Those hemlocks again

Here in the northeast have been blessed with some substantial rains over the last week. This rainfall has been a big plus in the to the anglers who fish small streams. These streams will rise very swiftly, filling to the brim, and almost as fast as they come up they recede. Fishing can be pretty good a few days after such an event, it seems to move fish around and take their fears down a notch.

This was the case one day last week for me. The stream was about perfect. The weather was a close second, the only problem was there was no breeze at all, real still. This prompted those tiny midges to fly about your face and become a pain in the a#*. That aside I tied on that cream colored parachute the one with the red underbody. This fly has been working so very well the last few weeks, and this day was no exception.

In this stream it seems that if there is a hemlock close to the water there's a good chance there will be a brook trout in hiding. And that was the case today.

The parachute didn't stand a chance this day.

Wild perfection.

Ant patterns are know to bring very selective trout to the surface, not so selective trout crush them. The only problem with fishing ants is they can't be seen to the angler. I picked up this ant pattern up last week in the Catskills. It's foam which makes it float well, plus it has a white tip that makes it very visible.

This ant fished well in various water types, fast, slow and it even worked as it got sucked under.

These brookies were fooled by the "top hat ant".
As I write this the weatherman is calling for rain today, perhaps an inch plus. Hopefully I'll be able to get in a couple hours on the stream before it starts, if not that's OK by me, for I'll take the rain and so will the trout.

I used to be able to eat this sandwich three times a week. Since happenings a year or so ago I might enjoy this three times a year. Well one of those three times came the other day. Local kielbasa, sauerkraut and onion on "Pittsfield Baking Co. rye bread.

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There's so much more to it.

We paid a visit to the Catskills last week. While walking along the fields and streams we were given the opportunity to see nature putting on a color show. The flowers of late spring are absolutely beautiful. I hope you will enjoy.

In The Ferns

After some decent rains I hit a small stream to do some angling. The sun was shining ever so bright, but the thick canopy and the green ferns, some of which were three feet high made for a less stealthy approach and some wonderful fishing. And by the way a slight breeze held the little flying, buzzing creatures in check.

The brookies were very hungry and wasted no time in taking my flies. They were taken in both riffles and the tails and heads of pools.

"Tumbledown Creek"

Tumbledown Creek is the name given by me for this little sweetheart of a stream. Jeanette and I love the views offered us along it's path. We generally visit Tumbledown in the fall because of the outstanding colors that this area has. The other reason for visiting in Autumn is that the snakes that seem to find the creek to be special have gone into hiding.

One day last week Jeanette suggested we take a walk through the forest that is home to the creek. This was not a fishing outing but a visit to just take it all in. I must confess though that the fly rod and a single box of flies was taken. Being midweek and with school still in session we were pretty much alone with the exception of a hiker and a mountain biker.

You can see why I call it Tumbledown Creek. There are places that are very tough.

Another name for the creek could be "Blowdown Creek"

There are those places where an angler can access the stream with relative comfort. One could also find a willing trout to make the day.

You could become "quiet deaf" sitting along the woodland creek. The birds, breeze, and the sounds of the water as it moves to meet it's destiny can have that wonderful effect.

I found a willing few combatants to also make the experience so much more pleasurable.

See you again in Autumn.

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