We here in New England are about to get whacked with our first taste of winter. They're calling for that lovely mixture of wintry precipitation and cold temps. So yesterday Mark, Kirk and I headed to a small stream to try and persuade a few wild guys to take the fly. The weather was supposed to be somewhat warmer than we were feeling, but still we were fishing. The stream was in good shape and I'm sure cold. I did not take a temp but I'll guess it was about 38. The first pool I came to I tossed a small streamer, because that's what I had on from a previous outing. After a few casts I took a hit, perhaps I picked the right fly...NOT. The next few pools brought nothing. I tied on a pink fly, one that Kirk refers to as "Pinkie". I stayed with that fly for the rest of the day and it was the right choice.
A couple of beautiful wild brookies who could not resist "Pinkie" As the day moved on The clouds rooled in and it felt as if it were getting colder. We made a decision to fish a different section of the stream and so we headed for it. Kirk and I fished this section before, but for Mark this was his first time here. I kind of think he liked this new section.
There comes a point on these cold days when the thought of "I'd pay 5 bucks for a hot cup of coffee" and this was a day I would do that.
This photo shows what early winter looks like on a small stream. Fishing a pretty swift run, not a place favored by brown trout, "Pinkie" was tossed out. As soon as the fly started to pickup speed a fish hit. I knew I had a solid hookup and the pull on the 2wt said it was a nice fish. How nice was realized as the brown came to hand.
A handsome wild brown. This was probably one of the 5 best browns I've had the pleasure of taking in this stream. There was a nice warm feeling as I walked back to my car.
