Small tributary to Long Island Sound - wild browns!
I had a little free time this afternoon, so I visited a local stream close to my home. The good news is I hooked a few much larger fish this time, and one that I hooked and saw was probably about 14in broke me off in a tangle of sticks. I only fished an hour.
I broke out the 3 weight:
http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u...2/IMGP0206.jpg
and saw tons of these little black stones, some as small as a 20:
http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u...2/IMGP0211.jpg
The fishing was fantastic! Here's my "big" fish:
http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u...2/IMGP0199.jpg
Here's another one with the magic fly:
http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u...2/IMGP0201.jpg
and a few others:
http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u...2/IMGP0205.jpghttp://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u...2/IMGP0204.jpghttp://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u...2/IMGP0202.jpg
Re: Small tributary to Long Island Sound - wild browns!
Nice going! Its fun to catch those little guys. How long was the larger one?
Re: Small tributary to Long Island Sound - wild browns!
The one in the picture above was a foot on the nose. The one I broke off was larger. It seems like some bigger ones moved in after the heavy recent rains.
Re: Small tributary to Long Island Sound - wild browns!
So Alain, was your FOTM the magic fly?
Re: Small tributary to Long Island Sound - wild browns!
Re: Small tributary to Long Island Sound - wild browns!
Nymphmeister: Yes, "Charlie's Nymph" was a real killer today. Those little browns were all over it! Just to make sure, I switched over to a similar looking black midge and it was not as effective. I think an all-black Hare's Ear in a size 18 would probably be almost as good, but the little split tail may be a trigger, who knows. The water was surprisingly clear. On the 3 weight, all the fish fought great.
If I am lucky, eventually I should be able to catch a nice sea run in this stream.
Re: Small tributary to Long Island Sound - wild browns!
Re: Small tributary to Long Island Sound - wild browns!
A sea run might test your 3 weight out. From what I understand, an average CT sea run is about 4#, but I know they can run from about 16" to 10# plus. On the upper end, I've heard rumors of them in the high teens. The guys who catch then are a tight-lipped, secretive bunch.
Re: Small tributary to Long Island Sound - wild browns!
What hook size and style did you tie Charlie's Nymph on?
Re: Small tributary to Long Island Sound - wild browns!
TMC 3761, size 16
When I was a kid, my Dad and I used to routinely catch two pound sea run browns (using kellies for bait). In high school, I saw pictures of some local caught 30 inch fish! I wish that fishery was funded more in CT.
Re: Small tributary to Long Island Sound - wild browns!
Great stuff Alain! I have done the small wild trout thing over the last few years but this year I am going to do a lot more of it. I think getting into those small streams with no crowds and a small selection of flys is awesome. Those fish are beautiful. I plan on fishing the streams close to the Housy. Those are some beautiful streams and go through some beautiful country side. With of course some gorgous fish. On a 3 wt, wild brook and brown trout on a big puffy dry! Great stuff. Nice pics and glad to hear you had a great time.
Re: Small tributary to Long Island Sound - wild browns!
Opie-
I bet there are some wild trout streams/brooks close to your house.
Alain-
When I used to work at Mill River Fly Shop, a customer came in and claimed he caught a 14 1/2# sea run in the Housy below Derby Dam in early April. Said he wouldn't register with the state (would of been a state record) because he didn't want everybody & their brother fishing their. Another time my buddy & I fished the lower Hammonasset by I-95, and my friend talked to an old timer who fished there all the time in January & February, and he claimed to have caught many runs up to 10# and said he'd seen them up to 18# in the water. He said 4# was a typical fish. My buddy caught one about 16" that day, and it hit his yellow rabbit strip streamer so hard it ripped the lead eyes off it. It hit on one cast and missed, and then nailed it on the next.
Re: Small tributary to Long Island Sound - wild browns!
Torrey - I know the Hammonnassett spot well, and might even know the old-timer you talked to. That area is only 10 minutes from my house.
Re: Small tributary to Long Island Sound - wild browns!
were you using a strike indicator
Re: Small tributary to Long Island Sound - wild browns!
Marvelous report Alain, thanks! Great pictures too. For a mere hour of fishing, looks like you cleaned up. Is this a smaller stream (width wise)? Do you fish it often? Must be great to have a little gem close by for an hour or two getaway. Where are you fishing this weekend?
Re: Small tributary to Long Island Sound - wild browns!
By the way, where are some "hotspots" or popular spots for sea-run browns around New England? Perhaps another post should be started for that?
Re: Small tributary to Long Island Sound - wild browns!
Nice pics Alain. Those are beautiful wild browns. It's nice to have not one, not two, but three small streams like that within 15 minutes of where we live. You and I have caught 100's of those fish since we were kids. It just goes to show you that if you leave a stream alone the fish will reproduce on their own.
Re: Small tributary to Long Island Sound - wild browns!
I only wish I knew about fly-fishing back then! Bait fishing, though, was the perfect teaching tool towards eventual nymph fishing success, the presentation methods are identical. It's good to know that the fish are still reproducing naturally amongst the frantic pace of shoreline development.
Re: Small tributary to Long Island Sound - wild browns!
Do you guys get sea run brookies as well?
Re: Small tributary to Long Island Sound - wild browns!
These are pretty rare in tribs to Long Island Sound as far as I know; I think the sound water has become too warm. In the CT River drainage, however, there is a stream where I catch a few sea run brookies. I think the CT River flows at a slightly lower temperature than the sound.
One time I was ice-fishing a CT River cove for perch. This is a true story. It was fairly shallow there. Looking through the hole, I saw a huge trout with dime-sized spots. A week later, my father's friend caught two huge browns through the ice, about 5 lbs. The CT River is a great fishery. You can even jig stripers through the ice. Last year my Dad caught a 12lb catfish on 6 lb test from his canoe there.
