Friday, May 4—Too Many People and a Rude “Neighbor”

DATE:  Friday, May 4, 2012

TIME: 8:15 AM to 11:00 AM

WEATHER: Low to mid-80s, mostly sunny, some wind

WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, Mill Dam Eddy to Riffle above the Island below McClellan’s

FLIES USED: Brown Wayne’s Fly, #20 red/silver Zebra Midge,  #16 Elk Hair Caddis

ROD USED:  G. Loomis 9’ 0” 3-weight custom-built IMX

HATCHES: Midges, caddis, sulphurs, crane flies

OTHER: Fished solo.  I walked in relatively early as I was only going to fish a couple of hours, and wanted to fish dries while the weather and river conditions permitted.  A couple of guys from Dyersburg, TN, were on the island walking upstream as I walked upstream, and they asked about the fishing.  I provided information on fishing conditions the last few days, and by coincidence we knew some of the same people—folks who had worked with the Corps that lived in Dyersburg.  They continued wading upstream, while I stopped off at the tail out of the riffle above the island, and using Wayne’s Fly and a zebra midge, began fishing.  It proved to be a slow start, with only a few fish caught.  The first caddis came off about 9:45 AM, and fish immediately began keying on them, and then some small nearly white sulphurs began coming off and fish keyed on them as well. I fished a caddis and caught a few fish, but missed a half dozen on a small parachute sulphur.  I switched to a larger fly and finally caught a couple of fish.  Switching back to the caddis, I caught several more until an obnoxious neighbor from our subdivision walked in right on top of me, saying he needed more shallow water to fish; he was only about 20 feet away, and he would cast over on my side of the riffle.  Fortunately, his guest stayed a decent distance downstream.  I must say this was not unusual for this “neighbor” as he’s always been selfish and arrogant, at least the 15 or so years I’ve known him.  This is the same guy that brought a guide, John, in through another neighbor’s place on the river that had been gracious enough to allow us to trespass.  What an idiot and AH.  Fortunately, he’s a rather poor fly fisher.  I continued to catch fish, but it wasn’t much fun, so I finally gave in and let him have the riffle, which is exactly what he wanted, and he immediately called his friend to come up.  I moved downstream on river left, and asked myself what Wayne would do.  I tied on Wayne’s Fly and a zebra midge and caught 7 fish where the guest had been fishing before moving up to where I had been, and they were in full view of the hook-up, fight, and release of all 7 fish.  Satisfied, I waded downstream and called it a day.  A couple of other fishers were making their way upstream, so it was time to get off the water as people were wading up and pontoons and kayaks were coming down—too crowded for this solitary soul. 

Thursday, May 3—Fly Fishing A Caddis Hatch

DATE: Thursday, May 3, 2012

TIME: 8:30 AM to 2:00 PM

WEATHER: Low to mid-80s, mostly sunny, some wind

WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, Mill Dam Eddy to Plunge Pool above the Island below McClellan’s

FLIES USED: Brown Wayne’s Fly, #20 red/silver Zebra Midge, #20 furnace Cockleburr, #14 furnace Cockleburr, #20 Kay’s Grey, #20 Dunn’s Dunn, #16 Elk Hair Caddis

ROD USED: Winston 8’ 6” 5-weight WT JWF

HATCHES: Midges, caddis, crane flies

OTHER: Fished with Bruce.  Bruce is a retired structural engineer who I knew in the Mid-South Fly Fishers in Memphis, and with whom I reconnected in church in Mountain Home.  We waded upstream to the tail out of the riffle above the island below McClellan’s (and Otter Creek), and began fishing using Wayne’s Fly in combination with a red/silver Zebra midge and both of us caught fish.  About 9:30 AM, I saw fish begin to take flies on the surface in the river left riffle, so moved in between the riffles to “experiment” with different patterns.  Very shortly thereafter, caddis began emerging, and the fish were keying on them.  Bruce reluctantly came over and began catching fish on caddis.  I noted a fisher upstream in a float boat catching fish seemingly every cast.  I’ve seen only one other person do that in that particular area (Wayne) so I knew this guy had to be a really good fisher.  I moved up to the plunge pool and caught several fish on various midge emergers fished dry.  Bruce waded upstream as well and began fishing the plunge pool, so I waded downstream to fish the riffle he had vacated.  My, oh my, but what a day we had.   The guy in the float boat finally floated downstream, and very politely (which seems to be a rare commodity on the river these days).  I was eager to strike up a conversation and asked how he was doing, and immediately recognized him as a friend, asked, “Do you know me?”  He responded that I looked familiar and I called his name, Donny, and told him mine, then it all clicked, and we conversed for the next 30 minutes.  Donny took several of my fly tying seminars at Ozark Anglers and has become an awesome fly tier as well as fly fisher.  Bruce and I fished a bit longer, then began wading downstream to our walkout point.  He switched to a Wayne’s Fly and Zebra midge and fished the tail out above the island with success, then took a couple of fish along the island.  We noted natural streambank protection along the otherwise caving bank.  All told, Bruce had over 50 fish on dry flies alone, and at least a dozen more on the Wayne’s fly and Zebra midge combination.   

My, oh my, but it was an awesome day with great dry fly fishing, with a grand slam, and meeting an old friend on the river.

Wednesday, May 2—Dry Fly Fishing, Mostly Caddis

DATE: Wednesday, May 2, 2012

TIME: 9:30 AM to 12:00 Noon

WEATHER: Low to mid-80s, mostly sunny, some wind

WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, Mill Dam Eddy to Riffle above the Island below McClellan’s

FLIES USED: Brown Wayne’s Fly, #20 red/silver Zebra Midge, #20 furnace Cockleburr, #14 furnace Cockleburr, #20 Kay’s Grey, #20 Dunn’s Dunn, #16 Elk Hair Caddis

ROD USED: Winston 8’ 6” 5-weight WT JWF

HATCHES: Midges, caddis, crane fly

OTHER: Fished alone. I waded upstream to the tail out of the riffle above the island below McClellan’s (and Otter Creek), shown in distance in the photograph, and began fishing using Wayne’s Fly in combination with a red/silver Zebra midge.  After several fish, I noted a decent midge hatch in the river left riffle, and tied on Kay’s Grey with little to no success, and then switched to a Dunn’s Dun and had a bit more success, but still not gang busters.  I followed with the #20 furnace cockleburr and had more success, then saw caddis coming off and the show was on as I caught over a dozen and a half on the caddis.  Noting a crane fly hatch and fish taking the crane flies, I switched to a #14 furnace Cockleburr, but had no luck, so switched back to the caddis as the hatch petered out.  Switching back to the combination of Wayne’s Fly and a Zebra midge, I fished along the island, managing to fool a half dozen fish.  As can be seen in the photograph, significant build-up of the bar has occurred, but nature will heal this in time, and as the flow regime changes and more water moves down the right channel, it should become deeper and provide even better fishing.

Though no big fish were caught, it was a pretty awesome day. 

Tuesday, May 1—A Long Wade

DATE: Tuesday, May 1, 2012
TIME: 10:45 AM to 3:30 PM
WEATHER: Mid to upper 80s, sunny, slight to strong wind
WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units
LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, Elisabeth Creek upstream to above Otter Creek near McClellan’s Dock site
FLIES USED: #20 furnace Cockleburr, #14 furnace Cockleburr, brown Wayne’s Fly, #20 red/silver Zebra Midge, #16 red/black Zebra Midge
ROD USED: Winston 8’ 6" 5-weight WT JWF
HATCHES: Midges, Caddis
OTHER: Fished with Wayne. Today fishing with Wayne was like old times, starting off in the Pool and wading upstream, except for the absence of big fish.  We both caught enough fish to make the day interesting, and laughed a lot along the way.  Though he has not fished much the last several months, he still outfished and outwaded me!
We both began catching fish just upstream of Elisabeth Creek; I was able to fool a few with the #20 furnace Cockleburr fished dry among the rocks while he was catching fish on his yellow fly.  I switched to a brown Wayne’s fly as we wade upstream but the pool fished very slow as neither of us caught many fish. At Mill Dam Eddy, I switched back to the Cockleburr, first the #20, then the #14, and caught several fish.  Meanwhile, Wayne fished a tiny hole/riffle made by a downed tree root wad and caught 8 fish out of the sofa sized hole—he’s still the man!  Above the island, we both caught several fish in the riffle on river right; I had switched back to a brown Wayne’s fly with a zebra midge dropper. I waded upstream above Otter Creek as far as water depth would allow—I have had good success there in the past—but the combination of wind and low water prevented a drift and I only took 3 fish.  I waded and fished back downstream, but kept getting tangled as the dropper was too long.  After meeting up with Wayne at Ace-in-the-Hole, we began the long wade towards home, fishing sporadically along the way.  At the island, I had one fish and 5 misses under the upper most leaning tree.  Mill Dam Eddy did not produce anything this time around for me, though Wayne did catch a couple of fish. 
I ended up with about 3 dozen fish, including rainbows, cutthroats, and browns, and the largest may have been 14 inches.

Sunday, April 29—Broken Rod

DATE: Sunday, April 30, 2012

TIME: 12:30 PM to 2:00 PM

WEATHER: Mid-70s, mostly sunny, slight wind

WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, Riffle above Island below McClellan’s

FLIES USED: Brown Wayne’s Fly, #20 red/silver Zebra Midge

ROD USED: Winston 10’ 4-weight WT

HATCHES: Midges, Caddis

OTHER: Fished with Wayne. The river was crowded downstream

our Mill Dam Eddy, and we both walked along the island to fish upstream, and it was crowded as well.  As I was crossing, a fisher was crossing in the opposite direction, and fell as he was answering the phone.  I politely asked if he was okay, and after a positive response, continued wading upstream.  Wayne followed soon after, and said the guy had 8 fish on a stringer—the area is right smack dab in the middle of a catch-and-release area, and even if catch and kill were allowed, the limit is only 5.  What a rube.  Wayne very nicely told him it was catch-and-release, and with that many fish jail was entirely possible.  I fished the tail-out of the riffle and sporadically caught fish, though it certainly wasn’t a fish every cast, or even every other cast.  One of the rainbows, shown here, was a nice fish and about 16-inches.  After 3/4 dozen fish, I waded upstream and talked to a fisher in the riffle who said he owned the land below McClellan’s, and that his fishing partner owned the 50 acres below him—interesting! I fished the left most riffle in the plunge pool and missed a 20+ inch fish.  Shortly thereafter, I noticed the reel as being loose, and when I tried to tighten it, it fell off; the reel seat had broken.  I continued to fish, with a bunch of line out and the reel stuck in my waders.  The balance sure felt odd.
As usual, Wayne caught quite a few fish, and still has the touch.

Tuesday, April 24—What a Glorious Day!

DATE: Tuesday, April 24, 2012

TIME: 8:30 AM to 4:00 PM

WEATHER: Low 40s rising to low 70s, mostly sunny, windy

WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, Mill Dam Eddy to near McClellan’s Dock

FLIES USED: Brown Wayne’s Fly, #14 gray Norfork River Scud, #20 red/silver Zebra Midge, #16 Elk Hair Caddis

ROD USED: Winston 10’ 4-weight WT

HATCHES: Midges, Caddis

OTHER: Fished alone. A neighbor, Ethan, and I walked in about the same time.  He remained at Mill Dam Eddy, and I waded upstream and began fishing along the island, managing only a solitary fish, a 10-inch brookie.  Further upstream, above the island, the combination of Wayne’s Fly and the zebra midge worked well, taking several fish, including this chunky, well-colored rainbow.

Continuing to wade upstream, all the usual places produced fish, though catching was not the machine-gun style we sometimes experience—rather, just moderate and steady.  The right descending bank near Ace in the Hole had filled in considerably, and the deep run was pretty narrow, but did produce a few fish.  The run below Otter Creek near where the old sycamore tree hung over the bank fished better than the last few years, producing several fish; this brown completed a grand slam.

I waded upstream past Otter Creek to a point about half way between Otter Creek and where McClellan’s Dock use to be, as I had caught lots of fish on the left descending bank there last fall on the scud.  It produced several fish, but not near the numbers previously caught.

Fishing my way back downstream, I caught several fish near the sycamore tree across the channel and slightly upstream of Otter Creek.  More fish were caught as I waded downstream, including this football-shaped brown.

I fished the right descending run at Ace in the Hole, but this time from the left descending side, and had better success than in the last couple of years.

Another fisher, the best on the river was here until I came—a great blue heron.

While fishing in this location, I heard the 12:00 o’clock noon siren.  The small riffle and run on the left descending side of the plunge pool held several fish with 3 being caught, including a nice cutthroat.  It was here that my day turned from real good to great, even glorious, as I noticed caddis hatching, and fish rising to take the adult insects.

The first riffle upstream of the island below McClellan’s had changed considerably, with most flows discharging from the right side, but the tiny riffle on the left did hold fish.  I began there using Wayne’s Fly, but quickly changed to a caddis and was rewarded with a fish practically every cast—it was one of those rare days you never forget!  Most of the fish were small, but I did catch a couple in the 15-inch category.  I was almost giddy watching the small trout jump out of the water after the caddis fly.

By this time I knew Kay would be anxious as to why I was not home, so I began walking out, and just before reaching the access noticed a lone fisher rushing upstream—my good friend, Ed.  When he found out about the caddis, he was elated.  He fished Mill Dam Eddy, with only minor success; we waded upstream, but didn’t have any success along the island.  Another fisher was fishing the riffle above the island, and Ed fished his way upstream on the left descending side, with no fish.  Finally, at the riffle, he tied on a caddis and was rewarded with several fish.  By this time, two other fishers had joined the solitary fisher at the riffle, and were catching quite a few fish, but were using a heavily weighted fly under a strike indicator.  They had no clue about the caddis hatch and rising fish.  As they left, we moved over to that larger riffle, and while standing there, I tripped and slid over a rounded, moss-covered stone and fell in—getting water in my waders—not a graceful move, and while standing relatively still no less!  Ed took pity and said he was ready to go, so we waded downstream and back to the car.  As chance would have it—actually a God incident—I had thought about Ed while fishing the caddis hatch.  It was sure good to fish with him again, particularly to rising fish!

Sunday, April 22—Insanity

DATE: Sunday, April 22, 2012

TIME: 12:30 AM to 1:00 PM

WEATHER: Low 60s, partly cloudy, very windy

WATER CONDITIONS: 0 Units

LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, Above the island above Ackerman/Handicap Access

FLIES USED: #14 gray Norfork River Scud, brown Wayne’s fly, #20 red/silver Zebra Midge

ROD USED: Winston 10’ 4-weight WT

HATCHES: None

OTHER: Fished alone. I walked in at Wayne’s and 6 people were in the tiny riffle across from his house, so I waded upstream and began fishing above Elisabeth Creek.  I cast the Norfork Scud a couple of times, but the chop on the water was so heavy, I switched to a brown Wayne’s fly to take advantage of the chop.  I was immediately rewarded with a fish.  I continued to get bites, catching two on Wayne’s fly and the other 5 on the zebra midge.  After only 25 minutes or so, I noted the strike indicator floating downstream at an increased speed and immediately began wading downstream to exit.  Once again, the forecast called for generation to begin at 1:00 PM, but it started early; SWPA’s forecast is wrong more that it is right!  I should have known; after all, one of the definitions of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.