Weekend

Had a 2 state weekend, with not too much action at first. It ended way better though.
Went West for some Manistees, and we thought it was going to be great fishing. Turns out we were horribly wrong. We hit 2 medium sized flows, with angling pressure out the waa-zoo. I walked for miles and miles (literally) with no signs of spawning pairs. I guess we'll have to wait another week or two. We did get to see a lot of new water, which is never bad in my book. I feel that we can definitely do well upon returning to the first waters. That is, as long as the fish are there. I caught 3 fish at these 2 places. 2 at river A, and 1 at stream B.
Beautiful Morning








We later went to yet another spot. I think my buddy landed 6, and I landed 5, in the hours that we were there. For the amount of fish that were there (not tons at all), it was AWESOME! They were paired up everywhere, and the males were as aggressive as ever to defend their ladies. I only hooked into 2 females all afternoon. But the males we caught were strong and fought like hell. Biggest was around 30 in. and 10 lbs
A few pics...
Trebuchet

There is still snow in some places

Nice male

Bugs and Steel

Went to Erie this weekend for Sat and Sun. I knew PA would be packed, so we went to another state to find some action and fresh fish. We did indeed find them too. There wasn't a huge run, but a run there was. We caught fish both days, and I lost a MONSTER on Saturday. Not too many fish pics, but a few more bugs for ya, and some scenery.
Enjoy!
My Tube Fly Display at Elk Creek Sports

Runoff


Mayfly Nymphs


Caddis Larvae


Iron Ore

Hanging on by a thread

Big Falls

Leaky Waders

My biggest of the trip

Gettin' Stoned

Went to my home waters today for a little messing around. I had no Idea what I was in store for. I had non-stop action for at least 5 hours. It was a beautiful day, and over 30 fish brought to hand made it even better. As usual, the wiggle stones provided most of the action.

This could've been why...



These Mayfly Nymphs were on the bottoms of just about every big rock I flipped over. Also, the adult Stonefly landed on my knee while I was sitting on the bank.
And now a couple of fish...

Tuesday In DHALO High and Fast Water

Stuck around my neck of the woods for a half day on a Trout stream. When I saw the water rushing down in the A.M. I didn't have the highest expectations. But that changed as soon as I got a couple of drifts in. Another day of constant hook-ups, even in the super high and fast water. I brought 9 to hand, lost a brownie at my hand, and hooked up with many more. I ended up catching about a 6/4 Bows to Brownie ratio. I was extremely happy with the turnout. I snapped a pic of the three nicest looking fish of the day.
Duck buddies

Runoff

Brownie

Bows


Just as I was leaving I saw three Red-Tailed Hawks circling above. I managed to take some some pretty good pics of the closest one.

Erie Tribs Report 3-15-10

I had to bring an order of tube flies to Elk Creek Sports in Erie, so we waited as long as we could, and Bob and I made the trip up yesterday. I thought it was our best bet since the levels were receding fast as of Saturday. We didn't get on any water until about noon. Out of the first 3 places we went, 1 was too high and muddy and the other 2 were almost completely devoid of fish. After a lot of persuasion, my buddy agreed to take the long walk down to a middle stretch of the bigger creek that was high and muddy down low. I knew the conditions would be a little better as we got a little higher, but it actually turned out to be a lot better than I thought. It was still moving very fast, but it was managable. As soon as we got there I got a water temp of 39. Cold, but the fish were still very active. Which turned out pretty good considering there weren't nearly the amount of fish that were there in the Fall. Our spring runs are always a little smaller, just nicer with the lack of crowds.
So onto the fishing. Within the first few casts, I rolled a couple over, and lost a nice one. Finally, after about 10-15 minutes, I hooked into a nice colored, solid male. He fought with every ounce of energy he had in him, and he was a very strong fish for his size. He made a few runs upstream, jumping completely out of the water putting on a little show for us, the only two guys for a mile or 2 on this stream. I finally turned him around and got him into the shallows to land before he hit the big riffle section that I would've not been able to pull him back out of. The rest of the day went pretty good, hooking up many more times and landing a couple here and there. Bob landed a nice fresh one in the last hour of light to ensure a skunk-free day for the both of us. I was so glad to be back on the Steel mission I looked like a little kid running around haha!
And now for your viewing pleasure...
the usual suspects

I was glad I brought these for two reasons. First, every fish but one came on the Wiggle Stones.

second, this was our winsheild tagalong for the last few miles before getting to the stream.

Bob getting a few drifts in

The Three Amigos (it was just funny because they looked out of place)

mother nature can pretty much do whatever she wants. (like most women)



first nice fish of the day for me

fresh female

beaverland


not to be confused with Beaver's land (This guy is such a douche! He pays the woman who owns this stretch of stream to post it so he can run guided trips there for totally outlandish amounts of money! It would be different if we weren't all paying for the fish that are off-limits to some. That's why he feels the need to litter the woods with who knows how many posted signs and cables across stretches of streams like this one.)