Pressure Drop

The title of a favorite Toots & the Maytals song is also appropriate for our change in the weather this weekend. The recent stretch of summer-like weather is over for the moment, and we can look forward to daytime temps in the 50’s and 60’s for the next week. It was HOT this past week, reaching 85 (perhaps even higher) several days in a row, making for challenging conditions for the anglers that were with us.

The high sun seemed to have a couple of effects on the fishing, however, as it kept the trout and salmon low in the water column, as you would expect. Nymphing “slow and low” seemed to be an effective method to target the fish, at least early on in the week. This piece of information is nothing new, as high sun and bright conditions usually means having to get down lower with your presentations.

Toots & the Maytals, “Pressure Drop”, an all-time classic.

But, as the hot stretch continued, the warming temperatures really got the insect hatches going out on the river. Mayflies (BWO’s mostly), lots of caddis, and even some stoneflies were coming off in abundance, and guess what? The fish started looking up for their meals far more often, leading to some good dry fly fishing for some anglers the last couple of days.

Though the conditions were uncomfortable for fishing, that didn’t deter the throngs of anglers plying the Trophy Stretch in search of excitement. Remember to give your fellow angler space and move on to another pool / run if you have to. There’s water for everyone. Golden rule, folks.

Chuck Degray of North Country Fly Shop & Guide Service chipped in with his two cents of recommendations when asked a couple of days ago:

This past week has been blazing hot with temps reaching 90 for the last few days. Luckily for us, the water temps are still between 48 – 53, climbing steadily throughout the day. With the rising water temps, you’ll see a steady increase of bug activity – Yellow Sallies, BWO’s, Hendricksons, Sulphers (ephemerella dorothea) and caddis of assorted sizes and colors.

Since it’s early in the season, the trout haven’t really keyed in on the dries so fishing emerger patterns and nymphs are your best bet. But, that is not set in stone! Don’t be afraid to throw a few of your favorite streamers or dry flies out there. Who doesn’t like a good dry fly eat?

The bigger pools and runs will always see the most pressure, so those fish will be a little more selective. What this means for us as anglers is to downsize to 6X tippet and smaller fly patterns, and most important is a proper drift. If you’re looking to put a few more fish in the net, focus on the smaller pocket water and you might be surprised what you find in them. Yes, they are tricky to wade, but they have saved my day more than once. Pick them apart just like you would a larger pool. There’s always soft water that the fish will hold in. For an added bonus, we are seeing some of the smaller salmon working their way in to the quicker water.

Each year we notice more and more anglers, enjoying the great sport of fly fishing, and yes this means more people on the river. Try a friendly wave, hello and asking if they’re headed up or down river. Shows you care about other anglers, and after all this is supposed to be a relaxing sport, not a competition or numbers game. Who knows, they might even share their secret fly or a new technique with you …

Limit your catch, don’t catch your limit, and respect every finned critter out there!

All good info and advice, even if it is a bit long-winded! Ha, ha – thanks Chuck!

River flows continue to be very moderate for this time of year, but hopefully we get a freshening with some much needed rain this week. A hard rain would help below each of the dams: Second Lake currently flows at 53 CFS, the Trophy is at 135 CFS, and a very modest 300 CFS below Murphy Dam at Lake Francis.