It is what it is.
Over fifty years ago Robert Traver in his famous "Testament of a Fisherman" wrote "---because mercifully there are no telephones on trout waters; because only in the woods can I find solitude without loneliness---".
Clearly those words don't apply to the Delaware River as we know it today. The Delaware is the best trout fishery east of the Mississippi River. It is also the most heavily fished. Yesterday there were no parking places at access points, boats were lined up waiting their turn to launch and every vista of the river showed a line of wade fishermen and boats.
I stopped at the gamelands yesterday morning at ten hoping to find the missing spinner fall (I didn't) and there were already seven cars parked, the total reached twenty-one later in the day. The fish? It was easy to tell what the two I caught were feeding on - razor blades - their mouths were so cut up I wanted to send them to an emergency room for treatment.
The Hendricksons? Consider them over for the year. The monster spinner fall from last weeks hatch? No one's seen it.
The fishing? There were fish up even in the hot sun but you had to look hard to find them. The warm weather has extended the fishing into the evening and the low light increases your chances of fooling a fish.
The upper WB with the increased flow from the spill has become a slurry of algae - making it a necessity to clean your fly on EVERY cast (fish don't eat salad). It's not fun fishing there right now.
Fridays forecast is for rain - perhaps olives will come. In any event it's time to put your early season flies away. March Browns have been on the river for about ten days, sulfurs are on the big river and gray foxes won't be far behind.
Clearly those words don't apply to the Delaware River as we know it today. The Delaware is the best trout fishery east of the Mississippi River. It is also the most heavily fished. Yesterday there were no parking places at access points, boats were lined up waiting their turn to launch and every vista of the river showed a line of wade fishermen and boats.
I stopped at the gamelands yesterday morning at ten hoping to find the missing spinner fall (I didn't) and there were already seven cars parked, the total reached twenty-one later in the day. The fish? It was easy to tell what the two I caught were feeding on - razor blades - their mouths were so cut up I wanted to send them to an emergency room for treatment.
The Hendricksons? Consider them over for the year. The monster spinner fall from last weeks hatch? No one's seen it.
The fishing? There were fish up even in the hot sun but you had to look hard to find them. The warm weather has extended the fishing into the evening and the low light increases your chances of fooling a fish.
The upper WB with the increased flow from the spill has become a slurry of algae - making it a necessity to clean your fly on EVERY cast (fish don't eat salad). It's not fun fishing there right now.
Fridays forecast is for rain - perhaps olives will come. In any event it's time to put your early season flies away. March Browns have been on the river for about ten days, sulfurs are on the big river and gray foxes won't be far behind.
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