Thursday, September 17, 2015

Red Brook September 2015

We just got back from a few days of roaming the streams of Cape Cod in search of wild brook trout. These are also known as "salters" they are the sea-run variety who also find the the waters of the salt water bays to their liking. This stream is a favorite of mine, and I have fished it many times over the years. I first fished here at the time when the first dam on Red Brook was dismantled. This was an achievement which was to begin a restoration that would see all of the dams removed and open the brook to prime spawning areas and give these very unique brook trout a home.

The Lyman Reserve, a conserved area where Red Brook flows through is just as beautiful as the brook trout that call its waters home. There are wonderful pine trees which seem to dominate, mixed in are mini-oak with the smallest of acorns. As Jeanette said you could fish here all day and not catch a fish, and still be fulfilled.


Walking these woods trails after a cool night and seeing the dew on the oak leaves is a start to a day that will put most of your cares aside.


Red Brook....places as such will perhaps hold a brook trout, maybe two. It does hold the ability to captivate and to bring your mind into focus as to what Red Brook really means to those who have seen it.


The watercress that moves gently in the current can be a target that you'll never miss. An anglers fly will find these beautiful green blooms on many attempts to gain that right drift. But it's these areas that provide cover for the brook trout.


After turning over a few brook trout I was finally able to hook and bring to hand my first Red Brook trout to hand. The fish was stunning as it's colors showed through the watercress. The sun was in the right spot to enhance my pleasure.


The water was cold and a check of the stream proved just how cold it really was. Fifty four degrees, just as Jeanette said it would be.


Another wonderful pool. Red Brook is filled with such places, one more beautiful than the last.


A wild brook trout, maybe one that has been to the salt, or perhaps this maybe the first time he'll venture out. The trout was into it's fall coloration which are stunning.


This morning we were to meet members of the Massachusetts Fish and Wildlife, Trustees of the Reservations, Trout Unlimited, and The Sea-Run Brook Trout Coalition, who were about to do a stream survey. A very necessary task to check the health of Red Brook's "salters". The fishing would be not so good after the shocking so we headed for the bay to try our luck there.


Buttermilk Bay, and the mouth of Red Brook. More to come in the next post.



24 comments:

  1. Looks like an amazing trip Alan. It's great to see the trustees and MDFW doing such good work on the stream and the lands surrounding it.
    Will

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    1. Hibernation
      Thanks
      Will it truly was. But this is only part of what we were to see and enjoy. I think the four groups I listed, along with many volunteers have done incredible work on this stream-land and forest for these brook trout.

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    1. TexWisGirl
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      Theresa you would love it there.

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  3. My question (no answer needed) would be "Why dam up such a small creek", to what end? Somebody need a little pond on their property? Just doesn't make sense to me. Glad the removed them.

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    1. Mark Kautz-Shoreman
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      Mark the dams were used to back up water for the cranberry bogs. Cranberries are a big industry in southeast Mass. as well as the Cape. Dams caused the influx of warm water into the brook as well as so much sand, which is also used in the cranberry bogs.

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    2. Hi - Alan is right - the brook was dammed for a variety of reasons - mostly that area is very heavily cultivated with cranberry bogs and many different land owners and abutters would build water control structures to funnel water to the bogs. Virtually all of the headwaters are still functioning bogs which until just recently were under heavy cultivation. The Lyman family also dammed the brook to create fishing and casting pools - which while good for the fishermen, eventually these pools filled up with sediment and created thermal barriers to fish migration.

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  4. Very nice Alan, sounds like a wonderful trip

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    1. Mark
      Thanks
      Mark it's a beautiful and very unique place. We truly enjoyed ourselves.

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  5. Alan - This brook and some others have been on my mind lately. I just restarted a Tale of Two Rivers about two other salter rivers on the cape. Glad to see you have found some success there.

    Keith

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    1. Just Me
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      Keith, Ron Lasko's book is quite informative. I have fished The Quashnet before and did so this last week. I'll do a post on it as part of my visit to the Cape. I seem to do well when I visit, for one can't beat the streams as well as the rewards both in and out of the water.

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  6. A good history lesson mixed in with some fishy details is very rewarding. An awesome post!

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    1. Drew LooknFishy
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      Drew, there is some rich history in this area but not to well known. Might be a blessing.

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  7. Gorgeous brook trout in a unique and gorgeous stream. It sure is a difficult one to fish though! They are going to be doing some work in the headwaters soon to help prevent the sand from the headwater cranberry bogs from entering the stream. I believe some restoration and vegetation planting will be done as well to make the headwaters cooler because the stream actually gets cooler as it flows toward the ocean due to the headwater bogs. The people at SRBTC are great. I'm sure you met Warren and maybe Geof as well as Steve from MDFW. They do a great job. Look forward to your future posts on the cape.

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    1. RI brook trout
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      Jonathan tough is not the word, others might choose madness. I say it's well worth the effort.
      Yes I met the folks you mentioned and will do a report on the meeting in my next post.

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    2. Hi,

      Thanks for mentioning SRBTC - we owe many thanks to the Lyman family, the Trustees, Mass Wildlife, SE Mass TU, AD Makepeace, American Rivers, Mass DER, TU's Embrace-a-Stream and many other individuals, foundations and corporations who have donated their equipment, time and money to help make this happen.

      Read more about SRBTC's work at http://www.searunbrookie.org

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  8. God I just love the looks of all your waters.

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    1. Howard Levett
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      Howard they are so inviting, and so rewarding.

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  9. Another great trip to Red Brook..one of my favorite posts of all your postings..

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    1. penbayman
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      Mike I love it there. I also must give Maine's "salters" a shot one of these days.

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  10. Thanks for sharing your experience with some interesting Cape Cod locales. Would like to visit someday, and take up the challenge of those special trout.

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    1. Walt Franklin
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      Walt it is truly a gem. So delicate much as the brook trout that swim its waters.
      You would love it.

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  11. Alan
    These images are what makes the fly fishing worth while. Thanks for sharing

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    1. Bill Trussell
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      Bill this stream is so beautiful it almost shadows the beauty of the trout.

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