Thank The Lord For The Night Time Forget the Day.

 

The weather forecasters made it an interesting day. Looked at 8:00 and the prediction was for a partly cloudy day with a slight chance of a thunderstorm late. Checked again at eleven before leaving to fish and they were predicting one to two inches of rain with thunderstorms starting at 11:00 and intensifying as the day went on.

Left the fishing camp at 11:30 with thunder rumbling and dark skies to the north. Almost turned around (should have) at Hancock but continued my journey up to Deposit, driving through a good shower in the process. Sat inside the Troutfitter with several other anglers while a t-boomer went by. It rained but not hard enough that I gave any thought to muddy water. When the rain let up I went fishing. Saw rising fish and sulfurs on the water in the pool below the iron bridge. Drove downstream below Oquaga and was surprised that it was colored. There were lots of sulfurs on the water and rising fish. I put on my stuff (vest under the raincoat) and went fishing. Made a downstream cast to what seemed like a good fish and a big wide mouth came out of the water and ate my little sulfur - in ten seconds he was gone. Got refused by another good fish as the river started to rise and the rain picked up in intensity. When I reeled it in there were so many sulfurs and olives on the water that there was little chance of a trout eating yours. Drove up stream with the intention of fishing the clear water above Oquaga, except it too was muddy. Drove back to the Lordville Estate and killed time until 6:30 when I headed for the BR to get below the mud.

The evening fishing -  When I got there the water in the upper BR was still clear and hadn't yet begun to rise. There were almost no bugs (saw a couple of olives and a half dozen isos). Blind casting yielded one refusal which I converted into a take by changing flies and then promptly lost. About 8:00 both the fish and the water started to rise. Got refusals, ignores and enough takes to make for an exciting hour of fishing. It ended with a half dozen fish in front of me quietly sipping something off the surface, they gave my fly not a glance. Turned on my flashlight and saw nothing on the water, but the light soon attracted dozens of tiny whiteish midges. Reeled it in and walked back to the car arriving in the dark at 9:12.

Was treated to a spectacular lightning show on the way home so who knows what tomorrow will bring. The Deposit mid-day sulfur hatch was nothing short of spectacular, hope it becomes a regular occurrence.       

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