Wednesday, October 24, 2018

Foliage above and below, Thanks Mr. Betters

The fall foliage here in Connecticut has been a bit late. I estimate it to be about a week or so behind. There are some single trees that are just gorgeous but the fully dressed views are a few days away. The streams continue to be almost peak, and for this time of year they are exceptional. Clarity is awesome and there are times when you can see a trout strike a fly.



The stream here is about as clear as it can get. Leaves can be seen all along the bottom as well as floating in the current. Casting dry flies can be problematic in that they tend to snag the floating leaves, this is called the "leaf hatch". In the photo I cast a dry fly and let it drift. As it passed the branch I saw movement from the side of the stream. A second later one of the colored leaves made a run for the fly. It turned out to be a brookie.


One of the most beautiful leaves I'll catch this October.


The fly I used, it has several fall colors. It also has a lot of Fran Betters influence it it.




So with that fly, along with the natural leaf camo I was able to catch a few that day. Have a great day folks.








26 comments:

  1. Lovely trout, Alan. They do get dressed up for the spawn, eh?

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    1. William Shuck
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      Bill they are determined not to be out done.

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  2. Well done Alan! Glad to see you enjoying the "glorious season"

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    1. Mark Wittman
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      Mark the season is here and it dosen't last long.
      Must enjoy.

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  3. Alan
    Love the white tips on the fins; the brook trout tops the list when it comes to color among the trout species. Our fall foliage is weeks behind you guys there. Thanks for sharing

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    1. Bill Trussell
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      Bill those white tips are the remains of the last ice age, so I'm told. A lovely season to be outdoors, north or south.

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  4. Another great day in the Northeast.

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    1. Mark Kautz
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      Mark these days don't last long. Cold weather is on the doorstep.

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  5. lovely fish again Alan, I am so envious we dont have these wild in UK.

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    1. George
      Thanks
      George the brook trout is a fish that has been introduced in many countries. Why not the UK.

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  6. I am glad to see you are having a fine fall fishing season, Alan. I appreciate seeing the beautiful photos of your outings. As Bill pointed out above, those white tipped fins are really something.

    Best, Sam

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    1. Parachute Adams
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      Sam it has been quite a season so far. This morning it feels like early December. Perhaps those ivory tipped fins are telling us something.....Go Sox.

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    2. Love this Sox team this year, Alan, and the way Cora manages them. This year has been fun to watch, and I've watched them plenty. 2 more W's to go.

      I just received my latest TU magazine and there is a fascinating article about a study of brook trout in a watershed on the border of New Hampshire and Maine. According to this study, the brookies travel a lot more than we would have imagined, one swam 75 miles from its small stream to a big river...and back! Many winter over in a big lake that downstream. I will scan and email the article to you if you don't get that magazine and would like to read it.

      Regards, Sam

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    3. Sam, I recieved my TU magazine and glanced through it. I saw the article you speak of and will read it soon. I have a research book done by the State of Maine several years ago, and in that book it also tells of some incredible treks these brook tout take.

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  7. Hi Alan
    Wonderful autumn colours in those pictures.
    In the uk last week the BBC broadcast a series of programmes from New England showcasing the fall on your side of the pond. It really was a fantastic watch.
    Brooke’s have been stocked in many waters here in the uk with various degrees of success - in some waters they just disappear whilst in others they are all caught and fished out quite quickly. There a few hill lakes (Llyns) in Wales where they were stocked in the 60’s & 70’s and have become naturalised.
    Thanks
    Alistair

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    1. Alistair Corbishley
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      Alistair it is so beautiful here right now. So the brook trout has been stocked in the UK. Another question would be are char which the brook trout are one in the same, native to the UK?

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    2. Alan
      We have Artic Char here in the UK, both natural and stocked in a few 'put and take fisheries'. The natural char are actually several closely related species, at least three but possibly as many as ten(?) depending on which authority you believe in.
      They are most common in Scotland and the Lake District but are also present in a few waters in Wales as well. I have never caught char, the wild mainly inhabit the depths of deep, cold lakes, lochs and llyns or are stocked into small lake / pond fisheries (which I do not frequent!) but I have seen them on a fish mongers slab in the in the Lake District (they are a local speciality there).
      Thanks
      Alistair

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    3. Alistair I thought that char would be present in some your waters. I'm told that the flesh of these fish is red and quite delectable.

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  8. Beautiful fish, Alan. The proportions on that first fish are impressive. Glad to see you've still got color; all I've got up here is snow. The grouse hunting here has been fantastic.

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    1. mike
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      Mike these fish are real healthy and that's great. The snow I can wait for, no hurry. It's great to hear of the success your having with grouse. I have not taken to the woods yet.

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  9. Wonderful post and gorgeous fish!
    Any chance you could post he recipe for that bit of orange goodness?

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    1. Jedidiah Green
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      Jedidiah, here it is. Hook Mustad 9671 #14, Body rusty orange Australian opossum, wing is calf body hair, hackle is grizzly and brown, thread, orange.

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    2. Thank you. I'll have to see how their Southern cousins like that offering!

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    3. Jedidiah, I'll bet they will take to it like there northern brethren. Let us know.

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  10. Alan,
    This post is just awesome! The colors, the clarity, the beauty, and the brookies! What a combination! When do they actually spawn? (in your latitude that is. I know it varies from one longitude to another.) Have you witnessed this event? I would imagine that conditions need to be just right for this act to happen!
    Curious George the Monkey

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    1. Dougsden
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      Doug they are spawning now in certain streams. I think the triggers are low light at this time of year and water temps. I have seen and recorded spawning but lost it in the computer crash.

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