Back Lake Hex Hatch Update: 6/20

They’re baaack … Yes, the time that all of us anglers have been waiting for is finally here, as the notorious Hexagenia Limbata hatch has started again for another year. For those unfamiliar with “The Hex”, or Great Leadwinged Drake, it is the largest of the mayflies, and an eagerly anticipated part of a fish’s (trout or bass, it turns out) diet on Back Lake for the next two weeks or so. And yes, the hex is much anticipated by us anglers too …

Coming off only in the waning hours of the evening and at night, the hex hatch allows you to get all of your chores done during the day and then enjoy a couple hours of exciting angling in the evening, weather permitting. Sunny, warm days lead to perfect evenings for the hex hatch – you’re looking for evenings with little wind, without the threat of passing weather systems. Our thunderstorm season is upon us now, so conditions can change very quickly with the threat of storms around.

Last night was such a night, after a brilliantly beautiful day in northern New Hampshire. The lack of wind revealed the multitude of hexagenia hatching around us, as well as all of the fish working to feed themselves on them. It’s not always that way, as the wind can sometimes play a role in obscuring the hexagenia from our vision, and I think that it can play a part in the feeding activity of the fish too.

As for gear, I usually try to go out with two rods: one rigged with a floating line for throwing outrageous top water patterns, and the other with sink tip line for casting emerger patterns under the surface. If you only have one rod, it all depends how you like to fish, but I would choose the floating option, as casting large flies to fish feeding on top might be what it’s all about. I also recommend 3X leaders and tippet – you need a robust leader to turn over the large flies, and the strikes can be sudden and violent. Don’t worry about the fish being leader shy, either. This doesn’t mean the trout will tolerate sloppy casting. Just as in nearly all trout fishing, good casting might be rewarded, but bad casting almost certainly will not. The bass are a little more forgiving, but even they have their limits too.

There are some subtle strategies that can be employed for fishing the hex hatch as well. Trout prefer colder water, and colder water tends to be deeper, so if you’re looking for trout, positioning your boat in water with some depth is best. If you’re fishing around the edges, you are all but guaranteeing that you’ll be casting to hungry smallmouth bass all night. Fishermen that complain of catching bass all night probably weren’t set up in the right areas of the lake to take advantage of some of the great trout that are there. Their loss, my gain.

Naturally, we fishermen are attracted to rising fish when we’re out there, but one must be disciplined in not taking the easy cheese – look for cruising fish, sipping hexes off the surface further off shore. Those fish are almost always trout, while the “slappy” takes closer to shore are nearly always bass. Observation is important in trout fishing, and so it still is the case during the hex hatch, when fish seem to throw caution to the wind.

My posts on the Back Lake hex hatch have been frequent and lengthy over the years. Instead of blathering on again with my observations, perhaps searching in our archives for past hex hatch posts can prove to be helpful on this yearly phenomenon. A sampling of posts is below.

• Eyewitness Account
• Hex Hatch Update: 6/27
• Hex Hatch Update: 6/28
• Hex Hatch Update: 6/30
• Hex Hatch Update: 7/3
• Hex Hatch Update: 7/10

Go out there and have fun, and remember to crimp your barbs, play your fish quickly, keep them in the water, and release them gently to be pursued again if you plan on releasing your fish. Back Lake’s water is warm, and trout are delicate – they can easily be stressed during this time of year.