Delaware River DIDYMO

A

AKSkim

Boston - Title Town USA
Well is was about to happen soon enough.

Found this posted on the TCO Fly Fishing web site.

ANGLERS VISITING OUR AREA.........SPECIFICALLLY THOSE OF YOU WHO HAVE JUST FISHED THE DELAWARE RIVER (OR OTHER STREAMS IN NY'S CATSKILL REGION) OR MARYLAND'S GUNPOWDER, PLEASE CLEAN YOUR BOOTS AND WADER WITH A DILUTED BLEACH SOLUTION, OR HOT WATER (OVER 140 DEGREES f) AND LAUNDRY DETERGENT--IT MUST SOAK FOR AT LEAST A HALF HOUR. DIDYMO HAS BEEN IDENTIFIED IN THESE WATERSHEDS. Or even better yet, get a second pair of boots and waders to wear only in infected waters. It's the only sure way not to spread Didymo. .............BE RESPONSIBLE-DONT SPREAD DIDYMO TO THE insert stream name here!!

Just hope people who fish the Delaware River system don't spread it to the rest of the Northeast.
 
Closing the Delaware system to all outdoor activities may be our only alternative. You know that all 100% of the fishermen who fish it won't clean their boots. It only takes one to ruin it for the rest of us.

Cdog
 
Corndog said:
Closing the Delaware system to all outdoor activities may be our only alternative. You know that all 100% of the fishermen who fish it won't clean their boots. It only takes one to ruin it for the rest of us.

Cdog
Click to expand...


I agree.

When my fishing buddy and I stopped off at the Delaware last
year on our way from the Salmon River to fish his club waters in PA,
after I saw the sign we decided not to even fish the river and got
back in the car and left.

DSCN4780-1.jpg


Nice looking water, but not worth the risk.

DSCN4781-1.jpg


How many posts have we read where members of this
board who fish up there stated they would buy a
second pair of waders and boots and use just one set
for fishing the Delaware River?

I can bet you dollars to donuts not one of them has
followed through.

Great way for them to protect their famed waters.

DSCN4782-1.jpg


I just thought I'd chuck this photo in with
a comment so people who feel compelled to
respond.

Lot easier to say keep it clean to trash than
to stop the spread of DIDYMO to other streams.
 
That middle sign says "Please disinfect all equipment coming in contact with the water...".

I wonder how many "disinfect" their boats, rods, reels, line, flys, etc.???

Close the D...Close the D...Close the D...:protesta:

Curiousdog
 
AKSkim said:
Well is was about to happen soon enough.

Found this posted on the TCO Fly Fishing web site.

ANGLERS VISITING OUR AREA.........SPECIFICALLLY THOSE OF YOU WHO HAVE JUST FISHED THE DELAWARE RIVER (OR OTHER STREAMS IN NY'S CATSKILL REGION) OR MARYLAND'S GUNPOWDER, PLEASE CLEAN YOUR BOOTS AND WADER WITH A DILUTED BLEACH SOLUTION, OR HOT WATER (OVER 140 DEGREES f) AND LAUNDRY DETERGENT--IT MUST SOAK FOR AT LEAST A HALF HOUR. DIDYMO HAS BEEN IDENTIFIED IN THESE WATERSHEDS. Or even better yet, get a second pair of boots and waders to wear only in infected waters. It's the only sure way not to spread Didymo. .............BE RESPONSIBLE-DONT SPREAD DIDYMO TO THE insert stream name here!!

Just hope people who fish the Delaware River system don't spread it to the rest of the Northeast.
Click to expand...

too late...........way too late
 
AKSkim said:
I disagree.

It is never too late.

Will it spread...? Most likely.

But why stop trying.
Click to expand...

Hey it never hurts to try but as someone else has posted there have been literally thousands of folks that have been tromping thru this crap for a couple of years. My first time seeing it was last year on the Delaware. I found out I was wading in it after I asked my guide what the hell it was after working about a 50 yard section of the D casting to a pod of fish. I threw out the boots but If I hadnt asked I might have taken that crap to another stream in PA I fished on the way home.

BTW did you get to the Smokies yet
 
MACFLY said:
I threw out the boots

BTW did you get to the Smokies yet
Click to expand...

I doubt very few would follow your example. BZ.

CTobias (leaving his CP rig home) and I depart May 14th.

Looking to hit one of TU's top streams the South Holston River on the way down on the on the 15th.

TroutFest in Townsend on the 16th.

Then till the 26th we will be where the trout lead us...

There are only two stream that I do want to fish. Want to bring Christopher a mile or two up past the roadway to fish Greenbrier (Middle Prong of the Little Pigeon River). Plunge pool after plunge pool after plunge pool. A sight to behold and unbelievable fishing experience.

The other would be the Straight Fork over in NC.

After that, any place he wants to try is fine with me.. as long as we are fishing in a Smoky Mountain stream.. who cares which one!
 
In addition to the Delaware system, rock snot is now present in Esopus Creek.

Time to get rid of the felt soles......

Matt ><)))))'>
 
AKSkim said:
I doubt very few would follow your example. BZ.

CTobias (leaving his CP rig home) and I depart May 14th.

Looking to hit one of TU's top streams the South Holston River on the way down on the on the 15th.

TroutFest in Townsend on the 16th.

Then till the 26th we will be where the trout lead us...

There are only two stream that I do want to fish. Want to bring Christopher a mile or two up past the roadway to fish Greenbrier (Middle Prong of the Little Pigeon River). Plunge pool after plunge pool after plunge pool. A sight to behold and unbelievable fishing experience.

The other would be the Straight Fork over in NC.

After that, any place he wants to try is fine with me.. as long as we are fishing in a Smoky Mountain stream.. who cares which one!
Click to expand...

Yep I hear you..Frankly I was pissed at the guide. Its not like we couldnt have worked those fish from the boat but in the end Im not taking the chance of spreading this crap. I just doubt a lot of fisherman are even thinking about it. In any event my backup boots are too small so I get to buy new ones
Good luck in the Smokies. Should be a blast.
 
Last edited:
Questions for some the experts on this subject.

1) Yes I could understand about felt boots, but isn't didymo also spread with contact on waders, neoprene and any other material that it could stick to.

2) didymo is also spread by water fowl and can spread easily from stream to stream. So what's the game plan here?

3) Yes using bleach will kill the virus, but over prolonged period of time and numerous fisherman doing this, what is the ramafication if any of bleach now being introduced into the stream? How many fisherman due you know are going to rinse there boots off or even try and clean there boots at all.

So these are just a few questions from an angler. What do the biologist have to say on this subject?
 
Andy B said:
Questions for some the experts on this subject.

1) Yes I could understand about felt boots, but isn't didymo also spread with contact on waders, neoprene and any other material that it could stick to.

2) didymo is also spread by water fowl and can spread easily from stream to stream. So what's the game plan here?

3) Yes using bleach will kill the virus, but over prolonged period of time and numerous fisherman doing this, what is the ramafication if any of bleach now being introduced into the stream? How many fisherman due you know are going to rinse there boots off or even try and clean there boots at all.

So these are just a few questions from an angler. What do the biologist have to say on this subject?
Click to expand...

I clean my boots in a bleach solution when in affected areas or moving state to state, and will be buying a set of corkers soon so I will be able to have two sets of boots for trying to help stop the spread. You know iv'e done the bleach to one pair of waders as they are lighter from the knees down.


Hllywd
 
Corkers is not the solution here for this issue. Didymo will cling to leaders, waders, boots and so on. So you change out the bottoms for one stream and go into another river with new bottoms. But the boots land laces themselves have come in contact as well. Again I feel we need to hear from Biologist and hear what these professionals have to say. Lastly what do you due if you fly line comes in contact with didymo, throw the fly line out? clean it with bleach and maybe affect the floatability or destroy the fly over a short period of time.
 
Andy B said:
Corkers is not the solution here for this issue. Didymo will cling to leaders, waders, boots and so on. So you change out the bottoms for one stream and go into another river with new bottoms. But the boots land laces themselves have come in contact as well. Again I feel we need to hear from Biologist and hear what these professionals have to say. Lastly what do you due if you fly line comes in contact with didymo, throw the fly line out? clean it with bleach and maybe affect the floatability or destroy the fly over a short period of time.
Click to expand...

Here is the best source of disinfection info that I've personally come across. I may have posted it here before. It's labeled as pertaining to mudsnails but covers didymo also. Check out the links to the New Zealand sites, too.

Sanitizing Wading Equipment - WDTU

Pg 73 and 74 of this file contains a comparison table for many cleaning methods which I found pretty helpful.

http://www.biosecurity.govt.nz/files/pests/didymo/didymo-survival-dec-06-rev-may-07.pdf
 
AKSkim said:
When my fishing buddy and I stopped off at the Delaware last
year on our way from the Salmon River to fish his club waters in PA,
after I saw the sign we decided not to even fish the river and got
back in the car and left.

Nice looking water, but not worth the risk.
Click to expand...

Welcome to the 100% club!!

Even though I have about 6 pairs of wading shoes and wet wade 90% of the time, I know it is wishful thinking to think that banning felts or just disinfecting wading shoes is the answer. Everything including Neoprene booties, waders and even furled leaders can act as a vector to carry the microscopic Didymo diatom.

I have taken the Delaware, and Gunpowder off my list of destinations and will add any others that make the "infected" list as well. It sucks but it is the only way I can be sure I'm not contributing.
 
Andy B said:
Corkers is not the solution here for this issue. Didymo will cling to leaders, waders, boots and so on. So you change out the bottoms for one stream and go into another river with new bottoms. But the boots land laces themselves have come in contact as well. Again I feel we need to hear from Biologist and hear what these professionals have to say. Lastly what do you due if you fly line comes in contact with didymo, throw the fly line out? clean it with bleach and maybe affect the floatability or destroy the fly over a short period of time.
Click to expand...


Not saying that. Two pair of boots. one NJ one NY. One infected one not. Clean after use. this is what I meant. Also have two pair of waders. Freezing works also from what I understand.

Hllywd
 
Last edited:
Bamboozle said:
Welcome to the 100% club!!

Even though I have about 6 pairs of wading shoes and wet wade 90% of the time, I know it is wishful thinking to think that banning felts or just disinfecting wading shoes is the answer. Everything including Neoprene booties, waders and even furled leaders can act as a vector to carry the microscopic Didymo diatom.

I have taken the Delaware, and Gunpowder off my list of destinations and will add any others that make the "infected" list as well. It sucks but it is the only way I can be sure I'm not contributing.
Click to expand...


I agree with you Bam. If you don't fish them you don't spread the :shit:.

But what about the guy who doesn't give a damn. He's gonna spread it for us.

Cdog
 
Corndog said:
I agree with you Bam. If you don't fish them you don't spread the :shit:.

But what about the guy who doesn't give a damn. He's gonna spread it for us.

Cdog
Click to expand...

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe that you can disinfect your gear just by letting it dry out completely for more than two days. The problem with felt is that the interior doesn't dry out for a long time, so drying is not a reliable disinfectant. Rubber soled boots make that part easier.

Im in the market for a second pair of boots, but in the mean time will continue to wash my gear with bleach solution.
 
gadfly said:
Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe that you can disinfect your gear just by letting it dry out completely for more than two days. The problem with felt is that the interior doesn't dry out for a long time, so drying is not a reliable disinfectant. Rubber soled boots make that part easier.

Im in the market for a second pair of boots, but in the mean time will continue to wash my gear with bleach solution.
Click to expand...


I honestly don't know how to best get the stuff off your gear. That's why I don't fish rivers that are known to be infected.

As for drying gear out...I've noticed many times that the leather part of my boots are still damp after sitting for few days.

As said before, we need some expert advice on this issue.

As for boots, check out Chota's Rocklocs.

Cdog
 
Corndog said:
I agree with you Bam. If you don't fish them you don't spread the :shit:.

But what about the guy who doesn't give a damn. He's gonna spread it for us.

Cdog
Click to expand...

How on earth would you know though? A stream can infected long before it is widely known. If you fish in a region (Catskills for example) where it has been found in even one river you unfortuanteyl also have a decent chance it may be present in others without wide knowledge yet. That's how it gets spread too, just shear angler ignorance and apathy. There is plenty of expert advice for disinfecting gear that has long been printed and is out there, I believe you can even find it on the NYSDEC site. If you look for it you should find the info rather easy but it's up to each angler to want to be informed.

I'm not checking rivers off my list but I am looking to take precautions each time I fish now. PIA definitely but it's the responsible thing for me to do as an angler, IMO.
 
Last edited:
CDOG:

Your missing the point here. It's just not anglers that spread didymo. Birds/water Fowl also spread this as well from stream to stream and any other bodies of water that they may visit. It's more a bigger issue than just the anglers. Think of didymo like the flu. It does spread around and winds up in places that you least aspect it to. So anglers are only part of the equation. The only true answer I feel will come from Biologists. We can band this and band that, but how do you band Birds, Deer, Bear and raccoons. All this has to be part of the equation but we can't jump to conclusions that only represents half the issue. There is a lot more to this equation than most people think.
 
Ryan R said:
How on earth would you know though? A stream can infected long before it is widely known. If you fish in a region (Catskills for example) where it has been found in even one river you unfortuanteyl also have a decent chance it may be present in others without wide knowledge yet. That's how it gets spread too, just shear angler ignorance and apathy. There is plenty of expert advice for disinfecting gear that has long been printed and is out there, I believe you can even find it on the NYSDEC site. If you look for it you should find the info rather easy but it's up to each angler to want to be informed.

I'm not checking rivers off my list but I am looking to take precautions each time I fish now. PIA definitely but it's the responsible thing for me to do as an angler, IMO.
Click to expand...

Safe sex sometimes fails to prevent STD's, total abstinence while a miserable alternative, doesn't.

It's a pretty weak analogy comparing the spread of Didymo to condom use, but cleaning your gear is like wearing a rubber. It MIGHT work...

...or it might not.

I realize that taking KNOWN infected streams off my list is no guarantee that I might fish in infected waters that are NOT listed. That doesn't preclude me taking common sense precautions when I fish more than one not-known-to-be-infected stream in a day.

I believe that avoiding those that are listed, is a 100% better option for the resource than assuming you are doing an adequate job of cleaning your gear. I really doubt that anyone is doing a 100% thorough job of cleaning EVERYTHING after fishing or boating in infected waters if they are doing anything at all.

I think that fishing where Dydimo is known to be present only minimizes the threat, sends a signal to the uniformed that it's OK to fish and do as you please, and exacerbates the situation by in effect saying to the informed; "hey guys, it's business as usual, just wash your stuff when you are done".

It sort of sounds like the Administration talking about swine flu. ;)

I realize that there no guarantees when it comes to this stuff and I have a feeling it would spread even if nobody was fishing, albeit taking a much longer time. However, I still think that staying away is a lot better choice than slogging along though the rock snot with rubber soled boots, a bottle of bleach and a TU cleaning guide. It just happens to be an unpopular and inconvenient option so most fishermen will continue to try and convince themselves that cleaning will work just as well.

It's funny, most guys will admonish someone wading or fishing during spawning time or targeting trout when the water hits 70 degrees, but they won't stay out of the water when it comes to Didymo.

Bottom line, it won't really matter in the long run. I just want to do as much as possible to keep myself from contributing. There are just too many other places to fish without taking that chance.
 
Bamboozle:

I agree with you about staying out of a stream that is known to be infected. Also agree with you about there are a lot of other places to fish. The question in my eyes is how is this issue of getting rid of didymo going to be addressed and in what time line. Lastly how expensive will the cost to cure this be and the true bottom line will be fought who will be funding this and how long of a battle will it be to get this money. Just some food for thought in realistic future thinking.
 
Andy B said:
CDOG:

Your missing the point here. It's just not anglers that spread didymo. Birds/water Fowl also spread this as well from stream to stream and any other bodies of water that they may visit. It's more a bigger issue than just the anglers. Think of didymo like the flu. It does spread around and winds up in places that you least aspect it to. So anglers are only part of the equation. The only true answer I feel will come from Biologists. We can band this and band that, but how do you band Birds, Deer, Bear and raccoons. All this has to be part of the equation but we can't jump to conclusions that only represents half the issue. There is a lot more to this equation than most people think.
Click to expand...


Andy,

Not missing any point here, I get where you're going.

Check out this site. New Zealand has been dealing with this stuff for awhile and has closed 10 of their infected rivers.
Didymo

Looks like there is no cure at this time.

Cdog
 
Andy B said:
The question in my eyes is how is this issue of getting rid of didymo going to be addressed and in what time line. Lastly how expensive will the cost to cure this be and the true bottom line will be fought who will be funding this and how long of a battle will it be to get this money. Just some food for thought in realistic future thinking.
Click to expand...

Agreed!!

The questions in my eyes are:

  • If there isn't a solution, can the resource deal with it or is it the end of fishing as we know it.
  • IF there ever is a solution that requires $$$, what stupid new Federal stimulus project can we divert some money from? Maybe the bridge that's being built for Microsoft?? ;)
 
Last edited:
as of right now, didymo in the river is not a major problem. I have personally not seen it and fish the river regularly and many ive spoken to havent seen it. For those who have, its been minimal amounts. The upper east branch has had more common sightings,but I think some of that has to do with the weed growth up there anyway and people miss identifying it as didymo. Dont get me wrong, I'm extremely concerned about the didymo issue on the rivers and would like to erradicate it now before it becomes a problem, but as of now the occurance of it is minimal at best in the system.
 
coming from someone who rarely fishes the river, I wont even get into it with you. As of now however, there hasn't been major issues with didymo taking over the delaware, its just important to monitor the situation closely so that if it starts getting worse action can be taken. How many times do you fish the river a year?It Doesn't seem like your in a position to tell me the case of the WB
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

A
Wading Boots & ANS
Replies
15
Views
6K
Ryan R
R
D
Didymo aka "Rock Snot" found in Vermont
Replies
0
Views
3K
duncan
D
D
Nuisance algae didymo
Replies
0
Views
3K
ddawatson
D
Joe D
NJ Has It Too...
Replies
0
Views
2K
Joe D
Joe D
J
Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC) HAVE SHUT OUT FEDERAL & STATE LEGISLATORS
Replies
4
Views
4K
rford
rford
Back
Top