Wednesday, January 15, 2014

A woodland blue line, January in Connecticut

Monday felt like an early Spring day as I started my walk to this little blue line. The ground was already well into a thaw and the mud some what slippery. The sun can do magic where it shines first and stays long. The stream itself was in prime condition, water flows were very good and the usual deep holes were full. The stream was for the most part ice free with the unusual stretch or two of thick ice along the edge, perhaps because it flows though a valley, or the stream here does not receive its share of sun for a long period.


Lots of nice color, or absence of color in this case. There were signs of green in a few ferns. I know it's only January and in New England these days are few.


We fished the stream and remarked how slow the catching was. There were a few, but far from the norm on a day like this. A few flies were noticed, by us and seemingly not by the fish. It was getting towards midday, and Kirk had to leave. walked with him out, and had plans of fishing another section. On the way out we fished a few "nice" spots, just in case.


In one of those "nice" spots I found this willing guy still in color.


Frayed nerves, perhaps icicles.


I came upon this pool, where in the past I have spooked fish but have never taken one. It's tough to fish it effectively and most times I fail. Well I noticed what appeared to be several trout rising right up close to the bank. There were small stone flys about and this was what they were eating. I tied on a caddis and after many tries I got the fly to drift close enough to where the fish ere feeding. Suddenly a fish rose and took the fly. As I worked the fish to me I could see it was a nice, unfortunately a poorly tied knot gave way and the fish went south.

After changing tippet, I noticed another trout rising in the area where I just hooked up. I tied on a Adams parachute and tried to drift it close to the rising fish. One of those tries I accomplished this and the fish responded and the 2wt did its job. In a few moments a wild brook trout was at hand. "Thanks"






36 comments:

  1. Alan

    extraordinary still-photography!!...I love that last one.....a milk-weed was it?....just >>STUNNING<<...I must say...

    no wonder this is the very 1st blog that I read in the morning cuz I know i'll start my day with a sense of worth...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. flyfisher1000,
      Thanks.
      Milk weed I'm not certain, but it looked good so I took a pic.
      I'm glad my blog helps you start the day off in a good frame of mind.

      Delete
  2. Hey man, nice post!! I'm happy your taking advantage of the mild weather.

    Good stuff.............Phil

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. DRYFLYGUY,
      Thanks.
      Phil today was even nicer, oh that payback.

      Delete
  3. i LOVE the colors of winter! so gorgeous!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. TexWisGirl,
      Thanks.
      Winter, water, woodlands can be stunning.

      Delete
  4. Alan
    I am still trying to figure out what the trout relate the pinkie to? Those are some beautiful shots of the surroundings and of course the brook trout as well. Thanks for sharing

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Bill Trussell,
      Thanks.
      Bill I think they are aquatic worms. They do strike them with gusto.

      Delete
  5. Nice Job guys!! I am jealous. Beautiful pictures Al!!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. TROUT1,
      Thanks.
      Pete you should see what went on today, dries, dries...........and some more dries.

      Delete
  6. Hi Buddy. Great post as always. I seem to have lost my links, could you would you just send me a comment just to see if it's still working please?

    Thanks Richard.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Flyfisherman.Richard,
      Thanks.
      I'll do that for you.

      Delete
  7. Beautiful fish!!

    Eunan

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Eunan,
      Thanks.
      They still were in fall colors.

      Delete
  8. I hope you're taking advantage today! After the black ice and fog departed, it feels like a spring day!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Swamp Yankee,
      Thanks.
      We were back at it today, different stream, good results on dries.

      Delete
  9. Nice pictures Alan, looks like it was a fine day to be out on the stream.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. brian,
      Thanks.
      That it was, and today was nicer. Winter will be back though.

      Delete
  10. Nice job Alan! Finding fish rising to dries in January is a special treat indeed !

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Mark,
      Thanks.
      Today was even better. Took 5 brookies from one pool on a dry.

      Delete
  11. That looks to have been a very fun and productive day! So glad for this mild weather.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. RM Lytle,
      Thanks.
      You have got to love weather like this.

      Delete
  12. Beautiful shots Alan! I really like that first one , makes me want to get out and hit one of my favorite little blue-lines the next opportunity I get.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. HighPlainsFlyFisher,
      Thanks.
      That would be great, you deserve it.

      Delete
  13. Great pics. I'm impressed with the camera (in your hands, of course).

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. RKM,
      Thanks.
      It's so much more than I expected. I just can't wait 'til I learn how to use it.

      Delete
  14. Amazing pictures & beautiful fish even in January! I tried up some of those Pinkie flies to try next weekend in NH. I am wondering, do you think the Pinkie imitates anything the fish feed on regularly or is it purely an attractor pattern?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Robert William Abdu,
      Thanks.
      The pinkie seems to work best in winter. I think it resembles some type of aquatic worn, that the trout see.

      Delete
  15. I am so envious of you! All of my Small Stream scouting has resulted in Creek Chubs or Suckers, nothing else. I have one stream I hold dear to me, but I am always so frustrated about how there's nothing I can really do to protect it from urbanization, development, and storm drains. Hate the things, and they're so contradictory to their purpose, which is basically to prevent floods by taking all the water and making another flood somewhere where people aren't, as well as flushing litter, winter road treatment chemicals, and all sorts of negative materials into a fragile ecosystem! Well, ranting on the internet doesn't do anything to change it (though the local Trout Unlimited might). Anyway, greetings from Fairfield County, CT! Tight lines.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Flyfi Sherman,
      Thanks.
      Unfortunately road salt, lawn chemicals, and such are here to stay. We have to hope the streams can filter these out naturally. Letters to TU can help.

      Delete
  16. I can always come over here and know what to expect. Beautiful photography! Job well done. Love the brookies. = )

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The River Damsel,
      Thanks.
      Emily enjoy your visits here at SSR, I enjoy your visits and your comments are always appreciated.

      Delete
  17. Looks like a productive and beautiful winters day....that pink fly is a real wonder.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Kiwi,
      Thanks.
      For mid January you can't beat it, pinkie included.

      Delete
  18. You hit pay dirt with the pinkie again Brk Trt..beautiful day for you and beautiful fish..

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. penbayman,
      Thanks.
      At times the pinkie is all that will work.

      Delete