Local guide Zach with a big "redemption brown"- he hooked & lost this one earlier in the season, and came back and finally got him on a dry. Persistence pays off! Total flow in the permanent Catch & Release (C&R)/TMA is a medium 289cfs (262cfs from dam in Riverton plus an additional 27cfs from the Still River). Water temps between the dam and New Hartford are running from about mid/upper 50's to mid 60's. Needhami Duns #22-26 have joined the hatch parade, they are typically a morning affair, starting with a spinner fall in early/mid-morning, transitioning into the duns hatching from mid/late morning. Hot weather can make this happen earlier, and cooler temps can make it start later. Look for these in the permanent C&R/TMA. They look like a small Blue Wing Olive, but instead of olive the body is chocolate brown.
With ideal water levels, and trout-friendly water temps the mornings have been bring good dry fly action on Needhami Duns & Summer/Winter Caddis plus Rusty Spinners and Terrestrials such as ants and beetles. The best evening fishing is currently after 7:30pm. If you're out in the evening, stay until dark if you can or you will miss out on some of the best hatches. Sulfurs #16-18 are only in the upper river from Riverton upriver to the Goodwin Dam. Isonychia #12-14 and Light Cahills #12-14 are found in the evenings throughout the river in light numbers. Attenuata #18-20 ( light colored Blue Wing Olives) have been out in good numbers along with matching size rusty spinners at dusk (they change from olive to rusty brown when they molt to spinners).
Isonichia #12-14 are hatching from the lower river all the way upstream to Riverton. Isonychia are a fast water mayfly, so look for them in riffles, pocket water & pool heads- you WON'T see them popping in the slow to moderate speed pool water. Hatch time can start as early as late afternoon and go as late as dark, typically peaking in early/mid evening. Both the nymph and the dries fish well for this hatch. The nymph is an unusally good swimmer, so try both dead-drifting & swinging it, at moments I've even done well making short strips and retrieving it like a small streamer.
In July/August, many of the hatching insects are smaller, when nymphing make sure to downsize your flies. #18-20 nymphs are key to success with fly size more important then the exact pattern. Some days small flies are the difference between struggling to hook a trout versus catching more than you can count! The two main exceptions would be Isonychia nymphs #10-14, and big Stonefly nymphs #6-12. Iso's are typically active later in the day, say late afternoon through dusk. The big Stonefly nymphs emerge by crawling out onto rocks overnight and in the early mornings. If you do have a big fly on, make sure you also have another pattern in your rig no bigger than a #18, it's more in line with what they are seeing this time of year.
We are closing out our Sage Salt, Sage Accel, Sage Bolt, and Winston Nexus fly rods in store and online and can be found on our Used / Store Specials page. Our closeouts are first come first served and won't last long so don't wait to come in or place an order.
Cortland's "Top Secret" Ultra Premium Fluorocarbon Tippet is now in stock in 3x-8x. This stuff has been difficult to keep in stock since it arrived recently. Customer & guide feedback on this new product has been exceptional. No hype or exaggeration, it literally is the world's best fluorocarbon tippet, hands down. Grady & I found it to be super strong, unusually flexible, hold & knot like a champ, very abrasion resistant, have excellent clarity, and just is an amazingly durable tippet. The combination of high break strength, stretch, and perfecty smooth plasma optical quality outer finish make it hard to break off fish & flies, and despite the slightly higher price tag, most using it report they go through it at about half the rate of normal tippet due to it's amazing durability.
Top Dry Flies: Attenuata/Blue Wing Olives #20, Needhami #22-26 (mornings), Summer/Winter Caddis #18-24 (mornings in permanent C&R/TMA), Sulfurs #16-18, Cream Cahills/Light Cahills #12-14, Isonychia #10-12, tiny Blue Wing Olives #18-24, Summer Dark Caddis #16-22, Tan Wing Olive bodied Caddis #16-18. The best dry fly activity has been in the riffles and the upper end of pools including Pipeline, Roberts, Whittemore, People's Forest, Church Pool, Greenwoods and the Boneyard. Try also blind-fishing with attractors such as Mini Chernobyls #12-16, Stimulators #10-16 & Hippy Stompers #16-18.
Nymphing has been good to excellent for many using things like Caddis Pupa #14-18 (tan, olive-green, Caddis pupa are especially active in the mornings), Antoine's Perdigons #16, Frenchies #14-16, Egan's Red Dart #14, big Stoneflies #8-12, Pat's Rubber Legs #8-10. Quasimodo Pheasant Tails #16-22, BWO nymphs #16-20, Isonychia #10-14, Fox Squirrel Nymphs #12-16, Zebra Midge #16-20.