nice cold front

Hi Folks, Been enjoying the weather the last few days after a nice little cold front pushed through.  Beautiful with clear cool nights and comfortable sunny days.  Fronts do effect fishing and I think we felt the brunt of it on Friday while guiding smallmouth bass.  Visited the Winooski which was still slightly up and off color.  The water temperature had dropped to 70 degrees.  Good spinner fall of #22 tricos with numbers of fall fish eating the tiny may fly.  Saw some larger mayfly spinners #12 that could have been Epherons, but I never captured a sample.  We spin fished for the bass and managed to catch one small bass on a fire tiger rapala. Bright colored lures seemed to be the way to go with the water color.  Everything else landed was a fall fish.  Did miss one big smallie that we rolled on a soft bait that imitated a crawfish, but that was it.  I just think the river level and fishing on the back side of a front slowed things down.  Yesterday I headed due north and fly fished some small brooks and did a casting clinic and fly fishing class at a northern ski resort.  The stream I was on was 63 degrees and the water was really low.  Not hard to find the brook trout, but you had to watch your approach.  Spooked a fair amount fish before we were able to cast to them.  Still landed a number of 4" to 8" brookies on a 2wt. with a #14 simulator pattern.  At dark we cast to rising stocked rainbows in a snow making pond.  Pretty easy pickings as the fish were rising everywhere.  A #16 goddard caddis worked really well.  You watch a fish rise and figure out the direction it was moving and then lead it with your cast.  Let the fly sit and the fish would just engulfed it.  Nice change of pace from river fishing for trout.  Well looks like some rain on the way which we could really use.  I will be guiding a small stream this afternoon and in the morning.  Remember to clean your gear and keep the non-native species at home.  Have Fun, Willy

on the surface

Hi Folks, Had a lot of fun today guiding in the morning and evening because the fish were looking up.  I always have fun guiding, but it is really fun to catch trout and bass on the surface with flies and lures.  The small brook we fly fished this morning was 59 degrees and the water level had come up and down significantly in the last 24 hours.  Received an 1" of rain at my house in Stowe from Tuesday night to Wednesday morning.  Much needed and our rivers and streams came up and are already receding. The Winooski might take a little longer to settle due to higher rain amounts in central Vermont.  Water clarity was fine today.  Brookie fishing was steady with 4" to 8" brook trout grabbing big #10 and #12 stimulators off the surface.  Regardless of the size of the brook trout, how cool is it to see a dark shape materialize from under a rock to eat your dry fly in gin clear water?  This afternoon I guided a little bigger water and we fished with spin gear for smallmouth bass.  Water temperature was 70 degrees with good cloud cover.  Low light is preferred in top water fishing.  You know things could be good when a big smallmouth crushes the jointed floating rapala on the first cast.  Really nice steady bite all afternoon.  We landed 11 smallmouth bass using brightly colored rapalas.  Probably missed and lost another dozen and a half.  Not bad.  Well after them again tomorrow and looks like a nice cool down which will bode well for our rivers.  Remember to clean your gear and keep the non-native species at home.  Have Fun, Willy

birds of prey and bass

Hi folks, Been guiding down low on the Winooski the last few days.  Water levels are low and water temperatures are between 70 and 75 degrees.  Pretty easy to read the water right now and get a feel for the riffles and pools and where to fish.  Could use some rain and hopefully we get some in the next few days.  Saw a bald eagle today as well as osprey, broad band hawk, and red tail hawk.  Just one of the many benefits to fishing.  The difference in fishing today and Sunday in low light versus yesterday in the sun is worlds apart.  I cannot emphasize enough how much better the fishing is in the early morning and right at dark.  Smallmouth fishing with poppers has been pretty solid right at dark and into dark.  It seems like the bigger fish do not turn on until the sun sets.  Makes sense when it is hot and bright.  The smallmouth bite has been good and steady.  Landed a dozen fish this morning working big giant pools.  Love watching smallies jump.  Not too many surface strikes as almost all of our fish were hooked on the retrieve.  We did catch some very large fall fish between 15" and 20".  Matter of fact the 20" fall fish had wound marks on its flanks that looked to be the work of a bird of prey.  When it has been sunny the only thing biting has been fall fish.  When there is low light the smallmouth seem to really turn on.  Still lots of #10 to #12 stone flies on rocks and have been seeing #22 Trico spinners every morning.  Some #16 Caddis hatching as well and some #14 Isonychia shucks on rocks.  Looks like a decent weather week for fishing with a cool down on the way.  Remember to clean your gear and keep the non-native species at home.  Have Fun, Willy

rising trout in the middle of the day

Hi folks, Guided a full day on the lower Winooski yesterday with folks learning to fly fish.  Water temperature was 68 degrees in the early morning and moved to 70 degrees by midday.  I think there must of been a tail water release from the Littler River prior to our arrival that lowered the water temperatures.  So, a decent  number of #18 tan bodied caddis hatching in the morning and then some #14 isonychia sadleri during the middle of the day.  A large number of isonychia shukcs on rocks as well as #10 to #12 golden stone fly casings.  Interesting spot where we fished as you could catch smallmouth bass, stocked brown trout, wild rainbow trout, and fall fish.  We tussled with all 4 species.  What was really cool was eating lunch on a big rock above the water and looking down into a giant pool where we could see smallmouth and rainbow trout swimming around.  We watched one smallmouth come up in the water column over some rocks that was easily one of the largest bass I have sever seen in a river.  Certainly over 20" and could eaten the trout and smaller bass we saw in one bite.  A lot of fun for my guests to see a rainbow swimming in a big eddy eating just below the surface.  Always a good idea to find a high vantage point in a river a look into the water.  Good viewing with lessons to be learned.  Unfortunately, it was virtually impossible to cast to the fish we were watching as you would have spooked them while approaching and you could not get into the river and cast from the opposite side.  The fly pattern of the day was a #12 hare's ear parachute.  The stocked browns were all over it as well as the fall fish.  We nymphed with a #12 Montana stone fly, but most our work was with the dry fly.  Fun day on the water after all of the recent heat and it was nice to have over cast skies in the afternoon.  Remember to clean your gear and keep the non-native species at home.  Have Fun, Willy

Need some rain

Hi Folks, Been guiding every day this week and we really could use some rain.  Our rivers have become a little stale.  Mostly chasing smallmouth bass and brook trout.  Did lake fish twice this week for bass and lost one morning due to engine problems with the boat.  Getting pretty good at learning how to fix my boat motor.  So, river temperatures in our big rivers are still in the seventies and surface temperatures in our lakes are high seventies.  Small mountain streams have been maintaining in the low sixties.  Seen lots of #10 to #12 golden stone fly shucks on rocks.  Lots and lots of #16 free form green caddis below rocks and #18 yellow bodied caddis in casings on top and the bottom of rocks. Also, #22 to #24 tricos have been hatching in the morning.   Do not rule out terrestrial patterns from ants to beetles to hoppers.  The fish of the week was 17" 3lb smallmouth bass that ate a surface presentation.  Been working hard for fish and the only consistent fishing has been for brook trout.  August is always a challenging month to fish in Vermont due to water temperatures and light levels.  Lack of rain does not make it any easier.  Will be river fishing all day tomorrow.  Remember to clean your gear and keep the non-native species at home.  Have Fun, Willy

Getting skinny

Hi folks, Guided yesterday afternoon and this morning on small streams.  We could use some rain.  As the water levels drop and especially in clear water, the fish can get tight and spooky.  Think about your approach.  Both small streams we visited were 60 and 61 degrees.  With skinnier water levels and warming water temperatures, the brook trout have been holding in riffles versus some the slower pools.  Small flies have been working.  A #14 yellow and green foam caddis as well as light elk colored #14 stimulator were producing lots of action.  Did mess with some smallmouth this morning right off the get go and got 3 smallies to eat trout dry flies.  Got the bass to eat #10 foam bodied adult stone fly pattern and a #10 hornberg fished on the surface. The water temperature in the bass stream was 71 degrees.  Some a pretty decent #22 trico spinner drop.  No fish rising except a random fall fish and I am not so sure smallmouth bass eat itty bitty trico may flies.   Good fun catching a 10" smallmouth on a 7' 3wt. rod.  Lots of #10 to #12 stone fly shucks on rocks and numbers of #16 olive green caddis pupa under rocks in riffles.  Well some cool nights in the 50's for the next couple of days will hopefully keep water temperatures in check.  Smallmouth fishing in the morning.  Remember to clean your gear and keep the non-native species at home.  Have Fun, Willy

boat fishing and man over board

Hi Folks, Been out and about on my boat the last few days guiding and fishing.  Mixed up the still water fishing and chased lake trout and smallmouth bass.  Water temperatures have in the mid to high seventies on the surface.  Been fairly calm in the morning with a west wind increasing as the day progressed.  Whether fishing for smallmouth or lakers we have been setting up on structure.  Fishing submerged humps and islands that come out of deep water.  Incredible how fish relate to a lonesome piece of rock or debris on the bottom of a lake.  If that is the only piece of cover on the bottom and the surrounding area is featureless, then the bait fish and the predators will be holding there.  We have been jig fishing with swim baits that imitate emerald shiners for the lakers and 3.5" craw fish looking tube jigs for the smallmouth.  Heavier jig heads in deeper water and lighter jig heads in shallow water.  Good steady action, but nor real large fish until this morning.  Mostly lakers and smallmouth in the 1lb to 2lb class.  However, this morning my client did hook a monstrous smallmouth  on a popper and the fish immediately jumped out of the water and then wrapped itself all through some submerged wood.  We could see the big bass in the wood wrapped up and my client promptly jumped over board to attempt to free the fish from the wood.  Unfortunately the fish got free.  That was the first time in 17 years of guiding that I have ever seen someone jump out of the boat to go after a fish.  Pretty funny.  Well, morning is still the most pleasant time to be on the water.  Trout fishing in the small brooks is still steady and the big rivers are still too warm.  I will be guiding a small brook on the fly this afternoon.  Remember to clean your gear and keep the non-native species at home.  Have Fun, Willy

small water brown

Moose

Hi Folks, Guided a large group on the Winooski this morning who were interested in learning to fish.  Water level was just below the seasonal average.  Water temperature was 69 to 70 degrees.  Nice overcast conditions and hopefully we get some much needed rain later today.  We were treated to a young bull moose crossing the river this morning right in front of us.  Amazing to see how well these animal swim.  The moose crossed in a section that you would never dream of wading in.  Saw a few #20 micro caddis hatching and few subtle rises in the tail out of a very large pool.  The rise forms were out of casting range and they only happened right off the get this morning.  Lots of #10 to #12 stone fly shucks on rocks.  We nymph fished and messed with a bunch of small fall fish.  No trout, though we did miss a few fish that very well could have been a trout.  All of our takes were in heavy riffles.  Obviously due to the warmer water temperatures and the fish's need for more dissolved oxygen.  High stick drifts with #10 tungsten stone flies and #12 prince nymphs were our approach.  We also presented some #18 olive caddis to the fish.  We fished all of our nymphs under indicators.  I think small streams are still the way to go until things cool off.  I will be chasing smallmouth bass and small stream trout tomorrow.  Remember to clean your gear and keep the non-native species at home.  Have Fun, Willy

Fly Fishing the Vermont cycle

Hi folks, Guided a double yesterday with trout fishing in the morning and smallmouth bass fishing in the afternoon.  The trout stream I was on was 59 degrees at 6:30am and low and clear.  It was interesting to see all of the wood that had been pushed around from the spring floods and how some holes had become filled in with sediment.  Still plenty of water to fish and hungry trout.  We worked up stream casting #14 green and yellow foam terrestrial patterns into every piece of water that was at least knee deep.  The further we walked from where we parked (go figure) the better the fishing became.  We ended up landing 9 trout, 1 brookie, 5 rainbows, and 3 brown trout.  Missed another 10 fish.  All wild fish with the 2 best fish of the day being a 12" and 16" male brown trout.  Both measured with photos to come.  Not every day that you land a 16" wild brown trout in a small brook with a 7' 3wt. rod.  Really impressive male trout with a hook jaw.  Incredible that we landed it and it did not wrap in wood or break us off on rocks.  The fish was holding in a spot that most anglers would walk by.  Really nice small stream experience.  The afternoon was a totally different story.  Went smallmouth fishing on the lower Lamoille which had come up a bit from thunderstorms  the previous night.  Water was slightly off color but still decent visibility.  Big bright sun.  The bass fishing was not very good.  We landed 1 fall fish and lost another.  Really slow.  Sun and high water is all I can figure.  I am pretty convinced that the morning is the way to go in the summer.  It is cool out and easier on the anglers as well as cooler water temperatures and lower light levels.  Lots of #18 to #20 micor caddis hatching and egg laying yesterday.  Still finding tons of #10 to #12 stone fly shucks on rocks.  Also, beetle, hopper, and ant patterns will all work this time of the year.  Remember to clean your gear and keep the non-native species at home.  Have Fun, Willy

just enough

Hi folks, Guided a small brook yesterday with the fly rods.  The stream was 60 degrees and low and clear.  We received a 1/4" of rain in Stowe on Monday night and it looks like we received another 1/10" last night in a thunderstorm.  Just enough rain to keep the brooks a little fresh.  A day of steady gentle rain would be perfect.  Cooler nights are helping cool down our rivers a bit from the oppressive heat of last week.  Brook trout fishing was good.  Caught numbers of brookies yesterday with several fish between 8" and 10".  Scaled back the size of the flies cast due to clarity of the water and the spook factor.  Small stimulator patterns and wulff patterns between #14 and #16 worked well.  Be careful of your approach in the small streams to avoid spooking fish prior to casting.  Off to fish a small brook in the kingdom this morning and then chasing river smallmouth this afternoon.  Remember to clean your gear and keep the non-native species at home.  Have Fun, Willy

pleasant weather and even some rain

Hi folks, Mixed it up today and guided smallmouth bass from my boat in the morning and guided the lower Winooski this afternoon with the fly rods.  Lake temperature was 77 degrees on the surface and it was dead calm at 6am.  Wind picked up half way through the morning and blew hard from the south.  There is a front moving through that could dump some much needed rain as our lakes and river are getting a little bony.  Nice to fish without the humidity as well.  We managed to land two 2lb smallmouth on poppers while it was calm and also caught two nice sized pickerel that ate the surface presentation.  We found all of the fish holding in or around milfoil beds in less than 8' of water.  Missed a few other surface takes.  Lots of casting this morning.  Nice violent strikes on the surface and patience setting the hook was important.  When the wind picked up the fishing slowed and boat control became a little tricky.  The lower Winooski was 71 degrees at 6pm and the wind was blowing really hard.  Makes casting a challenge as well as mending the line.  Lots of #8 to #12 golden stone fly casings on the rocks.  We were looking for smallmouth bass, but we only managed to catch fall fish.  Greedy little bastards that are not very fussy as to what fly they eat.  Nymphs or dries, it does not seem to matter.  Rain started to fall hard around 7pm and we wound things up.  Off to fish trout tomorrow am on some small water.  Remember to clean your gear and keep the non-native species at home.  Have Fun, Willy

Cool down and fall fish

Hi Folks, Finally a break in the weather.  Looks like the humid hot stuff is out of here for now.  I received 1/2" of rain last night at my house in Stowe.  Guided a large group with some help Friday on the Winooski.  Water temperature was 77 degrees at 1pm.  All beginners who wanted to learn about fly fishing.  Nice standing in the water when it is hot.  All wet wading.  So, we focused on the basics and tugged on a lot of fall fish.  Very user friendly fish that seem to eat just about any fly presented to them.  No trout and just as well due to the water temperatures.  The Winooski would not of been my choice of of places to fish with a small group or one person.  I would have fished a small mountain brook.  However, with 12 people, options are limited and it really is about having fun and learning.  Saw a fair amount of golden ston fly shucks on rocks.  Lots of cased caddis on the bottom of rocks between #18 and #20 and yellow/tan bodied.  Found #16 green bodied caddis on the tops of rocks.  Green and yellow soft hackles swung in riffles make excellent imitations of the micro caddis.  Last night as the front blew through I chased smallmouth bass.  Really stiff west wind made canoe control challenging.  Still, the smallies wanted to play and we cast on the lee sides of islands and points and the fish were pretty user friendly.  Love watching smallmouth inhale a fly.  Strong damn fish that really bend a fly rod.  The next 6 weeks should be outstanding fishing for smallies and especially for the surface bite.  Any popper between #4 and #8 in frog patterns, chartruse, or black seems to work well.  Just keep moving and casting.  Cover water!  Remember to clean your gear and keep the non-native species at home.  Have Fun, Willy

Too Damn Hot!

Hi folks, Guided on the lower Lamoille yesterday afternoon for smallmouth bass.  Too damn hot.  Not a big fan of fishing late afternoon when the weather is hot and muggy.  Mornings are the way to go. Oh well, a fishing guide has to work with his guests.  The Lamoille was 80 degrees and low.  We could use some rain.  hard to believe after the spring we suffered through.  The fishing was tough.  We covered a lot of water walking in the river.  We did land two large smallmouth bass between 1.5lbs and 2lbs., but we earned them.  A perch colored floating rapala and a silver beetle spin drew the most interest as we did have several other fish follow as well.  At dusk we caught several fall fish and missed a couple of smallies, but the surface bite was slow.  I can only guess that the hot water makes the fish a little lethargic as well.  Looks like the hot humid weather will break this weekend.  I taking out a large party today in the middle of the day.  A fly fishing instruction.  The fishing will be difficult with the current conditions.  Small mountain streams, ponds and lakes in the morning are the way to go presently.  Saw lots of craw fish in the shallows yesterday and golden stone fly shucks on rocks.  Any #10 to #14 stone fly pattern nymphed under an indicator will work right now.  Fish them in heavy riffled water.  This technique works well on fussy small mouth.  A olive/black #10 to #12 wooly bugger will imitate the craw daddies well.  Remember to clean your gear and keep the non-native species at home.  Have Fun, Willy

heat, chantral mushrooms, and lots of brook trout

Hi Folks, Guided a couple of aspiring fly anglers this morning on a small mountain stream.  Started seeing a number of chantral mushrooms popping up. Very enjoyable outing for me to see a young kid who was probably born with a fly rod in his hand pick up the sport so quickly.  The brook we fished was 59 degrees at 6:30am.  Water levels are dropping quickly and we now could use some rain.  Approach is very important when the levels drop in these small streams in order to not spook the fish before you cast.  We worked up stream with light 3wt outfits and cast stimulator patterns into any potential holding water.  We landed 34 brook trout and probably missed another 20.  Pretty good steady action.  A tight line drift with very little slack made the hook set much easier.  Casting accuracy was important.  I have been hearing over the last few days of northern pike in the Lamoille below Cadys Falls.  It appears that the pike were in Lake Lamoille and during the high spring water they were flushed down stream into the river.  There goes the trout fishing in that stretch of river.  Never introduce a fish to a body of water.  Leave that to the biologist.  This is not a good thing and will certainly change the balance of things in the Lamoille.  Looks to stay hot for the next few days so trout fishing will be limited to small cold streams or fish for smallmouth bass.  Remember to clean your gear and keep the non-native species at home.  Have Fun, Willy

hot fun in the summer time

Hi folks, The really busy season is upon us.  Guided a small brook yesterday and just returned from bank fishing with kids and parents this morning.  Pretty hot and sunny out there, but we are still managing to get enough rain to keep the water levels in decent shape for mid summer. Water temperatures are getting high and the lake I was on this morning was 74 degrees on the surface.  The small brook I guided yesterday was 60 degrees.  Keep your thermometer handy.  The best fishing this time of the year is certainly early morning.  Especially if you want to catch trout.  Tugged on native brook trout yesterday with 3wts and dry flies.  Beautifully colored fish that just through themselves at the fly.  I love seeing fish come to the surface regardless of their size.  This morning we got fish to eat off the surface , except that they were smallmouth bass who have a love for the floating rapala.  Man is there some electricity in the rod when these fish are hooked.  Everyone jumped and we landed a few and missed a few.  Really important on the surface take with a bass to be patient in setting the hook and then really strike them. Had the kids working garden hackle on the bottom with a tight line.  We caught yellow perch, fall fish, pumpkin seed, and more smallmouth.  Kids do not care what they catch as long as they catch something.  Remember to clean your gear and keep the non-native species at home.  Have Fun, Willy

cool water on a hot summer day

Hi Folks, Just back from a Maine vacation with my wife.  Nice coastline and I like eating lobster.  Back in the saddle guiding today on a small stream.  Water temperature was a cool 59 degrees under the heavy tree canopy.  Really important to keep your thermometer handy this time of the year when trout fishing.  Our larger streams will become too warm to fish and your best option will be small mountain brooks for native and wild fish or lake and lower river fishing for smallmouth bass.  We worked this small brook upstream and cast #12 stimulators into larger pools and any water that was knee deep. I love watching brook trout aggressively smash dry flies.  Beautiful little creatures.  The trick in brookie fishing is to keep moving and cover water.  Not a bad morning of trout fishing on a hot summer day.  Remember to clean your gear and keep the non-native species at home.  Have Fun, Willy

lots of fishing

Hi Folks, Been all over the board the last few days.  Guided the Lamoille Friday and today for trout and then smallmouth bass.  River levels are finally are the seasonal average and they have certainly warmed up.  The Lamoille above Morrisville was 64 degrees Friday in the morning and down low this am was 72 degrees.  Trout fishing will not be option on the Lamoille if the water stays at 70 degrees or higher.  At least if you are going to fish the Lamoille currently, make sure you do it early in the morning.  Friday the trout fishing was decent as we landed 4 wild rainbows and a wild brown trout.  Nothing giant, but not bad for July.  We nymphed all of the fish on #12 prince and #18 caddis pupa dropper.  Golden stone flies are starting to show up and I have seen a few casings on rocks as well as winged adults.  Micro caddis are the soup of the day and a #18 and #20 tan bodied caddis seems to be the dominant hatching insect currently. Also, noticed a few #12 golden drakes hatching and their shucks in the some back eddies. Smallmouth fishing was okay this morning.  We landed 3 smallies who all ate poppers and we missed several fish.  Fished big slow pools that were lined with boulders.  Small chartruse poppers were the fly of the day.  In between this all, I visited Maine with a fishing guest I have become friends with.  We fly fished the Magalloway River for brook trout and landlocked salmon.  Pretty interesting fishery as we fish a tailwater, a freestone, and a spring influenced sections of the same river.  Very hatch friendly river with large brookies and fiesty salmon.  Good wildlife viewing as we saw black bear, antlered deer, bald eagles, otters, osprey, grouse, beaver, and, hare.  No moose.  Great experience that I would recommend to anyone.  We had good fishing and we were there at a slow time.  Really enjoyed the spring influenced part of the river fishing to rising brookies in slow water.  So lots of different fish the last few days.  Nice diversity in New England for fishing.  Remember to clean your gear and keep the non-native species at home.  have fun, Willy

little weather blip and lots of smallmouth

Hi folks, Had a huge cold front push through the area with a crazy thunderstorm on Wednesday afternoon.  Dropped almost an inch of rain at my house in Stowe.  Needless to say it raised the level of our rivers.  I guided a river trip yesterday afternoon on a stream that drops pretty quickly after the level rises and clears fairly quickly.  Water temperature was 68 degrees and the clarity was okay.  We landed a dozen smallmouth bass between 9" and 18".  We found a "honey hole" that was loaded with hungry smallmouth.  I always like the fishing in a river when the level is dropping after a high water event.  The fish are always hungry in that situation after hunkering down behind or under cover when fighting heavy water.  Loads of fun battling river smallmouth in big current.  With the cooler weather our rivers should stay just below 70 degrees for trout fishing.  Carry your thermometer.  I am off to chase trout this morning with guests.  Remember to clean your gear and keep the non-native species at home.  Have Fun, Willy

bass and bald eagles

Hi Folks, Guided with my boat all day yesterday on a large body of water for smallmouth bass using spin tackle.  Beautiful weather day with air temperatures reaching the low 80's and big blue skies.  Water temperature on the surface was 70 degrees and the water clarity was a little off color.  Saw a large adult bald eagle in the morning take a yellow perch out of the water.  Pretty impressive.  We covered a lot of water and started the day working top water presentations.  Not a lot of big fish looking at the top water lures so we resorted to jigging crawfish colored tube jigs.  Drew a lot of interest below the surface.  The smallmouth probably did not want to rise to eat on such a bright day.  The largest bass landed of the day was 16.5" long.  We lost another smallmouth at the boat that spit the jig that was much larger.  Really important to get a good solid hook set when fishing with soft plastics.  A good day fishing with plenty of action.  The bite did slow significantly around noon.  We found most of our fish on a hard bottom holding just off shore in 15' of water.  Off to use the boat again this am for smallmouth.  Remember to clean your gear and keep the non-native species at home.  Have Fun, Willy