Angler 119's Delaware River Fishing Report

With another hot sunny day on tap, I got out early to try the BR.  One 10 inch rainbow and three fall fish later I was in the car heading for the BK.  Fished two pools there, saw three fish rise and got them all to eat. Drove from there to the UEB and followed Rte. 30 all the way up to Corbett.  Never saw a bug or a rise.   It was noon and I debated heading home for lunch or going west on 17 to Deposit.  Ended up at Wendy's in Deposit where without hesitation, I was able to order a #5 with a medium drink and fries. The price has gone up since my visit last year and I managed to get a blob of the dressing on my shirt while eating the sandwich but rehydrated by the humongous (medium) Coke and fortified by the chicken sandwich and fries, I was ready for combat fishing on the WB. At 1:00 PM the sun was beating down on the river, caddis were hatching but I could not see a rising fish.  Wade fishermen and drift boaters were casting for all they were worth (m...

NYC has cut back the releases from both reservoirs. That coupled with air temps 15 to 20 degrees above normal and bright sunshine has put a damper on the fishing. Current water temps will push the hatches back to near dark everywhere but the uppermost sections of the UEB and the WB.  With the low water, boats floating the WB will be in the main channels and will disrupt fishing.  Hard to believe but we need a good soaking rain with cooler temps. Couldn't seem to get it in gear this morning and when I did it was evident that there were no bugs or rising fish where I went. It's five o'clock right now with the Hancock temperature at 89.  Will probably go out late and if good things happen I'll add to the report. Dennis asked about the March Brown and Gray Fox hatches. March Browns hatch sporadically and can be seen on the water almost any time of day.  They have always been one of the great attractor flies as they are large, taste good and are slow to get off the water....

When I'm out in the river I have a habit of picking up hatching flies and putting them in a little plastic container which goes into the fridge when I get back to camp.  The flies are torpid but alive the next day and serve as models for my fly tying.  As a result I have many flies in my boxes that I never use.  One of them is the Chimarra, until today, when I used it and then had to change it's name to Little Sister Sedge (courtesy of Paul Weamer's book on NY hatches).   With the temps predicted to be in the 80's I decided to do a split day (fish in the AM, nap mid day, and fish in the PM).  This I did. Decided on the BR, not usually a good decision when the temp is soaring and the sky is cloudless but I wanted to get away from the WBA and the insanity that has become fishing the WB of the Delaware River.  Was on the river at 9:00 (about 2 hours too early) and saw no bugs or rising fish. Blind cast spinners, olives and caddis but my presence wasn't ev...

The key to giving good reliable information as to when to come and fish is to tell the fishermen the day before it's going to be good, not the day after.  Monday is a dead cert for "The day I caught the most fish in 2021," and Sunday will probably finish second. Today I didn't come down a peg or two, I fell into a deep abyss.  Why?  The water level has come from unwadeable to one where boaters are spooking fish that anglers are trying to fish to.  The waders came out in numbers I haven't seen this year and made the river a slalom course for the boaters. The clouds, which have magically appeared mid-day for the last week, took the day off.  The Hendricksons appear to be waning and put in but a token appearance.  Only the caddis showed up today in numbers.  The fish are tired of eating caddis, didn't like the sun in their eyes, were busy dodging oars, anchors and wade fishermen's feet.  In short, the fish didn't rise much at all during the afternoon...

 Last week I stopped at a friends camp to discuss the days fishing.  Didn't return to my abode until late and didn't enter the days fishing report until the next morning.  My wife reads the blog during the early morning hours and was worried that something bad had happened to me (at least that was her story), when there was no report posted. Tonight it's 10:30, the company has left, and I'm writing the blog so my wife doesn't needlessly worry. The fishing - In brief, bugs all day long and fish rising all day long. Where?  Above Hale Eddy.  The caddis hatch is petering out down river but it is going full bore up river.  There are kinds of caddis hatching that haven't even been named yet. The downside? During the hatch the fish are eating the emerging pupa. Never saw the nose of a fish eating on top.  Threw at rising fish from 11:30 until 4:30 and yes enough rose and ate the fly to make it a really good day but the number of casts over rising fish that w...

If this weekend is any indication, wade fishermen are fast becoming  dinosaurs.  Boats alone outnumbered them and if you count all the people in the boats it wasn't close. Maybe the waders saw all the high water and made other plans but there has been an obvious trend towards more boats and fewer waders for several years.  As long as floaters are courteous I'm fine with it.  This weekend dozens and dozens of boats went by me and all tried not to disturb my fishing. With the absence of wade fishermen and the high water it has been easy for the drifters to give waders wide berths. As the waters drop and perhaps more waders appear the potential for conflicts will increase. Wildlife in Lordville - Have been puzzled by the early morning presence of a hen turkey who feeds in the neighbors yard and then comes over and dusts under my porch. Have also wondered about the absence of my deceased neighbor Emily's now feral cats. It kinda came together this morning when I saw the ...