bloomagoo

A friend and I called in sick to work last Friday for a day of fly fishing. Our first stop was the Assabet where the water was running high after last week's rain. Still, from 9-noon we managed to pull 8 nice browns between us and had a lot of fun. After a quick lunch break we drove south to another eastern Mass river and soon found a pocket of fish, netting 5 more fat rainbows including the whale this photo.

I had high hopes for this weekend given the decent weather and mid-40s temps. Hit Houghton's on Friday AM. A fairly stiff wind made fly casting a challenge. About three hours on the water yielded not a bump. I returned on Saturday morning. The sun was shining and wind had laid down, an absolutely perfect day to be on the water. Four and a half hours later I went home empty. Only one tug on the fly the entire time. There were three other fly fisherman that came and went during that time. One of them was able to land a rainbow. The rest of us made the walk of shame.

No fish porn attached but I've been having steady luck on the fly at the local stocked pond for the past several weeks. Three rainbows yesterday so mark me down officially for December fish. Three last week including a very nice brownie, and an epic day two weeks ago with 10 to the net and another 4-5 dropped (included three browns 16-18"). Thanks to everyone who has already hung up their gear for the season. I love being the only one on the water and catching fish 8^)

This trip is more for my own record keeping than for any sort of chest thumping. After my triumphant return from North Carolina where I absolutely slayed the trout three weekends ago, I have once again been humbled by Massachusetts pisces. I spent Friday, April 18 fly fishing two local ponds, both recently stocked, for trout. After fours hours I managed just three small bass on a woolly bugger and go bit off by a pickerel. Saturday April 19 was spent in the kayak on Ponkapoag where the reward for three hours of battling high winds was one small bass and one small pickerel. On Friday April 25 I spent a lovely afternoon fly fishing Buckmaster with a friend. No fish. Followed that with a trip to another stocked pond in the area, 5 hits, no hookups. On Saturday, I stood in the rain at Houghton and Buckmaster for a total of 4 hours with only a single pickerel showing up. Yesterday, April 27, NEKF held it's Spring Thing event at Chebacco. Three hours on the water and one pickerel. It can only get better from here.

So where the heck is Asheville, you ask? In North Carolina. I had to travel for business so I thought I'd combine it with a little bit of pleasure. I located an outfitter, hired a guide and spent a half day on the west fork of the Pigeon River. My guide, Jason Van Dyke, had me into fish within minutes and the action didn't let up all morning. I hit for the cycle catching brookies, rainbows and browns. Most fish were stockies in the 10 inch range but we also hooked into a few 3lb+ bruisers. If you ever find yourself in that area needing a most excellent guide, contact Hunter Banks and ask for Jason.

Hit up Duxbury again this AM with a couple buds from NEKF. Launched before dawn, temps around 40° with no wind. Hit a short right after launch but nothing else. Both friends were skunked. No signs of bait either.

Watch the video http://youtu.be/_iqFtuyhZ9Y

Hit up Duxbury again this AM with a couple buds from NEKF. Launched before dawn, temps around 40° with no wind. Hit a short right after launch but nothing else. Both friends were skunked. No signs of bait either.

October 13, 2013 - Finally, a calm day with blue skies. I launched about an hour past high tide to fish the outgoing. I picked up three fish in the first 20 minutes at a spot that's proven quite reliable over recent weeks. I then pedaled into a section of the marsh I hadn't yet fished but was told held some big fish. Alas, no biguns for me today but a boatload of schoolies to 22". I know this water holds big fish, the locals keep regaling me with tales of monsters taken on live pogies. I may need to tie some larger flies and change up my technique a bit. They say practice makes perfect. At least this kind of practice is a blast.

TIGHT LINES!

Watch the video http://youtu.be/-1O6Mc41DTM

October 11, 2013 - A steady wind at 15-20 knots kept other kayakers off the water but the Hobie excels in this type of slop. I was fishing the outgoing, starting about 2 hours after high and headed toward the estuary in search of some calmer water. I picked up my first fish 10 minutes in but it took a while to find my stride. After an hour I only had three fish in the boat. That's when I stumbled upon the mother load at the mouth of the estuary. The stripers were all stacked up where the wind and the current were at odds creating a nice chop. After that I couldn't put my line in the water without hooking a fish within seconds. Over the next hour and a half I boated at least 16 more fish. That's how many I caught before my camera battery died. But I kept on fishing and catching for a while after that so I know I caught well over 20 in a three hour trip. None were legal but all were fun.

Watch the video http://youtu.be/BsSv5G4GSXc

TIGHT LINES!

Rain and wind was the story of the day, but that didn't deter me from fishing. Protected from the elements in my rain gear, my GoPro in its waterproof housing, I set out with my 8 wt St. Croix Triumph to conquer the mighty striped bass. I launched two hours ahead of high tide and had my first fish 15 minutes later. Dragging a size 1/0 white/olive/black Clouser I picked up six fish, including one herring, before the bite died at slack tide. Once the tide started moving again I found a nice rip loaded with schoolies and started to slay them one right after another. No legal fish today but I had the water to myself and a boatload of fun on the fly rod. Watch the video http://youtu.be/T7b4xWs6GUM