Natchaug River 5/26/2010

The river exploded last night on black caddis! Of course it was around 8:15 and that left little in the way of daylight. I fished a black on top with a small shuck with success, including a nice holdover brown, since the fish were keyed on the emergers. Earlier some success on small sulphur yellow spinners which were on the water in decent numbers. Lots of fish in this river...get out and do some exploring. I see VERY few fly fishermen in the areas I frequently fish. I expect the next few week to be prime!

Drag free!

Natchaug River Update!

Finally we have some rising fish in good numbers on the Natchaug. The water level is low but just right and the fish are rising to sulphur emergers in late afternoon and early evening. Just recently I observed them switch over to caddis emergers at dark, as the tan and black caddis appeared.

It is not uncommon to watch the beautiful sulphur duns float unmolested down the feeding lanes as the fish take emergers with a rolling subtle rise. We did manage a few on usuals,parachutes and traditional sulphur drys, but a yellow soft hackle or sulphur emerger fished in the film or just under the surface was a better choice. As the caddis appeared, the rises became more splashy as the fast moving emergers came to the surface.

Low clear and slow moving calls for 6x or lower. I have gone to 7x when confronted with refusals and if your knots are good, tippet fresh, you'll have no problem.

Also spent some time on the Moosup and Quinebaug with few rising fish to report on the Moosup as yet. We did find risers on the Quinebaug with limited success. Let me know your observations if you regularly fish the rivers of eastern CT! Drag free! flifishri@yahoo.com

Natchaug River, CT early season update!

The Natchaug River in eastern CT is a "home" river of sorts in that I fish it more often than any other during the spring and fall months. Lower and warmer water in the July/August timeframe pretty much restricts fishing during those months. Plenty of access, Trout Management Area, and the 2nd most heavily stocked river in CT makes this gem a fly fishing standout in Eastern CT. April 23rd saw quills, small spinners, likely BWO or mahogany, and large spinners falling at dark after a brief late afternoon shower. Fish were taking the spinner at dusk, and earlier in the afternoon, the dark quill body imitations. A few caddis showed but not in the proliferation that is common a bit later in the month. Lots of midge present as well. The Natchaug holds some very nice fish. some holdovers from the autumn stocking and some from previous seasons that manage to survive the low warm water summers.

Fish were sporadically rising to the above imitations; not as active as this river will become once the caddis and then sulphurs begin their appearance. One brown who took a spinner came to hand with a snell and swivel hanging out of its mouth...which may have accounted for its unusual rise form prior to taking the spinner. I cut the snell as close as possible; trying to remove the deeply imbedded hook would have killed the fish no doubt. Shame! Even though this fish was compromised by this situation it nonetheless took the spinner; we all need food when we need it! Took several more very nice rainbows BUT this is not about reciting war stories, or personal brags, or numbers...plenty of that on any number of forums devoted to fly fishing. That subject's for another time!

I won't be too specific here on locations as the entire stretch along CT 198 in Eastford/Chaplin CT provides ample access. Email me at flifishri@yahoo.com for more specifics or any questions. The Natchaug remains one of my very favorite trout streams for reasons beyond the ample fly fishing opportunites; beautiful water, scenery, wildlife and away from the crowd in the state park/picnic area, SOLITUDE!

Pre-Opener report...Moosup River, CT

Moosup River in Central Village (Plainfield) CT is a TMA, catch and release and thus open year round. The past few days, post flood waters, has shown lots of early stoneflies and hungry newly stocked fish. Not many looking up as yet, but did manage to take a brown on top with a stimulator. This is a lovely stretch of river, directly behind the Quinebaug Trout hatchery, with easy parking and access via the yellow trail. The Moosup empties into the Quinebaug, downstream of the hatchery. Deep runs, pools and riffles amidst wooded forest area provides good cover and cool water. Stocking reports show that some 2200 trout are stocked in the TMA, with 7000 throughout the Moosup system. There are holdovers; I had a solid 18 incher on hook for several minutes in fast current and couldn't get him to hand to see if he was a holdover or not...oh well!
This river originates in RI, and receives little fishing pressure with stocking by RIDEM not seemingly spread out although there are some very nice stretches of river on the RI side.
For now, stonefly nymphs fished deep will produce all the fun you would want! Terrific looking dry fly water and in a few weeks with the emergence of early-season mayflies, the on-top action will materialize! Hopefully by then the pale,dreary looking browns and rainbows will have colored up a bit! There are some BIG fish in this TMA; Fished the Mooosup, or any other Eastern CT rivers? Let me know your thoughts! I will not be overly specific with locations in these public posts, but hope to provide some level of interest for those who haven't fished some of the less well-known streams and rivers of Eastern Ct and RI. Drag free!

Blackstone River RI at flood stage 3/31/2010

The Blackstone River is a put and take trout fishery between May and late June, and again in the autumn. It is generously stocked with large (12+") browns and rainbows and is easily waded during normal conditions in the Ashton section of Cumberland and Lincoln, RI. The river features a solid black caddis hatch, occassional BWO and sulphurs and provides some relief for fly fisherman from the heavily pressured Wood River in southern RI. The following video was taken during the recent flood conditions in RI. Normally this section of the river is easily waded to thigh high depth! It will take a week or more for the Blackstone to return to normal depth. The deck of Ashton Mill shown in the video is usually 8-10 feet above the water level.

NCAA FINAL FOUR!...Random thoughts

Rivers blown out...cold weather...can't fish, so my next favorite pastime is college hoops, especially as we near the ultimate championship in sports, the NCAA National Men's Basketball Championship! Six games, all on neutral courts, win 'em all or go home! Six games against the best in College hoops..what a great tournament so far.  I saw in person at the 1st and 2nd rounds in Providence, the ultimate Cinderella, St. Mary's dismantle Richmond and Villanova. They will bust my bracket if they beat Baylor, but I'm rooting for 'em!  How can you not like the big guy OMARRRR!  See him here. Or the Aussie in the back court who can shoot lights out! Omar Samhan is a big time low post player with Kevin McHale moves...enjoy him!

Tennessee is as big,deep, and talented as any team remaining and could get to Indy. Love Turner and O. State and this is a permier matchup.

K-State's road looks easier if they can recover from a punishing win against Xavier...the worst called game I've seen, despite the number of fouls and DQ's. Curtis Kelly is a player!  Ask UCONN's Jim Calhoun about him...he let him walk after one year of no-playing time; that program's a mess, but that's another story. I can't see Butler advancing.

Kentucky?  30 points in 2nd half?  Deep, big and all of that, but experience?? We'll see. The Mountaineers manage to get by in games they seem out of it and they just might knock off Calipari and his guys here.

America's most beloved team Duke! (ahem) I don't see Purdue moving on...MK gets his guys peaked here as usual.

I have Baylor in my FF but will be rooting big time for the guys from Moraga, CA. How can you not for a College with 2500 undergrads? A COLLEGE...the only one still standing!

Finally...shook hands with College basketball's best color guy, Bill Raftery between Tennessee and Ohio game in Providence 2nd round.  Small talk about Tenn's chances etc.  What a guy, stops to chat with everyone, a smile for everyone. He and Verne Lundquist (one of sports greatest calls "YES SIRRRR", remember the event?) who I chatted with after Texas/Uconn game at Gampel are paired for the Midwest.  IMO, they're the best in the college hoops and listen for the usual Raftery classics..expect MAJOR ONIONS at some point!!  or the standard:  "Verne Lundquist, Ohio State goes............"you know the rest!   Best to all in your brackets!

Searching for the Holy Grail...again!

Decided to try some new fly boxes in an effort to consolidate and reorganize.  Somehow that never works and like most all of us, I end up with a gazillion boxes of all shapes, sizes and material bouncing around my kit bag!  The Flambeau "Blue Ribbon" twin boxes are the choice of the moment! 

The vertical friction foam technology is unique and the boxes are waterproof, a welcome feature after having dunked most every other fly box I've owned!  It specs at 160 flies...we'll see! I'm impressed with the construction, see thru lids and a nice tight latch.

For smaller stuff the Crystal Creek series sports a magnetic side and the same friction foam as above with a watertight gasket.

                                            

So far....so good. Maybe this IS the year for finally making sense of what patterns to carry... in what... and when! Two twins and a mag box do fit nicely in one compartment of the FP Guidepack below.