Angler 119's Delaware River Fishing Report

It had been seven days of really good fishing, capped off by the 11/11  outing  on Wednesday .  I might have been a little full of myself. Then there was today.  The fishermen who took Tuesday and Wednesday  off returned in force - the weather got hot again - the breeze  actually felt good as I got heated up walking up and down stream banks  looking for risers (there weren't any). I drove from Hancock to Roscoe  and Downsville and back.  I could count the rises I saw  without  taking off my socks and shoes. The bugs were outnumbered  over 1,000  to 1 by the fluffy little seeds from the Sycamore trees.  There were  some caddis egg layers over the water but the fish payed them no mind. I don't know if the WB and the Big River fished the same (I suspect  they did) but I sure saw a lot of fishermen sitting on rocks waiting  for " it" to happen. While driving back to the camp a funny thought went through my mind.  I've been fishing for over sixty years.  I've been

Tried following the Hendrickson hatch up the Upper EB - found bugs and  rising fish but the first fish hooked, spooked the rest of the fish in  the thin water. Moved downstream to where there was more water and found Hendrickson  and paralep duns and spinners on the water and fish up eating on top!  Will attempt to attach pictures of the two best ones (22" and 21"). After two days of losing over half of the fish I hooked lady luck  touched my rod hand and I landed eleven out of eleven. What a day.  The big male shown in the second picture, just twitched a little bit  when I was taking the fly out of his mouth.  I lost a pint of blood  and turned the river pink washing out my handkerchief. The last fish, a 19 incher, got tangled around a large rose branch that was submerged  in the pool. I took me several minutes to untangle the line (with two  more cuts to my hands) before landing the fish that swam placidly  around waiting for me to clear the line.  When it's your day -

Mother Nature served us a dose of reality today.  After 70 degree  weather with light zephers the past few days, the weather returned to  near normal and the "Hendrickson Wind" kicked in at 15 to 20 mph from  the west making the WB and the Big River the best option for floaters.  Those who chose the EB are probably still rowing (it's 9:30 pm) The cooler weather also put the bugs back on schedule with the caddis  hatch more subdued and the Hendrickson's coming off in their usual 3:00 to 4:30  hatch period. Presentation was a bit of an issue(some casts didn't even land) and  finesse was not in the equation.  "Slap'er down" being the order of  the day. With fewer fishermen braving the elements it wasn't hard to find a  spot somewhat out of the wind. I had rising trout from 3:00 until  4:30.  If I was smart I would have quit then and gone home happy. I'm  not, fished in white caps til the wind died down and then it got cold  enough to quell the m

He hooked over a dozen large trout and cast at six or eight more that were vary particular about what they ate. At one point he had landed only two of eight and ended the day six for  fourteen. The fish were found, for the most part, in fast moving water with  difficult wading. It was hard to see rises in the heavy water. It was a challenge to wade close enough to make a cast to many of the fish. If a fish ate the fly the advantage was still with the fish as it is  never easy to land a fish in heavy water. I broke fish off, fish broke me off, fish got into the backing and the line got caught around rocks, one fish came unstuck when it was half in the net, another ran downstream around a bridge abutment and was gone. This, to me, is what fly fishing is all about. Seeing the rise, wading within casting range, making the cast, hooking the fish and trying to  land it. Floating down the river watching a bobber is just not the same sport.

Saturday will almost certainly be a top 3 day for me this season. Today-  was a little bit warmer - the water was a little bit lower - the sun was a little bit brighter - the Hendricksons didn't come as early or as well as yesterday - and they popped off the water MUCH faster in the hot sun.  The fish never really  got going anywhere I fished (6 different places). During the peak part of the hatch I had a few targets and I hooked some nice fish, but from 4:30 on it was hard to find a rising fish. One fish I landed in the EB had a mouthful of Apple Caddis pupa. - perhaps they were feeding but not on top. Saturday fishing in waist deep water in the shade I wanted three shirts.  Today in knee deep water in the sun two shirts was one too many. Hope you came and caught some fish.  If you fished where I did you earned 'em.

Thursday there were a few Hendricksons on the water. Friday  there  were more. Today, just the right amount - enough to get the fish  going good but not so many that the fish couldn't see your fly. There were heavy Hendrickson hatches below Long Eddy the last few days  but very few fish up.  Apple caddis are already on the EB up to Fish"s  Eddy, with egg layers in Hancock. Fishermen are hammering the "A" spots. There are fish everywhere.  Go where no one else is fishing. The fish are more likely to eat your  fly if they haven't already been stung by someone else's.  The fish  are already Hendrickson shy in areas of heavy boat traffic. If you are in a spot without bugs at 3:00 g o somewhere else. Right now  it's as good as it gets!  Enjoy BTW- Didn't see a dandelion on Thursday or Friday.  Today the front  yards in Hancock were covered with them (so was my yard).