End of August Report

It's that time of the year again. Kids are headed back to school and the fall hatches have begun! This year I will be taking advantage of the fall fishing and guiding as I have opted to continue guiding full time through the autumn. So if you haven't booked a trip yet for this fall be sure to contact me, I still have many weekdays and even some weekend days still available. There is a lot to be excited about in terms of trout fishing in the Whites right now. Over the past week I have seen many changes both in fish activity and bug activity. Despite the impending heat wave we have seen a shift to fall weather with cooler night time temps and shorter days. This heat wave looks to be a good thing as flying ants began to pop. I write about these ant swarms every year as they represent my favorite dry fly fishing of the season. The ants swarm on warm humid days from late August through September. Expect the larger female ants to appear earlier in the afternoon in moderate numbers. The females are usually between a size 14-18 and can be anywhere from a cinnamon to honey in color. The males which range from a size 20 to 32 will coat the water in the early to late evenings and make for some challenging but very exciting dry fly fishing. Tie your male ants in a dark chocolate brown with white to silver grey wings. 

With the impending heat wave these ant swarms should be at their zenith over the next few days. If you'd like to book a trip to catch the swarm I do have this Wednesday and Thursday open. Let me know asap if you'd like to experience the magic of the ants.

Over the last week I have seen a multitude of other hatches beginning on our local waters. Last Monday I had the good fortune of guiding my brother, Jordan and father, Jim. The fishing started slow but my brother soon landed a nice rainbow on a grasshopper.( Right now grasshoppers are a huge food source for trout looking to fatten up for the winter. When no hatches are on I often switch to the hopper in order to entice a surface strike.) With my brother on fish I shifted my focus to my father, moviing him downstream to a stretch that I suspected would hold some large rainbow trout. As I approached the pool I saw a large rainbow wavering in the crystal clear flow. I stopped moving and watched. The fish wavered but did not dart. As my father approached the fish rose from the bottom and sipped a small bug from the surface. Instinct told me to tie on a small cinnamon flying ant. My fathers first cast was a bit short but his second cast landed at the perfect distance and I instructed him to simply follow the fly downstream with the tip of the rod. He did and the fish rose confidently engulfing the size 18 ant. "Set!" I said and my father was . The fish turned on the hookset revealing her large size. With a broken finger on his right hand my father struggled to keep tension. he stumbled backwards shreaking with excitement and I gently took hold of the line, letting it slide through my fingers when the fish ran but keeping tension when it bolted back towards us. Finally I was able to slide the net underneath and we managed a few pictures of this eighteen inch beauty. 

The rest of the day progressed with similar moments of excitement as my brother landed three more rainbows and three more browns and my father managed another bow and a large brown before his hand made it too hard for him to set the hook. The day ended at a secluded pool where my brother insisted that we fish side by side. The fishing had been slow so we took a break to light some cigars. As I took a pull I saw a fish rise. I let out a cast and hooked a fat sixteen inch rainbow. I yelled to my brother but he said, " Hold on a minute." As I fought my fish he took one precise cast to a large boulder and hooked a twelve inch wild brown trout. We got both fish in the net, took some pictures and pounded fists. I told Jordan to hook another one. On his next cast he was tight to a 13" rainbow. We hooked but lost a few more fish to end the evening. 

As a fishing guide I spend many days fishing with fathers, sons and brothers. But rarely do I get a chance to fish with my own brother and father. To watch my brother and father hook large trout by my side is a moment I will never forget, and one I hope to re-live in the coming years.

Over the week I did four floats on the Androscoggin. I won't detail every trip here but overall, the fishing was phenomenal. The isonychia mayfly hatches began this week and were the most important bug to imitate all week long. In their nymphal form isonychia swim rigorously to the edges of the river or centers of riffles to hatch, either on rocks or through the surface film. The "Isos" represent one  of the fastest swimming nymphs out there. Thus it is often effective to strip your nymphs or wetflies back up stream at the end of a dead drift. This technique often bewilders fishermen accustomed to the importance of a motionless dead drift. Some even suspect that the fish are simply dumb to be eating a fly that is moving upstream. This is not the case, in fact an actively retrieved Iso results in some of our biggest wild rainbows of the season. 

Rainbow caught by Angler Mark Hogopian on an Iso emerger tied by Mark Hogopian. 

When you hook a large wild rainbow it can often be a challenge to land. These fish react one of two ways once hooked. Scenario one: On the hook-set the rainbow takes off pulling drag and jumping. In this scenario the fish can often break the line on the hook-set or will throw the hook during an acrobatic leap. The best reaction to this scenario is to point the rod tip at the fish during his initial run and turn the rod down and to the side to prevent jumps. Scenario two: On the hookset the fish swims directly towards you, at a moderate speed. These are often the hardest fish to prepare for as we often believe that we have a smaller fish on the line. After swimming right towards you a large rainbow will suddenly change directions and break your line or throw the hook. If you are ready you can soften the inertia by letting line out and quickly getting the fish on the reel. If you are fighting a large rainbow on the reel always be ready to strip line if the fish decides to run straight towards you. Even with  a large arbor reel these fish swim too fast to keep line tension through reeling line. 

I included this quick instructional piece because we have lost two large rainbows over the last week due to scenario two. The beauty of these fish is that when you do land one it is a great achievement. Even a fourteen inch fish will test your fighting skills and an eighteen inch fish will have your heart pounding out of your chest.

Wild rainbow caught on an iso emerger 8/28. This fish took line on the hookset but we managed to land him. The next fish was much bigger and broke off when she turned directions. 

Yesterday I guided a wade trip with angler Ashby Miller of Virginia. Ashby was a Tenkara enthusiast. We began our day on the bigger river and I was surprised to see a Yellow Sally stonefly hatch coming off. We landed three on the sallies before the fish switched over to BWO's. After hooking a few more fish on the five weight Ashby  asked if we could try some mountain streams with the Japanese technique. Never having tried Tenkara I was curious to see how a long rod without a reel would work on our mountain streams. I have to say that I was very impressed. The light weight line and long rod length allowed Ashby to fish micro currents and tucked away pockets with deadly effectiveness. Within a 200 yard stretch of river he must have landed over 20 trout.... all on the same orange stimulator dry fly.(I chose the orange stimi because I saw October Caddis casings on the rocks. Along with Isos October Caddis will be important into October.)

Anyways, Ashby was gracious enough to let me take a few casts with the Tenkara rod and I was impressed enough that I will be purchasing one for next season. I will be offering Tenkara lessons next year. While a traditional fly rod can probably catch just as many fish the delicacy of presentation achieved with these rods is worthy of experimentation. 

So what is to come? The fishing will continue to improve as fall temps begin to dominate. Look for flying ants, beetles, and hoppers to remain imporotant through our remaining warmer days. As temps cool be prepared for Iso's and BWO's. BWO's are also important on many early mornings and some evenings. As Fall progresses the BWO's will become the predominant hatch with midges also becoming more important. Along with nymphs, emergers and duns, do not forget to fish spinner patterns in the evenings for both the isos and BWOs. As for caddis, the October Caddis will be important. Fish orange stimulators, breadcrust soft hackles, and birds nest nymphs to imitate this bug. I also like to use an orange foam caddis to float above a dropper. Rhyacophillia or green caddis will also be important through the fall. 

Personally the next two months represent my favorite time to fly fish. The days are cooler, the fish are brightly colored and hungry and the crowds are low. If you'd like to experience Autumn fly fishing in NH be sure to book soon! 

Tight lines, 

Nate

First week of August Report

The first week of August has come and gone and our bigger rivers are fishing as well as they have all year. This is due to the cold fronts that pushed through last week. Water temps have dropped significantly in the last seven days and the fish have responded in a big way. About a week ago I was pushing clients to schedule trips early and late in the day, while we still caught plenty of fish at those times, the recent cooler temps have had fish rising right through mid-day.

On July 30 I guided Garry Peterson in the Afternoon. With the threat of thunderstorms in the forecast we were uncertain if we would be able to stay on the water. Luckily after a brief shower the rain abated and the fish began to show signs of life. We had a few misses on big attractor dries before we switched to small streamers that helped us to a nice 15" brown, a rainbow and a brook trout... With the Saco grand slam complete we moved downstream to finish the evening on some good dry fly water. With the sun setting the water began to boil. I quickly tied on a rusty spinner that has been reliable all season. After ten casts without a strike I began to wonder. The air was thick with humidity and although about a month early I took the chance with a size sixteen cinnamon flying ant. I tied the fly on and we landed three big rainbows in near pitch darkness...Garry setting the hook to their splashes. Thanks for getting them to the net Garry!

Monday was the last day of the heat wave and Steven and I had Scott Vokey his brother Craig and Mark and their friend Mark Fallen. When Scott booked the trip I secretly wondered if he had any blood relation the recently famous April Vokey of FlyGal adventures. Well it turns out that she is a distant niece of Scott's. I had Scott tell Steven that April was on our way to film with us and after last weeks brush with fame Steve almost believed us. 

With none of the guys ever having touched a fly rod before I knew we would have to focus on casting for a while before getting to the fish. But we needed to be in position to catch as the sun was only going to get hotter. So we made our way to a stretch of water that offers open casting room with trout to catch nearby. Once the men had their casts calibrated Steve moved down river with Scott and Mark Fallen and I worked with the other Mark and Craig. We were on rising fish immediately but they were being very picky. Mark was able to sting four and  almost landed two before we took a break for lunch. 

After lunch we headed to the wildcat where everyone was able to hook into some wild brook trout. Mark even hooked a large rainbow in the Ellis which would have been landed if it weren't for a large boulder that it was able to burrow under.

Last Tuesday I guided client Garry Marshal. Garry was a seasoned angler from the White River in Arkansas. He was thrilled to fish small dry flies to rising trout here in NH. We found fish quickly rising to black caddis in a small riffle and Garry quickly hooked into a wild rainbow. Then a brown, then a brook trout. Now all we needed for the grand slam was a salmon. Salmon are a rare catch in the southern stretches of the Andro as they migrate from lake Umbagog in Maine and need to come down seven or eight dams. I was skeptical that we would find one. But as we fished on Garry hooked into a silvery fish that shot into the air and a salmon came to the net. With a grand slam under our belts before lunch we worked the river with patience focusing on bigger rises in the slower water. Garry missed a few good fish before a thunderstorm rolled in and pushed us under the cover or a tent where we were able to eat lunch in comfort. With the thunderstorm through we were back on the water and Garry was able to get a few more bows to the net on nymphs before the day was through.

I had a quite a few beginner half day trips scattered throughout the week as well and all clients were able to test their new casts on wild brook trout. All were able to catch quite a few with some gorgeous specimens landed.

On Thursday I was back on the Andro with client Michael Kimball. We were again on a black caddis hatch from the get go with hits on just about every cast for the first hour of the float. With a few good fish just missed on dries I tied on a small dark nymph to see if we couldn't get a solid hook-set sub-surface. On the first cast Mike came tight to a nice brown and we landed the fish after a solid battle. We were able to get a few more wild rainbows on dries before the action slowed and we moved downstream. With time for only a half day float we had to move fast and we were able to get one more rainbow on the dries and a few close calls stripping nymphs before the day was through.

Can you find the Owl in this picture?

On Saturday I guided long time clients Carl Schoenbacher his boys Owen and Dean and his grilfriend Cathleen. I always enjoy guiding this crew as the boys have really taken to fly fishing at only eight and ten years old. With a late start we decided to head right to wild brook trout water. All caught fish with Cathleen landing three wild brook trout of about eight inches in just three casts. The boys got into a few as well. 

After lunch I decided to show the group one of my favorite wild brook trout spots. (If you are interested in a very unique brook trout experience you will want to request a trip to some of my wild brook trout waters) I unlocked the gate to this gem of a wild brook trout stream and took the crew down to one of the larger pools where the boys eyes bugged out of their heads at the massive school of trout fining in the calm crystal clear waters. Dean ran for his fly-rod but I tried to slow him down. "These fish will probably not bite much right now, they can see us as much as we can see them." And after the first few casts the boys had the fish darting around in a tight ball. I told the group, "Our best bet will be to fish some of the pools that we can sneak up on better and then come back to this pool at dark. So we hiked through thick grass and dodged poison ivy to get to a secluded beaver pond well upstream. With the high grass I told the boys that I'd do the casting and let them do the retrieving. The deal was that they each got five casts or a fish per turn. Owen was up first and his turn was a quick one with a solid eight inch wild brook trout on the first cast. Then it was Dean's turn...it took him just two casts. Owen was up again and he got one more within three casts. From here every fish came unbuttoned before landing and the sun was beginning to set so we worked our way back to the big pool.

There were few rises when we approached so I put on a fluffy CDC caddis that we could pop through the surface film. I showed the boys the technique and they began taking turns working on the correct twitch. The fish in this pool hit like smallmouth bass and it was a blast to see the boys jump at every explosion. The boys were having trouble with the hook set as they were bantering back and forth while they fished, but Dean was finally able to focus in and hook one before the night was through. All in all a great day with good people. Looking forward to our next adventure together.

On Sunday I had David Clay an experienced angler from Ohio who spends a week each year in Bozeman Montana.

*If you follow us on facebook you will want to pay attention now to find out what we were catching those fish on!

 I was hoping to show David some solid White Mountain Fly Fishing. Luckily the weather was cool and cloudy and the fish were on the feed...But they were not feeding on my lucky ant or my trusty rusty spinner...What was it now? I scanned the water as David made cast after cast with beetles...ants, grasshoppers etc. All that I saw in the water was one drowned housefly...no trout food. Finally David hooked into a nice rainbow. It had taken a size sixteen rusty spinner...and I thought we had things figured out. Then after another twenty minutes of casting to explosive rises nothing touched the spinner. Time to re-evaluate again. The rises were explosive...so the fish were not eating something small and dead like a rusty spinner. They were eating something slightly bigger that was probably moving a little. Again I scanned the water and again all that I saw was a dead house fly...but then I saw another...and another. I looked closely at the moving water and I saw more...then I saw a head come up and take one. Quickly I rummaged through my boxes...a house fly? What on earth do I have that looks remotely like a housefly. Finally I settled on a flying ant with darker wings. I tinkered with the fly spreading the wings apart to give them that delta style of a houseflies. We tied on the makeshift fly and David hooked a brown...then lost a bigger brown. Okay we had things figured out...or so I thought from there on the fish seemed to ignore our imposter. We moved upstream and found some fish feeding on a wider variety of bugs. We got another brown on the darker ant and then  a few on beetles and hoppers. 

After lunch I told David that we needed to stop by the fly shop to scrounge up a better housefly imitation. I scanned the boxes and finally found a short dark flying ant with a grey and black mottled wing. I held the fly up and looked from underneath. to my eye it looked almost identical to the houseflies we had been seeing on the water. We drove to a new spot to try our new fly and as we approached the first pool there was a good fish rising. As an experiment David started with the same flies we'd been fishing before lunch. After about ten fruitless casts I tied on the new housefly. The fish hit as soon as the fly touched water. And it wasn't a fluke David hooked eight more trout and landed four on the housefly before the day was through. All fish landed were over twelve inches with a few in the 15-17 inch class. It was a good day to learn something new. 

On a side note I spoke with my good friend Bob Mallard later that evening. Bob said he had seen these flies himself and clarified that they are not exactly houseflies but a species known as cluster flies. I researched these bugs and sure enough they are exactly what we saw. If you'd like to learn more about cluster flies click here. http://ento.psu.edu/extension/factsheets/cluster-flies

I'll be working on a new pattern for these guys over the next few days. Of course who knows if I'll ever even see this phenomenon again. But if I do I'll be ready! 

So what is to come? I am scheduled for an evening Andro float tonight and I'm psyched because I think that there will be a good hatch of stoneflies, caddis and pale evening duns tonight. The rains tomorrow will have fish on the feed. Streamers may become more important if water levels rise enough. On cooler days look for BWO's and Cahills to become important. On warmer days stoneflies, flying ants and all other terrestrials will be important. As August progresses flying ants should become an even more consistent trend with the best ant drops on the most humid and overcast days. As fall nears Isonychia mayflies and October caddis will become more consistent. As you can see there are always surprise hatches or food sources that can pop up from time to time. Always try to be observant and never expect hatches to be exactly the same every day.

Tight lines,

Nate

End of July Report

Well it has been one heck of a month. Last week was the craziest week to date for Hill Country Guides. The week that was to come started Friday July 17th at 11:30 pm, with a return phone call to some guy named Jay. Jay had left me three messages while I was on the water. He had called me about three weeks prior to inquire about guiding for the mornings of July 20th, 21st, and 22nd. At that time I'd rescheduled my half day trips to the afternoons and gave Jay the tentative green light for all three days, if he wanted to put down a deposit. Now he was calling to ask what I could do for him. I explained that he could lock in Monday morning. I would have to double check with my Tuesday clients and Wednesday was out. 

Jay asked me, well, do you know who Luke Bryan is? At this moment I realized that the urgency on his end was due to whoever Luke Bryan was. I searched my brain, but with no television at home and 90 % of my free time spent researching for guiding, I had no idea. "Ummmm noooo?" I had to respond. Jay sighed, "Well he's a very popular country singer right now...he won entertainer of the year this year, not that any of that should matter but I thought you should know." 

Although I didn't know the name I did know that "Entertainer of the Year" held a lot of weight. I told Jay that, as for any client, I'd do all that I could to get them on the water. I sent a text message to Steve and asked if he knew who this Luke Bryan was. He did and said he would ask for work off to get on the water with him...or fake his own death if need be. 

When I got home I did a little research on Luke... turns out he is kind of a big deal...

With logistics bouncing back and fourth we finally settled on two guides for four people to meet on Monday morning. Jay wasn't sure what they wanted to do on Tuesday and Wednesday so we left that up in the air. Saturday and Sunday I was booked solid with a full and double half day. I spent every second between trips trying to plan for the Luke Bryan trip. I had settled on a few spots to take them when a thunderstorm hit Sunday night. I drove home from my second half day trip in some of the heaviest rain I'd ever seen. 

I called Jay, "With this rain I'll let you know where we should fish in the morning." "Yeah man...if it isn't going to be worth our time just let us know, and we'll bag it." I was up until 11pm and awake again at 4 am checking the flows. Right around 4:30 the rivers began to crest, high but not too high. Jay called me at 4:35. "We are good to go!" I said with relief. At 7:30 am Luke, Jay, Christian, and Til walked into the shop. Right away I could tell that these guys were not just casual anglers. Luke asked, "You guys got anything to tie articulated streamers? We've been experimenting with guitar strings on the tour bus but they are a little too stiff." After selling the guys $300 in fly tying materials and accessories it was time to get on the water. "Let's go catch some fish!" Luke said. I was glad he was confident, the cool rain from the night before had me feeling the same way. 

The fish did not disappoint. Luke hooked his first rainbow on his first cast, then promptly hooked a sixteen inch bow that threw the hook. For the next eight hours Steve and I worked with the boys while Jay and Luke put on a show, hooking dozens of trout. Tired of catching fish on nymphs Luke switched to a double dry rig. He hooked a nice brown then hooked another fish on the back fly, but broke him off. With one fly left he threw back to the same holding lie and hooked the fish again...we know because his other fly was in the fish's mouth. 

Christian and Til were also excellent fishermen and each landed quite a few trout. After a big we were done for the day. Jay said he would get me concert tickets if I cared to go. I told him I would take him up on the offer as I figured I should become a bigger fan. 

The next night Alicia and I arrived at Meadowbrook  an hour early. We waded through a sea of cowgirls sporting Luke Bryan t-shirts and got to our seats, eight rows back from the front of the stage. As the show got started I glanced behind me. Thousands of fans spread behind us as far as I could see. As Luke took the stage the thousand broke into a roar. Turns out Luke isn't just an expert fly fisherman... he is also a darn good performer.

So back to the fishing... After I'd guided Luke on Monday I had another half day trip that went out at three thirty pm. Andrew Ward had been flexible in moving his start time to the afternoon so I wanted to be sure he had a good outing. After getting into a few brook trout on one of our smaller streams we moved to bigger water where Andrew got into two hefty browns right before dark. 

On Wednesday I guided client Jake Meeder of Naples Florida. Jake brought his friends Colton and Dalton along for the ride. I taught Jake how to fly fish last summer and this year it was obvious that he'd done some practicing. We were able to land two large brook trout along with a large rainbow. Then right before we were done Jake hooked the fish of the day, a fat 18" brown with perfect fins. Wednesday evening was the showing of Hill Country Guides episode of NH Chronicle. We watched with friends and family at Seadog Brewing company. The show turned out fantastic. If you'd like to view click here. www.wmur.com

I had float trips scheduled on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. All went very well with fish feeding heavily on nymphs, swimming nymphs, and dries throughout the three days. On Friday client Greg Malaska of PA commented that he had no idea NH had "Montana Esq" fly fishing. Greg did have a darn good day with over 30 trout landed. 

So what's to come? The heat wave has slowed fishing during the middle of the day, however early mornings and late evenings are still seeing solid activity. If you fish the evenings don't be afraid to fish into the dark. Smaller brook trout streams are in their prime on these hot days and a well placed attractor dry is all you need to get their attention. As for the bigger rivers, fish terrestrials to the shady banks and undercut boulders.  If we can get some thunderstorms the daytime fishing will turn around quickly. This heat wave looks to end by this weekend and with cooler temps we can expect fish activity to increase into the midday hours. August is looking to be another banner month here in the Whites. If you haven't seen us yet this year we still have openings through October. Please let us know if you have any dates in mind and we will do our best to get you on the water.

Tight lines,

Nate

Early July Report

Well July has started off with a bang...no pun intended. Fishing has been phenomenal on all local rivers and ponds. On June 29th I guided Tim Lobello from the boat on the Saco and we landed many big rainbows and browns on streamers. Tim, thanks for buying an HCG hat to help promote the company through your pictures. I think it was a good luck charm. 

On June 30th we finally got WMUR's  NH Chronicle out on the water. With a delayed start time of 10 am and bright sunshine I was a bit worried. Fortunately we got our first fish, a brown trout, right off the bat. You'll have to catch the rest of the action on WMUR channel 9 July 22nd at 7pm.

On Wednesday I took out Kurt Perham and his son Carter. It was pouring rain on this day, but the fish were rising. Carter had never caught a trout on a fly rod but now he's caught more than a dozen...I think he's the one who is hooked now. 

On Thursday I was back in the boat on the Saco guiding Garry Rownsley. We fished through the first pool with only a few strikes. As the water was very high I decided to try a back channel that I often float past. This turned out to be a good idea as we were into fish for well over an hour. Both brook trout and browns came to hand with large ones in the mix. We managed another large brown on a streamer further down and then ended the day with three large rainbows on dry flies to complete the Saco grand slam.

Last Friday was a very busy day as HCG had three trips on the water. Steve Bowman of Wolfeboro was helping me out and after my trip I joined him on his second half day trip. I was pleased to see Steve getting his clients into fish with ease and we all had a good time catching rainbows until dark. It was a great day for all trips with over fifty fish landed.

On Sunday I guided Jenny and her husband Paul up on the Ammonusuc near the Mount Washington Omni resort. I love being able to pick clients up at the Mount Washington to fish the crystal clear waters of the Ammo. Our fist spot held some good fish that we could see holding in the crystal clear flow. Paul missed a few and Jenny got a couple in the faster water on a muddler minnow. The fish seemed slow and with a water temp in the low fifties I decided to head downstream to find warmer water and hopefully more active fish. At our next spot we were into fish right away. Paul landed the first and Jenny was soon to follow. as we fished down the river we approached a large pool. I watched the water from afar and could see the splashing of rainbow trout from two hundred feet away. As we approached I saw a tan caddis flutter by. I switched flies to an emerging tan X caddis and Paul was into his first fish within minutes. We must have landed over ten rainbows before the half day was over. 

That afternoon I met up with good friend and author Bob Mallard. Bob vacations in the whites the last week of June/ first week of July, every year. Bob stays at a cabin, "Camp Uno" up in the hills accross from Bretton Woods. I met Bob at camp Uno, the cabin is a perfectly located fishing camp complete with an in house fly tying kit for those times when you don't have the fly you need. Bob reminded me that the cabin can be rented by my guests. As Bob tied flies at the tying table, we compared notes. We talked about the high flows and finding fish in interesting new places. Then Bob mentioned that we should fish a lesser known nearby pond where he had caught close to fifty fish the day before. Bob said the fish were eager to take a medium sized red midge stripped across the surface. But when we arrived I soon spotted large pale yellow mayflies popping out of the water...HEX. The HEX hatch is ON. This is perhaps the most exciting pond fishing of the year and with the cooler rains the fish are still willing to take them off of the surface. I must have landed over 30 fish in  under two hours before I told Bob I'd and enough. We then went to another pond that was a bit of a walk but we suspected would hold wild trout. It did. The fish in this pond were a bit more of a challenge with crystal clear shallow water you had to take your time and make long delicate casts to hook these perfect brook trout.

On Monday I had the day off and Bob wanted to fish. So after I finished my daily chores we met at my house to check out some of my favorite wild brook trout waters. Bob's friend Jeff Moore was in tow. We started at a spot I'd never shown Bob before. At the first pool I demonstrated the proper bow and arrow technique and promptly hooked a writhing brookie. At the next larger pool my companions were a bit nervous to step into the brown muddy looking bottom. So I gave it a try. Although the substrait looked like endless mud there was a firm gravel bottom only a few inches down. I managed three 6-9 inch wild brookies from this pool. 

At our next spot I was determined to show Jeff what these wild trout waters are all about. I set him up at a good spot with a large rubber legged dry fly and told him to "Make it move." I moved downstream and when I returned Jeff was grinning, "That was awesome...that fish slammed it!" With a taste of wild brook trout fishing Jeff fished on with authority, landing a few more good sized brookies and then a true pig. The last fish was close to  foot in length with a thick girth, it took Jeff a few minutes to land and filled my brook trout net to the brim. Jeff has the pictures and I'll be sure to update the post with them once I get them.

Yesterday I had a full day Andro Float with Rick Turcott. Rick and I have been trying to float the andro for three weeks now and we finally had the right flows. Although there was a chance of thunderstorms in the forecast we decided to go for it knowing we could always hunker down in the trees if the weather turned for a bit. Fortunately the weather held and the fish more than cooperated. As I readied the boat I showed Rick where he could dapple a small black caddis in the foam back-eddies near the put-in. On his first drop of the flies Rick landed a ten inch rainbow trout. This was a sign of things to come. As we floated into the second pool I noticed a golden stonefly flutter across the water. In my last post I believe I mentioned that when the Andro was back to fishable flows in July the fishing would be epic as the golden stones would be at their zenith...Well the golden stones are at their zenith. We landed over thirty rainbows and a brook trout on these big foam bugs. I showed Rick how to skate the fly and he preferred me showing him how the technique worked on some fish. The banks were so infested with trout that all I had to do to find the next fish was cast another few feet downstream or strip the fly a little closer to the boat. While we caught over 30 trout on these flies we must have missed even more. If you like fishing large dry flies to suicidal rainbows now is the time to book a trip! I have tomorrow and Friday open due to cancellations, if anyone is interested, let me know! I've got availability next week as well.

So what's to come? The golden stoneflies will be important on the Andro and Ellis rivers through September. Best fishing for these is in the evenings with cloudy days providing action all day long. Terrestrials like ants, beetles and hoppers will become more important as 
July progresses. You can also expect light cahills on the ellis and pale evening duns on the andro. Don't be afraid to throw streamers throughout the season as well as they always work, especially after a good rain. Nymphing stoneflies and mayfly patterns will work well especially on the warmer days when fish go deep. Hope to see many of you on the water this summer.

Tight lines,

Nate

June 23rd Report...it just keeps getting better!

What can I say? The fishing over the past week has been phenomenal. From big rainbows and browns in the Saco to obese brook trout in the Ellis and explosive wild brook trout on the smaller streams. Over the past seven days I've guided on: the Ellis in four different locations. The Ammo in four different locations. The Saco in countless locations. Multiple mountain streams and wild brook trout waters...And I haven't even been on the Andro due to high water. 

As for the fishing we've been getting many big brook trout out of the Ellis fishing muddler minnows, yellow sallies, and dry dropper combos consisting of parachute Adams and pheasant tail nymphs. On the Saco we've done well with big streamers, yellow sallies, gray drakes and even beetles. On the Ammo cdc caddis, X caddis, yellow sallies, muddlers and buggers were the ticket. On the wild brook trout waters beetles and ants did the trick along with CDC caddis.

  Last week I floated the Saco with Bill and Janet Thompson, owners of North Country Angler. The streamer bite was on big time and we landed many rainbows, brookies and browns on the big flies. The Saco is proving to be an exceptional river to float from the raft. This fact was reiterated on my guided trip the next day through the same stretch. It was interesting to see the fish attacking from different lies and spots on the river only one day later. The water had dropped nearly a foot and the fish had moved around quite a bit. 

Last Friday I guided John Flanders and his son Jake, both were avid saltwater fishermen from Florida but neither had ever fly fished before. Well they both caught multiple brook trout on the fly and I think they will be looking for some saltwater fly gear soon. Friday afternoon I guided Mike Meller who specifically requested "Off Grid" fishing. Mike was interested in finding some wild trout waters off the beaten path so I took him to a few of my favorite wild brook trout streams I always love guiding for these fish as they fight hard for their size and have been here in NH since the last Ice age. Mike fully appreciated this fishing and was impressed that there were fish in every hole on the river. When you have good habitat and wild fish that don't get kept, this is what you find. 

I also guided a few wade trips on the Saco. Last nights trip was especially memorable as I had a 20+ inch brown grab a streamer as I demonstrated proper streamer technique. The fish slammed the fly right as it touched water and I yanked it out of the giants mouth in an attempt at getting my client, Mike Lewis into the fish...of course any holdover/ wild brown like that is too smart to be fooled twice in one evening. In retrospect maybe I should have just hooked the fish... Then again hopefully one of my future clients can be on the receiving end of that "postponement."

Luckily Mike made up for the lost fish by landing two football rainbows before the night was over. Today I guided two half day trips and both were very productive. I spent the morning with long time Client Megan Carter and her friends Sam and Rachel. All caught many brook trout and Sam and Rachel were quick learners to say the least. 

This afternoon I guided brothers Matt and Jon Baran. These guys were Striper fishermen but had never thrown streamers to trout. I think both will be purchasing sink tip lines in the near future. They both landed  big browns and Matt also got a large rainbow.

So what's in the future? The Alders have just started on the Andro and should be the ticket over the next week from Pontook dam to Errol. On the lower river look for more golden stones, black caddis, and smattering of other mayflies and grey caddis. With the high water on the andro look for slow side eddies where fish will be pushed to the edges Floating the andro will not be productive until flows drop but when they do we can expect solid fishing well into July! On the Saco the rains will keep the streamer bite on with gray drake mayflies and yellow sallies making an appearance when we get warmer days. The Ellis should continue to fish well with muddlers, buggers, cahills, yellow sallies as well as beetles and ants as we come into true summer.

All in all it is shaping up to be one heck of a season. If you didn't get a chance to book this June be sure to book for July as the fishing is promising to be fine!

Janet hooked up with a nice brown.

Janet's brown.

Tim with a spunky bow

Pat hooked up with another rainbow.

Lunch break

Pat's fish of the day!

Mike Meller casting to rising wild brook trout.

A fine specimen of a wild NH brook trout.

Michael Lewis with a hefty Saco Bow.

Ellis river brook trout caught on a PT nymph below a purple haze dry

Matt Baran with a plump Saco Brown.

Pierce Boit with a high water Ammo Bow.