Fishing the Mid Atlantic region and beyond for all manner of salt and fresh water species. We cover the lower Chesapeake Bay aboard the "Mikey D Fishing" in search of stripers, redfish, speckled trout, flounder, cobia and chase trout across the classic freestone and limestone streams of Pennsylvania, Maryland, West Virginia, and Virginia.
The down sides of fall fishing; limited daylight and cold. The up sides; you don't have to get up early to fish, the prospect of Indian Summer, and few anglers on the water.
Temps the past few days have been in the upper 60s, so I lit off to fish Kettle Creek, about 50 minutes south of the WBT. Did some stream reconn on the west branch the day before, but Potter County is back in a drought watch, and the stream looked every bit of it.
So I headed south, hoping that there'd be enough water in Kettle to wet a line. Parked in the PA Fish and Game lot, a couple of miles south from the beginning of the C&R section, around noon. The lot was pleasantly empty. Walked up to the overpass to check out the water, and the trout were stacked up just below the bridge, I guess enjoying the afternoon sun.
(If you look carefully, you can kind of see the trout)
Fish were finning and rising in ankle to shin-deep water to something (midges?) really small. Not having anything tiny to throw, I tied on a hopper (on 5X)/dropper rig (on 6X), with a 16 bead-head Pheasant Tail as the dropper. After a couple of misses I managed to hook my first Rainbow for the afternoon, a thick 15 incher.
The trout quickly tired of the PT, so I dipped into the box and tried a variety of nymphs. No dice. So I looked in the terrestrial box, and noticed a small Cinnamon Ant. Figured what the heck, added a foot and a half of tippet tot he hopper, and tied the ant on as the dropper. I dressed the ant once with floatant, figuring if it sank a bit, more the better.
That proved the ticket, as I managed four more Rainbows. One went all of 18 inches, (and chunky), with the final three between 10- and 12 inches.
And then, about 2:00 in the afternoon, the catching shut down. The fish were still eating, but apparently figured they'd given me enough of their time, and preferred to eat bugs that will get them through the winter.
Which is just around the corner. The moral of the story is get out while you can!
I spent the last month in Cape Charles to see if the claims of great fall fishing are true. While restricted to wade fishing off the beach near Plantation Creek, it provided some consistency in the experiment.
In general, I'd say the fishing did improve as we moved from September into October That jives with the locals who said that cooler water temps would improve the bite. In September air temps were in the high 70s to low 80s, with water temps were in the mid 70s. By the first week of October air temps dropped to the low to mid 60s (lows in the 50s), and water temps dropped to the mid to low-60s. Too cool to wet wade, but a pair of cheap boot-foot waders did the trick.
If I compared the last week with the previous three, I'd say the Redfish bite improved. Prior to October we picked up a fish here and there, but no real consistent bite. By October, things improved significantly. With the exception of a few days of turbid water due to Ian's arrival and departure, I managed to land Reds ranging from 15 to 24+ inches. (Apologies for the poor photos. Tough getting a good photo while you've got a rod under your arm, the camera in one hand, and a fish in the other. Couldn't get photos of the bigger fish. Will invest in a GoPro and head mount for next season).
The trout bite, as well as the size of trout I was catching (not many, they're more finicky eaters, and tougher for me to hook) certainly increased, from 10-12 inchers in Sept, to a nice 18 incher I picked up yesterday,
There are some other factors that seemed to come into play:
Tidal flow: I consistently fished according to the solunar calendar, during the hours which predicted the best fishing (https://tides4fishing.com/us/virginia/old-plantation-light). While I did not have the time to hit both incoming and outgoing tides, I'd say the calendar accurately predicted the best time to catch fish on the outgoing tide. Doesn't mean you won't catch fish outside those windows. But you'll probably be doing more casting than hooking up.
Water clarity. If you can't see far down in the water, neither can the fish. If the water is turbid, pack it in and drink some bourbon.
Lures: Fished exclusively with soft plastic paddle tails (Z-Man shad suspended below a popping cork) and Paul Brown's Dyne XL swim baits. While the guys at Ocean's East tackle shop claim many colors work, I had success with the paddle tails in Electric Chicken color, and the Dyne XL in purple and chartreuse. (Note, if you're fishing alone, take two rods rigged with different lures. Saves time switching out, or when you experience a braided line malfunction.) At least for this piece of water, the Dyne XL in purple and chartreuse is the only swim bait you need, for Reds and Trout. Down side is that big Reds will bend the Dyne XL ($12 a pop) beyond its ability to swim correctly after 2-3 fish.
Scents: Captain Kenny Louderback turned us on to Pro-Cure gel during our recent Cobia trip. So I purchased a bottle ($7.99) of Mullet scent (there are many, from shrimp to Menhaden to garlic, etc.) at Oceans East:
Did it work? See last factor below.
Stay in one place or wade around: I had about 400 yards or so of beachfront to fish. Most of the time I'd just hold in one area, figuring that the fish would eventually swim through my casting range. But there was also ample space to walk around and look for fish. On occasion during the summer I would wander up and down the beach, and see Reds as singles, in pairs, and in small schools. But no success. Could have been warmer water, or spooky fish in the shallow water.
Yesterday, however, was a different story. I was fishing a "sauced up" paddle tail, and spied some fish moving behind me. Initially couldn't tell if they were Reds or big Mullet. I threw a cast to where I thought the school had gone and BAM!, 18-inch Red to the hand. So I started moving towards the school parallel to the beach, and saw that it numbered around 30 fish. Another 4 casts resulted in hook ups with fish ranging from 18 to 20+ inches. Then the school headed out to deeper water. Based on prior failed attempts stalking fish, the only difference (aside from water temps) was the scent.
Much more work needed on the experiment. But a fun way to work through a problem. Saturday it's back to Potter County. Hope to get some trout to the net before the snow shows up next week.
Wade-fishing the beach this past week proved particularly unproductive. Weather was sunny with temps in the high 80s. Winds were relatively calm. Water clarity was pretty decent. And nearly every day I spooked small schools of slot Reds (aka "Puppy Drum") as I waded in knee to thigh deep water. Only problem was these fish were just not eating. The culprit, as the guys at Oceans East tackle shop informed me, was water temps. Too warm (78-80 degrees) for a good bite. My wade-fishing experience confirmed, at least as far as the catching went. I picked up only one decent fish, a 21 inch Red, early on in the week. That was it.
Disappointing, but the real reason we were in Cape Charles was our annual Cobia outing with Capt. Kenny Louderback of Fish Freaks Guide Service (https://www.facebook.com/fishfreaks2014/) This was our 6th year fishing with Kenny, and we were unanimous that it surpassed all our other times fishing with him.
How important is this outing with Kenny? Capt. DiPaola's travel itinerary answers that question. We were to meet up with Kenny on Thursday at 8:30 in the morning. On Wednesday, Joe began his day in Greenville, SC, then flew to Chicago for meetings and dinner with his company board. He boarded a plane at Midway Itl after dinner, arriving in BWI around 1:30 in the am. Then it was a four hour drive to the Cape Escape. He rolled in around 5:30, and fortunately got a couple of hours of rack time before fishing. Tells you all you need to know.
Our loyal blog followers will know the ins and outs of Cobia fishing in the lower bay in late summer. The most important variable is when the fish decide to migrate out of the bay to more southern waters. The later you get into the summer, the greater the chance that you'll head out into the bay to open stretches of water and no fish.
I'm almost certain, though, that even under the worst conditions conditions Kenny would find fish. As it turned out, our timing was good, the weather was conducive to productive sight fishing, and Kenny was once again on his game. About 11:00 am on Thursday, once the sun got high enough for good sight fishing, he found fish congregating about 4 miles north of the bay bridge tunnel. Over the course of the day Kenny (and sometimes us as well up in the tower) spotted well over 100 Cobia. A lot of singles and pairs, but also a good number schools holding with rays, and in one case about 12-15 fish swimming around the biggest sea turtle I've ever seen. And many of the fish we saw were quality fish; well over the 40 inch minimum, with some fish in the 50-60 inch range.
The only issue, and I'd classify it as a first-world problem, was that the fish were finicky eaters. We got plenty of shots with live eels and a good number of looks and follows. But we only got six fish to eat, and landed three. Technique was the villain in our losing fish. These fish have hard mouths, requiring sustained tension on the rod. Give a Cobia some slack and he's off. And to be honest, we lost some nice fish.
But ... we also boated our limit; two nice fish that went 48 and 51 inches! The third was a "rat" which went about 30 inches. We also got a few shots (and follows) with the fly rod.
To add to the experience, Capt. DiPaola enjoyed a short "swim call" in the bay when his fly line inadvertently got tangled up in the boat prop. (Pro Guide tip: keep an eye on your fly line when its dragging in the water around a running boat motor....)
So we went .500 for the day. But we limited out (we wore out the electric Bubba Blade with about 40 lbs of filets), and saw more and more quality fish than we had seen on any previous outing. Best of all was spending the day on the water with Capt. Kenny. It's the highlight of the Mikey D fishing calendar, and we're already booking into 2023.
By late-July, most of the mayfly hatches on Montana's rivers and "cricks" have ended. But the advent of hotter and dryer weather brings the trout another important food source; terrestrials such as grasshoppers, beetles, and ants. Blown off of grasses and and trees into the streams, these bugs, quite a bit larger than their ephemera mayfly cousins, provide hearty meals before the onset of fall and colder winter.
The Mikey D team took up a most gracious invitation by former Navy football tailgaters, Annapolis neighbors, and good friends Mike and Mary Kay Shina, to visit their spread out in Libby, a relatively small city in the northwest corner of the state.
The major watershed is the Kootenai (pronounced KOO-TEN-EE) River, which begins in Canada. The river is dammed just above Libby, then flows for over 50 miles into Idaho. The beauty of this river is that, as a tailwater, it stays clear year round. Second, the water coming out of the dam keeps the river cool enough to ensure good fishing, even in the late-summer.
While we were on different flights, Capt. DiPaola and I avoided the issues many of the flying public have experienced this summer, and landed in Glacier Park International Airport in Kalispell around 2:00 PM on Monday. Capt. DiPaola having secured the rental car, it was off for the 90 mile drive to Libby.
We stopped short and met up with Mike at Happy's Inn, a western Montana landmark, and about 30 miles from Libby. A lot of like the Friendly Inn in Roulette. After a couple of local beers and a "spider bite" (a shot of Tarantula tequila and Rose's Lime juice), courtesy of the barkeep, we headed off to the Shina abode.
Mike and Mary Kay's gorgeous home is on 5 acres of wooded property, sitting at the base of Swede Mountain.
A short ATV ride up the mountain, and another 2000' or so of elevation, and you're at the fire station on top of the mountain.
We booked guides for a Wednesday drift on the Kootenai, bookmarked with DIY trips to local waters. On Tuesday morning we stopped at Libby Sporting Goods to check out the fly assortment and pump the locals for intel. Fly selection was not difficult; hoppers and "chubbies" in black, yellow, and purple, Chernobyl ants. etc. Guy behind the counter sounded a bit cryptic, but said the best small stream fishing would be on Fisher River, a tributary to the Kootenai a few miles up from Libby.
So off we went. This was Mike and Mary Kay's first time flyfishing. So it's really important to have easy access to the water, lots of room for casting, and accommodating fish. The Fisher turned out to have all of those, with spectacular views to boot!
Gear that worked on our PA streams worked well in here. 4-5 WT rods, floating lines, 4X tippet. Fished hoppers, hopper/droppers (size 16 beadhead pheasant tails and prince nymphs worked), and tan Elk Hair Caddis. Air temps were in the 90s, extremely low humidity, crystal clear water with temps in the low-60s. Bottom conditions were a bit slick (Montana permits the use of felt. I strongly recommend), but even with rubber soles/studs and a wading staff, it wasn't too difficult to get around.
As I said, a great place to introduce newbies to fly fishing. And it didn't take long for both Mike and Mary Kay to develop decent casting skills, and by the end of the first DIY day both had landed trout.
The trout in the Fisher, at least what we caught, were all wild Rainbows. Most went 4-5 inches, a few went 6-8, we caught a couple that went 10 or so, and Joe caught one that easily went 12 inches. Absolutely gorgeous fish, which proved more than willing to hit our hoppers and/or droppers consistently throughout the day.
Even had the chance to use the Tenkara, which was perfect for this stream.
The highlight of our fishing experience, though, was a float trip on the Kootenai. It's big water, with a fast current to boot. There may be spots where you can safely wade, but we didn't see many. And there's so much water that it would be impossible to locate fish on a single outing. It's best to go with local expertise. So we book guides through Kootenai River Outfitters (http://www.kroutfitters.com/). Owner Jeanie Winstrom was waiting for us at the main office when we arrived shortly before 8 AM on Wednesday. Also waiting to load our gear were our guides, Tony Knapp (knapptimeflyfishing@gmail.com) and Johnny Pares (https://kcanglers.com/kootenai-river-fishing-guides-rita-adams-johnny-pares/).
What makes for a great guide? Well, knowing the river and putting clients on fish is a big plus. Knowledge of the history of the place helps pass the time when the fishing slows. Patience and the ability to teach is huge, especially when you have first-time or novice folks in the boat. Finally, and perhaps most importantly (except maybe for catching fish), is temperament. You never know whether your clients are going to be easy going, or flat out neurotics. Doesn't matter. When your stuck in a drift boat for 8 hours, you adapt to the clients, and make it the best day you can.
Tony and Johnny exceeded all of those qualities. Tony was the consummate instructor with Mike and MK in his boat, while Johnny was more than able to match our usual sarcastic fishing banter. Despite breezy conditions and a passing cold front (temps only got into the upper 80s), which seemed to diminish the bite from pervious outings, we had a fantastic time. Everyone caught fish, Rainbows, Cutthroats, and "Cutbows" (a cross between a Rainbow and a Cutthroat). Most of the fish went between 8-12 inches. But we did manage a few that went over 12, and a couple that would have measured between 16-18. As on our outings on the Fisher, flies of choice were a variety of hopper patterns. And, as this is big water, our guides knew exactly where to position the boats to put us on fish; banks with drop offs, seams, riffles at the bottom of runs, and underwater structure.
It was a memorable float. And a great four days of fishing, enjoying Libby's restaurants, "sipping" brown liquor and burning Perdomos on the back porch, and enjoying Mike and Mary Kay's gracious hospitality. Many thanks to Libby Sporting Goods, Kootenai River Outfitters, Tony and Johnny, and most of all, to Mike and Mary Kay!!!
Like many of life's passions, fishing is expensive.We anglers like to collect rods, gear, flies
and accoutrement over the course of many years and seasons. While part of the
fun, sometimes there are unexpected costs in pursuit of that tug on the end of
the line.I guess "unexpected"
was the key word on one of the last days July as I sped to Cape Charles to wade
for redfish near Plantation Creek.My
quick trip to catch a red was interrupted by the local law.Twenty minutes and $190 later, I was back on
the road anxious to focus on anything other than speed trap avoidance.Capt. Felker, patiently(?) waiting for me on
the porch at Cape Escape, was prepped and ready by the time I arrived.
As recent blog entries suggest, a morning outgoing tide is
often best for triggering a predatory response from red drum.However, our morning outing yielded zip.With the wind up, there was a lot of bay
grass snagged on each cast.Capt. Felker
broke out the fly rod, while I tried an electric chicken paddle tail on a
popping cork.No fish in the AM, but
wading through the water, it was very apparent why the mouth of the bay is so
prolific.Bay grasses laid out like a flowing
carpet, crabs, clams, oysters abound with baitfish everywhere.As slack tide rolled in, there was little to
do but head back to Cape Escape and wait for the water to start moving again.
We returned to the same area early in the evening and I grabbed
for the popping cork while Capt Felker tossed the tried and tested Dyna
XL. About 15 minutes in, I got my first
hit. Never saw him, but the redfish
crushed it. After a hookup that lasted
about a minute, he came right at me and spit the hook. The second red wasn’t so lucky. He also hit hard and after a nice fight, he smiled
for the camera in exchange for a release.
Like Capt Felker noted in a previous entry, redfish will surprise you. A red came out of nowhere just feet from where
I was standing and tried to inhale the popping cork. With a slap of his tail, he disappeared into
the flats. All in all, a pricey, but
great day. One fish in hand, several
hits, and a great time on the water with Mikey D Fishing
Winds blowing in at at 20-25 knots put yesterday's fishing on hold. I went out, but you couldn't get a cast to go very far.
This morning conditions had improved greatly. Partly cloudy skies, temps in the upper 80s, but with a 10 knot breeze; quite comfortable. Water visability was also significantly improved. Nice to be able to see what's around you, especially this morning.
Got out about 0930, on the outgoing tide, and about a half hour before the bite was supposed to be on. Again, the solunar calendar was right. Started with a purple/chartreuse Paul Brown's Dyne XL. It's characterized as a "suspending" twitch bait. But if left sitting, it sinks. Not a biggie. You just have to put on a few cranks of the reel, which brings the lure wobbling up. Then you pause, and the lure wobbles back down. Rinse, repeat.
According to the guys at Ocean's East Tackle Shop, just down the road, it's a Red killer. They are correct.
A few casts into the grassy water and the first Red slammed the bait. A great fight ensued, and I managed to bring the 26-28 inch "Puppy Drum" to the boca grip.
(Yeah, a lousy picture. Kind of tough manhandling a big fish with a rod under your arm and a crummy camera in the hand. Gotta work on this...) We need GoPro to sponsor this blog.
The problem with the Dyne XL is that it's a soft plastic, with a wire through the center to give it rigidity. A Red doesn't eat the bait, it crushes it. And if/when you get the lure out, it doesn't look the same when you take it out of the package. Gets kind of bent here and there. (maybe that's the point ... at $11/lure). The other problem is the two treble hooks. Hellacious to get out of a fish's mouth.
I was able to bend the lure back into a reasonable shape to keep fishing. A few moments later and a Red crushed it again. Another 26-28 inch fish. Unfortunately, it ate the lure, and instead of just going back to the house with dinner, I kept fumbling around trying to get the lure out, not noticing the tension I was putting on my rod. The snapping sound I heard, followed by seeing my rod tip sliding toward the fish, told the story. Still tried to get the lure out, but eventually the leader broke, and off it swam.
Note: this was when the camera decided to stop working.
Fortunately, I'd brought along another rod, not on the possibility of breaking the first, but rigged with a popping cork and paddle tail. So I high-tailed it to dry land, picked up the working rod, and got back in the fight.
It quickly went from catching to fishing. Which was fine; I could have left and it would have been a great day. But I stuck around, casting, popping, retrieving, rinse, repeat. It's a technique that can get mundane. And then something happens which almost makes you crap your pants.
On one of those mundane retrieves, the cork was about 5 feet in front of me. I was beginning to reel in the paddletails, when I saw a large brownish object come out of the grass and swim towards me. Now, it's the salt water. We're not the apex predators. So seeing something that looks really big swimming at me was kind of disturbing. Then I realized it was a big Red. It was all I could do to wait until the fish ate the lure. Another great fight and I landed my third slot Red.
After calling in a brief report to Capt. DiPaola, I returned to the mundane for the next 45 minute, with one exception. As I was wading down the beach I spooked Reds EVERYWHERE. Singles, doubles, multi-fish schools. Many in knee-deep water. I managed a few follows, but for the most part they were scooting back to the grass. It was a pretty cool sight. Almost as much fun as catching. Almost.
The solunar calendar shows conditions tomorrow are ripe for another great hour or two of fishing on the outgoing tide. I'm already rigged, and will be taking the 8 wt as well.
And, thanks to Oceans East, a new Toadfish spinning rod ... and another Dyne XL.
With Cape Escape open for a few days, I decided to head south and see how the Redfish bite was. Got into town in the late am Saturday, with plenty of time to catch the outgoing tide that evening.
Wade fished the usual spot, the bottom of the development's beach area near Plantation Creek. Conditions were perfect when I hit the water around 6:00 PM. Temps in the high 80s, calm winds, and water in the upper 70s (at least), and the water starting to move out. Only issue was the low sun, which took away visability a good bit. Not really an issue. But when I'm wading in thigh-deep water, I like to see if anything is swimming near me.
Things were kind of slow. The solunar calendar had Saturday as a one-fish day. In that respect, it was right. I decided to throw a Electric Chicken-colored paddletail under a popping cork. For awhile it looked like skunk city. As I got tired of casting, I went into lazy mode, cast the cork out, and popped as I waded down towards Plantation Creek. Every once in awhile I'd look back to make sure the cork was still there and still out in the channel. After a few yards of wading I looked back and the cork was nowhere to be seen. A couple of turns resulted in a great fight. From the fish taking drag, I knew it was a good Red, and was not disappointed. A 28 inch fish, all coppered up, came to the hand. Figuring I'd hook a few more, I revived the fish and sent him on his way. Of course, the fish gods laughed at me, and for the next hour I went without a bite.
(regrettably, a camera malfunction prevented photographic proof....)
Went back out this morning, with the tide moving out around 8:30 AM. This time the wind was up, and visability was even worse, so I ditched the paddletail for a Dyne XL swim bait. Nuthin.
Temps hovered in the mid to upper 90s for the rest of the day, giving me time to troubleshoot the camera. Still itching to feel a tug, I decided to head to the bass ponds in the late afternoon. Temps had cooled off considerably, down into the mid-80s, with the sun obscured by scattered thunderstorms popping up in the bay. Took both spin and fly rods, hoping to score on something.
Started with the spinning rod and a crank bait. After about 20 minutes I had my first hookup, which I lost. But not long after I hooked and landed a nice bass that easily went 4lbs.
Mission complete. So I switched to the flyrod, and tied on a big chartreuse popper, figuring the overcast would make the bass less spooky. And after a few casts a fish hit the popper, which I immediately missed, being too excited and pulling the trigger too soon. But I let the popper sit, and after one more pop the fish came back and slammed it. A nice 3 lber.
The bass saved the day. But the calendar shows bay conditions improving for the next few days. Hopefully Redfish will be on the menu at some point. Tonight, "unfortunately," it's crab cakes.
Capt DiPaola the younger, aka Salt Life is on a 2 week hiatus from USMC duties while waiting to begin Expeditionary Warfare School in Quantico. There's no better way to decompress than to drive east and join CAPT DiPaola the elder on each of our vessels.
We waited for sunset and the tide change to put his G3 into the Indian River inlet to see what species we could bring over the gunnel. Conditions were a little sketchy, winds were light and variable, but as dark settled in, the rain increased in intensity. Luckily it didn't slow the bite with blues and stripers mauling clouds of baitfish caught in the incoming tide. Joe "Salt Life" landed nice 18" blue that slammed his bucktail tipped with a 4" bass assassin. I got similar results on a BKD and Joe followed up with a nice little 17" striper. While the fish were abundant, there was so much bait in the water that our offers were lost in the mix. Nevertheless, there were no complaints when you get some time on the water together and you land a couple species.
Postscript: Mikey D Fishing approves of the well-appointed G3. Joe has fitted the boat well with electronics, a solid 50HP mounted on a jack plate, and several other customized features to turn this 18' boat into a fishing machine.
.
Day 2 Assateague Island Flounder Fishing
With nothing but clear skies and light winds forecasted, Capt DiPaola and CAPT DiPaola were joined by Audrey and Connor Weglein on the Mikey D Fishing to find some flounder. Transiting Assawoman Bay and Isle of Wight Bay on a summer weekend requires focus but the reward is the calm water behind Assateague Island.
We were rigged with bucktails and a combination of squid strips, white gulps, or pink gulps. After a few minutes drifting it became apparent from the missing tails and consistent strikes that the pink gulps were the preferred bait.
Connor was the first to get on the board with a nice 12" flounder. I followed with my first ever cutlassfish. A cutlassfish is an eel like creature with a toothy mouth and a blue silvery body. It is a delicacy in some countries, but those are probably the same countries where they eat crustaceans while still in the shell.
I caught another undersized flounder that hit hard but proved too small for the plate. Not to be outdone, Connor caught his own cutlassfish. Audrey proudly led the way with the most hits and half eaten gulps. Can't wait to take this party out again to land the keepers!
While the rest of the trout world is in full bloom by the first week in June, the approaching summer solstice heralds the end of ethical trout fishing in Northern Georgia. I was lucky enough to finally take Sam Harris (my fellow squadron mate, Redwolf, and good friend) up on his generous offer to chase southern trout at his cabin in Ellijay, GA. The stories he has shared over the years of monster rainbows did not disappoint.
Sam's cabin lies just outside of town in a community of log homes that lie on or near the Cartecay river. The cabin has a commanding view of the water which from our perch on his deck and while wading looked and felt like a western river. There were plenty of deep holes, strong flows, and slippery bottoms that required the angler to carefully plan each step to get into position.
Joining the fishing party was Ralph Cacci, another fine Redwolf brother and a novice fly angler. Before we pursued fish, we took a leisurely tubing trip down the river. The meandering river revealed several nice runs, riffles, and pockets for trout while giving us some time to enjoy a Perdomo floating downstream.
Once we returned to the cabin, it was time to find the fish. Sam gave me some key tips, not the least of which was recommending a stone fly. Like the good host and guide, he then spent the bulk of his time reviewing fly fishing basics with Ralph. Ralph, always an overachiever, picked it up quickly and landed a nice rainbow in short order.
I worked a seam on the far side of the river that looked promising with a stone fly tied to the tippet. We knew there were countless fish within a stone's throw since trout in the dozens emerge twice daily to partake from a feeder mounted by the river's edge. It didn't take long before the stone fly produced. There are indeed large healthy rainbows in the Cartecay. I landed my beauty after a good 10 minute fight and a couple of nice aerials. A few others followed to round out the afternoon.
I can't thank Sam enough for the hospitality, the memories, and some incredible fishing. I look forward to more big North Georgia trout fishing again next year.
Mikey D Fishing highly recommends this fishery! Be sure to take advantage of the 'bows before the water temps climb above 70 by mid-June each year!
Exceptionally dry weather have left Fishing Creek low and warm. So we called an audible and decided to hold a tournament of previous WBT 4th of July trout derby winners at Rainbow Paradise.
Our prior champions included Amy Coleman (2018. Capt. DiPaola's protest over the results of the 2018 trout derby are still under review.), Lily Whitfield (co-winner in 2019 and 2020), and Elliot "Bearclaw" Felker (co-winner in 2019 and 2020, and winner of 2021 derby).
The contest began at approximately 10:15 AM. Weather was cool; upper 60s that warmed to the mid-70s when the tournament ended at 12:30. Skies began cloudy from a front that moved through the night before and brough some much needed rain, but the sun began showing through around 11:00. Water temp in the lake was in the upper 50s.
Rules for the tournament were fly fishing only, catch and release, and barbless hooks. Things started out a bit slow, with the anglers slowly getting used to the conditions (of hundreds of trout meandering well within casting distance).
Amy struck first with an 11-inch Rainbow, which for a while seemed like it might be the winner.
Things heated up quickly. Amy brought a nice 15 inch Rainbow to the net. Lily took the lead with a Rainbow of 17 inches, which Amy tied with her own 17-inch fish on an Orange Stimulator.
It looked like we would have co-winners, as Bearclaw was in danger of being shut out. He was getting plenty of takes on his Hopper/Dropper rig, but just wasn't getting a decent hook set. But, right as the tournament was coming to a close, the trout gods smiled, and Elliot landed what would be the tournament winner, a fat 20-inch Rainbow.
It was a spirited competition. The anglers demonstrated proper fly-fishing etiquette, maintained a cordial spirit amongst themselves, cooperated at the net, attempted no acts of sabotage against their competitors, and released all fish unharmed back to the lake. Hopefully we will see wetter conditions in 2023 and return to home waters for the next WBT trout derby.
But until then, congratulations to the 2022 West Branch Tavern Tournament of Champions winner.
