First SNP trip of 2016

[TurbineBlade]

Hiking in the slop was strenuous, but the fishing was excellent.  Beth tore the place up -- I think this is a good contingency plan in the event that the dock isn't up and going soon ;). 

Fish looking up, down...every direction.  Beth took 8 out of one pool while I stood by and watched.  Hope you guys got out today -- the weather was superb!

 

Gene ("2 for 1") TB

[Bob Smith]

You really need to pair that beautiful Fenwick with a 1960's era Phlueger Medalist 1425.

[Charlie Church]

Parker and I were out there yesterday as well. Virtually every pool was a fish rising factory. Definitely a good time.

[TurbineBlade]

Were you driving a black Tacoma 4-door by chance?  We intended to hit one stream, but ended up driving further down skyline to find one that didn't already already have a Tacoma parked by it.  

And yeah, I didn't want to "big deal" it but Beth ended up with 54 literally in only a few hours of fishing (about 8:30 - 12:00).  Every time I looked around for her she had a fish on.  I had probably 1/2 that many.  That's a good day for us during the main season, save the end of Feb with snow on the ground.  The "doubler" I posted there has happened to me 3 times now, but one fish usually comes off before I get them in (since they are fighting each other and usually free up enough slack to get off).  I had no waders on, just wet socks and thus did not spend much time in the stream.  I was also using barbless tiemco 103bl hooks mostly and also some others with barbs mashed down.  Everything swam away with gusto -- 

If anyone is looking for a good dry/soft hackle style hook those 103bls are nice.  They're extremely light, absurdly sharp, barbless, and hold very well (even better than most barbless hooks I've used).  The only disadvantage is that you can't go pulled hard when you get stuck in a tree -- they WILL bend, but you can't have it all ;).  

Bob:  I think you're right about the reel choice.  I had some martin "tuna cans" a while ago with that tooth-caliper drag.  I did NOT like those.  They provided so little tension you could basically bird nest 'em by pulling line off of the reel to fish.  I can deal with most clicker drags which at least provide enough tension to store the line effectively, just not those.  The old medalists seem to be much better, and more adjustable.  A lot of people like those on the old fenwicks. 

Gene

[Bob Smith]

A nice 1494 would be perfect on a 7'6" 5wgt. Lighter rods look for a 1492-1/2. You can still get parts for the drag/clicker last I looked.

[Charlie Church]

Nope wasn't us. Same results though. We ended up exploring and checking out spots we hadn't fished once we saw how active the fish were. Glad you got into them. 

[TurbineBlade]

Ditto!

Gene

[Andrew Sarcinello]

Nice pics Gene, my dad visited from PA this weekend and I took him to the Staunton River on Saturday. We also did well, caught 3 dozen-ish. Very rough guess. However none over 8" which is par for the course on the Staunton. We both needed a day away from everything and as usual SNP did not disappoint! I was not expecting fish to be that active. Dark colored nymphs took most of our fish. I forgot my flotant so didn't bother with dries.

[TurbineBlade]

Good deal Andrew -- it sounds like a lot of folks go out and had a good time. 

Gene

[Justin Schiavone]

Good stuff Gene. Cool shot of the double up.

[Andrew Sarcinello]

Yeah lots of good reports from this past weekend. Sunday was good fishing at Catoctin Mountain as well for the short time I was there.

Here's a few pics from Staunton if I can get them to work

[Andrew Sarcinello]

Here they are. Apologies for taking 2 posts to get it right. 

[TurbineBlade]

Very nice Andrew!  Hey, did you guys get into like 30% that were colored up?  WE usually don't start hitting the park in earnest until late March or early April, so I was curious about this.  

Gene

[TurbineBlade]

Sorry, meant "We" not "WE".  The shift key sticks on this thing -- I wasn't yelling, it's 4:00 in the morning.    

Gene

[Parker]

It was a fantastic weekend to be outside and to be fishing. Here are a few photos from Saturday. Can anyone identify the mayfly? It was big, like a size #10 or #12. 

On Saturday, February 20, 2016 at 5:45:21 PM UTC-5, TurbineBlade wrote:

[Justin Schiavone]

Great shots dude! I believe that is a grey drake, but I'm sure someone on here could give you more detail.

[tperkins]

Nice photos! Love that fly wallet. Heading to SNP for a hike Sunday (with flyrod of course) hoping it's not t0o muddy and blown out. 

[TurbineBlade]

I agree, those photos blow the ones I fumble around with out of the water --

Is that a "6'" mark on that rod?  Brother, that's a shortie -- I've been playing with a 7' a bit lately, which is a big change from the usual 8'9" (or 9') rods I generally use on even the smallest streams. 

I'm undecided about length/weight still.....I mean, they all catch fish and are just toys, despite our dedication to them ;).  I find it interesting that you get people who prefer very short rods, people who prefer very light line weights (and/or short rods), tenkara guys, and then just people who use the same 5 or 6-weight they do for other trout purposes.  I make fun of tenkara relentlessly, but it's tongue-in-cheek.  I think I'd play around with one if I had one. 

Honestly, I can see the argument for any one of those configurations.  I think what probably happens is whatever you are holding on a random day where you can't cast without getting bit is what you decide works best.  I still give a slight edge I guess to longer rods (~9') because I'm a numbers guy and it seems like you can just reach over more stuff to get drifts you otherwise couldn't make. 

Gene

[namfos]

Imago of grey drake or possibly slate drake. That's my SWAG.

Mark

[Misha Gill]

I'm guessing slate drake. I don't know what a grey drake is - probably the same thing. A slate drake, aka Isonychia, does live in Shenandoah, although curiously it is not all that common around the region. It needs really clean water to survive, I've read. Isonychia is a cool bug though because it is a mayfly that acts like a stonefly in that it is a predator. However, unlike stoneflies, Isonychia is a swimmer and not a crawler, so fish regularly see them swimming through the water column. They make wet fly fishing very productive in the streams where they reside. They also have two broods a year, which would explain why this one was out in February. The duns are about the size you describe - big. Check out this classic video from Tight Lines Productions. Isonychia makes an appearance at the 2:30 mark. 

[Parker]

Gene, good eye. That is my 6ft 2wt. I LOVE it. It is my dedicated SNP rod and a great pack rod (4 piece). It is great for navigating through brush when rigged up. There are times when it is hard to get a good drift without the extra length, but the trade off is being able to cast below branches. I am intrigued by Tenkara rods, but afraid to try one because I don't want it to cut into time spent with my 2wt! 

On Saturday, February 20, 2016 at 5:45:21 PM UTC-5, TurbineBlade wrote: