Small Olives Are Hard To See In The Dark.

 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 UEB. It's Friday and there were multiple cars at the first three pull offs above the Sunoco station, one car at Long Flat and three at powerline, three fishermen at the Pleasant Valley campground were in uniform, sitting on the bench by their favorite pod of fish. It wasn't until I got to the Corbett bridge that I saw a fish rise, several of them in fact, put on the waders and gave them a shot. There were six or eight fish taking almost exclusively sub surface and, in maybe 20 minutes I never even got a refusal. If you try them, let us know how you do. They have been fished to before, and for sure, they are better at the game than I am.

At about seven I went to a place I fished over a week ago, it had fish then in about 350 cfs of water. Tonight at 220 cfs it still had fish but they were a bit harder to fool. Landed a nice one and then lost five straight, just might have been rushing things a little, (it happens when the day's fishing is condensed into less than an hour). There weren't 10% of the bugs I saw on my evening trip up to Deposit on Monday but, unlike then, the fish were up and feeding, got refusals, but a good number of fish ate the fly with a hook in it, and I lost a bunch of them. It was fun, never uttered a word of frustration even when I stepped into a sinkhole on the way out in the dark and went face first into the tall grass, (a soft landing). Washed the muddy waders off when I got back to the Lordville Estate.  

Are the freestones in play? If you watch the temps, yes, but don't expect to catch a lot of fish. I've found a fish or two blind casting in some of the pools I've fished, but have seen nary a bug on the water or in the air. Sometimes the movement back to home pools happens on a rise in the water, sometimes it seems more like osmosis.

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