Hi Folks, Good cold front moved into Stowe Sunday and we had snow on the ground briefly on Monday morning. Wanted to run the new drift boat the last two days but the recent rain puffed up the Lamoille pretty well. Not to mention the steady wind that blew 15mph to 25mph. Changed directions and went into the kingdom to several rivers that receive runs of lake run steelhead and landlocked salmon. Only one of the two steelhead rivers was fishable. Water temperature was 49 degrees and the color was slightly off. I like stained water for steelhead fishing. We drifted egg patterns that resembled sucker roe with little results. Two suckers were landed which certainly were not the target species. After a while we moved to chase landlocked salmon and found a lot better shape water but more anglers. Water temperature was 51 degrees and the clarity was excellent. Of course this stream is dam controlled so the effects of the rain had not impacted when we were fishing. Cast, drifted, and stripped big smelt patterns. A #6 white with a pearl body Zonker drew the interest of a very large salmon that chased the fly to my feet and turned off. Talk about getting your heart rate up. I patiently changed my fly to a #8 Black Ghost and within a dozen casts got the salmon to look again but he refused to eat. Damn it!!!! Oh well, we did tug on a few salmon per and caught a small bass. I think the salmon will hang around for awhile as long as water temperatures do not warm too quickly. The lake run fisheries of the kingdom can be a lot of fun and present the opportunity to catch a fish of a lifetime in Vermont. They are just not easy and you cant expect to do well fishing them if you do not fish them daily to at least several times a week. Fish come and go and you need to be on it when it is happening. Look like the weather is about to turn beautiful and the trout fishing should be solid. Remember to clean your gear and keep the non-native species at home. Have Fun, Willy
