Yesterday I visited our little stream in Germany and noticed that the water level was Extremely low. We need some good downpours in this region right now.
Low water
I noticed lots of small fish in the water and saw the quite a few Dace actively feeding in the surface. I had trouble making a decent presentation of the fly since the water was so low and the current minimal. For some reason I could not find any of the larger fish and I wondered where they had gone.
Flowering trees
At one small rapid the pool was deep enough to hold fish and I hooked and lost several roach, the fish where picky. I spotted rainbow trout so I switched from nymph to streamer and soon had a nice Fish on that put up a good fight on the four weight. A second trout was also hooked but threw the barbless hook.
Rainbow trout
Further a field all the pools that held fish the last week where empty. The water was so low that I could spot the bottom which was not good. Two more trout came out to attack the streamer but I could not hook those fish.
View of the countryside
On my way back I wanted to have another go at the first pool where I had success But the spot was already occupied by the worm brigade so I have no hope that trout would remain in there.
Still it was a nice sunny day here in Europe. For the time being this was the last visit to the stream for some time. Next week I will be off to pursue sea run browns in the Danish Baltic sea.
A report about our annual pilgrimage to Denmark to pursue searun brown trout. This year was bad due to the cold water and and algae bloom of the invasive algae Chatonella which orgines lie in Japan.
Day 1 April 14th 2011
We travelled from the Netherlands to Denmark, after 6 hours we arrived at our rental in Sandager Naes on the Island of Fyn. After dumping all unneccesary gear in our cottage we fished the beach at Sonderby Klint but saw no life. Normally you would see small fish and shrimp along the shoreline but it was al lifeless. After a couple of hours casting in vain we decided to switch locations and headed to Aa strand where a stream entered the sea. The mouth of the stream was a protected zone but fishing was allowed outside the perimeter of 500 meters. We had hoped that the river would be a magnet for the trout but nothing happened. We spoke to a fellow angler who had caught a searun brown and a rainbow trout in the salt earlier that day, this angler was also fishless since the morning hours when he caught his fish.
Day 2 April 15th. 2011
Since the locations we fished on the previous day where so void of life we decided to head to mainland Jutland to see if some of the protected bays boasted shrimp, baitfish and maybe searuns. We ended up in Houens odde, a protected cove at Kolding fjord but again no fish or life in general. After a couple of hours it was back to the Island again where we fished Vejby fed. There I actually got a hit on the fly but could not hook the fish. The rest of the guys once again remainded fishless without having bites so we decided near sunset to switch locations again. The new spot would be Wedellsborg, a place that had never dissapointed us in the past. I was first on the shoreline and noticed that the otherwise so clear Baltic seawater was completely brown due to the algae bloom. A plan B was quickly drawn up, we would head to Husby strand where we never had been before. Tom was lucky enough to actually catch the first searun of the trip while a short while later I managed to land and release a searun kelt of about 60cm length. The shortest guy of the party Hans also caught the shortest searun on Husby strand which measured below 12 inches. One of us remained fishless.
Day 3. April 16th. 2011
We started the day at a new location called Damsbo strand. As I waded out through the clear water and the eelgrass fields I thought that we where at the right spot in the right time. It turned out that it would be so for Tom as he managed to catch four small searuns within an hour. I was standing actually next to Tom but did not receive a single hit on the fly, the rest of us also got no bites. Further in the day I saw a big searun jump clear from the water but it was out of my casting range. When the tide and wind changed conditions deteriorated and we moved further south to Helnaes strand to fish into sunset. Again no life to be seen allthough Joop claimed that he had one take. We did get a visit from a school of harbor porpoises which was the highlight of the day for me.
Day 4. April 17th.
First thing on the agenda was to clean our rental so we could avoid a hefty cleaning bill. After breakfast we picked a location en route to the mainland since we had to travel 6 hours to get home. We hit Vejby fed again with very good weather conditions. As I entered the water I even saw some baitfish so I had high expectations. As so often on this trip nothing happened even though we had nice weather and a good current going. An hour or two before or scheduled departure the tide and wind changed and the water turned murky with algae.
We all concluded that fishing wise this trip really sucked. Tom did pretty well with his five fish considering the condtions allthough they where all small. The fish I had would have been nice if it had been able to feed after its spawning run to the river but now it looked rather poor and skinny. Hans was lucky to have one small fish, still I always wonder why he tags along since he really hates the sea and would rather fish some litte stream. Joop was probably the most unlucky angler in this session as he fished four days without catching a single fish. So the fishing was bad, the company and the weather where good.
My friends had planned a trip to the Eifel region in Southwestern Germany this spring. Since I would be visiting the Harz mountains later in the season I was thinking of skipping the Eifel trip since time and funds might be an issue.
When the final preparations for the Eifel trip where made it turned out to be a pretty bargain and since I could get time off from work I decided to tag along.
Day 1.
On a wednesdayevening we headed to our destination of Kyllburg and made good progress on the Autobahn. The last stretch would take us on the backroads. Our driver was a little too eager to get to the river so he was speeding at a spot fitted with a speedingcamera. The flash from the radar trap was a sign that the trip just got a little expensiver.
Late in the evening we arrived at the camping that was located smack on the riverbank. It was still warm outside and to our surprise hundreds of caddisflies where swarming in the lights. Our quarters would be one caravan and something I just called the dog house.
A view on the camping, to the right the doghouse – further left our caravan. The dog house – two people fitted in there (barely)
The first day we fished the stretch of the Kyll in Kyllburg. After breakfast at the camping we headed out for our morning session and did pretty well.
In the beginning I had a tough time figuring out what would work. My usual nymphing techniques failed but slowly I got there and started catching all sorts of fish. Only the barbels, a large carp like fish ignored whatever I offered them.
In the afternoon we headed into Kyllburg to get something to eat. We picked out the Bella Italia restaurant that was located on the rive bank. From the nearby bridge we could see how monster size chub and barbel patrolled the no-fishing zone. A bread fly would probably do wonders out there.
Barbel from the no-fishing zone.
For the evening session we decided to not venture to far from our camping. A year before we had witnessed a grand evening rise on the camping stretch and where hoping for the same this time. Conditions where different though as we where right in the middle of a weather change. The weather turned from very hot to very chilly and so we stood in the river und dark clouds and a strong wind. The temperatures had dropped significantly and allthough fish where rising it was not what we had hoped for.
Still some fish came to the net, the winning pattern was a segde fly. When it became to dark to spot the fly and fish activity slowed down we called it a day and went back to the camping.
Day 2.
On day 2 we would visit a different stretch of the Kyll. We would head to the town of Gerolstein where we had arranged permits to fish the Kyll and a small stream called Oos.
After getting the licenses we split up at the river. Some friends and I started at the downstream section, two others would hit the Oos stream and the upstream section. As we got ready to gear up the clouds opened and it rained pretty strong, since the Kyll river was prone to discoloring after rainshowers I feared the worst.
As I entered the river amidst the rain I opted to fish the nymph. At first I got no hits except on the orange strike putty I used as strike indicator. Figuring orange was a good color I tied on my one and only small orange nymph and hoped for the best. It did not take long before I got results.
The first stretch I fished was in a tunnel of trees, the river was small there and casting was tricky. Further downstream the river became wider. When the first showers stopped the sun came out for a moment and I spotted a rising fish just behind me. After a few casts I was in to the fish which turned out to be a surprise, a grayling.
grayling
New rainshowers came pouring down and I wondered if we would get lightning. Luckily it stayed with rain only so I continued to fish. After catching some small trout I ran into a big fish that raced upstream in seconds. It only took a few seconds before my tippet gave away, I had most likely hooked into a barbel .
When the rain subsided the sun came out once again. Now I was standing on a stretch where the river was wide. Trout suddenly started rising fanatically. I could clearly see the trout stationed upstream from me and caught loads of them while sightcasting, it was good.
I made it upstream to the Oos stream and decided to check it out. Allthough I spotted some trout in that stream I found it to be to shallow and small to explore it all the way.
The Oosbach
Upstream the rest of the crew where working the river so I decided to go downstream. The next couple of hours where not that good as I had fished the section before and fish where on to me.
In the afternoon we picked out a restaurant in Gerolstein to get something to eat. The guy who sold us the permits talked about the Grayling section in the middle of Gerolstein so we checked it out after lunch.
In Gerolstein
Fishing in the middle of town amidst sunken bikes and soforth was not our cup of tea so we headed to the section in front of the town where my friends had done good that morning.
We walked along a bikepath close to the river and could spot the rising trout amidst the crowfoot. I picked a spot and tied on a segde pattern and worked the lanes between the crowfoot. Fish after fish came to the net, caddis where on the water in force.
It all went pretty well untill the caddis dissappeared when the sun went down. Temperatures plummeted so the insects where gone. Fish where sporadically rising but most likely taking emergers in the surface film. Whatever I tried I could not get them to eat. The last fish I took that day was on a small PT nymph.
Day 3
The third day we headed to the Kyll at the village of Fliessem. It was the only section of the Kyll in the Kyll valley where there was no road or railway along the river. So as we headed into the valley we hoped to enjoy pure silence.
It did not work out though as we had thought. On the valley floor a watermill was the landmark in the middle of the stretch we would fish. A big sign stated “Tonight rock concert”, so we entered the middle of the fairground. Since the concert would be later in the evening only the crews of the stage where present but it would get busy and loud later.
It was rather chilly outside so dry fly fishing would probably be a waste of time. I entered the water and found it discolered. A nymph pretty soon yielded the first trout. Since I was in the middle section I decided walk along the fields to get to the farthers upstream point.
When I found that the upstream section was only becoming deeper and wider and headed a little back downstream and started to fish a streamer.
Normally the Kyll was not that deep but the stretch I was wading was different. When the water became deep I was pondering weather to get out to the bank and walk or continue wading. I decided to do the latter which was my downfall. Suddenly I went to deep and noticed to late that my “open” waterproof camera bag was submerged. It was too late to safe the camera, completely dead after being dunked in the water – bummer.
So I did stuped and payed the price. It put a damper on my fishing expirience and well I got a little depressed. I continued fishing but was happy when we decided to stop for lunch later in the day. We headed to the only restaurant in the village nearby and fuelled up for the evening session.
Fuelling up.
In the evening we had a slight break in the weather. The sun came out for a while and caddisflies began to swarm. The fairground was slowly filling up with people and as Guns and Roses came out the speakers behind me audible through the whole valley I noticed loads of rising fish.
Armed with a segde I targeted the rising fish and started catching them. I told my buddy nearby to get over the spot I was fishing and soon he was into fish also. Since I was cameraless now I started taking pictures with my phone, not great quality but at least something for the record.
At a certain time in the evening the action just died down in an instant. The caddis stopt swarming when the sun went down behind the hills. Off course the trout did the same and would only sporadically rise. I figured that only a streamer would work so I tied on a small magnus streamer originally intended for searun browns in the Baltic sea. That streamer yielded the last couple of fish for the day. As the fairground filled with people for the concert we left for the camping.
Day 4.
On the last day of our trip we would head north and fish the Kyll river way upstream in Stadtkyll. After breakfast we cleaned the caravan and the doghouse and made our way up north. In Stadtkyll we got our permits at the local gas station and headed out to a very clear and small Kyll river.
The water was low and fishing would be tricky indeed. I was the first to get ready and noticed a pool that was teeming with trout, chub, roach and perch. I even spotted two crayfish moving about.
At first I thought this would be easy but these fish where already spooked when the leader landed on the water. No show for me thus, my only hope was to find a deeper pool that was under the cover of trees. I found such a spot soon and landed my first trout of the day.
It was a jungle out there and darn shallow. I was soon overtaken by Tom who starting fishing in front of me. Since the section I fished was lacking a path I could not move further upstream to circument Tom. I guess part of the Kyll was no good for a horde of five flyfisherman. In the end Tom got his fly so often in the trees that he gave up to find greener pastures.
I moved upstream through the jungle when the river eventually entered a more open landscape. It became very shallow though and the only fish I found where in spots where casting was absolutely impossible. To my surprise I did spot larger grayling though. My intention was to reach the start of our stretch where a larger dam would be located but when I saw another flyfisherman already working the stream I opted to go back.
On the way back I had a go at the grayling. They where hiding in a pool under a set of willows so I just let the nymph be taking with the current downstream. It worked as I hooked one of the larger graylings. To bad the hook came out so I had nothing to show for.
I caught a few smaller trout and a little grayling downstream. When it was close to the time when we would leave I opted to fish one of the deeper pools in the middle of the village.
Legions of large roach where in front of me, I could spot them in the clear water. I tried catching them with PT nymphs just as I would do back home but it did not work. I could clearly see the fish following the nymph but they just would not take it.
At five o’clock it was time to get back to the car. The other guys had moved downstream and caught a few fish and had the expirience of being chased off a field by a bull.
We met a fellow flyfisher who told us that conditions where bad due to the low water levels. It was not that great catching wise but I could see the potential of this stretch in better times.
After three hours driving time we where back home. With the exception of the camera accident I had a great time just like the rest of the guys. The dryfly fishing was really out of this world, haven’t seen such good rises for a long time.
The only thing I have to do now is to fix my camera issue with the travel insurance – it has worked before so it might work again.
I spend a couple of days on the German Baltic sea Island of Rügen in pursuit of pike that actually spend time in the open sea. My friends and I hired a guide who showed us the techniques to use and the spots to fish.
The pike are normally way out in the waters of the Baltic pursuing the Herring but come into the marshes and harbors in fall to overwinter. The curious thing about the place is that in that part of the Baltic the salinity is so low that you encounter fresh- and saltwater fish in the same environment.
The weather was cold and quite dismal since we almost had fog everyday but some pike where caught and even some big ones. The downside was that I totally blanked on this trip, only had one fish on that got away. At least I got a feeling for the place now and if there is ever a next time I will fare better for sure
Plan A today was to head to Germany to fish the river for the first time this year. I had hoped that the wind would die down today but I still could hear the wind howling this morning.
I opted to go for plan B which was fishing the harbor in the town I work. Main target was perch so I took my 4-weight superfine rod plus some small zonker streamers with me.
My usual good spots where pretty useless today, the strong wind had kicked up so much silt that visibility was minimal. I received not a single hit on the fly as I probed the walls and docks of the harbor. As a last ditch effort I tried the dead end stretch at the courthouse.
When I tossed a streamer near a bridge I saw fish following so my hopes where up. After a while I began to catch the perch, the majority very small but there where also some nice one among them. Not bad for a day with rotten weather.
Another bright sunny day in Rhode Island. As I put my rod together at the car park near the dunes I heard an ugly sound as I pulled the leader through the rings. El crudo had just broken the rod tip, bummer. That was quite a stupid thing to do so I totaled my beloved T3 before I even fished with it. All that lasted was to go back to the house and get the replacement rod.
Back at the beach I fished the boulder field and for a short while I was in contact with a rather fish that threw the hook. The rest of the day remained fishless. When I returned near dusk at the house I saw to my surprise that two cars pulled in the driveway of the house I was staying in.
Double booked ? nah that would be impossible. The occupants of the cars got out and they actually knew my name, how odd. It turned out that they where relatives of the people where I had rented the lower part of the house from, they would be my upstairs neighbors for the coming days.
That they came at this day had off course to do with the upcoming Columbus day which is off course totally unknown in Europe. Off course I could not refrain from stating that Leifur EirÃksson had discovered the new world.
October 10th.Â
Another bright sunny day for the Striper patrol. At the start of the boulder field I actually spotted a few Menhaden in the surf so surely predators had to be close by. But no, the predators where probably elsewhere.
When I moved from the beach to the pond the wind was so strong that for the first time I saw waves in the pond. The tide was still high but I tried to reach the channel anyway. The high water and waves caused trouble as my stripping basket was filling up all the time. At the Northern shore of the pond I saw diving gulls and cormorants so there was something going in. I waiting in vain for schools of fish to head into the main channel, skunked again.
October 11th.
Since the freshwater outing of the day before was so successful I decided to give the beach another try. On the beach I talked to fellow anglers who had caught Stripers early in the morning.
I made my way up to the mouth of the breachway and talked to a couple from New Hampshire who told me that they had spotted lots of bait inside the breachway. They had just caught two Striper from that spot so I headed straight to the breachway.
When I arrived at the spot no other anglers where to be seen, only a few people on the other side of the breachway where waiting for outgoing tide. I saw the baitfish and launched the fly into the incoming current, after two casts I was into a Striper A few casts later I was in to a second fish that came off.
That whole Striper thing did not work out as I had hoped for since the main actors decided to stay away. It was time to put plan B into action. I had not bought a freshwater license for nothing.
For plan B I had purchased an Orvis 5-weight rod from my dealer in Maine where it was on sale. From home I had took a small reel and some freshwater streamers with me. The target for today was a large freshwater pond close to the house I was staying at. I packed my gear, took the bike and traversed the highway to get onto the park road.
It did not take long before I passed the main gate and pedaled along the camping grounds to find a road to the pond.
I followed one of the streets and landed amidst a bunch of RV’s at the shores of the pond. It was Columbus day so the area was packed with Campers and their loud offspring. As so often watched the locals with amazement, my outdoors experience surely did not include sitting outside your large RV watching TV with a big generator running. Well everybody its own I guess.
I found a free spot in between two RV’s, got into my waders and soon fished in the clear water of the pond and enjoyed thoroughly the spectacular fall colors of the trees. The bottom of the pond consisted of white sand, it was fall but there where still traces of reeds and water lilies to be seen.
The kids from the RV next door where also fishing but not very successful. I had more luck as I soon caught a little Chain pickerel on the streamer. My success was not unnoticed as I heard the kids mumble “that guy has a fish”. A second cast yielded another Chain pickerel, looked like Pike in the USA moved about in the same environment as in Europe.
Actually I had expected to catch Sunfish or Bass instead of Chain Pickerel. The next fish species turned out to be a Yellow perch, the US counterpart of our Perch. The whole racked behind me got to much after a while so I waded out to a spot where some large boulders where lying in the water.
The shoreline behind those boulders was RV-free so silence at last. The Ospreys where circling above me, the Canadian geese where floating on the pond and all I could see was water and fall foliage. When I came near the boulders I noticed a large pipe running into the pond.
I thought “sewer pipe” but it turned out to be a connection for the fire brigade to pump out water. A cast along that pipe yielded a hefty strike and after a good fight I could land my largest Chain pickerel so far. At the boulders I lost one larger fish in the reeds.
I was surprised by the absence of baitfish, I had expected to see some kind of roach or minnows in the pond but they where not to be seen. Further out in the lake the bottom changed to stone and fish where not to be found anymore. I headed back to the big boulders and fished the likely spots once again to only catch a small version of a Bass.
This freshwater exercise yielded 15 Yellow perch, 2 Chain pickerel and a small Bass. This was a welcome change to being skunked at the beach and not bad considering I had never fished a pond like this, I would surely be back.
On the way back from the park I pedaled down hill, a Stop sign marked the entry to the main road that eventually led to the highway. As I rode down the hill and wanted to break for the stop sign I noticed that the breaks where not working. So I shot on to the main road, I was lucky that there was no oncoming traffic. If I could not fix the breaks than maybe it would be wiser to walk down the road next time.
October 12th.
Since the freshwater outing of the day before was so successful I decided to give the beach another try. On the beach I talked to fellow anglers who had caught Stripers early in the morning.
I made my way up to the mouth of the breachway and talked to a couple from New Hampshire who told me that they had spotted lots of bait inside the breachway. They had just caught two Striper from that spot so I headed straight to the breachway.
When I arrived at the spot no other anglers where to be seen, only a few people on the other side of the breachway where waiting for outgoing tide. I saw the baitfish and launched the fly into the incoming current, after two casts I was into a Striper. A few casts later I was in to a second fish that came off.
At outgoing tide the baitfish and the Stripers where gone.
Out of the woodwork the local anglers appeared and started tossing large plugs at the ocean side of the breachway (with no results). I headed for the pond where I spotted gulls and cormorants working bait in one of the corners. The action was far away but I still tried to wade to the spot.
As I was halfway a boater also spotted the action and ran full speed in the same direction. As he approached the action died down immediately, bummer. The boater disappeared pretty soon, I waited to see if the baitfish group would reassemble.
After half an hour the racket started anew but this time into the marsh. I followed quite a while but it all went wrong when I came into the entrance of the marsh ponds. Suddenly the bottom under me went away and I sank into the mud. With some difficulty I managed to stay afloat and reach hard soil again, a close call.
Well I learned the hard way that you have to take care in the marsh. It was already dark as I walked on the beach to the house. To my surprise I could see hunting fish in the surf as the moon was out. I tried to reach the fish but the swell was just to big to safely get into the water. This was yet another moment when I regretted that I had left the spinning rod at home.
October 13th.
At first I wanted to fish the beach but then I reconsidered and choose to fish the State park instead. It was quiet on the pond as Columbus day had passed, only a few RV’s where left. There was still racket at the shore but this time caused by the Chipmunks chased each other.
In the clear water I could hook the one after the other Yellow perch, all fish where however very small so I opted to fish for Pickerel after a while.
The southern corner of the pond boasted a lot of reed which would surely be a good hideout for the Pickerel. The problem turned out to be the bottom, it was soft and towards the end I had another marsh experience = I sank in quite deep.
I moved back to the safer areas and managed to catch a few more Yellow perch and a Pickerel. Since I had to do some shopping I stayed not too long at the pond.
October 14th.
Once again I hit the beach, my fellow American anglers report no fish in sight. The weather forecast predicted that the first fall storm would make it’s way to the shore I was on. There was nothing going on at the Breachway war but the skies darkened and wind and waves grew stronger by the minute
Fishing the fly was almost impossible, with some trouble I managed to launch the fly between the rocks. Even though the last stretch of beach to the breachway looked very fishy I could not feel any takes or see signs of Stripers or Bluefish. I climbed on one of the big rock ledges and made a few casts but the breaking waves looked dangerous to me so decided that it might be safer to stand on the beach instead.
There where not many anglers about since the storm was coming. I did have a talk with one of the homeowners and asked him what this private beach exactly meant. So the beach was only for use by the home owners at the beach but the tenants had no problem with anglers in the off season.
In summertime residents would sometimes call in the police to break up the underage drinking party’s at the beach. When the cops would chase the kids the person I spoke to would confiscate the booze, good move.. As to the subject of Stripers, you did need a good portion of luck to catch them.
This season was probably not so good although people still where catching fish on some of the days. When I walked back to the beach the Atlantic once again was in washing machine mode, foam and waves. A few guys where still chugging plugs in the surf but I could not spot anyone hooking up.
From my first Striper trip I knew however that even in a big storm Stripers would be feeding so being out there made sense.
October 15th.
This was the last day that I would be able to fish. It was pretty stormy during the night and even in the morning a strong wind was blowing. According to the weather forecast the next few days would be stormy. To spend the last day on the beach seemed like a waste of time. The strong westerly wind would also exclude fishing in the pond.
After I had did some last shopping I decided I would give the pond at the State park another go. The pond looked like I would expect it in fall, the Camping folk had all gone. The sky was grey and the wind produced whitecaps on the water.
The wave action had stirred up the water so clarity was diminished, it took some effort to launch the fly and line against the wind. Fish where still present because pretty soon I landed my first couple of yellow perch and pickerel.
On the previous outings my Favorite fly had been a small zonker streamer, on this day it was time to try something completely different. I tied on one of my Enrico Puglisi Streamer on, maybe these big ties where the ticket in the slightly murky waters. I soon found out that the Chain pickerel where pretty interested in the big flies as one after the other aggressively pursued and attacked the fly.
Numerous fish where caught and I also got a first hand indication what kind of baitfish would be present in the pond. One of the larger chain pickerel spat out it’s breakfast in the form of a baitfish. This baitfish was a shad, I was pretty surprised since back home shad are exclusively a marine species with the exception of spawning time.
After a few hours in the chilly full wind I decided I had caught enough fish at the pond. Since I still had to sort out and pack my gear for the trip back home I decided to call it a day.
October 16th.
It was time for the trip back home, the train to Boston arrived as scheduled. This time I had booked a business Class seat, some luxury was nice on such a long trip. As I traveled to the east I enjoyed for the last time the pretty fall colors of the forest in Rhode Island and Massachusetts. At every crossing of a river or creek I wondered what fish I could have caught there.
The flight from Boston to Iceland was pretty uneventful. At the stopover in Reykjavik I once again made a stop at the concession stand for some snack and once again the lady behind the counter returned change in Icelandic Crones. Currency worthless except for the fact that these coins boasted fish on them making them souvenirs. As soon as the plane touched down in Amsterdam everything was business as usual.
So that where my two weeks down in Rhode Island. The whole striper fishery did not go the way as I had hoped or planned. 22 Stripers was what I counted with no big fish among them. At least I caught some fish and the whole freshwater business made up for lacking results in the salt Without hesitation I would say that I surely will end up in Rhode Island again.
As usual the wind was blowing full force on the beach making flyfishing not an worthwhile option. I tried to fish the rocks but after a while I figured I could better try the breachway and pond. I waded out far into the pond and fished the channel with a pink snakefly. As the wind was also blowing across the pond I switch to a sinking line to make at least a decent length cast into the wind. When I reached the first channel mark I got a hit on the fly and could land my first Striper of the day. At outgoing tide I got bite after bite, from all these takes I could land seven Stripers. At incoming tide the whole action was over, it was sunset already so I called it a day.
Oktober 8th.Â
On this morning the sky was cloudless and the sun was shining bright. To bad there where no baitfish on the beach or gulls working fish. I crawled through the boulder field and caught a small Striper, at least no skunk today.Â
The beach was dead so I headed to the saltwater pond where I talked to two local flyfisherman. I wanted to know how they regarded the season and the answer was as expected “slow”.
I explored the pond this time to the full extent en reached the far corner where the mix of sand and broken shells changed into a bottom with clumps of seaweed. I had expected fish in the far corner but it stayed quiet, when I headed back the local flyfishers had already left for greener pastures.Â
On the way back I fished the channel again with the sinking line and the pink snakefly. Halfway to shore I got a hit from something, it sure was no Striper. That something turned out to be a Needlefish, pretty amazing. Even more curious was the way I had caught that Needlefish since its beak was to small to grab the large hook of the snakefly. The Needlefish had actually chased the snakefly and got entangled in the leader with its many sharp teeth.Â
Besides the Needlefish no life signs where seen in the pond. When I turned on to the beach I got sandblasted, still strong wind. From fellow anglers I learned that gulls had been working bait for a time but that was well offshore.
I remembered that I had to finish a report on my Rhode Island trip last fall. That trip was made possible due to involvement by Jeremy Cameron of Flies and Fins.
October 1st.
My destination for my vacation would have been Florida but the oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico made be change my plans. At work my boss once again tried to block my time off with as reason that I would be “indispensable“, off course complete nonsense otherwise I would have had better pay ages ago.
Two weeks was the maximum time I could get for a trip in October, too short but it had to do. So I pondered about an alternative destination and the Caribbean was the first thing on my mind, further exploration of that part of the world made it clear that it would be too expensive in my book.
Stripers came to mind, my first Striper trip went pretty well and I always had the urge to try it again. I turned to one of my friends and asked him if he had some tips for an affordable trip. Well it turned out he had, his parents had an apartment for rent in a coastal Rhode Island town. The place was located near the beach and a saltwater pond, freshwater opportunities where available.
I contacted the parents and arranged that I could rent the apartment for the first two weeks of October. Next I completed my travel arrangements, with Iceland air I would travel from Amsterdam to Reykjavik where I would change planes to finally arrive in Boston, Massachusetts. From Boston I would take the Amtrak train to Rhode Island.
The whole planning and arranging went pretty well until I received a mail from my landlords that they would not be present at the apartment when I would arrive since they had to travel out of state. I immediately replied back with the question who would be available at the apartment to open the door but I got no reply.
It seemed like my plans where about to be derailed so just in case I wrote down addresses of hotels in the area for the worst case scenario. At the stopover in Iceland I tried to get some clarity about my lodging in the US so I send a text message to my acquaintance for instructions. I was happy when I got a message back that the doors of the apartment would be unlocked. My travel could continue unhindered after this message.
In Boston I got through Immigration and customs quickly and got a cab to Boston South Station. Train tickets where pulled out of the ticket machine at the station and off it was on the northeastern regional to Rhode island. 90 minutes later I arrived close to midnight at Westerly train station on the RI/CT border.
The next hurdle would be to get a cab in this little town late in the evening. To my surprise it did not take long before a cab arrived, what made me wonder was that the cab had no navigation fitted. I had planned for this and had printed a map of the area where my apartment would be located. The road to the beach was easy and known to the driver but that side road was obscured by the darkness. After driving around with no clues for a while the cabby produced his own navigation system.
We finally found the street where my rental would be at but we could not find the house number. I had seen the house two years prior but that was in broad daylight. After running the street a few times up and down I spotted a boat in one of the yards that looked familiar.
I told the cabby to stop and said that the door should be open so I had to check it out. I walked towards the door and indeed it was unlocked. The last thing I wanted to do was to surprise a gun toting homeowner or get a welcome by a Pitbull . I rang the doorbell but nothing happened.
I had ordered fishing gear and had it send to this place and I was told I could find it on the kitchen table. The only way to find out if this was the right house would be to locate my gear. I yelled ” hello” just in case and entered the building. Luckily I found my fishing gear and not the Pitbull or an armed homeowner. By now I was 20 hours on the road, the only energy I had left was for a quick shower and went to sleep .
Oktober 2nd.
After a long sleep the first thing I did was to check out the apartment, I was not disappointed. After some shopping I at the convenience store of the nearby garage store I checked out the beach. A stalled tropical wave in advance of my travel had messed it up, with wave heights predicted to be “shoulder high” I knew that flyfishing the beach would probably not be possible.
My best chance would probably be the saltwater pond but first I had to find my way to it. Two years ago I fished the pond but than I was the southern end so this area I was new to me. I figured walking westward on the beach would get me to the breachway and then to the pond.
I noticed a path between the big houses on the beach I figured that it was a public access. I followed the path and finally ended up on a road that looked familiar to me. The road was the same I took two years ago on the way to the boat ramp at the pond.
I followed the road and ended up at the pond, a large sandy flat that looked ideal for wading. The water was very clear, a small channel than ran along the flats was clearly visible. I fished the channel at high tide and waded quite a bit into the pond, no fish though. There where a few other fisherman around on kayak, ideal for getting around in the pond.
At sunset I called it a day, as I walked to shore I came across the guys that had fished from the kayaks. They had indeed gotten into fish, a kayak was a nice thing to own. At sunset I headed back to the apartment. There where no telltale signs of fish at the beach, I only encountered a dead bluefish laying on the sand.
At the house I noticed that the felt soles of my wading shoes where about to part with the rest of the shoes, I had an idea they would not last that long anymore. The first fishing day … fishless.
October 3rd.
The weather forecast was not something that got me excited with the wave height listed as “head high”. The strong westerly winds made flyfishing impossible so I decided to stay in and get the apartment sorted and organize some food. The gas station up the road boasted it’s own deli which provided me with some good sandwiches. With a campground nearby all the basic canned foods and assorted items where available. Stocked up with supplies and headed back for that o so important cup of coffee.
October 4th.
Another day with weather that was not for my liking, lots of rain and strong westerly winds made flyfishing impossible. Now I regretted leaving the spinning rod at home, that was the punishment for being a purist. Since I did not came all the way over the big pond to stare at the water I headed to the beach anyway to see that the ocean was in washing machine mode again, foam and waves and no anglers to be seen.
There was however always the breachway and the channel that connected the ocean with the saltwater pond in the interior. I did manage to chuck a white deceiver in the main channel, at least I was fishing. After half an hour I finally got a hit on the fly and could hook and land a small Striper of about 50cm. If there was one Striper than there had to be more but unfortunately I did not get into any other fish. As the wind grew stronger and the temperature started to plummet I decided to call it a day.
October 5th.
The bad weather continued so I headed right for the pond. Since floating line and streamers did not yield anything I decided to switch to a fast sinker and fished a floating crease fly.
The change helped as I did get something, to bad it where just bluecrabs. Stripers and Bluefish remained an illusion and so I had another skunk day.
October 6th.
Pounded by rain I headed to the beach, waves where now low enough for fishing the beach. In the boulder area at the beach I spotted baitfish in the wash so hopes where up.
At one spot the show really started as I got a hit on the fly at every cast. After a few hours I had hooked and landed twelve Stripers. One of my felt soles had suddenly departed from the wading boot. This meant I could no longer safely traverse rocks.
I had to cut my trip short in order to get new wading boots asap. Back at the house I texted my Orvis dealer in Maine “Need wading boots , tomorrow here in RI”. Quite soon I got a message back “Boots in stock, delivery tomorrow” – that was what I call service.
Today I finally had a chance again to catch my first fish for 2010. We have had cold weather here continuously since the middle of December making fishing almost impossible due to snow and ice. The weather forecast was not something to be happy about since extensive rain and an upcoming storm where announced.
Canal
The location for this day was a canal that had a slight flow due to several small streams that flowed in to it. The Canal was for the most part ice free although large sections where still covered with hard water. I noticed that the water was unusually dirty at the section of the Canal I fished. It started to pour and it did not stop for quite a while. When I had no hits at all I decided to move eastwards in search of fish and cleaner water. In the end I found a point where a small stream dumped clean water into the canal. Confidence came back because these conditions where normal for this particular water.
This canal was used for shipping way back when but was now more or less a derelict body of water. Some of the locks and bridges where still in place but many where also replaced by big culverts. Those sections where interesting because baitfish and thus predators would usually be concentrated there. At such a culvert my EP streamer was intercepted and my first fish of the year was a fact, it Was a little pike.
