Trout Opener 2019

Every year for a while now my dad and have fished some small wild trout stream on CT's opening day, somewhere nobody else is fishing, somewhere the stocking trucks probably haven't been. It's a nice little tradition. One year we got on a ridiculous sucker bite. Another year Dad got the biggest brookie I'd ever seen out of the particular stream we were fishing. Last year I got a bunch of small brookies out of an exceptionally small stream. This year it was the conditions that would stand out.

It had rained almost all night and well into the morning. The creeks were up and off-color. We had breakfast and made our way to the stream and found it carrying more than a little bit of leaf litter. Well, we were there to fish, so we did.

After poking some pockets in the main stem of the creek I decided that we ought to make our way up to a tributary that would likely be more fishable. We did. And it was, though just barely. I switched from a San Juan worm to a little purple streamer, and in the third pool I fished I had a fish on that came unbuttoned. Okay, this might work. a few runs up I had another take and this time sealed the deal.

Unfortunately the next four takers were not so easily landed, and that was kind of the trend for me: lots of takes a brief hookups, lots of fish dropped. But eventually I brought another to hand, which I chose not to photograph. My trend was preferable to my fathers though. For him, it was lots of things hooked and lots of flies lost. We all have those days....

My third and finale fish of the day was a gorgeous male.I had hooked him on the way up, but sure enough he was in the same spot and willing to come back. For this minute little tributary of an already small stream, this fish was a stud.

We briefly visited another stream, and it's tributary as well. But nothing was doing there except frogs, which was fine by me. 

The king looks over his domain

All told, that was a nice little Saturday morning. The opening day tradition continues.

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Trout Opener 2018

Once again, Dad and I did opening day right. Away from the crowds, away from the stocking trucks, small and medium sized water, mostly wild fish. It was gorgeous day out there today, So nice I was actually comfortable wet wading for short periods of time. We fished different streams with wildly different temperatures from 47 to 57. The smallest stream of the three was my favorite, because despite having been told about it by Alan and a few other small stream addicts, it managed to exceed my expectations. It is tiny, very tiny, but the number of wild brookies I saw in there was amazing. I can't wait to fish all of this water again.

Look at those red spots... what a gem!

Another native, the fallfish, caught on a mouse. one of three or four.

 Some anglers are content to spend opening day in a crowd. I've never been comfortable in crowds, and my father and I have shared quite a few fishing trips that took us to places where others didn't venture. Today we didn't go quite so far into the sticks to avoid signs of humanity, but it was secluded enough. However you all spent your opening days I hope you had a good time and did everything withing the law and morality. This week I'm sure I'll be spending some time picking up trash after the crowds, and I'd appreciate some help, I can't clean up ever stream as much as I wish I could!

2 Days

I really don't hold opening day of trout season to much of a high regard. Really, I look down on much that it represents with a bit of disdain, because it exemplifies most of what I hate about trout management in the Northeast. But for many it holds good memories, time with family and friends, maybe some of their earliest days on the water, and I respect that immensely.

For me, the biggest reason to celebrate opening day... I can finally trout fish wherever I damn well please again! It's been a long month and a half, and the little brook trout streams down the road and most importantly, my home river, are calling my name! This cold weather pattern has pushed back the blue quill (Paraleps) hatch here, which means I get to fish it on my home stream instead of travelling to TMA's where the hatch isn't as good and the surroundings not as familiar. It'll feel nice to be able to walk down the street again and catch a few small native brook trout on dry flies. Spring, you've hidden from me long enough! I see you now!

My dad and I will be on the water Saturday, rest assured it will be someplace far from the crowds where wild trout reign supreme.

Suckered

I typically don't fish around opening day, but my father wanted to so why not? We went somewhere I thought would be relatively open. It was. The water was high but clear, and caddis were coming off. Neither of us, however, could move a trout. Suckers had moved into the stream to spawn and feed. We started targeting them, struggling to get nymphs deep enough to get their attention. We could see many of them, nose down in the sandy part of a deep pool. They were big. My father hooked and lost two; those things were fighting hard in the strong current. I got two hits and missed both. We left slightly disappointed, but glad to have spent some good time on a beautiful stream.