Big Mayfly Time- The light giant drakes of Summer ( and heat wave warning)

( A Hex/yellow drake/ Danica  imitation- author image and tie)

Summer's  giant drakes are one mayfly hatch period that guarantees big trout will be on the prowl for them. Besides the legendary Hexagenia/( light hex) and Rithrogena (dark hex) hatch of Michigan and the Midwest, Hexs' /giant drakes exist all over the globe and east coast were you have silty stream bottoms and fine gravel . Even on classic eastern/western freestone/cobblestone rivers, the lower silty portions of them have Hexagenia hatches, as do limeteoners and spring creeks everywhere. Big trout will pack on the weight from these hatches, and the fact that many do not fish late into the night on ice cold spring creeks since they fish well in mid-day, they often emerge without notice.

Europe's Ephemera Danica comes off a little earlier starting in May ( thus the word Mayfly). It is very similar to the Green Drake emergence cycle, but will continue its hatching throughout summer on the ice cold spring creek/chalk streams of Europe well into July. I once encountered excellent Danica hatches on the River Avon spring creek/chalk stream in Salisbury England in late July, and the big browns went ballistic for them!) For the amazing landlocked salmon/lake/sea browns of Michigan , and New England/Scandinavia/Baltic areas the Hexagenia is a big appetite arouse where the Hex nymphs comprise an amazing part of the diets of big water salmonids where found- especially in Great Lakes/Finger Lakes.

                 (What we see of the Hex hatch is only skin deep. An amazing autopsy from a  Great Lakes charter guide friend (James Chamberlin image )on northern glacial inland lake in Michigan- lake trout belly stuffed with hex nymphs)

(Hex nymph image J.G. Miller)

( massive vertical growth takes place on these lake systems with hexagenia overload- Landlocked Atlantic shown here- browns get even more glutton-like. Author image)

Here they emerge from their burrows to relocate by massive schools/pods, especially in fall and spring, and the salmonids chow-down heavily on them in deep water depths. Atlantics' , steelhead and browns, plus char binge down on them all year. Sometimes the sonar graphs of fish finders in these lakes are a blizzard cloud of them on the graph)

                                  ( I'm a big fan of the amazing foam mayfly bodies of Frosty Fly  https://frostyfly.com/. , a Slavic based company in Canada that does excellent mail-order.They come in all varieties and are insect specific ( here is Hex, Danica)- tell them I sent you. You can combine them with wings of CDC, duck feathers, Snowshoe rabbit, traditional hackle- you can custom infuse them into your creations like I do)

              ( my Nexus Hex wiggle nymph from my "Brown Trout-Atlantic Salmon Nexus" Book- author image)

                         ( light and dark Hex- sometimes a gender or species specific trait= J.G. Miller "the Bug Doctor" image)

                (Top: more traditional yellow drake/Potamanthus wiggle from my "Selectivity" book- a killer on many classic freestone and spring creeks in late summer...Below: a beautiful wild  Catskill's/Neversink brown trout of September that love to eat them in between meals of olives and beetles ( fish embodies the Salmo Nexus morphology- author images )

The other Yellow Drakes : Potamanthus, Ephemera varia and Epeorus vitreus , all emerge sporadically many times on most waters and stand out like a giant yellow flower on the water. You can be sure they will get gulped up fast by any trout due to their meaty proportions and being extremely obvious.
On the ice cold Catskill tailwaters they float for long duration's and will get extremely long compound/complex  rises from the trout, which have been used to sipping # 20's. Both Classic eastern freestoners and spring creeks have them, and they start to hatch in June, but will sporadically hatch all summer at odd times of the day- you will never know when they turn up! They are excellent indicators of good healthy freestone and spring creek water qualities.

More to come in the "Rise Forms" departmental column of my new online magazine being released this month- cheers!, stay cool, give the trout a break, and turn off all electronics in the house to save electricity- use solar chargers for your smart phones and tabs- mine is working great!
Matthew Supinski

                                       (NOTE: Please stay advised on heat wave conditions: carry a thermometer, and don't fish waters that are approaching or are over 70 F . Only fish cold limestone/subterranean spring creeks that stay ice cold year-round, alpine environment brooks ( Rockies/Appalachians etc.) also Catskill and other tailwaters around the globe that have very deep 150 plus impoundments depths for bottom draw. Michigan is loaded with subterranean spring creeks and they are the tiny creeks that you never fish because they are obscure and require the art of walking-they carry more wilds than you ever thought!, but watch out for heat stroke and carry lots of water) Usually very tiny feeder springs of tributaries of rivers will have icy conditions that hold up. But the farther you move away from spring sources, the warmer it will get. Also watch out for large thermally stressed fish in springs that have migrated there for survival, They are usually larger and darker and move lethargically- MOST WILL SURVIVE IF YOU LEAVE THEM THE F' ALONE!- best to stay inside and tie flies, READ!, yes read books (long lost art due to modern society's ADHD) until the heat breaks- you can do it!, like the commercials say "we're in this together eh!)


( for more reading and  fly tying recipes /tactics on this subject and others. Lots of  in-depth/code cracking hatch matching conundrums :

Read more »

Posted in: gray drake lodge , Great Lakes , hexagenia limbata , Matt Supinski #Brown Trout-Atlantic Salmon Nexus book , Matthew Supinski new books , may fly hatches , Michigan ground zero legacy , Selectivity book

Things Pure and Sacred..A Rite of Spring to rejoice in : Opening Day of Trout Season -Tactical Hunting

                                ( My  'ground zero' genetic prize: a crown German princess!- a true aristocratic beauty from its Black Forest generational blood line before her. Here 19 incher beast (check out the v-shaped crown red dot spotting), taken last spring opening week on a tiny wooded spring creek you could jump across in the Huron National Forest down the road from us  These little gems are all around us and come in every form and have their own beauty; from a local park creek and pond, to grandiose forests and lakes, we often take them for granted. With our new total re-set of life, we now will appreciate the little things we too greedily took for granted-Supinski image )
There are some things so sacred and pure that thinking of them brings me goose bumps, tears of joy and shivers of excitement. Things that kept a young boy like me awake dreaming of that big brown trout on the night before the opener of the trout season in Western New York on my Dad and I's favorite trout stream system in the Allegheny foothills - The East Koy /Wiscoy Creeks. On that night I would look at the clock every hour and could not wait to pound on my dad's door at 3 A.M. as he bit back in a grouchy mumble trying to wake up: "Ty zwariował chłopaczek!" ( means have you lost your mind boy-in Polish!) as he begged for another hour of sleep! When I was growing up we only spoke Polish and German until my parents learned English, became citizens and I went to kindergarten with a rough European accent, having learned only "street English".

                          ( A spring monster of my youth, about the size of my fist brown trout at age 7 caught on a woolly worm . This is a wild German brown beauty from my little ground zero Michigan creek. Little did I know that those creeks in New York we fished and the ones here in Michigan have the same German genetics that came to Caledonia fish hatchery near Rochester, NY, and to Northville, Michigan.You can read volumes of this glorious history in my Nexus book- Supinski image)

( The first thing you did as a boy was run out of the car and stare down from the bridge like you were Ponce de Leon finding the fountain of youth- just maybe the stream is our eternal fountain of youth, that transforms men and women to be boys and girls again!-just maybe (Lucas Carroll image)

( Caledonia Hatchery- the Seth Green  Laboratory of modern fish horticulture in the late 1880's- Andrew Steele Nisbet image)

( Modern stocking trucks have replaced the trains from the 1880's. Some states like New York do an amazing job with signage and Public Fishing waters-Supinski images)

The drive to the stream high in the hills in the dark was full of anticipation to the point where my dad got frustrated as I nudged him to make sure his eyes weren't  shutting. ( poor guy had two full time jobs) I kept saying  "we have to beat everyone to our secret hole Dad! 
"jedź szybciej"( drive faster Dad!) as my father drank coffee to stay awake as I barked out orders making sure he took all the right turns on the dark farm country highways that had poor signage back then. He had to pull off the side of the road for me many times to go "shee-shee" since I was so excited I wanted to piss my pants as I drank Coca Cola at 5 A.M. Our opening day ritual was a bonus. I got to drink Coke and have Bologna and ketchup sandwiches on Wonder Bread with Canadian Salt & Vinegar potato chips, Dad had plenty of Polish sausage/Kielbasa and Polish Vodka, but we both chowed on Mom's Austrian apple strudel she always had wrapped.

 (My ground zero Michigan spring creeks are typical of the many wooded streams in western New York, and throughout the east and Driftless Area of the Midwest, also like northern Poland along the Baltic ,where the other episode of my childhood memories lie and still pleasantly haunt me - they are all about Chapter 1 in my "Brown Trout-Atlantic Salmon Nexus" book.  Here Marsh Marigolds pop through the forest floor greenery where spring flows emerge - (Supinski images)

( A Polish wooded spring creek in Pomerania along the Baltic-R. Bartels image)

( If you are lucky on opening day, you will see this awesome sight!-J.G. Miller image)

 In the warming part of the afternoon, , you might run into a spring hatch after you take a snooze/nap in the sun by a tree by the brook, as I once did since it was already a long day for me as a boy back then and I was crashing from a Coke caffeine buzz. Hendrickson and American March Brown mayflies,  sporadic gray fox Steno's, early black stones and Grannom caddis might waken you, as they did me one afternoon. I put on a size #12 Adams and caught my first 16 inch brown trout, as trout were aggressively feeding and splashing/ boiling  the pools in surface feeding.

SPRING GULPERS

( Image by Albert Pesendorfer from Nexus)

(Image J.G. Miller)

( The perfect spring dry-Quill Gordon-image Stacey Niedzwiecki from Nexus) 

Though they are very eager for a good  "chowing-down", don't take the selectivity of these early spring browns for granted! ( I have a whole blog on the interval timing on spring surface feeders two blogs prior to this- read it ) Spring fish are a little rusty in surface feeding and need a little time to 'get revved up'. Their rises will be slower and less frequent due to the cold water temps. But due to the insects long flight delay times due to cold weather or snow, their selective/reflective index is in full motion since they can glide with the dry in a compound fashion for long distances in the slack/slow waters you will find them rising.
( But snow is usually the case as this Bald Eagle rests on a branch looking for freshly stocked trout or wild ones that got a little greedy surface feeding after a springtime dusting-J.G. Miller images of mayflies and Eagle )

            ( Another German wild brown from my other " ground-zero" love in New York state- the historic Neversink River, where we have a summer home down the road. Walking in the footsteps of Gordon and Hewitt bring chills of delightfully haunting thoughts to the days long past- the foundation of American Fly Fishing-Supinski image)

                                      ( Gordon on the Neversink- Catskill Fly Fishing Museum- notice every fish was sacred and eaten back then- nothing wrong with that as long as its done responsibly!)

In my Brown Trout-Atlantic Salmon Nexus book, I tell many the tails of small stream delights that you can never shake off no matter how many world destinations you have visited. Paradise is often in your backyard yet we are too spoiled to realize it. I am very fortunate to have an amazing Michigan DNR that does management programs with their trout fisheries at the highest level. They stock wild strains of brown trout native to our state ( Gilchrist/Sturgeon strains- descendants from the first 1880's stockings) where and only if they are needed. At stockings sizes of fingerlings or  6-7 inchers that are well under the catch-able size limit, they eliminate hatchery truck fiascoes like I witnessed in MD/VA/PA. Michigan and similarly New York have long stream closures to protect wild spawning populations and winter hibernation when trout are vulnerable.The season in MI is open last Saturday in April to September 30th- closed almost 7 months which is a good thing!  My biologist who I have an excellent relationship once asked my opinion, which I greatly appreciate of him. ( I am known to be a little strong in opinion in case you haven't noticed-PC and an old Polish warrior have no place together!) His question was about a particular small spring-fed stream that has an amazing carrying capacity for wild browns and brook trout. "Do you think we should open it year -round with catch-and-release  in extended season ?"..." NOPE!, I said, leave it closed please!, next thing you know a guy with a big spinner treble hook will be raping/snagging bigger browns and brookies spawning in the fall- no fishing or walking the stream PERIOD!, in off season", I told him - it remains that way thanks to his wisdom which I greatly respect.For the first time in my life I finally met a biologist that thinks like me which I thank God for. Wild Steelhead in Michigan are still unfortunately treated as "big $$$ fish" and thus get a very strong lobby from commercial harvesters- but that is changing fast with mother nature's doing as you will see. But nature, like everything in life, just sometimes needs a break- today more than ever! Closed season for 7 months is a good thing. There is an old Macedonian story of a young child crying to a mother in a Peter Gabriel /Deep Forest piece called " While the Earth Sleeps" In it the child begs its mother so it can go outside and play ( wow!, wouldn't today's parents love that!!!) but the mother refuses the child, and in turn says let the earth take a rest and get a little sleep.As Earth day approaches and we have a whole new world order of respect unfolding, let this be a thought for all things in nature...click here to listen:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b3qy23UIynU

            ( Painting- Henry Rolfe-and  fresh cured Scottish style/sweet wood cold smoked trout)

                        ( As a culinary person, I highly value and respect the joy of eating fish. I could eat fish every day! ( my preference is walleye/ perch/salmon ) But I kindly ask all trout anglers, regardless of methods, to be good guardians and stewards of the few fragile wild trout/small stream resources we have been left with. Climate change and habitat destruction and stupid human tricks of letting out careless chemical spills are eliminating wild trout water at an alarming rate. I ask all to respect the code of natural decency and preservation that humans have been bestowed with- a consciousness that must be solely the responsibility of each individual regardless of laws) 
Where streams are 100% put-and-take, enjoy the resource for the table- ther are lots of them in most states, and they far out number wild fisheries . But where there are wild trout populations and hold-over wild trout potential and cross-populations, respect each fish and give it life to further procreate the streams wild populations. Killing even one or two( God forbid more!) big spawning year class fish on opening day (14 inches plus), where these fish have starved all winter and are vital to the streams natural carrying capacity, can be catastrophic for the tiny stream that rely on a few spawning pairs to carry it through. Nothing wrong with going fishing for hatchery trout for the table- that is what they are there for! Or similarly on tremendously rich wild trout streams with massive carrying capacities of year-class populations, harvesting a fish or two for table is more than respectable.Hording/ freezer burning is a waste and disgrace to these natural beauties.

Like so many other state's angler's we take  our fisheries management for granted and always criticize- its now a time to appreciate and respect.I have built-up amazing relationships with my biologists of this state, which I cherish and work together with them to benefit our  goal "all about the fish first!-I highly encourage all anglers to do such also. The gain and spoils will come if you build it with a mutual goal of putting nature and what is right first! Politics/$$$$/ and greed has no place in the new world order to save our planet and ourselves.

( Wild edibles and foraging ,is a long lost art that trout stream anglers should pursue, since you are walking through a garden of Eden! ( even your local downtown park can be one if you let it!)  I talk about foraging at length in my Nexus book Chapter 12. It is part of the self-absorption/into the wild element we take for granted and the joy and wonderment of a spring stroll along your trout stream. As much time should be spent looking at the forest structure as we do looking at the stream features- big dividends with your dinner will unfold. Wild ramps, fiddle-heads, chives, morel mushrooms are a few of the culinary delights)

Stump-Jumping "Mr. Bigs"-Small Creek Streamer Hunting Tactics

         ( Small stream brown trout expert and friend, Ethan Cramer of Facebook's  Brown Trout Nation/Ann Arbor TU fame, is an excellent stump jumper tactician. Here he does the bow-and- arrow cast to a small pool. Ethan has chased and tormented every big brown in the countless small wooded spring creek you will find in Michigan that totally fly under the radar )
Here is a nice little spring creek hunting Vimeo I did with the talented videographer: Spencer McCormack on a small Michigan spring creek- shows the underhand/lob/bow-and-arrow casting techniques necessary for these small streams)...Click on the link-enjoy!
                                                     
 https://vimeo.com/162364385

I always go "Mr/Mrs Big" stump-jump hunting for leviathan browns during the opening weeks, since there is most likely a big truttasaurus ready to snatch a big meal after a long winter's dormancy. Using  Kelly Galloup/ Tommy Lynch/ Michael Schmidt/Mark Loughead  inspired streamers, they are the new age inheritance from the founding sculpin master and my old fishing friend: the recently late Ed Shenk. 

                                      

Adding a  gold tungsten head to give it very quick and deep penetration is the key to getting big browns to come out from their winter/spring ambush hunting condos.
 Using the casts mentioned in the Vimeo, let your articulated streamer hop/skip/jig in the tiniest spots next to their wooded condos where big browns evolved in the dark dense German Black Forest streams, which now are the wooded spring creeks here. This is camouflaged hunting. Moving low and slow, like a heron, from stump-to-stump is the key to the hunt. Don't ignore bridge abutments. Do as little wading as possible. Slow everything down.
Analyze each log jam/under-cut bank with a game plan before you toss your meaty delectable near it. Ask these questions:
1. Where do I think a big brown is hiding to ambush prey
2.If I hook it, where am I going to fight and steer it to land.
3. Is my net ready, big enough and at easy access
4. What obstacles must I steer it away from ( you know the Brutus is going to scurry for cover once hooked and you must take command. Only use 12-15 pound test tippets when doing this or you will break off the fish and mess its feeding up for a longtime from stupidity and carelessness - remember they bring you joy, respect their life also!
4. Manhandle the fish quickly ( like mousing at night) or as Mike Batcke once told me on the Pere Marquette at night : "tourney them" -the way Bass Pros fight big bass in 7 seconds hauling them!)
5. Take a quick pic in the water and let them go quick after a fast brisk dogfight. These are our precious brood-stock of the river and carry the fish population from year-to-year, so take care of these wild elders.

Have a great Opening Day! Be safe, practice social distancing and catch-and-release on wild, self-sustaining waters. That 12 inch wild brown you let go today will become the 20 incher you always dreamed of! Respect and wave to your fellow anglers. At least this terrible thing will teach us not to crowd people's pools and waters, which has always been the scorn of opening day. 
To a new beginning!
Matthew Supinski
(Blog author's note: My Selectivity and Nexus books are loaded with endless small stream hunting tactics . If you never have read them cover -to-cover, the information is waiting for you to explore!

Read more »

Posted in: brown trout feeding behavior , gray drake lodge , Matt Supinski Brown Trout-Atlantic Salmon Nexus book , Matthew Supinski new books , michigan fly fishing , Selectivity book , spring creeks , streamer fishing

Hard Times Linguine with Clams- as promised!

 I fell in love with " Pasta alle Vongole"from two distinct food memeories. First as a boy growing up in Niagara Falls which had a massive New York Italian neighborhood influence. I used to play with my friends and remember their mom's making it that smelled so delish!. Also all the the mom & pop small Italian restaurants/tratorrias ( basic little pizza/pasta joint holes in the wall) always had a delicious /to die for! pasta and clams, along with ravioli, lasagna, stuffed shells , cannelloni. tortellini and of course Veal Parmigiana .
My next memory was when I did a cooking apprenticeship In Roma/ Italy right out of school. A family owned place off of Via Po. Being the new boy, I cleaned all the shellfish/fish. A "Fruits of the Sea" pasta had everything seafood in it, but the simple clams one was the best. Also going to Naples on the weekends the pasta clams along the sea were the best! The best dishes have fresh clams in them, usually steamed with Italian herbs , white wine etc.- really gave it a ton of clam flavor, combined with the rich wine/herb/buttery taste, and the grated Parmesan/ lemon/ fresh parsley that gave it the spike!
But you could get the same delish flavors by stocking can goods and dried pasta with a few additives. Also its really cheap!, and kids love it with the butter and cheese.

INGREDIENTS 

*Garlic  /Shallot /Dried Italian spices ( fresh or dried Italian herbs ( oregano/basil) or regular Parsley or dried) , dried Thyme ,Cracked Black Pepper/Fresh lemon or lemon juice

* Barilla or any good dried pasta Linguine

*stick of butter

* Grated Parmesan 

* Bottle of Chardonnay ( cheap bottle like Sutter Home or whatever- but the buttery Chardonnay's make the best sauces)

* 4 cans of Snow's Bumble Bee Chopped clams -( They are very high quality I get them from anywhere from 1.97 to 2.76 a can

Preparation 

In a large deep saute pan, add the 4 cans of clams and juice. Add the chopped/minced garlic/shallots and parsley, dried Italian herbs (oregano, basil etc.) dried Thyme ( thyme and shellfish are marriage )salt pepper.I add at least a cup of  Chardonnay, but sometimes add more once the first cup has steamed (reduced off) since I love the flavor of reduced wine and the herbs.

Once the ingredients are all in steam/reduce at a slow boil/simmer ( reducing) the liquids until there is a quarter cup or so of liquid left ( if you want more of a clam juice taste, leave more liquid reduction) Whisk in a half stick of butter ( some like less butter taste/ some more. Add  grated Parmesan cheese to the sauce ( again amount on personal taste)...keep tasting sauce to your liking- no need for salt, canned clams have plenty of brine!

While this is going on you are boiling the pasta and drain it (al dente- firm) Rinse with water and separate noodles in strainer so they dont stick.- be meticulous about it . Good noodles are and art form. 

Once when sauce cools, toss in pasta slowly in the deep dish saute pan-(make sure pan is deep enough to hold everything while you mix sauce and noodles ( or use a larger/deeper separate pot/bowl to add pasta first and then toss the entire pan/ sauce in it) Stir , toss, twist mix slowly the noodles in to the sauce and ingredient not to break.  

To finish, add more cracked black pepper, more grated Parmesan, more chopped parsley and top off with squeezed fresh lemon juice- BAHM!

Buon Appetito !

Read more »

Posted in: gray drake lodge , linguine with clams , Matthew Supinski new books

Next time you complain about wind!

                                           ( image by Jessica DeLorenzo- Tierra del Fuego)

Click on Vimeo link for  video

https://venturingangler.com/2017/11/17/video-fly-fishing-for-brown-trout-in-the-surf-2/

"The more we get to know Salmo trutta in their mysterious and ever changing selectivity modes , the more we realize we don't know anything about them" Supinski ( The Brown Trout-Atlantic Salmon Nexus (Skyhorse Publishing 2018)

This awesome Vimeo by Austin Trayser shared by the outstanding Venturing Angler page put out by Tim Harden ( Tim, I love your stuff btw!), shows pretty unusual trutta PFP behavior (predator foraging profiles)... And to think we bitch about a slight zephyr wind!
I've always been firmly convinced the lateral line sound vibration detection and neuromasts consisting of sensory cells, which detect water movement by deflection of cilia,and associated support and mantle cells on brown trout ( also on salar-Atlantic salmon), were freaked out by waves from boats, terrible waking wading habits, sloppy casts...think again!
A brown trout's niche exploitation "being in the right place at the right time " , can surely be explained rationally by genetic behavioral programming, diurnal and seasonal cycles, hormonal and ecosystem influences that are textbook. But there is a certain " wow!, that's amazing?" part of their behavior that defies odds of occurrence yet underlies meaning- ( Carl Jung's Synchronicity: Synchronizität) Kirk Deeter
( editor of TROUT magazine), told me about some quirky brown trout feeding in his article on Tasmania several issues back , check it out

Read more »

Posted in: brown trout , brown trout feeding behavior , Brown Trout-Atlantic Salmon Nexus , gray drake lodge , Matthew Supinski new books , sea run/lake browns , Selectivity book

The Early Black Stonefly Hatch-more tricky than you would think!

Early spring is all about loving those warm afternoons on a trout stream and looking for surface rising activity. As steelhead and rainbows are pounding gravel and procreating,  the greatest of all finicky predators: Salmo trutta/ browns, are on a new mission after the fall and winter spawn to eat every black stone they can! On our Michigan rivers winter can be brutal on the trout. The early black stone flies are literally the true"manna from heaven", as the ova-positing females fall from the sky to the water like fluttering black ashes. As the sun warms the afternoon- the greedy browns lie in wait!

 One would think that the trout are easy game at this early in the dry fly game-WRONG!,One would think that.since they haven't been rising all winter except for the random black midge or two, they would be easy targets. But this is one of the most difficult hatches to figure out. I learned a new respect and perspective yesterday while self-quarantining in my backyard- the Muskegon River!

                      (I spent nearly an hour and half stalking this elusive beast yesterday- it succumbed to my CDC black stone)

HATCH BIO

Early Black stones ( Allocapnia/Taeniopteryx ) are extremely prevalent in most trout streams around the world. They are extremely abundant in Michigan's trout streams which are subterranean ground flows that run more on the Alkaline side and have a good mix of gravel, rock, sand/silt and vegetation, with lots of wooded debris for these detritus eating mandibular shredders. February thru May: depending on where you are and water temperatures, will see their peak emergence. The manner on which this hatch behaves which is dictated by weather conditions and temperatures , make it extremely difficult to predict and time. But when you do?, its dry fly Nirvana! 

( CDC wings best imitate the fluttering wings on the surface)

 EMERGENCE

The nymphs start to stir when water temps hit 36F,  and start their classic " wiggling" downstream with the bio drift on warm sunny afternoons. They will float helplessly for miles in the frigid waters and are total targets for the trout, where they become gluttons and eat them until their bellies are distended .          ( here are three Muskegon "fat belly bulging,footballs", that were chomping on the surface)                                                 

The best way to start fishing the hatch if you are a dirty nympher, is Euro or strike indy fishing with long drifts and occasional "twitching" of your offerings. Where you can use two flies, having your flies separated (one on the bottom, one higher up in mid-strata) so you are covering all depths

                                       ( A JSON Sweden and my wiggle nymph do the trick, also black tape Edward's stone- box above)

The nymphs eventually wiggle to the shore and crawl up on the banks and go into the woods or emerge from water - 50/50 hatch where some like water or shore. You will often see "the walk of the Penguins" as black stone nymphs walk on snow like they are headed with some destiny-odd! Their mating takes place all  over and their coupling always baffles me ( very secretive) and how they get it done is a miracle by itself ( often I see them in the town I live in on a warm sunny afternoon at the  gas station, miles away from the river on windy days)

When we actually observe " the hatch", it is the afternoon flight of airborne ova- positing mating females coming back to lay eggs, along with those ones that are actually emerging from the water simultaneously . Their "ash-like" falls are very dainty, and come from the sky like light gray snowflakes. They float for great distances due to icy water temps if hatched from water, or egg laying. Herein lies the hatch complexity!

THE HATCH SKINNY-DRY FLY MENISCUS NOTES FOR THIS TRICKY ORDEAL

  ( The key to look for surface feeding big browns is identifying the early spring habitat that holds these fish- here it is!)

What I learned yesterday on my Facebook post was very affirming on all the observations I have made over the three decades I've chased this hatch. As a dry fly fanatic, here are my notes and observations so you will be better prepared

* Feeding habitat- Due to the usually very cold spring water temps( yesterday water was 37F, and not the classic "45-55" ideal surface feeding range) trout don't have the metabolic luxury to hold in midstream in faster flows. Through the winter they find log jams close to shore-where the stone nymphs crawl up on and in deep /slow pools as food banks.The image I posted is where to find these fish and the risers. It is in the back eddies/slack water where the fallen female stones accumulate in the counterclockwise back flows, and it is here where you will find the ultra selective/reflective browns at a "picky" grazing table. Her they can cruise these back eddies in metabolic comfort, usually sunning themselves ( yes sun!, for brown trout that abhor sun, now it means water warmth an mobility. (Preston Marson on my Facebook said " could use a little cloud cover-wrong Preston!, you want the sun!) Also since browns are very skittish critters, the log jam provides a security blanket if shocked by an avian predator or shocked by you hooking it! The bubble line brings the steady flow and bio drift. 

*Weather is the most important factor- Wind is the enemy here. On warm spring afternoons winds are bound to kick up and female stones that hate wind as much as Trump with this comb-over and hairspray :)- blows them away from their landing strips-the river!
Time your river adventures on the warmest and wind-free parts of the afternoon.If you have wind, find places on the river where there is a bluff and trees like I did yesterday- the stones were dropping like dark ash on my spot so thick, while around one windy bend downstream it was virtually empty of bugs. Also depending on wind, usually one side of the river will have the bio drift of female stones, and the other side of flow void of them.Also the early blacks are often confused for dark caddis and big bwo's.

*Feeding Intervals/ Masking Hatch/Presentation

So yesterday, I posted that I scouted that nice brown for over an hour before I finally caught it- correct!, here is why. The surface feeding to these ova-positers is in long slow flat/slack water. There were hundreds of bugs on the water and yet  no rising going on- I WAS BAFFLED!. I knew the water had to hold browns but yet nothing ( common early black stone scenario) Here is what was going on:

# First and foremost, a brown trout/is not a cuddly "warm up to anything" type creature. It moves slowly, pragmatically and deliberate until all systems are "GO" ( Read about all that in my Selectivity and Nexus Books) Also since they are slowly trying to awaken their metabolism in the frigid waters, sometimes they are not warmed up  yet ( like if your honey is warmed up yet  in foreplay! :)) and ready to start feeding on the surface. Plus the water surface is still strange and foreign territory to them after all winter  dredging bottom ( the water I caught my fish was at least 5 feet deep) That surface orientation will only get stronger as the season and hatches progress. than the chosen modem/(predator foraging profile-PFP) for browns will be the surface. ( again, all this is in Selectivity and Nexus)
# A massive factor was river traffic- the Muskegon yesterday was a ZOO with jet boast, drift boats, Moon rovers, jet ski's - freak show!- I was waiting for Elvis to appear! Everyone was driving 100 miles an hour looking for steelhead as I stalked the back eddies like an old gray bearded heron in search of rising trout. Every boat put some  "footprint wake/noise vibration" that every brown trout from youth to adult can detect , especially in the flat still waters where they hunt these prey. Once the boat traffic and noise subsided( around 5 PM) and the winds died down to almost nothing-BINGO!, there came the first two risers in a spot I've been starring at forever, and I was ready to pack it up and ready to call it failure! ( couple noise/vibration and sun!- not good combos, but the sun helped get the metabolism going!)
# A smaller 10 inch brown started feeding first. I had to make at least two dozen presentations over it before it took- THANK GOD!, I wasn't skunked. Then Mrs. Big made her presence The first few rises were barley dimples, like a chub, then I saw a big tail and back and that quickly got my attention. It was taking wiggling stone nymphs under the surface, and simultaneously taking adults on top The rises came  in very long intervals- 5-8 minutes, if not longer,It was the slow metabolism and water temp that was causing the fish to move, digest and rise slowly. Also their was a tiny black "masking hatch ' of midges going on, and I saw that fish rise several times to a spec on the surface( midge). I made at least 30 plus casts and drifts to that fish, until BAHM!, she took it and ripped me into my Abel reel drag and backing. I lifted anchor and drifted with the fish or I would have broken it off- she dove right into the current fast.  After she jumped totally airborne upon hooking, the net came out and she was one of the finest Selectivity games I ever played- and loved it!
# Presentation-Even though they will be taking a good number of in the "upper"  meniscus nymphs wiggling below , stay with your big fluffy CDC dry- they will eventually succumb to its meaty nature! I tried a dry /dropper, but I was confusing this selective bastard  and just causing drag by the two fly rig.
Use 18 foot leaders with 5-7 feet of 4x tippet( no lighter!), since you have a crack at a 20 incher on this hatch. Throw big "puddle casts" high and letting them fall in a pile to let the backwater tricky counter clockwise currents unravel your leader ( I learned this from Marinaro on the Letort back in my youth) Let your drift/ floats go for long distances, stack mending as the fish will do complex and complex rises due to having plenty of time and no current for the most part.

Here is to a 20 inch brown on the dry this spring!

                                                           ( 20' on a dry CDC black stone)

END

Stay safe and healthy, read more in these times where we have more of it than ever., also pray for everyone! I'll try to update these informative posts and start podcasting and videos more often as I venture to self-quarantine on the river!

Meantime, my books #Selectivity and #Nexus are waiting for you!- they have this content and so many more juicy stories. If they have been sitting on your shelves, dust them off and dig in- it will be worth it- confidently ! Cheers!, Na Zdrowie! 

MS

Read more »

Posted in: Brown Trout-Atlantic Salmon Nexus , early black stones , gray drake lodge , Matthew Supinski new books , Michigan brown trout , muskegon river fly fishing , Selectivity book