You have always
preformed to your specifications. You have never chattered and missed a beat.
You have traveled to Maine three times and all over the Great Lakes Region. You
weathered the Storm of the Century in Michigan during the Trout Smack Down in
the fall of 2010.You have never not
been there for me. I randomly selected you off the shelf and for me out of the
box you have done me proud.
Now the last
trip to the Great Lakes Region has you not preforming like you used to. Its my
fault the last trip to Maine I let you down. I let you get salt water in your
housing. It’s been a great ride from when I first purchased you approximately
20 years ago. You have landed 18# Lake
Trout and more smallmouth than I can remember.
I won’t let
you go out like a punk. I took you back to the Great Lakes Region and you
landed fish when others where floundering. Sure, you chattered and sputtered,
but you remained my go to reel for steel!
I will be
getting another reel, but their will be no other you.
Well New
York is always going to be New York. The weather well as you can imagine is
subject to change in a moments notice. You can get bluebird skies and a
nor’easter all in the same day. One always needs to plan for the weather. It does not matter if it’s the rain, wind, or
sun you are concerned about it needs to be thought of. With these anadromous
fish they are photo sensitive, and one needs to plan accordingly.
I choose New
York because of her long history with me being a very productive fall
fishery.This fall has been very
strange. Let discuss that point in detail.
In September
on the 11th through the 18th I was in Maine.It’s not a huge deal at this time but when I
went to Acadia the leaves had barely any color to them.They should not have been in full autumn splendor
but should have been a lot more color than there was.
The Great
Lakes Region would be plagued by high water temperatures. In September 2021
Ohio saw a few weeks of temperatures in the 80’s. Now this does not seem like a
big deal, but now let’s talk about over all Great Lake Temperatures.
I don’t need
to beat it to death to prove my point that these temperatures have added to the
lack luster returns of fish in the bodies of water we fish for them in. I could
go into a huge diatribe about this topic, but I will stop myself.
Back to the
trip report shall we. All the rivers and creeks are coming off a high-water
moment. In the past it weas my experience that this would transcend into good
number of fish entering the rivers, creeks, and ditches. I also want to travel
to all these rivers to see them and journal about the flows I found and the
visibility they had. I will use this data later down the road for other trips.
This will educate myself how the rivers would look at any given moment based
upon the data that I collect over these past 5 days.
Unknown to
me history would not be repeating itself and I would be in for an awakening
that I have not experience before.
I would
begin on the Thundering River the night I arrived in town. The river had 36
inches of gin clear conditions. She was holding color of that inky green like
some glacial run off in Alaska you see in a post card.
I swung
flies over and over trying to disprove thee very definition of insanity. To no
avail I would call it a night and head for the shed. I heard either small Browns
or Lakers breaking the surface about 15 feet to 20 feet away from me. For me it
is all about the experience that life brings in any given moment. I notice when
I can the difference in the splashes. Some splashes where bigger than others.
The odd thing was that all the splashes happened within the same 100 yards! So
I thought I would have a chance.
The first
full day of fishing aka Day 1 of 5
This day was
full of driving between the Thundering River and The Oak.
On the
Thundering River using a 10-foot tip of T-14 for 140 grains and 12-foot tip of
T-12 for 144 grains. I had not joy for either tip, but it was great to swing
the flies none the less.Her solid 6
feet of visibility had me all worked up!
The
second full day of fishing aka Day 2 of 5
Fished the
Oak and the Niagara again today. While I had two grabs on the swing on the Oak
the Niagara is the one, I want to so badly have a grab on.You could hear fish rolling, but I just could
not get them to commit or find them! This would also be the night I fell in the
Niagara! Thank goodness I was in shallow water and 15 feet from getting out of
the river. I was due to fall it’s been a while!
The third
full day of fishing aka Day 3 of 5
I would
venture out East of the Oak and find some nice new water. This flow was good
for bobbers, but the volume was not enough to swing. I could have done it with
lighter shorter tips, but I had my 7wt Scott Switch rod. Had I brought my
custom 11’ – 5wt switch it would have been better.
From all the
news I would hear I would find myself at Oak Orchard. My thought process was
after all the bad things I have heard about the runs of fish I am sure the
crowds would be gone from Oak Orchard.So,
I lined my Scott switch with a 126 grain tip and headed out. I was greeted by a
river that was almost VOID of people.It
was like winning the fishy lottery. I
would walk upriver right because I was willing to bet everyone was fishing the
Archers Hole side. Well, that paid off because most people don’t want to deal
with how tricky the footing can be with the clay on the banks.
I used my
new intruder that I have dubbed the Punk-Rock Cheerleader.
I worked through the
pool from atop of the pool. It was tough because of the broad current seams and
the strainers (downed trees) that are in the river. I do not recall how many
swings I did, but what I do recall was the bigger than normal belly I put into
the swing. This made the intruder lift higher in the water column and send a
brown trout screaming after it.
Carrying no loop,
the line slapped the rod and the drag kicked off and sent the hook deeper into
her flesh.She was not coming unbuttoned
with that hard of a take.The brown
trout did the good old bulldogging and washer machine tumble in the creek.
I thought to
myself if this had been a steelhead they would of not hesitated to put me into
the strainers.I would have been heart
broken for sure. I don’t know how exactly I navigated her around the strainers,
but I think it was because of the side pressure I had on her and keeping her
off balance I was able to manage.
The rest of
the day went along with no grabs or bumps.
Until this
point all I have eaten is pizza. It is great pie from a place called Favorites
here in Lewiston, Ny. Needless to I ate at the Brickyard here in Lewiston the
break the cycle.
The fourth
full day of fishing aka Day 4 of 5
The rains
have come over night and the Lake effect snow machine was getting warmed
up.I would be traveling to the easterly
state line to see how Chautauqua looks. She was up and cranking along and I
moved up stream about 5 river miles. I found her to still have a lot of sand
and silt in her water column.
I did also
find how ever a natural shale dam in the river. Also speaking of shale and the
creek bottom is made of it. This would also mean this creek will clear fast
because of it. There is a lot of elevation difference between the upper and
lower creek. This is yet another variable that we as creek fishermen need to be
aware of.
I thought to
myself this will be fun. Then I looked at the water again and saw all the red
oak leaves. I rolled my eyes and then I attempted to fish it and because of the
leaves I stopped it was too much. I took a break and went into a town called
Westfield in New York. The place I had breakfast in was called Westfield Main
Street Diner. This place is amazing, but I warn you the bathroom facilities are
in a closet. Its just a small mom and pop diner. The food is amazing, and they
are good people. The portions are great, and the price point is great to
average.
After eating
my brunch, I went back to the natural dam. I foul hooked two fish broke them
both off and left the area. The fish were staked in there tight with no room to
run except into each other or downstream. It to me was not very sporting to
keep targeting these fish. I drove to see 16 Mile and 20 Mile Creek in
Pennsylvania.
The winds
were so nasty the tops of creeks were flowing backwards.It was too much even for me I bolted for the
safety of the hotel room. My face was so wind burned and is still feeling a
little bit of it right now.
The fifth
full day of fishing aka 5 of 5
Saturday
well the crowds will be out in full force today.I went to the Oak just to look, and it was a
nut house. I left and went East to smaller creek that had gotten a great shot
of rain from the other day. I had 6 access points to look at and all of them
had a lot of ppl on them.I found a dam
that stops all the anadromous fish. I went there to fish it well try and
anyhow. It would be a great place to go fish during high water, but at this
moment it was low water being almost 27 miles from the lake.
By the time I got to see the damn dam I could
fall back and fish the first access point on this Eastern tributary of Lake
Ontario.I would be using bobbers and
eggs for this go around. I also had planned on going back to the Oak for the
last 2 hours of day light.
The water
was moving better than the last time I was here a few days ago.The water had a solid 18 inches of clarity to
it.I did not want to swing this creek
because I knew with the runs of fish being so small that targeting holding and
feeding lanes for these fish would be more productive.
I would
never get to fish because I saw a father and son team working some of the water
I wanted to fish. I watched them and they were having a good time, but where
really on the struggle bus. I broke my rod down and introduced myself and asked
if they would mind a few helpful tips and such? They said you would help us. I
said of course I would be happy too.After I got the leaders, all straightened out, the placement of the split
shot, and the wight of the split shot figured out with them. I went over some
roll casting basics. I also helped them with some reading water basics to help
them understand what the creek waters hydraulics are trying to show us and
teach us.
I told them
about how you want the bobber to tick along the creek bottom like the lead
holding the fly down. I told them have fun and take care. I disappeared around
river right and heard one of them scream in delight. I am guessing one of them
hooked up with a fish. It was meant to be for them and not me and I am totally
fine with that.
I drove to
the oak and stayed on river right again. I would finally get to fish. I was
there maybe 45 minutes and then the bobber went kerplunk. It stayed motionless
for a minute. I thought no dear God no not an oldy moldy Salmon! No alas it was
not it was a buck brown. He put up a short fight and came to hand. The one guy said,
“son you have landed the only brown I have seen today out of this hole”. I said
thank you but if it was not for dumb luck, I would not have any luck at all. The buck took a size 14 pink single egg tied
on my most favorite hook a Tiemco 2488H.
I walked out
of the Oak with smile on my soul because this trip has brought me so much joy
on so many levels. Well, I hope you have enjoyed this write up and the photos.
Administrative & Logistics = Use a 127 Grain tip of T-14
Command & Control = Be patient and hopefully the fish will be near shore
I fished the Oak today no joy. I fished farther East no joy again. This is all part of it. Be patient and good things could happen.
Be well and have a safe n happy holiday season,
Sonder
Well here is an update. Tonight I learned the fish are feeding on smelt. I also was reminded that thier are two types of fly fisherman. One who have fallen and ones who will fall lol. I took a minor spill tonight in the river. This was long over due for me. It was a reminder that we are not invincible. Be safe out there folks
We have spoken about planning fishing trips on here. I will admit that my OCD and other variables drive me to plan for anything. As you fine folks on here know it's steelhead season around the Great Lakes Region. For me a successful trip has many measurable moments that can make or break a trip.
A person needs to understand some of these variables and plan accordingly. Here is an example let's talk about water levels and water clarity.
We as steelheaders yearn for emerald color water n 14-18" of visibility. We want flows you can swing, nymph, and or bobber fish.
When I plan a trip the trip revolves around number one for me is the water levels. What I mean is the amount of volume in any given stream, creek, crick, ditch, river, and or water course.
How high or low her water level is or going to be sets me up for how she will fish.
lol judge me if you will, but I do not enjoy dry fly fishing because I have zero patience for it. The reason I state that is I do not honestly know if these same flows work for dry fly fishing.
I'm always using full sinking, weight forward with lead/bobber, and Skagit style lines.
Back to my planning help post. There up on the South Shore of Lake Ontario she's got a lot of water in her ground, aquifers, and in the water shed. The types of the bodies of water will vary in when they will be prime and or fishable.
This is always a point in my planning that I make sure of that I address. This is also why I NEVER plan only to fish one body of water. I make it a plan to fish several bodies of water so that I can potentially better the odds of having a productive trip.
Since I enjoy planning, this means spending hours mapping out access. This also means looking at what the body of water drains through. Is the drainage in an urban area, farmland, or a mixture of both?
Does this body of water have a USGS site? If it does have one what have the flows been like?
I go and look at local GIS sites, Google Earth Pro, and Google Maps to understand the Topography. I also do this to ensure I do not willfully trespass on anyone's property.
In this trip planning I have done I have concentrated my efforts to fish between Pulaski - Westfield NY.
The idea behind this trip planning comes from when, what tributaries will fish best, or which one will fish first. Its is always a roll of the dice when trying to figure any of this out, but prior planning prevents poor performance. I do not want to fail because of anything I did not do to front load the trip. If my trip is a bust because of lack of fish, the weather, no grabs, no takes, and or no hook-ups I will be totally fine with that.
I just hope that through my above rambling anyone can pick up a tip or trick to help them on their next trip.
Looks like mother nature is making every attempt to spoil my plans. I will cover every ditch, creek, stream, and river to give my trip the best chance of success. I'm not saying it won't be tough, but I'm going to front load it as possible. It's better to be proactive vs reactive.
For traveling here are some nice current condition websites for NY and Oh
The water temperatures from what I
have heard from friends all over have been higher than normal this year. These links
will show how now the Great Lakes are finally cooling down so we can see the
runs of fish in the tributaries we are used to seeing.
I will summarize the runs are behind
and the numbers are down down!
Back to the trip story sorry for the
long in the tooth weather stuff, but it all plays a part. Friday night I staged
all the gear at the door to wait deployment. I took my twohanded stuff and an eggbeater.
The Scott switch rod would be my go-to for this trip.
This next part of my outing I am going
to write about tears apart my soul truly at the fiber of my heart for me to
even talk about. I arrived at one of the public access points on the Thundering
River and saw twenty-four cars! I said to myself this must be a joke. I went up
to the hoods of the other cars and they were ice cold. These vehicles have been
here so long the engines are cold. There is no way in hades all these people
are down there I said to myself. Then four other cars showed up and they said
good morning to me and responded in kind.
I said how long has this been going on.
I know the runs of fish are bad all over, but this looks like the parking lot
at Wal-Mart. They chuckled and said it has been a while since you have been
here or is this your first time? I said no I am old, and I laughed and have
been away from here fishing during prime time for a few years, but it was never
this peoplie.
They went on to tell me what YouTube videos
and Instagram commandoes with all their hero shots have down to bring awareness
to this river.
I finished gearing up and I said I
might be back lol and I walked the mile walk to see how bad is bad. I dropped
down off the bank and saw no one up stream yet. Now mind you it is still dark and
sun-up was not for another hour.
I rounded another point on the river
and there I saw it dimly lit head lamps. Then as I go closer other people
started to turn on their headlamps. They even stated to spot me with theirs. I said
to myself well gents that is not nice but ok. I used a Princeton Tec Apex Series
head lamp. I was using the seventy lumens setting and traversing the slick as
snot rocks and river. Then I realized they are wanting me to see where they
are. Lol So I turned on my high spot setting and went to 550 lumens so I could
see them on. Night turned into day and a lot of them turned off their lamps. I turned
down my head lamp and let out a huge sigh. The sigh was my soul leaving my
body. I was shocked to see people every ten feet on center and lined up though
all the beautiful water in this spot. Now could I have pressed on and found
other holding water sure. In knowing this river as well as I do, I decided to leave
broken hearted. Before I left the two gentleman that I walked up on and coincidentally
did not but their head lamps on me said Hey friend if you want to fish next to
us you can stay.
I said that’s truly kind of you folks to
offer. We had an enjoyable conversation about the glory days and other people
we have met here on the river. Even a story about the local high school hockey teams
that would have pony keg parties and launch those kegs off the cliffs after the
parties were over! Always a fun time on the Thundering River.
So, feeling beaten down, but not out I
walked back to my car. The guys where walking down to the river and I told them
good luck and be well. They said the same nice to meet you and pressed on.
As a result of this I will not be fishing
the lower river on the south shore after this season. I will be getting my
passport over winter and going to fish the north shore and be in peace once again.
I arrived atop the gorge and here the elevation
is 535 feet, and the bottom elevation is 321 feet and with I am guessing five
hundred stairs that masons have over the decades have replaced and repaired. When
I was younger these would not a big deal and now needless to say I am a little
slower. The scenery is always breath taking here as you can see by the photos. You
must be mindful not to trip and take your time because you will get hurt if you
fall. It’s not like rock hopping in the salt, but with all the lichens and
water we will just say be safe.
I arrived at her shore and the gulls
(sky rats) where singing their songs. The feed bag was on for these sky rats. I
am guessing they had some type of shad kill and as you can tell from the photos
and the video it was an epic moment for them.
I would come to a part of the river I
have always called it deaths door. These rocks have been falling for as long as
I can recall. Now the erosion has exposed a cave! I am not sure of the size of
the exposed cave, but you can hear water running through it! From my vantage
point the cave looked big enough to house a mobile home! I pressed on because you
will have zero reaction time when another rock lets loose. These are the safety
issues we as outdoorsman need to be aware of aka situational awareness.
I pressed onto which must be one of
the most dangerous places to fish on her. This place is about 1200 feet down
stream of one the world’s most know places on the river. This classic Class V
rapid has a great slot at the head of it and can be epic. All one needs to do
is not slip in the water because if you do it will not go well!
I lined the rod with a new intruder I
had tied the week before. With the river having three feet of clarity and still
that inky green, emerald color I went with pink over white. I covered the water
short first and with a 112-grain tip but would switch out to a 133-grain tip of
T-14 being 9.5 feet long. At about the seventh cast my line would snap taunt. When
have all had this happen. I do not well I try not to carry a loop and let and
let my drag work for me right off the bat.
TFN from the previous post has used a two-handed
rod in both hemispheres and he convinced me I will lose less fish if I do not carry
a loop.
The fish would be a steelhead and
without hesitation come to head shake at the rivers surface. He then proceeded
to head back to Lake Ontario, and I could not turn him before he got the Class V
rapid. I will be as happy as a lark and for me just hooking that one fish was
good enough for me.
I would start my walk out of the gorge
and head to another river. I was thinking while on my walk with the run of fish
being so bad this year, I would be willing to bet that Oak Orchard would have
all the people at the dam and almost void of people on the creek!
Yes that's the Archer's Hole above with one person in it!
Yes that's the Road Hole with two people on River Left
This situation has happened to me before
it is NOT the norm, but it has happened. This time I have photo proof. By the
time I got out of the gorge and walked up the Stairmaster from hell it was 0945.
I pointed my car east and an hour later I was rewarded with the sight of
sights.
As you can clearly see the Road Hole
had two anglers in it on the south bank and Archers Hole had one person in its Winner
Winner Chicken Dinner! On another disturbing note I saw less than a dozen dead
salmon while traversing the creek. This is yet another sign of the poor returns
of fish.
I swung the Road Hole after changing
my tip to 112 grains of T-14 and being eight feet long. I was grabbing weeds
and it was annoying, but it is all part of the game. I then moved up to the
Archers Hole and the one person who was fishing said its all yours we are
leaving. His crew had been sitting the pavilion for awhile I guess watching
him.
I started with the tip I had on and
then I saw a green moldy salmon rise. I thought to myself I do not want to hook
one of those. I changed my tip to eighty grains of T-14 and being almost five
and three quarters feet long.
My thought process was trout will feed
up. I will swing over the oldie Moldies head and just maybe I could get one to
rise.
I fan casted downstream and would step
down stream. I would step two side-steps and cast short, middle river, and then
close to the other bank. The Water had an extremely dark tannin brown/red color
to it. It was eerie just like for those who have ever been to Michigan can
attest to it is a little unnerving, but you get used to it.
I did this four times and returned to
do it a fifth time. The scene was set in motion and what I did not know is the
chance just the chance to hook a fish would become a reality. By myself in the Archers
Hole on 11.14.2021 with good flow a steelhead would rise! Carrying no loop but
with a moderate drag setting the line slapped the rod and the gentle sweep of
the tube fly mid-way through the run. She never broke the water, but I could
tell it was a steelhead or brown just from the washer machine tumble they do in
the water. For those who do not know what I am referring it its when a fish brings
their tail towards their face to the left and to the right and does not swim. This
is all happened under the water, and they are trying to dislodge the hook.
I applied side pressure to keep her
off balance and soon to hand I hoped. When I did not know is how well she would
be hooked. That hook would be in the roof of her mouth right between her
nostrils. That size 2 Owner needle point hook stuck her and there would be no coming
unbuttoned today.
I have had enough of the Oak and went
to go fish another tributary, but from Lake Erie instead working my way home!
The weather was foul but great for
steelhead fishing. I had snow squalls, rain, more snow, and yet wait for it
more rain!
Well, it is a part of it but when the
leaves fall, and it rains it creates one of the toughest things to fish through!
I call it the “Leaf Hatch.” These leaf’s
range in size from ten inches to eighteen inches across and while they fun for
a minute they are annoying. The creek was slate gray from all the sediment in
the water column but had twelve inches of visibility. I fished a swingable run
for thirty minutes and I had to concede to mother nature.
With the new snow on the ground I could
see footprints. I knew I was not alone. I would not leaf (lol) because of this
one set of footprints because I knew this Leaf Hatch would have me leaving soon.
I caught a glimpse of this fellow fly fisherman. I could tell just from his stature
and his shiny new gear he was new to the sport.
I approached him with respect and asked
him how he was doing. He exclaimed “I just started fly fishing and I have no
idea what I am doing!”.
I asked him would you mind if I looked
and helped you out? I introduced myself and helped his with his rig. Like most
steelheaders they start with bobbers, lead split shot, and tandem flies. With
his regular dry fly weight forward fly line for his six-weight fly rod he was understandably
struggling. I gave him a large, slotted ice fishing float.
I spent an hour with him. We went over
knots and reading water in that section he was fishing. Come to find out he is
a Veteran and a Leatherneck. He was grateful and I gave him my contact info and
said as time goes by reach out to me with questions you may have. I would be
happy to help.
The trip home was nerve racking
between the blinding snow and rain. All the ditches are filled with water. The
flat land had water just sitting on top and not going anywhere. The runoff from
this will last a long time and will add to the sustained flows to the
surrounding creeks and rivers. This will make or break my Thanksgiving week
trip.
