So, I caught a native brookie on a black midge yesterday

[MTSkiBum 1,593]

22 minutes ago, HTH said:

Hey, 

I'm mostly a salt water guy.  But, I'd love to get more into fly fishing.

I spent most of Saturday getting my boat ready again. We moved it to a marina fairly close to my house. 

I am excited to get my wife and kids on the water. 

We are storing the boat on clear lake, the fishing is not very good but this spot was chosen for our wives. 

There are 7 different restaurants with docks on the lake that we can pull up and eat.

We can fish for an hour, eat lunch at a restaurant, fish another hour, and still get home at a decent time.

 

[fricker66 91]

After a battle with COVID and a few weekend obligations, I finally got out on a designated conservation stream yesterday and caught about 3 dozen trout in fast, cool waters on dry flies.  It doesn't get much better.  I had several fish go airborne taking my fly, and all the fish were super-aggressive.  

The area I fished holds a lot of wild trout, and the State supplements the population periodically.  It is all catch and release, so the population remains pretty strong absent poachers.   I caught several brook trout and 1 brown trout, neither of which has been stocked in NJ in years.  The remainder were rainbows, and I'd say more than half were probably native.   The air temp was in the upper 80s, but water temps are still in the upper 50s, so it was prime yesterday.

Also, my onions are growing like mad.  

[fricker66 91]

4 trout early this morning today at a stream 10 minutes from my house.  I didn't even know trout lived in this stream.  I was fishing for sunnies with a dry fly and boom! -- 4 trout within about 20 casts.  All were caught on a size 18 blue wing olive.  I figure that they must have traveled about a mile upstream from a local lake that was stocked back in April.  I was not carrying a net (figuring that I would just catch sunnies) and the last trout deposited the hook into my thumb as I took out the fly.  I am not a pu$$y, so I took my foreceps, pulled the hook out of my thumb, and started casting again.   All trout were safely released back into the stream. 

[MTSkiBum 1,593]

I have been fishing a few times recently, some fresh water fishing with just some pitifully snall bass and catfish to show for it and some saltwater fishing with just sharks and catfish.

I have not had a good day fishing in a long while.

I am due.

[fricker66 91]

Went fishing on July 4th.  It was a cool morning, so water temps dropped to a safe zone for catch-and-release trout in the conservation zone where I like to fish.  When I arrived at the stream just after dawn, water temp was at 59 degrees and waters were crystal clear.   Water levels are very low right  now, and the trout are all huddling in various pools.  I fished exclusively dry flies and landed about 12-15 trout in the first two hours, including a 23-inch beast caught on a size 18 Royal Wulff fly.  Along with that very small hook, I was using a 3-wt rod and 6x tippet (superlight tackle for that sized fish), so I had to give that fish some room, but I did get it to net.  If I had caught that fish in swifter water, it would have certainly broken off.  The fish had a heron or eagle bite on its shoulder, so once I got it back into the stream, I saw it several more times swiftly moving about the pool where I caught it.  This gave me some comfort that I had not worn it out during our fight.   The pool where I caught it was stuffed with trout, and with the clear water, I would estimate that I could see up to 100 trout swimming in that pool at any given moment on Monday.   There were other guys trying to nymph that hole, and they were not having near as much success as I was having with the dries.

As the day progressed, I caught another 10-12 trout  in various locations and then decided to head home once the water temp had reached 68.  Most of the trout were anywhere between 12-15 inches.  All fish were safely released.  

[MTSkiBum 1,593]

14 minutes ago, fricker66 said:

Went fishing on July 4th.  It was a cool morning, so water temps dropped to a safe zone for catch-and-release trout in the conservation zone where I like to fish.  When I arrived at the stream just after dawn, water temp was at 59 degrees and waters were crystal clear.   Water levels are very low right  now, and the trout are all huddling in various pools.  I fished exclusively dry flies and landed about 12-15 trout in the first two hours, including a 23-inch beast caught on a size 18 Royal Wulff fly.  Along with that very small hook, I was using a 3-wt rod and 6x tippet (superlight tackle for that sized fish), so I had to give that fish some room, but I did get it to net.  If I had caught that fish in swifter water, it would have certainly broken off.  The fish had a heron or eagle bite on its shoulder, so once I got it back into the stream, I saw it several more times swiftly moving about the pool where I caught it.  This gave me some comfort that I had not worn it out during our fight.   The pool where I caught it was stuffed with trout, and with the clear water, I would estimate that I could see up to 100 trout swimming in that pool at any given moment on Monday.   There were other guys trying to nymph that hole, and they were not having near as much success as I was having with the dries.

As the day progressed, I caught another 10-12 trout  in various locations and then decided to head home once the water temp had reached 68.  Most of the trout were anywhere between 12-15 inches.  All fish were safely released.  

 

That is a good day fishing.

[MTSkiBum 1,593]

On 6/17/2022 at 8:20 PM, MTSkiBum said:

I have been fishing a few times recently, some fresh water fishing with just some pitifully snall bass and catfish to show for it and some saltwater fishing with just sharks and catfish.

I have not had a good day fishing in a long while.

I am due.

I have fished another ~25 hours since this post and just trash fish. 

I have quite the drought going.

[fricker66 91]

1 hour ago, MTSkiBum said:

 

That is a good day fishing.

You would have loved it.  Because the water was so clear, it was easy to sight-fish...you could see the trout hovering in the current and rising from depth when they hit.  Some of the smaller ones hit with tremendous velocity...one actually went fully airborne as he hit my fly.  The big fish actually gave the least fight.

That said, the fish were initially picky, so it took a few fly changes to figure out what the trout were looking for.  In the end, small dries with orange/red in the coloring seemed to be drawing their attention. While I got some action landing dries softly in the correct spot in swift current, most of my success was slowly pulling soft hackle dry flies cross-current just under the surface in slower, deeper pools.  Once I changed to that look/technique/location, I caught a lot of fish.  I have this river pretty well-scouted for where the fish tend to go when water conditions are low, so I know 6 really good spots within a mile walk that are usually productive.  I caught fish in all 6 locations on Monday which means I had the right strategy going, which is not always the case.

Sorry to hear about your drought.  I had a frustrating spring, but it has been a lot of fun since late May.   I hope you get more variety your next time out.

[MTSkiBum 1,593]

1 minute ago, fricker66 said:

You would have loved it.  Because the water was so clear, it was easy to sight-fish...you could see the trout hovering in the current and rising from depth when they hit.  Some of the smaller ones hit with tremendous velocity...one actually went fully airborne as he hit my fly.

That said, the fish were initially picky, so it took a few fly changes to figure out what the trout were looking for.  In the end, small dries with orange/red in the coloring seemed to be drawing their attention. While I got some action landing dries softly in the correct spot in swift current, most of my success was slowly pulling soft hackle dry flies cross-current just under the surface in slower, deeper pools.  Once I changed to that look/technique/location, I caught a lot of fish.  I have this river pretty well-scouted for where the fish tend to go when water conditions are low, so I know 6 really good spots within a mile walk that are usually productive.  I caught fish in all 6 locations on Monday which means I had the right strategy going, which is not always the case.

Sorry to hear about your drought.  I had a frustrating spring, but it has been a lot of fun since late May.   I hope you get more variety your next time out.

 

I fished Tuesday night from 6:30pm to 9:30pm on a jetty about a 1/4 mile out. It was perfect time of day,. The tides were good, and this is a fishing spot that can produce. I have caught a 40 pound black drum here amongst other nice fish.  There were 15 other groups of people fishing and nobody caught crap. There were a handful of small trash fish caught amongst everyone and not a single keeper.

And this is not a one time occurrence.

I fished 4th of July morning from sunrise till noon on my boat and we fished hard. We did not see any other boat catch a keeper and only a few trash fish were caught, not like normal at all.
 

I am approaching magical powers in my ability to scare the fish away. I think guides need to start paying me to stay away from the water if they knew what was good for them.

[MTSkiBum 1,593]

@GobbleDog

@fricker66

Personal best 27" speckled trout this evening from the surf, not quite a trophy, but getting closer. 

[fricker66 91]

Since posting this thread in September 2020, I have now caught at least one trout on the fly in New Jersey in 30 consecutive months.   A warmer January/February made it pretty easy this year, as I actually caught multiple trout on dry flies during several outings.   This is unusual because trout typically do not actively feed on dry flies as the water temp goes down in January and February, and there are fewer flies hatching in the colder months.   Most of a trout's diet is taken sub-surface once the water temp gets below 45.   

Toughest months have been September 2021, when water temps were warm, which limited where and when I could fish (I don't fish for trout if water temps are higher than 70).   I caught a single trout that month, on 9/30 late in the afternoon in the only local stream that was running below 70.   February 2022 was also a one-trout month because the stream where I normally fish was frozen for about 20 days of the month.   Barring injury/illness, I should have pretty clear sailing until August.

[Hawkeye21 1,848]

Just now, fricker66 said:

Since posting this thread in September 2020, I have now caught at least one trout on the fly in New Jersey in 30 consecutive months.   A warmer January/February made it pretty easy this year, as I actually caught multiple trout on dry flies during several outings.   This is unusual because trout typically do not actively feed on dry flies as the water temp goes down in January and February, and there are fewer flies hatching in the colder months.   Most of a trout's diet is taken sub-surface once the water temp gets below 45.   

Toughest months have been September 2021, when water temps were warm, which limited where and when I could fish (I don't fish for trout if water temps are higher than 70).   I caught a single trout that month, on 9/30 late in the afternoon in the only local stream that was running below 70.   February 2022 was also a one-trout month because the stream where I normally fish was frozen for about 20 days of the month.   Barring injury/illness, I should have pretty clear sailing until August.

That's awesome.  I haven't been out since last September and I'm itching to go bad.

[Hawkeye21 1,848]

There was a local guy who made inline spinners but has sense retired. They were great for trout fishing but also caught plenty of bluegills, crappies and bass.

I started making my own yesterday and I’m going to try them out tomorrow in my tournament. Hope it becomes a secret weapon. 

[fricker66 91]

Update:   I have caught at least one trout on the fly in NJ every month for the last 36 months.  I am thankful for good health and the opportunity to continue to enjoy the beautiful places that I have fished for the last 3 years plus.   My guess is that I've caught and released somewhere in the neighborhood of 800-1,000 trout since this journey began.   The majority have been rainbow trout, but I am now catching more brook trout and brown trout as I explore some new water where wild trout reproduce and flourish.   The largest has been 26 inches.  The smallest fit in the palm of my hand.  Most of the fish range from 8 to 14 inches.  Although I have no way to truly know, I believe that every trout I have caught has survived being caught and released as I have never had a "bleeder".   And, I have met some really interesting people on the stream along the way.

With a cooling trend this upcoming week, the fishing Labor Day weekend should be really great.  My wife will be away, and all 3 kids are either moved out or in college.   Good times, tight lines.  

[MTSkiBum 1,593]

2 hours ago, fricker66 said:

Update:   I have caught at least one trout on the fly in NJ every month for the last 36 months.  I am thankful for good health and the opportunity to continue to enjoy the beautiful places that I have fished for the last 3 years plus.   My guess is that I've caught and released somewhere in the neighborhood of 800-1,000 trout since this journey began.   The majority have been rainbow trout, but I am now catching more brook trout and brown trout as I explore some new water where wild trout reproduce and flourish.   The largest has been 26 inches.  The smallest fit in the palm of my hand.  Most of the fish range from 8 to 14 inches.  Although I have no way to truly know, I believe that every trout I have caught has survived being caught and released as I have never had a "bleeder".   And, I have met some really interesting people on the stream along the way.

With a cooling trend this upcoming week, the fishing Labor Day weekend should be really great.  My wife will be away, and all 3 kids are either moved out or in college.   Good times, tight lines.  

 

26" is a large trout, congrats.

 

I have been fishing alot this summer, but as of end of July I got rid of my previous boat and am currently shopping for my next boat. My fishing in the short term will slow down because the fishing from a boat is much better here in Texas.  It is almost mandatory if you want to reliably get good days fishing.

[fricker66 91]

1 hour ago, MTSkiBum said:

 

26" is a large trout, congrats.

 

I have been fishing alot this summer, but as of end of July I got rid of my previous boat and am currently shopping for my next boat. My fishing in the short term will slow down because the fishing from a boat is much better here in Texas.  It is almost mandatory if you want to reliably get good days fishing.

Frankly, the 26-incher was a pretty dull catch.  It was in slow water and the fish was pretty sluggish.   The best fighters are in the faster water.  

I think the last time a fished from a boat was 1994.  Over the past 3 years, I have waded in water varying in temp from 32.5 to 70 degrees.

[Mookz 1,287]

Every time this gets bumped I worry about the status of your onions.  

[fricker66 91]

13 hours ago, Mookz said:

Every time this gets bumped I worry about the status of your onions.  

I will update in the other thread.

 

[fricker66 91]

Looks like only 2 days of fly fishing this weekend as the weather forecast has deteriorated, with hotter temps arriving Sunday rather than Monday.

Barring unusual circumstance, I will be getting my September trout, which is good.

 

[Hawkeye21 1,848]

18 hours ago, fricker66 said:

Frankly, the 26-incher was a pretty dull catch.  It was in slow water and the fish was pretty sluggish.   The best fighters are in the faster water.  

I think the last time a fished from a boat was 1994.  Over the past 3 years, I have waded in water varying in temp from 32.5 to 70 degrees.

You need to go after some smallmouth bass.  Amazing fight.

[GutterBoy 2,277]

Summer started off with lots of fishing but trailed off the past month, with my son's football schedule.  I thought about going by myself a few nights but the weather has been bad too.

[Hawkeye21 1,848]

24 minutes ago, GutterBoy said:

Summer started off with lots of fishing but trailed off the past month, with my son's football schedule.  I thought about going by myself a few nights but the weather has been bad too.

I have one more kayak tournament in a few weeks then I'm heading up to MN for a week long fishing trip.

[GutterBoy 2,277]

8 minutes ago, Hawkeye21 said:

I have one more kayak tournament in a few weeks then I'm heading up to MN for a week long fishing trip.

Nice!  Good luck.  One of direct reports lives in MN and she's had much success fishing this season in MN and up in Canada.

[fricker66 91]

40 minutes ago, Hawkeye21 said:

You need to go after some smallmouth bass.  Amazing fight.

I fish for panfish and smallmouth in the summer when waters are too warm to fish for trout.  Fortunately, with the cool weather this summer, that is not been that often.

[Hawkeye21 1,848]

2 minutes ago, GutterBoy said:

Nice!  Good luck.  One of direct reports lives in MN and she's had much success fishing this season in MN and up in Canada.

I'll be fishing all the lakes in the Alexandria area.

[fricker66 91]

Gutter...if you ever want to try fly fishing the northwestern part of the state, you know where I am.  I even have extra gear...all you need is a license as the waters I fish are conservations zones that are patrolled by fish and game regularly.

[GutterBoy 2,277]

16 minutes ago, fricker66 said:

Gutter...if you ever want to try fly fishing the northwestern part of the state, you know where I am.  I even have extra gear...all you need is a license as the waters I fish are conservations zones that are patrolled by fish and game regularly.

Thanks man.