Mid October Report warm days = hungry fish

While NH's regular trout season is closed we are still fishing like crazy on the lower Androsgoggin river. We felt the need to give an updated October report as the fishing has been simply phenomenal over the past week. Warm days and cold nights have translated to great bug activity. Last week we found success nymphing large Helgramite patterns and BWO nymphs.

Client Paul Shinsky of Texas took this 19" male Nate's "Wigglemite" pattern

On Sunday we guided Client Mark Roberts and found fish on streamers first thing, then on helgramite and BWO nymphs mid morning. From noon until dark we had rainbows rising throughout the float to both size 12 purple haze dries and size 20 BWO duns. It has been good to see more fish in the high teens and low twenties this year. There have also been many fish in the 12-14" year class which should bode very well for next year. 

Client Mark Roberts with a 17" rainbow that ate a "Wigglemite" pattern.

One of many rainbows that Mark took on a dry fly.

Yesterday I got out with our guide Tom on another stretch of river to investigate where fish are now holding. We found piles of trout in the fast riffled water and in river channels where there was a slight drop in depth. Just to see how many fish were around we planted on one spot and landed 13 trout missing many more before moving on. Fish were taking both dries and nymphs in the fast water parachute purple haze along with pt's, girdle bugs, and caddis larva were all taking fish. It was again good to see many fish in that 12-14 inch class with a few bigger fish lost. We also caught a few very clean looking brown trout. Towards the end of the float we found fish rising to what looked like BWO's but had good takes stripping isonychia nymphs from the bottom to the surface. 

One of four very healthy browns landed yesterday on dries and nymphs.

As fall progresses bug activity will be best on our warmest days. On cooler days streamers as well as big Helgramites and egg patterns will be tickets to success. f you have the ability to get up here give us a call and we'll do what we can to get you on the water. We have availability on weekdays and weekends of October 29th and 30th as well as November 12-13. 

October = Foliage and BIG FISH

Well just as the leaves began to turn color the fishing on the Andro and our wild brook trout waters went from good to great. On the Andro fish are being taken on golden Stonefly nymphs, October Caddis, Prince nymphs, Isonychia nymphs and dries as well as streamers. In fact the streamer bite seems to have really turned on with the weather change. Both baitfish patterns and leeches/ buggers have been getting crushed. We've been seeing a lot more wild fish in the 12-14" range this fall as well as more fish in the high teens to 20"s a great sign for next year! 

Enjoying the colors after hooking wild rainbows all day...

Fishing has been hot and cold depending on time of day and weather. We have noticed that on warm cloudy days the bite starts earlier in the day and stays through the mid afternoon. On warmer sunny days the bite starts a bit later say around noon and is solid until the temp drops in the evening. On cool cloudy or windy days the fishing is slower but we still see a good bite around noon and again around three pm. Right now if you are on the water and the fishing is slow be patient because chances are it WILL turn on at some point! 

A healthy wild rainbow that crushed a streamer while floating the Andro this week.

We have also been doing well on our wild brook trout waters throwing streamers to pre-spawn fish that have been crushing our offernings. These fish are both native and wild and have some spectacular colors this time of the year. We have access to private brook trout water with wild fish to 14+ inches. We have seen bigger fish in this stream this year as it was gated a few years ago to protect it from poachers.  

Wild male brook trout caught by client Mike Allen.

Client Monique Allen with a silvery female

We are also seeing some of the biggest rainbows we have seen all year on the Androscogggin! On every float it seems we at least get the "opportunity to land a fish in the high teens to over 20"s. On some days clients are getting multiple shots at big fish and these are usually the days when we land a few. As I've said over and over again the big rainbows on the Androscoggin are perhaps the strongest fighting fish I have ever encountered pound for pound. Like hooking a steelhead on a five weight they are not an easy quarry to conquer. 

Steve's wild rainbow. 

Yesterday I guided my friend Alex and his friend Steve. I warned Alex that he would have to be on his toes if he hooked a big fish, allowing the fish to take line but keeping pressure if the fish ran at the boat...but when Alex hooked that first big rainbow my words of wisdom went out the window as the fish tore upstream breaking the line before Alex could point the rod. I think Alex was a little more prepared for the next fish but this one was hooked in heavy current and shot downstream even faster than the first fish swam up. 

Crushed a leech pattern.

Steve seemed to learn a bit from Alex's fish and was able to hook and land two bows in the high teens. not as big as the fish we lost but solid hard fighting fish. 

My point here is this...if you just want to land a bunch of easy to catch fish your best bet is to wait for the stocking truck to dump them in in your local river. But if you want a true challenge these rainbows are worthy adversaries. 

If you've never had a trout take fly line through your fingers, had to point the rod at an underwater missile cavorting all over the river, needed to drop your rod tip on a cartwheeling piece of electric energy or heard your reel scream then you don't know what you are missing. 

This fat fish was caught By client Steve Clarke while swinging a Zug Bug, Steve said he couldn't believe the power of this fish.

While these fish are a challenge, they can be caught and we've had both novice and experienced anglers land some monsters this year. Just the other day we took out clients Faith and Richard Aigan. While Richard was an experienced angler Faith was not confident that she would catch anything. "I probably won't catch any fish, I never really do." she mentioned as we readied our gear. "We'll we will see." I said not wanting to make promises but knowing she had a good chance if she did as I instructed. 

As it turned out Faith was a great student. After landing this 20" rainbow I asked her what she was doing with the fly when the fish struck, " I was just giving it quick little twitches like you said." Faith did an excellent job of fighting this fish which made four strong runs before succumbing to the net. For Faith the key was that she was all ears to my instruction, giving when the fish pulled and pulling when the fish took breathers. Fighting big fish is not rocket science, it is a simple matter of keeping good tension and angle on the hook so that it doesn't pop out while also allowing a big fish to take line so that the hook doesn't pull out or the line break. Keeping the line under your trigger finger while fishing is probably the number one piece of advice I have for hooking and landing fish. Often I see anglers try to pull line under all or a few fingers on their casting hand, or they try to pull from above their casting hand, or they go straight to the reel before they have control and tension on the fish. 

But the best way to get good at fighting big fish is to hook them...and we'd love to teach you how it's done.

So what is to come? As we move through fall fish will concentrate both in the fast riffles where browns and brookies will attempt to spawn and rainbows will be there to eat their eggs. The Slower and deeper glides will also attract fish who are looking for easy living in this colder fall water. Here look for noses rising to BWO's and throw streamers or drift a long line nymph rig if nothing is surfacing. I will often fish a dry dropper rig or a streamer with a nymph trailing it to see exactly what the fish want. 

If you are looking to enjoy a fishing trip before the season is over we have dates available on both weekends and weekdays through mid November. 

Tight lines,

Nate

September Report

It has been a very productive September so far. Fishing on the Androscoggin river has been particularly good with  productive hatches of Isonychia, October Caddis, BWO's an flying ants. When bugs aren't on the water streamers have been important. 

A late day Isonychia eater. This fish tried for a dry and was then caught on a swinging nymph.

As we move into fall the bite windows continue to shift from early and late in the day to mid-day. This change results from changing water temperatures triggering bugs to hatch later in the day. On rainy days the fishing seems to pick up around 10am while on sunny days the fish take a little longer to activate. On rainy days water temps are more consistent as cloud cover means less of a temperature gradient throughout the day. For example Monday nights lows were near 60 degrees with high humidity holding into the next day with temps only rising into the low 70's .  This humidity and cloud cover resulted in flying ant swarms beginning around 10am. Conversely the lows Monday night were in the 40's with daytime highs near 80 degrees. This colder night with low humidity followed by a warmer day resulted in a sporadic hatch of Isonychia later in the day when water temps shifted and sunlight decreased. Of course there are always exceptions to these rules but it is not crucial to get out early this time of the year.  It is also important to know that if you aren't catching fish earlier in the day it pays to wait things out and change techniques. 

Mark Hogopian with a hot rainbow he caught nymphing a seam. 

This is my favorite time of the year to guide here in NH. Fall fishing means fewer anglers on the water, beautiful foliage, crisp days and the luxury of great fishing that you don't need to get up early or stay out late to enjoy. 

Had to jump out of the boat to net this bright female...these fish fight just like steelhead. 

This is also a great time of they year to book a float trip. During fall it is especially beneficial to float fish rivers like the Androscoggin. This time of the year most fish are found in the center of riffles. As fall progresses they will transition to deeper slower water where they will casually  sip bugs and aggressively chase streamers. A boat allows anglers to target all of these important water types with the added benefit of being able to carry multiple rods in order to change techniques with changing conditions. 

We have seen many fish of this year class this season...bodes well for next year!

So what's ahead? As fall gets underway so will our BWO hatches. The Isonychia hatches we have been seeing will continue for a few more weeks and will be mixed with the BWO's much of the time. As spawning time approaches for browns and brook trout streamers will become even more important as will egg patterns. 

Crushed a streamer...

If you would like to experience the beauty and excitement of fall fishing we have dates for October and November available. If interested please contact us ASAP as dates are filling fast. 

As 

End of August Report

It is the time of year when the first hints of fall become evident. On the trout streams this comes in the form of cooling waters and fall hatches. This week we saw our first ant swarm of the season. I've probably written and talked more about the fall ant swarms than any other "bug event". Although not truly a hatch the mating of fall ants triggers perhaps the most prolific feeding frenzy of the year in almost all of our area waters. These ants come out on humid late summer/ early fall days and according to my records begin on or around the last week of August. In-fact it seems that the date of August 24th is often when I see the first of these bugs.

Although prolific when they are mating these ant swarms are unpredictable as they have more to do with weather conditions than time of the year. That being said it is always a good idea to fish cinnamon ants in sizes 18-14 and chocolate ants in size 18-26 this time of the year. Even if you don't see them on the water trout remember these delicious bugs and take notice.

A small stream wild rainbow trout taken on a cinnamon flying ant by client Frank Virnelli 

When the ants aren't on the water there are a plethora of other bugs for the trout to choose from. Yesterday my client Jack Sins and his sons Nate and Cam did well all day fishing October caddis imitations including orange stimulators on the surface and October caddis nymphs underneath. Jack even had a large rainbow break his line when he finessed a drift by a downed tree stump. 

Cam admiring a nice brook trout that ate an October Caddis nymph.

On the Androscoggin river the isonychia have been hatching and should become more prolific as we head into September. These large mayflies hatch sporadically throughout the day and fish take advantage of every one they happen by.  Isonychia nymphs are one of the fastest swimming mayfly nymphs and fish will often take them as they swim to the surface for emergence. I like to dead drift a heavy isonychia nymph under a buoyant Purple haze dry fly, I then let the flies swing at the end of the drift. I complete this presentation with some quick strips before re-casting. Often times fish will strike on the last strip. 

A 14" wild rainbow caught this week by client Richard Johnson. taken on a swung Isonychia nymph.

This time of the year it is also a good idea to keep some large golden stonefly nymphs and dries in your box. It is easy to forget these bugs as they tend to emerge right at dark but if you see just one bumbling through the air it is a good idea to tie one on. It is a rare occasion that I don't get action on these bugs when I see even just one on the water. 

The forecast for this week calls for daytime highs in the 70's with lows in the 40's and 50's.  This should drop water temps in a hurry and get fish on their fall feeding routine.  Unlike waters in southern New England our rivers are at average and ideal flows for fishing. Some rain mid week should help keep things that way. Fall is our favorite time to guide in the White Mountains. Days are cooler, fish are active, crowds are low, and the best fishing is often in the middle of the day. We are booking fast for September but still have some dates available. October still has availability as well but will fill quickly. Don't hesitate to call if you'd like to enjoy some great fall fishing! Below are some memories from last fall! Based on what we found this spring, 2016 should see some even bigger trout.

Tight lines,

Nate

End of July/ Early August report

It has been a great season so far here in the Whites. Last week I had the pleasure of guiding my father and brother for our annual day on the water. Last year dad landed the biggest fish so he was gung ho to repeat that feat. He told my brother, "Okay today it doesn't matter who catches the most fish, the winner is the one who catches the biggest fish." After my brother landed this solid brown trout my dad got a little worried.

"Okay the winner is the one who catches the biggest fish of the most species...so if you catch the biggest brook and rainbow trout I win." My dad did get a couple good browns but none that matched Jordan's fish.

In the afternoon the  sun came out and so we moved to some smaller streams. We started off with some smaller wild brook trout and then dad missed some bigger brookies and rainbows in a larger pool. Finally landing a small rainbow and brook 8" brook trout he was ahead in those categories and made sure we knew about it. Of course Jordan quickly caught a bigger brook trout and rainbow to shut dad up. Dad wanted to keep fishing but Jordan said he was ready for dinner...quitting while he was  ahead. 

As of late the fishing been challenging. My brother and father made it count when the fish struck landing 4 out of 5 browns that cautiously ate their flies. The best fishing has been early and late in the day when the sun is off the water. Clouds during mid-day have provided decent action as well. With sunny bright conditions your best bet is to micro nymph some of the smaller streams. Takes have been very light with small indicators or high stick nymphing techniques being crucial to success. With cloud cover terrestrial patterns have been taking fish. Fishing tight to boulders and in the head of bigger pools is the key to finding success with these flies. 

A small stream brown taken on a beetle pattern cast to the edge of an undercut boulder. 

The good news is that there are plenty of fish around. The wild rainbow trout populations seem to be doing well this year and when we get some rain fishing should improve dramatically. I spent the last two days floating the Andro and noticed that green caddis and Isonychia hatches are already starting. These fall hatches should continue to improve heading towards September. On the Saco there are plenty of brown trout around if you can find the deeper pools and colder water. Again with any rain we will see fish activity increase.

Wild rainbows like this have been common in the small streams this season.

Typically August is a big transitional month. Long days get shorter and temps cool towards the latter half of the month. We should start seeing more flying ants as the month presses on. As waters cool more isonychia, BWO and October caddis will activate. If you are looking to book a trip for August let us know asap as dates are limited. September and October dates are available, please book in advance as these are two of our most popular months. 

Tight Lines,

Nate