Angler 119's Delaware River Fishing Report
Slip slidin' away.
Posted on October 05 2022
Personally I like to fish in the rain. Thins out the crowd, covers up poor casts, gets the bugs hatching and the fish up feeding. Yes, it makes my CDC flies harder to fish but I learned a long time ago that life is full of tradeoffs, it's why I...
Covid booster delays return to LordvilleEstate.
Posted on October 03 2022
It's Monday and I'm somewhat frustrated sitting home waiting for my 5:00pm covid booster shot appointment. Just talked with a logger that is going to come and remove some large dead ash trees from around the house and he has covid, no he didn't get the shots and he said...
Cant believe I just did that!!!
Posted on October 02 2022
Todays schedule didn't allow for fishing, (NDSU) volleyball game at 11:00 and the SU scrimmage at 5:00), so I decided to take time to answer questions between games and perhaps lower Dennis' blood pressure. If you are wondering what the hell I'm talking about - - well I just copied...
Sincere thanks to all who posted on yesterday's blog.
Posted on October 01 2022
Usually I'm careful about not naming specific pools where I fish. Wednesday I fished three pools on the Willow and BK. Let me be clear, the pools are not a secret. What was unusual was that the puddles in the Hazel Bridge parking lot were gin clear, there were no...
Mortgaging The Future Fishing.
Posted on September 30 2022
With the last day of September at hand it's probably time for my sporadic/ intermittent warning page. Bow season opens tomorrow and I will be dividing my time between wading the river and sitting in a tree with my stick and string. With the rivers at good fishing levels and...
Chasing rainbows in the rain.
Posted on September 29 2022
Those of you who have read the blog for the past few years should all have known where I would go today. I drove up the PA side of the BR and checked out the WB at Shehawken and again at the Rte. 191 bridge but safe money was on...
Hit the trifecta - low water, bugs and rising fish.
Posted on September 28 2022
Drove east at about 2:00 this afternoon in hopes of finding fall bugs and rising fish in either the Willow or the BK. Went to Hazel Bridge on the Willow where last year at this time the river was wall to wall fish and fishermen. There were two anglers in...
Ian('t) liken any more rain.
Posted on September 27 2022
After a three day stay at home and a busy Monday morning which got in the way of an early departure, I drove down I-81 through a series of Thunderstorms coupled with high winds that required two hands on the wheel at at all times. The rain probably didn't amount...
Blow you ol' Blue Norther
Posted on September 23 2022
If you're wondering, I'm home. No matter what DRC might say it's not a nice day to be on the river. It was 40 degrees on the camp porch this morning with a 20/30 mph wind out of the north. The rivers are up, and the WB water from the...
The fishing was nothing to write home about.
Posted on September 22 2022
The average temp for today is a high of 68 and a low of 45. It was in the high seventies with bright sunshine today with a predicted low of sixtyone tonight. A beautiful early fall day most would say. Not us fishermen. The bright sun and warm nighttime temperatures...
Is Bengay a performance enhancing drug?
Posted on September 21 2022
Woke up with a bit of a sore shoulder this morning. No, not from fighting fish. It came from patting myself on the back for putting myself in two places yesterday, both with rising fish willing to eat my flies. Buoyed by yesterday's success I opted to fish the BR...
You need good eyes to see the flies.
Posted on September 20 2022
With the Cannonsville release down to about 300 cfs I was anxious to get back down to fish. Why? The release water is cold enough for bugs and at 300 cfs the fish will come up for even the smallest ones. Arrived at 11:30 and there were heads coming out...
Both the SU football game and the NDSU women's volleyball game start at 12:00 tomorrow.
Posted on September 17 2022
As luck would have it our granddaughter's NDSU team won the 5:00 o'clock match in three sets. At 6:30 I put the second coat of paint on a beam on the front of the garage, put away the paint, washed the brush and at 6:45 headed out into the Lordville...
Even Noah wouldn't have floated the Beaverkill.
Posted on September 16 2022
A bright sun beaming down from a cloudless sky, a sky high barometer and a piping wind out of the north is a combination that chills the heart of of most dry fly anglers in the best of times. Add no bugs to the equation and you begin to get...
How many rabbits can you pull out of one hat???
Posted on September 15 2022
Took another day off Tuesday, no I'm not showing my age, the rivers were up, "stained" as they like to say, and there were no bugs. Having done most of my weeks allotment of camp chores yesterday I was ready to go right after lunch today. Headed east on 17...
You know it don't come easy.
Posted on September 13 2022
Didn't fish last Friday. Our granddaughter's volleyball team was hosting a tournament and they were streaming the games. Turned out to be six hours of volleyball Friday (both matches went five sets) and another two and a half hours for the third match on Saturday. At 8:00pm Saturday I was...
The way things are.
Posted on September 09 2022
From the beginning of May until the middle of August the fishing was as good as I've ever seen. Then things came to a halt. Actually they didn't really come to a halt, conditions changed, it was harder to catch fish and I didn't adjust my expectations. No longer were...
Will be at the driving range tomorrow.
Posted on September 08 2022
It's 6:30 and I'm rattling my glass in hopes that a mermaid will magically appear and "top off" my Perfect Manhattan. Didn't fish today. Why? Checked DRC's most recent report and they said everyone would be throwing streamers this afternoon and that the water up at Stilesville was still at...
The fish are all heading home.
Posted on September 07 2022
It wasn't a hurricane (or even a tropical depression for that matter), but it did the job and threatens to do more. Twenty four hours of rain, much of it no more than a light mist but it sure helped. Unfortunately the rivers above the reservoirs didn't seem to receive...
Rainy days on Mondays, always make me glad.
Posted on September 06 2022
Left Lafayette with a plan. It wasn't complicated. Saw David's video and read Dennis' report. I would be at Deposit by noon and fish the olives in 375 cfs of relatively cold water. Drove down in what you would call a heavy mist until I turned the corner at Binghamton....
If ifs and buts were candy and nuts, everyday would be Christmas.
Posted on September 04 2022
After basically meeting minimum flow requirements at Montague for two days and then substantially exceeding them for the next five days the River Master has allowed NYC to reduce the release from Cannonsville to 357 CFS. It takes about 40 hours for the Cannonsville release water to reach Montague so...
Finding rainbows in the sun.
Posted on September 03 2022
Took Thursday off as Jean came down and I enjoyed spending the time with her. We sat on the back porch in the evening and watched the deer come for the apples under the tree on the corner of the porch. A couple of the old girls seem to now...
So far I can drink my PM at the Lordville Estate.
Posted on September 01 2022
For those of you that are just looking for a new blog post to read with your morning Joe, or worse yet, those of you that are still fishing, I'd say it's time to get out the honey-do list and start crossing items off. Never, in the thirty-two years that...
Time to shoot the bow.
Posted on August 28 2022
On August 16th I was in the penthouse, on August 22nd I moved to the outhouse. How did this come about? Well, the River Master ran from 900 to over 1,100 cfs of water down the WB for five days. The cold water resulted in large hatches of olives and...
At least I got the lawn mowed.
Posted on August 26 2022
To be fair my heart just wasn't in it today. At 5:30 I hadn't fished and was still driving around looking in awe at the number of fishermen crowded into the WB from the barking dog take out up to Butler Brook. Didn't even drive past the red barn, maybe...
Frozen in the summer
Posted on August 25 2022
Clearly the River Master needs a remedial course in basic math. The minimum average daily flow at Montague is supposed to be 1,750 cfs. Yesterday the flow ranged from a high of 1,600 to a low of 1,380 and today's high appears to be peaking at 1,630. Why do I...
How Do You Think He Does It, What makes Him So Good?
Posted on August 24 2022
Forgive me, but I just couldn't resist using the title. Chris asked a good question, answered most of it himself but it gives me another opportunity to stress what I believe are the things you need to do to catch more fish on in the Delaware River. Casting - First...
The Humbler
Posted on August 23 2022
Tonight I'm sitting here drinking a Perfect Manhattan and it's not a celebratory one. I would say I was drowning (just learned there's no d at the end of drown), my sorrows but Dennis would surely accuse me of mewling. As an aside - My college freshman year English teacher...
Sunday morning coming down.
Posted on August 22 2022
Got back to the fishing camp about 8:45 last Thursday night to find the phone light blinking and a message from Jean to call whenever I got in (almost never good news) but this time it was. The company installing our mini split AC had called at 4:30 to say...
All the changes keep on changin'
Posted on August 19 2022
As everyone who fishes the Delaware (or any other stream for that matter) knows, things change. Yesterday I tried to follow a trail into the river that a Troutfitter regular opened up with pruning shears in early May. The last time I fished there ( probably ten years ago) you...
Wind Knots, Tailing Loops and " ya shoulda been here yesterday"
Posted on August 18 2022
In looking back over your comments I was surprised to see that the last Q & A session was back in July. Since I have ample free time so there really is no excuse for not doing a better job answering questions promptly. Dennis - The word is mewling and...
It's as close to a dead cert as it gets!
Posted on August 17 2022
Given the seemingly steady release of 1,100 cfs from Cannonsville coupled with the 200 cfs flow from the EB one could assume that Wallenpaupack Reservoir has been drawn down as far as allowed during the summer (I'll try too check on this tomorrow), and that the Delaware system will be...
It's a game changer
Posted on August 16 2022
On Friday they bumped the flow up to 625 cfs, on Monday it was raised to 925 cfs, then dropped back to 600 cfs. Why? Minimum flow requirements at Montague. Pursuant to an agreement reached by those parties affected by the Delaware River flow the River Master is to maintain...
Searchin'
Posted on August 13 2022
It's the weekend and many of you have turned to golf or gone on a family vacation. The Sulfur Zone season is ending (even though there are reports of an epic sulfur hatch Thursday night at the barking dog boat launch). A-119 has weaned himself away from the zone in...
Time to look for tricos.
Posted on August 12 2022
It's time to face facts. The sulfurs are on the wane. Yesterday I was tardy getting to the stream but had fish rising to sulfurs for about forty five minutes, was fishing between town and the red barn. Today I got going on time and tried a place between Oquaga...
Maybe it would be smart to get to the river on time for the hatch.
Posted on August 11 2022
Thanks to Ed and Dennis for their updates on the sulfur hatch and to Jason for his contribution to the cost of new pavement in Hancock. I did yard work and wasn't on the water until almost three. Had rising fish for about forty five minutes then things really went...
I wanna know right now, before we go any further - - -
Posted on August 10 2022
First of all, an up date on the fox situation. Have never in the 32 years I've owned the camp, seen so many foxes. Either they have learned that scavenging along highways is easy pickins or they are just doing well. Friday night I saw one on the Equinunk to...
You don't have to be old to be in a fog.
Posted on August 09 2022
My distaste for fishing in crowds is well known. Thursday and Friday last week and again today I didn't head for the river until after four thirty. The sulfurs were in their lull period as were the fishermen. If you looked carefully there were still fish rising and each day...
Maybe Mrs Haskins was giving me a grade.
Posted on August 05 2022
Last night I was in bed typing the "Some Habits Are Hard To Break" page when the good fairy tapped me on the shoulder and said "It's time for you to go to sleep". I dutifully closed the PC cover, set it on the floor and dozed off. When I...
Some habits are hard to break.
Posted on August 04 2022
It was probably almost thirty years ago when the DEC employed college age kids ( I've been told that one of them is now head of the fisheries department. at Cobleskill), to interview the anglers on the Delaware River. They told me that they knew where everyone parked and where...
Someone say grace.
Posted on August 03 2022
Tuesday's gusty winds made presentation of a dry fly problematical. On some casts my fly was windsurfing past the bubbles on the water, on others it seemed to be moving upstream as the bubbles sped by it going downstream. The trout weren't bothered by the wind one bit and were...
Afternoon bath fails to dampen spirits.
Posted on August 02 2022
Headed for Deposit about 9:30 Monday morning. Was delighted to see that paving has started on the fourteen mile stretch of I-81 between Marathon and Castle Creek. The top coat was being ground off, a tack coat applied and a long line of trucks full of asphalt were waiting their...
Wind Knots and Tailing Loops
Posted on July 30 2022
As promised. Jim N. - I use CDC for wings on everything but spinners. Never fish comparaduns or parachutes as I don't think they look anything like the real things (see the Magic Fly). Jack M. - There was no creative writing allowed in any of the courses I took...
CDC flies are not at their best in the rain.
Posted on July 29 2022
This is the time of the season when it is the hardest to write an interesting and informative fishing report. Why? Because it's the same old, same old. By now you know when and where the sulfurs are hatching. You know it's a good sulfur hatch this year and that...
Do they still call it the corn field pool?
Posted on July 28 2022
Needed a break from the Sulfur Zone so I did a split day. Tried to time my morning streamside arrival on the upper BR to coincide with the trico spinner fall. There were a few tricos around but they never got the fish going. When I arrived the fish were...
The best laid plans - - - -
Posted on July 27 2022
It was my intention to try someplace out of the sulfur zone this morning. Put the tricos in my vest just in case and then stuff just happened. Had some phone calls to make, flies to tie, house cleaning to do and presto 7:00 am became 11:45 and you might...
Cold water, bugs and feeding fish, who can ask for anything more.
Posted on July 26 2022
July 26, 2022 Left the Lordville Estate last Thursday to have dinner with friends of over fifty year who we first met on a First English Lutheran couples club (neither Jean nor I are Lutherans) canoe trip. Friday was spent doing the mowing around the ponds. Mario Andretti (Jean) cuts...
Humor police dock A-119 two days of fishing.
Posted on July 22 2022
With a social obligation this evening (Thursday) I closed up the fishing camp this morning. Will probably forego a return trip until Sunday although it sure feels good standing in waist deep release water all afternoon. The fishing - There is no question now that the trend to smaller trout...
This and that.
Posted on July 20 2022
Noticed that the temperature gage at Lordville soared up over 76 yesterday. Thought it strange as the temp started out at around 66 and should have been fine. A close look at the USGS graph shows the problem as the jagged line turns into a straight line mid afternoon and...
Finding the magic fly.
Posted on July 17 2022
I'm sure you've all heard (or been) the angler with a fish on his line who hollered downstream to his buddy "He took a size 18 olive cripple". And, almost everyone within hearing distance begins looking through their fly boxes for an olive cripple of the same size.
Come on, what did the trout really take? He took a fly in his feeding lane that looked good and wasn't dragging. Back in the day...