that we got double the amount of rain we usually get in April. This has made for some interesting conditions out there on our local rivers. Tons of water for sure, but that has also meant that our local resident trout population has been getting fed pretty regularly with all the runoff! It has also created some quickly decreasing clarity on the rivers when it does rain.
Its been awhile, but I thought I would jump in for a guest fishing report, OCC update and some overall thoughts for a successful early season on the water. It is without a doubt a very exciting time of the year. With the winter months all but behind us, we are looking into the slow but sure entry into warm weather and good fly fishing ahead. I have always felt that April was the most brutal month in VT.
General fishing report for March 29, 2019. Since we’ve last spoke we’ve lost some snow, gained a bunch in the mountains and started losing some again. The extended forecast looks to keep the melt going, but it doesn’t seem that we’ll have any huge runoff issues, not yet at least. For me personally, I have not been out recently, but perhaps this weekend. The Otter is a bit high and looks like it’s rising, but if you can find some slower water (but still moving) near some deeper winter holding areas that would be a good place to start.
After a Busy weekend of guiding and personal fishing, here’s what the guides have to report and what to look forward to. First off, just two more weeks left of the regular season! If that doesn’t get you motivated to get out and enjoy some fall fishing, then I’m not sure what will! Last weeks rain definitely had the fish in an eating mood, but it was hard to pin down any one fly that did the most work. Worms worked in the more off color water, as did nymphed and swung streamers, but as things cleared, more natural bugs like October caddis patterns and Pt’s did the work.
