I'm Back

[Scott]

Howdy folks, I'm just back from a lovely although short week in Maine, fishing for fall spawner landlockeds on the Kennebago River.

Regretably, my camera was left in the center console of my other truck, and thus I have only the pictures that I took with the camera of my mind.

Things were slow to start during the last week of the season, with few salmon being caught. I suspect this is likely due to warmer water temperatures. Boards were pulled from the dam during the second week of September, but the warmer water from the top release did nothing to spur the fish upriver. The boards were replaced as the lake levels dropped.

However. as Kennebago hydro was running the powerhouse, heavy rain on Monday, & night time temperatures in the 30's brought flows up and temps down, morning water temps came down to the low 50's. This started the fish up into the river, with decent 3-4 pound fish reported caught mid week.

Very heavy rain & high winds on Thursday caused a widespread power outage from Errol, NH to Rangeley, power was out in some areas for 24 hours. It was like the old days, with dinner by candlelight, and heating provided by a crackling fire in the stove. In bed shortly after dark, and up with the sun, it was a brief trip into nostalgia. Well, almost...

The water in the river was high & off color Friday, with visibility around 2' tops. this made wading treacherous, as much of the bottom is black, rounded rocks (glacial till) coated with a slick greaasy layer of algae. Picture wading on greased bowling balls wearing a blindfold...

A highly visible bright fluorescent yellow maribou streamer did the trick that day, yielding only two fish for me but both about 2-1/2 pounds.

Others in the camp who made trips to other rivers (Magalloway, Rapid, Cupsuptic) reported little success. To quote a local fisherman: "I know for a fact there's lots of fish in the Cupsuptic- and big ones for sure, but dammed if I can catch one."

On the Brook Trout page, many large 3,4 & even 5 pound brookies were reported caught in the upper river and logans, as well as Little Kennebago lake. I cannot share the flies used to take them or exactly where, as I've been sworn to secrecy. However, I will say my brother caught a brightly colored beautiful male brookie, approximately 18' - 19" in length and estimated at about 3 pounds or so on (what else) a Grey Ghost.

It was a great time - good to see old friends again, and make new ones. I look forward to next September in the Mountain Lakes region of western Maine, where fall comes rushing in and the leaves turn color overnight.

I will stand in the river to ask once again, and hopefully the Landlocked salmon will honor me by returning the favor of a dance.

 

[fcch]

SCOTT!!, ...

Hey, ... thanx for the news. Still taunted by the LLS's eh ... I wonder why some of the toughest fish to catch are the ones we keep going back for?

 

[Scott]

SCOTT!!, ...

Hey, ... thanx for the news. Still taunted by the LLS's eh ... I wonder why some of the toughest fish to catch are the ones we keep going back for?

My favorite fish!

One thing I've learned is that landlockeds are often repeat spawners, and they do not die off like pacific salmon do after spawning. Thus they will actively feed even on the spawning run.

I've learned there are lots of ways to catch them - streamers, nymphs, dries, wets, you name it - there are some techniques and flies that work well, others that don't.

One thing I learned this year was a reinforcement of the "not to believe everything you read" cliche. You spend some time talking with the guys who've been coming up to the Rangeley region for 30, 40 years or more, well...

I've learned a lot over the years, and the one thing I keep learning is there's always more to learn!

I've been invited to NH to fish for salmon after ice-out, and I'm already counting the days!

 

[dcabarle]

Sounds like an interesting trip. Rain, high water with a bowling ball covered with algae bottom doesn't sound like my kind of trip! Was it cold too?

I guess you've done this in the past and had better times and that's why you went back?

 

[Scott]

Sounds like an interesting trip. Rain, high water with a bowling ball covered with algae bottom doesn't sound like my kind of trip! Was it cold too?

I guess you've done this in the past and had better times and that's why you went back?

Depends what you consider cold - highs were in the 60's, lows in the 30's. Most of the time the weather was great.

I go every year, last week of September. It's one of the very few places in this country where you stand an excellent chance of catching monster brook trout, and truly wild landlocked salmon.

Edit: And Saturday would have been awesome - the river cleared and I would be willing to bet the falling water levels would have brought a surge of big salmon up out of the lake. Too bad the season closed Friday!

 

[Scott]

Here's a verified item: salmon will turn down current & put on a burst of speed to take a fly. Maybe not every time, but most of it.

The proof: All fish lie facing upcurrent. So, for example if I am standing with the upstream side to my left, the majority of fish were hooked in the left ouside corner of the mouth - the side of the fish towards me, with the eye facing away from me - so they had to turn down current to take the fly in order to get hooked there.

 

[Scott]

nothing new under the sun??

OK, well I did actually came up with this streamer pattern on my own http://www.njflyfishing.com/photopost/showphoto.php?photo=1487&cat=546, but it has come to my attention that there may just possibly be an unnamed and very rare Carrie G. Stevens pattern that is similar to it. My pattern shares the colors & materials of the wing, shoulder, and cheek, but differ in body colors, and hers had a beard and crest while mine does not. Furthur proof that there's nothing new under the sun...

I tied it in the manner of the classic Rangeley style streamer. The Rangely style may not have been the creation of CGS, but was certainly a style she popularized.

I really believe salmon prefer the color yellow - or maybe it just makes them mad! Either way, the idea was to set the yellow off with the black behind it in order to create an appearance of depth & density and thus enhance visibility.

At any rate, this pattern once again demonstrated its salmon catching ability to me, and I certainly hope some of you will tie up a few and give it a try.

 

[The_Sib]

Black Fies

I second your observation on the black flies.
Many years ago during my first go-around with Flyfishing,
I took a trip to the Allagash Wilderness area to fish the Allagash river.
I was lucky to make it out alive - being partially devoured by those
voracious things.

 

[Scott]

I second your observation on the black flies.
Many years ago during my first go-around with Flyfishing,
I took a trip to the Allagash Wilderness area to fish the Allagash river.
I was lucky to make it out alive - being partially devoured by those
voracious things.

Yeah, Mosquitos stick their little hypodermic in you & you get an itchy bump, but blackflies literally chew a hole in you that bleeds for hours, itches & hurts for weeks. Fortunately they are long gone this time of year.