Afternoon and evening sulfurs on the WB, someone please tell the fish.

 

Unless you want to hear about my struggles trying to keep the deer from eating my tomato plants and peaches or how nice the yard looks after todays mowing, I'll keep todays report on fishing? Why? Because today there was something to talk about.

First of all its, been since fourth of July that DRC has been able to adorn their daily report with a trout and they don't require the fish to meet a minimum size for the photo. I mention this, as I do most every year, not to embarrass the DRC or their guides who as good as any, but rather to show how difficult the fishing has been. On a personal note, I play a best of five match with the trout each week. If I catch ten fish I win the day, if not the trout win. Today was my first win in July! The fishing has been a real challenge since the middle of June.

The afternoon fishing - Left the Lordville Estate at 1:30, in time to see a few sulfurs and no risers at (you guessed it), the Hale Eddy Bridge. Drove up the PA side seeing neither bugs, nor risers. At Barking Dog launch site, I saw my first sulfurs of the day. Went back up to the Men's Club where there was a combo of bugs, anglers and rising fish (saw five risers and seven anglers). Did not venture up river from Deposit as there were no fish rising in the big pool below the Town bridge. Found an unoccupied riff/run where there were sulfurs and went fishing. Did not see half-a-dozen rises except to my fly. Fished with an iso, steno, caddis, olive and sulfur and rose fish on all but the caddis. Hooked eight, landed six and was refused by at least 8/10 more.

The evening fishing - Left camp (after a short nap), at 6:45 and drove the same route as I did in the afternoon. Saw a few sulfurs, lots more fishermen and no rising trout. Ended up retreating to the middle section of the WB where at 7:45 I saw a couple of sulfurs. By 8:15 with the sun off the water, I saw my first rise. Fifteen minutes later I had fish to throw at and they were good ones, and some weren't very fussy. Ended the night landing five very nice fish. Two 19 inchers, one in the afternoon and one in the evening tied for fish of the day.

Just so you know. The fishing is still not great, but it seems to be getting better day by day. Where I've been the last two days there have been modest hatches of bugs in the afternoon but very few fish up feeding on them. Without the wind today I was able to make far better casts and the fish cooperated. The last hour of light (was back to the car at 9:29) is the best fishing. The big fish are up feeding on top and you have a realistic chance of hooking up. To do so you need to get away from other fishermen and fish to relaxed fish. The fish I have caught since my return to the WB bear little resemblance to the fish I was catching in the freestones. The WB fish are beat up and tired, but they are a life time trophy for many a fisherman. 

Several of todays big fish seemed to be in fine fettle with good firm, filled out, bellies, just say 'in.

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