Angler 119's Delaware River Fishing Report

 It was the day of the Associate Editors annual meeting, (the fourth, I think), which was scheduled for 1:00pm at the Troutfitter. I spent the morning planting grass on some of the remaining bald spots from last year's grub invasion, gave a thought to cleaning out the bluebird houses, but that's on the shut down list and I didn't want to start on that quite yet. Drove up to Deposit, picked up the meatball subs that everyone ordered and delivered them to the pavilion at the Troutfitter where the meeting took place. Once again there was perfect attendance. A motion was made, seconded and unanimously passed exempting all of us from sitting on the bench of redemption until it has been refinished as it presents a clear and present danger to keisters in its present condition. There being a reluctance to talk about religion and politics, a motion to adjourn was unanimously by voice vote. Knew in my heart that if I went back to the places where I fished yesterday I'd face the r...

 I'll admit it, my confidence has taken a hit. Ever since I quit the Sulfur Zone back in mid- August I have struggled to find and catch fish. Have had two or three good trips on the BR, but when the only reliable hatch you can find is on the UEB and the fish of the day doesn't make it to twelve inches you just might begin to doubt yourself. Awoke to 44 degrees on the porch and 67 in the fishing camp.The water on the entire system was in the 50's and I was hopeful that that would get the bugs hatching earlier in the day. Left the estate at 2:30 and headed up the PA side. No bugs at Buckingham, but five trailers and six cars in the lot. Stockport had both cars and trailers parked roadside. Shehawken was busy with boats both putting in and taking out. Sat down on my high water rock, (had my shoes on), and actually saw some olives, (some is NOT a big number but way better than none). Alas, there were no risers. Drove up to Balls Eddy and it was also busy with drift boats depart...

 Had several chores to do this morning before heading for the fishing camp. Met with the guy who brought in stone to level the site for our new shed, sprayed Roundup on the patch of Knotweed that has, so far, survived our efforts to kill it, continued work on the bass pond restoration project, and drove down the road a couple of miles to pick up two five gallon pails of apples. By 9:00 I was soaking wet, took a shower, packed the car and headed for Lordville. Sometime after my departure the first genuine fall front pushed through. A stiff northwest wind of at least 15 had the wind turbines spinning and cooled things down, dried things out, and put space behind the hills. The drive down was slowed by the repaving project between Castle Creek and Binghamton. I was in no hurry and by the time I arrived in Lordville the cool dry air had the grass ready to be cut.    With the wind blowing like it was Hendrickson time, I mowed the lawn, puttered around the yard, came in and tri...

 Bright sun and warm temps may work for summer sulfurs but they sure don't help the olive and iso hatches. I don't think it got as hot temperature wise today as the weatherman predicted but the bright sun heated up the water well past where the olives and isos are comfortable hatching. I saw one iso and considered myself lucky after talking with guides and fishermen calling it quits between six and seven tonight. If you're thinking about coming, think again, and wait for cooler temps, (especially at night). Nighttime temps in the low forties will get bugs popping. Hot sunny days for fall fishing are not the fisherman's friend. Look for an extended forecast of cloudy, cold, rainy days and book a room. If you're here now, talk to whoever you're renting a room from and get the name and directions of a "fisherman's bar", there will be both guides and fishermen there that feel your pain, (it's important not to be alone). The bugs - Just will not hat...

 Today was to be cloudy, (it was), and rainy, (it wasn't). I was hopeful of seeing a few bugs and rising fish before the last hour or two of daylight, and I did.  Here's the story. Had a date with Vicky at her unisex salon in Deposit at 12:30. Arrived five minutes early and got the seat with the scissors, no waiting. Finished up by 12:45, (the top takes almost no time at all), and stopped to chat with David at the Troutfitter. The motel business has been good but the fishermen have abandoned the tailwaters in favor of the freestones and the shop business has slowed as a result. Drove down to the Men's Club seeing but one boat anchored at the sewage treatment plant and not a single wade fisherman. It was dead at the Hale Eddy bridge and there was nary a boat or wade fisherman to be seen on my drive down 17 all the way to Hancock. At four o'clock I decided it was time to fish or cut bait. Waded out into the Lordville riff knowing that isos have been hatching there for abo...

 If you are planning a late season trip to the Delaware expecting to catch some of those big browns everyone was talking about during the sulfur hatch you should probably trim your sails and lower your expectations. Why? The summer sulfurs started to wane about the middle of August, and the big browns that had been feeding on them all summer abruptly stopped rising. The olives that usually begin hatching in earnest as the sulfur hatch fades have so far been a disappointment, making their appearance no more than an hour before dark. The fall Isonychia hatch, (like this years spring hatch), has also been a disappointment. With mid September fast approaching the outlook for catching big browns on top is not good. They will soon be moving to their spawning grounds and have other things on their minds than eating size 20 olives. What to do? Fish for rainbows! Why? For one, they aren't concerned with spawning this time of year. Second, they love to eat flies, and any significant hatch of...

 Never mind what the calendar says, it's fall. Started the first fire in the stove this morning since sometime back in May. It was 47 out on the porch and a chilly 68 inside. Made three trips to the big apple tree to pick up drops, (the deer just can't keep up), filling a five gallon bucket in the process. Between  the neighborhood peach and apple trees, the deer are very well fed. The fawns are still struggling with even the small apples, but they pick up the pieces mom drops chewing the bigger apples. Have not yet seen a buck out of the velvet. Watched the US Women's team win handily today. Caitlin Clark has been forced to play a plodding structured game preferred by the coach. Will be interesting to see what happens when they play the good teams later in the tournament. When the game was over I left the camp and went fishing. Stopped at a place on the EB both on the way out and back. Saw no bugs either time, but did see one rise on the way back. Fished to rising trout fo...

 Returned to the Lordville Estate today, in part because I'd gotten several major tasks out of the way at home, in part because I didn't want to deal with Labor Day traffic tomorrow, and in part because I just plain missed the fishing. The first two are done deals. The third may turn out not to be true. Arrived early enough to mow the grass, (again), before watching CC and the women's national team seemingly shoot beach balls at a hoop the size of a tea strainer, (look that up you Gen Zers). Left the fishing camp a bit after four, tried two spots on the EB, (no bugs and high water), Bk was too high to fish and the UEB was too crowded, did a U-turn and drove over to the WB which was surprisingly uncrowed. Picked a spot in the middle section with no anglers in sight, hoping to luck out like Michigan.  Entered the water at 7:00 with the sun shining on just the top of the hills on the far side of the stream. Stood on shore for five minutes swatting mosquitoes, without seeing a ...

 Woke this morning to more surprises, there were two wet spots on the porch which was a clue that it had rained. Looked out at the river and it was clear that I would be heading home again. Looked at the screens and they were again covered with isos. Mowed the grass on the railroad land up by the tracks and on the bank down to the yard, left notes for the neighbors to help themselves to the peaches, delivered some peaches to Dave at the Troutfitter and headed home. Watched replays of the US women's basketball team beating China, (they have a 19 year old girl that is 7' 4"s tall). Fed the fish and cleaned out the pond inlets, (both ponds are both now full). Watched my friends star two year old filly comfortably win a stakes race for N.Y. bred two year olds. Then enjoyed a dinner with Jean featuring  Chanterelle mushrooms and shrimp cocktail for hors d'oeuvres, (with a Perfect Manhattan and two Mic Ultras) , corn on the cob, baked potatoes and prime rib made up the entre...

 Yesterday's "drive by" did nothing to boost my enthusiasm for the fishing, neither did the absence of bugs under the porch light, and the thunderstorms that passed through during the night. Awoke this morning to see muddy water flowing by on the BR, checked the USGS gages and where I was going to fish was not an issue, (above Oquaga or back home in my trout pond). Walked out on the back porch to turn off the light and got my first pleasant surprise, there were over thirty isos on the screens along with several october caddis, (aka pumpkin caddis), two stone flies and a miscellaneous assortment of other bugs. With the rivers up and muddy, (BR at 5,000 cfs), there was nothing I could do about the isos except tie some, but my spirits were clearly lifted. Drove up to Deposit and had my pick of the pools, there was a greater danger of running into JimF or Mike the Cop, (all of us driving around looking for a rising fish), than there was of finding someone in the pool you want...

 It's not that I couldn't have driven back down Monday morning, fished two days, then driven back to Lafayette for the Wednesday appointments, just didn't think it was worth it, had things that needed doing back home, and sometimes I just like to spend time with Jean.  Wasn't able to head for Lordville until 3:30, drove on dry roads all the way until leaving Hancock,  where a mist required wipers to be put on intermittent, low. The main objective today was to get the hay in the barn. The lawn could have been mowed Friday but wasn't, and today it was wet and a good 8/9 inches tall. Had to go slowly and only cut about one half a swath of new grass on each pass. It was 6:45 before I put the mower in the garage. Headed for the home pool with two rods, only to find a fisherman ensconced in the prime spot. Not having fished since Friday, I then decided to take a tour and assess the situation. Went up the PA side, crossed over into NY, and headed back to Lordville. Stopped...

 It's been an interesting couple of days. Two serious storms skirted downtown Lordville, (pavement under the trees was dry), one went to the north and one to the south. River out back was muddy all day today from the Beaverkill which shot up from 200 cfs to 800 cfs. It's now back to 475 cfs, clearing and fishable. Did the rise in water move fish? You'll have to find out for yourself, 'cause I'm heading home, return to be delayed by a doctors appointment to take care of a trigger fingers problem, (two of them are locking up). The bugs - Hopefully I'm just trying to rush the season, fall bugs need cold water temps and we just don't have them. Ants? You have to be lucky. Last year I got in on what was a massive ant flight and had a great day. I haven't seen an ant on the water yet this year. Just so you know, many of the ant flights are local, if you find ants on the water stay and fish them. Several times in the past I've left ants on the water to go t...

 With a strong thunderstorm watch posted for the area from 6:00 until 9:00 tonight it's doubtful that I'll even wet a line. It's 3:45 now and a good time to answer some questions. James - wants to know about algae, is it good or bad? I've written about it many times. It comes from the reservoir. The WB drainage area includes many dairy farms, cows and fertilizer both enrich the water that flows into the reservoir and sunshine does the rest. Growing algae gives off oxygen, dying algae CO2, from a fishing standpoint it's at best annoying to all fishermen. Nymphing and streamer fishing is virtually impossible above say Hale Eddy when the algae is at it's worst. The fish probably love it. James -Danaghers, (a long time Delaware fisherman who passed away a few years ago), owned the log cabin overlooking the WB on the bend below the Mens Club. Brian - Asked about blind casting. Have written several pages on this. Hopefully Dave at the Troutfitter or one of the Assoc. ...

 Encouraged by both the bugs on the water and the fish in the net last night, I woke up this morning with the thought of seeing if I could find some fish eating tricos. It was chilly and I had plenty of time before the spinner fall but I ended up working in the yard and it was noon before I came in for lunch. Drove off at two with no clear idea of what I was going to do. Drove up to Deposit, not to fish, but to consult with Lloyd Hornbeck about the stripers. We ended up talking for an hour. Left Hornbeck's and drove over to the Troutfitter to say hi to Dave and there were three cars in the lot. Detoured up route 8 and came down river road. Saw a couple bugs on the water, no rises and a lone fisherman standing in the Red Barn pool. Came back to the shop and it was closed. The bugs - - - - - - - . The fishing - Was almost as bad. Fished another spot on the BR, from 5:00 until 7:30 saw two rises out where I couldn't reach them and one, two, or three fish quietly taking something I...

 Can't help but notice that the length of the days are shrinking like a cheap cotton tee that got put in the dryer. Close to three minutes a day. Was back in the car tonight at 8:12, in June it was 9:45. Spent idle time weeding my "flower garden", others would call it a weed patch, to which I have no defense. It has an array of blooming plants that deer won't touch, Daffodils, Iris, (three colors), lilies, columbine, foxglove, (two colors), Cardinal Flower, (the Hummingbirds favorite), and a new red one that Jean gave me that I haven't learned the name of yet. There are flowers blooming among the weeds all season long. Didn't head out to fish until 2:00 and once again headed east to the BK. Water was in the mid sixties, I'd seen iso husks on the rocks and, and, and - - - it was a bust. In a good rainbow run, not far from a thermal refuge, there were no flies hatching, no husks on the rocks and most likely no fish in the river where I was fishing. If you...

 Spent Sunday at Saratoga watching the races with a neighborhood friend from back in 4th grade. His horse did not do well but we had a delightful day, toured the barn where his group of owners has a half dozen horses stabled. Scratched a few muzzles just in case they go on to be famous, toured the museum, and won the last two races to cut my gambling loss for the day to $3.00.  Was on the road this morning by 8:30 and mowing by 11:30. Had to prop limbs on the fruit trees,  pick a few of the ripe peaches, water the reseeded areas of the lawn and it was 2:00. Ate lunch, sat back and let the world go by until 4:00 when I got in the car and made a lackluster attempt at fishing. There were almost no fishermen on the river. Either they're at the State Fair or they agree with my assessment of the fishing. Stopped at two places on the BK, two on the WB, and one on the BR. Here's what I saw. The bugs - There were tiny olives hatching in good numbers on both the WB and the BR, ther...

 Things are looking up and some of them are fish. Did more yard work this morning. Quit at noon and wasn't soaking wet for a change. The night time temps have been going down into the fifties, there is fog in the morning and the sun's rays just aren't as powerful as they were in July. Even with today's bright sun the water in the BK and BR stayed below 70, the EB at Hancock, (the warmest water in the system), got above 70 for an hour or so but that was it. Had lunch and decided to take a drive. Headed east and checked out a couple of thermal refuges on the BK. With the water temp in the high 60's there was not a fish to be seen. I'm sure most of the fish are still near the cold water but until the temp tops 70 they are free to swim in the main current. As soon as it gets above 70 they are back with their noses facing the cold water. Walked some shore line where isos usually hatch and didn't see a single nymph husk. About 5:30 I drove up route 30 along the UE...

 You know things are slow when 7 out of the 10 blog comments were about the blog title. It's 6:30, have had my first sip of the Perfect Manhattan and a couple handfuls of Act II's extra butter popcorn, (have paper towels in my lap to wipe the butter off my fingers before typing). With an all day rain in the forecast, I thought it was a good time to spread a wheelbarrow full of topsoil on some of the bare spots from last years grub invasion and get them seeded. Finished up at 11:30, packed a lunch, and headed over to the BK. With last night's temp in the 50's and a cloudy rainy day in the forecast, the the water temp was not an issue. The fishing -  Got a surprise when I walked out of the knotweed at my first stop on the BK, (a place where I rarely see anyone fishing), and there was a fisherman on the other side of the river. We exchanged waves and I left. Fished two pools without seeing a bug of any kind. Hooked two fish in the first pool and lost them both. The first f...

 Hopefully today will turn out to be the nadir of this years fly fishing season. Was amazed at how much work I could get done by just not driving around hoping to find rising fish. Worked in the yard, paid some bills, made an appointment to get my trigger finger a shot of prednisone, had a couple nice chats with fishermen who live in the greater Lordville metropolitan area, (if your in the front yard working everyone stops), watched the deer coming and going to check for fallen apples and peaches, did today's crosswords and sudoku, and presto it was 5:30.  Having gotten word that there was a good evening hatch of sulfurs up in Deposit, headed up with a plan to fish an "A" spot that has been occupied by boats and or wade fishermen for the past few weeks. Needn't have worried. From the Town Bridge down to the bend at Danagher's there was not a fisherman in sight. Put on the waders, tucked the raincoat in the back of my vest and at 6:00 went fishing. While walking to...

 Making a conscious effort this week to take care of things that have been on the to do list since April, and to fish places I haven't visited this year. Didn't mow until the sun dried the dew off the lawn but was able to prune the apple and peach branches that the deer have jumped up and pulled down, while the grass was still wet. Love having the deer around but for such gentle creatures they sure can do a lot of damage to the fruit trees and a garden. Didn't finish the yard work until almost two then had lunch and worked on a crossword puzzle. Left at a little before 4:00 and stopped at the town office to get a dump sticker for the new car. The sticker is free for seniors but they want you to get a new one each year. The one on the car I traded in was from 2019. From the town office I drove up to Deposit, sometimes everyone does stupid things. Yesterday it was ok to get there at 4:30, it was overcast and there were bugs and fish. Today it was sunny and both the bugs and f...