The Day I Needed

Yesterday was the day I needed. I fished with one of my favorite people on one of my favorite streams and caught some of my favorite fish species. It was beautiful out. The water was cold, but ice in the guides never occurred. It a pleasant winter day to be on the water. 

"Pete's Pool" 
We miss you, friend.

Alan Petrucci and I spent our morning fishing a watershed that has some of both of our biggest CT wild brook trout. It is special water for both of us, with a memory coming to mind in each spot. Sadly much of the lower part of the big stream is now almost unrecognizable, completely re-shaped by this year's high water. We caught nor saw no fish in that stretch, but above we found a handful of willing fish. 

 I stuck with a Woolly Bugger the entire time and never changed. I was hoping to tempt some of the big residents with that fly, but I also knew the smaller brookies would have no problem eating that fly at all. The first fish I caught, out of a very deep bend, was a fallfish. Quite a good one for this small stream as well. The very next cast I caught on made from the same exact cookie cutter. They didn't fight with the same vigor that they do in warmer water, but it was a welcome surprise to catch those two.

A little upstream from the bend where I caught the two fallfish, I worked my streamer through a nice riffle that I've caught a few brookies from before. My first fish of 2016, actually, was from this same riffle, on a Pinkie. This time the Bugger did the job, and the first brookie of the day came to hand. It was a perfect little fish. Though it was probably already well above freezing by that time I didn't want to risk it and left the fish in the water to take photos.

Not long after that Alan worked through the very same water, and at the tail out elicited a strike from a fish that I hadn't found. Neither of us could get it to come back out though.

Upstream further still, I got my last fish of the outing. She was a real beauty. Pale belly, nice pink-orange fins, and a good array of red spots. I have to wonder if she will grow to be one of the giants this stream produces.

After that point we went downstream where we found that things had change a lot and the fish had gone elsewhere. I suspect the we would have found more fish had we stayed were we started out, but you won't know if you con't go and my confidence was in the water down below, at least before this year's raging floods scoured the place out. With how much rain we just got I don't think the stream will look the same when it drops as it did on Thursday. Things can change very quickly on these little rivers. 

Given how high the water is at the moment, it may be the case that the next small stream I fish holds spotted sunfish, redear sunfish, tarpon, and snook... 

I. Can't. Wait. 

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Thanks for joining the adventure, and tight lines.