Over the past ten days we have seen dramatic swings in both weather and fishing conditions. Exactly one week ago the Saco river hit 34,000 cfs. Over 20” of snow fell on the higher summits from last Tuesday to Thursday. Flows on rivers on the eastern side of the state were unfishable last week but are now dropping to fishable flows.
What’s happening right now:
The andro is now at 1800 cfs in Errol and should turn on any day now as fish acclimate to the new flows. Warmer weather mean water temps are hovering in the upper 40’s to low 50’s which means hatches of tan Caddis and Hendicksons are eminent. With highs in the 60’s and 70’s this week bite windows will vary based on fish acclimating to warmer water temps. We find that on the first days of major temperature swings the bite often shuts off for a day with the following day providing fast fishing. Last Saturday and Sunday were a prime example of this. On Saturday water temps climbed rapidly and the fishing was very slow (Like one fish to the net all day slow.) Then on Sunday the fish acclimated, and we were able to boat over 20 trout. We’ve done well on larger jig style nymphs and streamers as of late. Kreelix on the strip as well as our own crafty crayfish have done the job. As flows continue to drop the streamer game will fade in and out with the weather, but the bug game will get more consistent.
Client Tyler Stevens with a brown he battled with the 10ft 4wt the other day.
Looking forward:
We expect all rivers minus those above 1000ft to come into their prime over the next week or so. Warmer temps look to persist over the next ten days which should get fish metabolisms to even out and produce consistent bite windows. Expect the streamer bite to still be the main game on the Saco for the next couple weeks. The northern rivers like the Andro will start seeing hatches of Caddis, Hendrickson’s and March browns in the next seven days. Nymphing said bugs will produce best during sunny hours. Look for low light and warmth to find dry fly bites this time of the year.
Lucky to have our guide Kevin Gordon row me into this fine wild buck while streamer fishing the other day.
Booking status:
We have May 11,19 June 11,20,26,27,28 if anyone wants to get out with one of our guides. We also have dates available in July, a great time to wade or float depending on conditions. We will again be offering smallmouth trips this summer from Late July through Late August. This is some fun fishing for big wild fish! Let us know asap if you are interested as dates are all going fast!
We look forward to seeing many of you this season. It is shaping up to be a great year here in the White Mountains.
Tight Lines,
Nate