Don't put away your rod just yet.


Got an early start from home today and was in Lordville by 10:30, unloaded the car, put things away and it still wasn't time for lunch. Ate anyway. Made a roast beef sandwich, opened the potato chips and a Pepsi and went out on the porch to eat. There were two fawns in the yard, one laying down, the other eating tomato leaves through the "deer fence" surrounding the garden. Watched the blue birds visit the box to feed their young, listened to the cat bird sing to his mate on their nest in the flowering quince, and out of the corner of my eye (do eyes have corners?) caught the doe coming down from the hill to nurse her two fawns. Right behind her came her two yearlings (both does). She clearly is the best mom in the area now having raised two sets of twins with no losses to predators.

The fishing - First the good - There were sulfurs hatching at the Hale Eddy Bridge today at 2:00. Now the bad - There wasn't a rise to be seen. I've been stopping at the Hale Eddy Bridge for almost three weeks hoping to find bugs and rising fish with no success. Sulfurs hatching is a step in the right direction. Went upstream a ways and fished a modest hatch in a brisk breeze (at least 10/12). There were almost no risers. Took the bench pressure off right away when I hooked and landed a nice 18 incher. Didn't hook another fish until I had moved even farther upstream where there were also sulfurs and wind. Hooked two nice fish, a brown about the same size as the first and a rainbow of about 15 inches. Got both up close with their heads out of water and my arm extended with the net when the hook (aided and abetted by about a pound of algae around each fishe's nose), pulled out. In the evening I went even further upstream and again found sulfurs but until 8:45, no risers. When they started to feed there were quite a few fish. Hooked five fish and landed four, one of which was a little over 19.

The sulfurs are now hatching in the afternoon at least up into the "No Kill" on the WB. It is getting better day by day. If you are going to fish above the 17 bridge, do so on a hot sunny day. On cloudy, rainy days check the water temp on the Hale Eddy gage and fish where the water temp is over 50.    


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