I just started watching this board about six weeks ago and
its a really great group of folks who frequent here. I enjoyed
the threads on Rocky's entrance to fly casting, even sent a few
pointers. Most folks don't start learning to cast and double
haul just before the highlight of the season [mission impossible
theme here]. But golly, Rocky's catching fish - and still complaining :-)
Well, here's my tail of woe.
Enter, the unknowing trout fisherman:
[Background: Avid trout fisher, TU activist and such with camp on the Delaware
finds himself going to Mystic for the last week in July to attend his daughter's
dance competition.]
Ok, have to make some good out of this somehow. Guess I'll go on the web...
Find Mystic Anglers, email with a few questions. Indicate I can cast, haul
and all that, but only have a 7 wgt. Also talk about planning to wet wade.
Get told jellyfish hurt a tad more than a bite from a stonefly nymph so I bring
waders....
Day 1:
Meet Tim Barnes, kind patient guy - really like him. Suggests Bluff Pt. Go out
to rocks. Try a basic clouser/deceiver collection. 10lb tippet light - well OK,
maybe I'll want to break off anyway. Get up a little before day
break, hike my fanny out there and begin fishing. What's this stripping basket
thing. It's sure in the way of my erratic single handed strip that works well
for trout! Ah, just rotate it around the back. Hey look at those brown globs.
There really are jelly fish.... One small schoolie follower. That's it. And
heck, I regularly catch trout bigger than that! [Bonus: learn of nearby beach w/
lots of shells, bound to pay off w. the kids, son 5, daughter 7].
Day 2:
Ok, so two handed strip - slow. Full sinker to get down to the rocks. [Most
streamer fishing for trout for me is 5' or less in depth]. But no time for
walking into Bluff. Tim suggests a place in town. Talks about clam worms [what!
well, let's not act too stupid]. Show up at 9:30 pm. Heavy ebb. Looked like
a quick ride to Europe relative to my home waters. Tim suggested walking this
bank out to near the rip. On a new moon. No way in *&%$. Didn't have time to
scope out in daylight[doing family stuff- impt & fun!]. Start walking back to car
Hear incredible gulping - wow!!! Throw clousers, deceivers, and language at
the fish for over 2 hrs - no success. Go to the hotel - humbled again.
Day 3:
Report my results to Tim. He immediately informs me how lucky I was to get
into a clam worm hatch. Hey, did you read day 2??? Did that sound "lucky"
to you? I challenged him - I didn't feel lucky. Okay, try the rocks at Bluff
in the evening. That afternoon Joey just about had it watching a dance competition
[5 year olds love sitting all day :-)]. On a 2 hour break make a dash for Bushy
Beach (with Joe on my shoulders). He sees more shells than he dreamed about.
I get tired and learn its easier to get blisters in snadal w/ 52lbs. on your
shoulders. Family activities break at 6pm. Make another run for Bluff. Hmmm..
seems I'm doing everyting right..?!? Not cathcing anything. Had some "hits"
from something [fish, weed, rocks]... Hey look, those boats fishing eels didn't
do anything and are pulling out - perhaps a hint? As darkness fell, a group of
fish that had the profile of small albacore started working the surface (don't
know what they were - they were not trout :-). They did not respond to a clouser
on a full sinking line. The 1000000... misquitoes suggested I didn't have the
patience to change lines and flies - I agreed. Stopped at that estuary spot.
Yep, the fish were again going on clam worms. But I quickly surmised I had
suffered enough today.
Day 4:
Hear a report that Watch Hill is.. well.. only an idiot could go wrong from
5:30 - 8:30 am.
Day 5:
Run to Watch Hill. Ok, call me an idiot. But there were 4 other idiots with me :-)
No one saw activity, heard activity, or spoke of activity either... :-)
Day 6:
Talk to Tim at Mystic Angler. At this point Tim appeared to consider getting me
into a fish a major life goal. Called friends. Considered conditions, tides...
Suggested a rip on the ebb [of course I had never been there]. Fish from 2-4am
[as in no light, new place, for this no longer self confident stream guy]. Well,
about all I can say is... sorry Tim... insufficient stamina and guts..
Go home with Ed Mitchell's book and a whole lot to think about. It's 3 hrs. to
the Conn/RI coast. It's 3 hrs. to the Lake Ontario tribs which have lost
their fascination with me.... Mitchell's advice simply reinforced what Tim
was telling me [like I said Tim, it wasn't the quality of the advice, it was
the material you had to work with :-) ]
Gee, just got a 9 weight. Not to hard to tell when you have to make the next
casting stroke - you feel yourself being pulled over!!! Not as subtle as a 4 weight.
Look at all these cool new streamers to tie. Coming from troutland, can we make
them more complex for fun.
Getting ready to come out 10/2-10/4. Plan to wander from Bluff through RI.
I'm now comfortable with a stripping basket. With a 9 wgt., well the only
distance problem I am currently having is finding a slot through my yard into
the neighbors long enough to play.
But all this and I *hope* to be complaing of catching fish like Rocky :-)
That conclave sounded great. Hopefully by next year I'll be able to come, spell
salt, and not be a danger to myself and those around me with a 1/0 hook :-)