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Lateral view of a Female Hexagenia limbata (Ephemeridae) (Hex) Mayfly Dun from the Namekagon River in Wisconsin
Hex Mayflies
Hexagenia limbata

The famous nocturnal Hex hatch of the Midwest (and a few other lucky locations) stirs to the surface mythically large brown trout that only touch streamers for the rest of the year.

Dorsal view of a Zapada cinctipes (Nemouridae) (Tiny Winter Black) Stonefly Nymph from the Yakima River in Washington
Nymphs of this species were fairly common in late-winter kick net samples from the upper Yakima River. Although I could not find a key to species of Zapada nymphs, a revision of the Nemouridae family by Baumann (1975) includes the following helpful sentence: "2 cervical gills on each side of midline, 1 arising inside and 1 outside of lateral cervical sclerites, usually single and elongate, sometimes constricted but with 3 or 4 branches arising beyond gill base in Zapada cinctipes." This specimen clearly has the branches and is within the range of that species.
27" brown trout, my largest ever. It was the sub-dominant fish in its pool. After this, I hooked the bigger one, but I couldn't land it.
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Jmd123
Jmd123's profile picture
Oscoda, MI

Posts: 2474
Jmd123 on Jun 30, 2009June 30th, 2009, 12:40 pm EDT
Hey folks, don't know if any of the guys I used to chat with are still on here, but I FINALLY got around to buying myself a new computer and getting back online after a long hiatus. Now living in Troy, MI with my folks (partially for economic reasons, partly because they're both 76 and, how shall I say, need some heavy lifting now and then), I am saving $$$ not paying Ann Arbor rent but giving up some privacy so, obviously, I have been fishing A LOT this year. Most of which has taken place in a local lake in which the crappie started hitting chartruese woolly buggers a week after the last ice finally went out! Plus lots of bluegill (now finishing up spawning, biting best on a size 12 black, yellow, and red "firefly" - not the pattern in the catalogs, this is from an old book on panfish and bass flies), plenty of bass (mostly maxing out at 12-13" but one 5-pounder threw the hook on me a couple of months ago), and even the occsasional yellow perch. The aformentioned chartreuse woolly bugger (size 10 Mustad #9672, Krystal Flash tail topping, weighted underbody, and grizzly hackle tied at the head & wrapped back before being counter-wrapped by silver wire tied at the hook bend - that's how I always tie 'em) has been the best (my very best warmwater fly EVER), followed by my Killer Bass Flies (#10) in silver/gray or chartreuse (also, chartruese & silver - new variant). I've also been to the Huron River in Ann Arbor (smallies, rock bass, & bluegills) and Cooley Lake fishing off my friends' dock (16" largemouth, rock bass up to 11", and sunfish up to 9"). Next week I plan on going "hexing" up in the Maple River, my old stomping grounds from my UMBS days. Also, picked up an 8-weight outfit from Cabelas & fresh ingredients for BIG pike flies, which I need to also test up in the north country (or on Lake St. Clair for muskies?).

I will soon be purchasing a digital camera for fish porn (waterproof, obviously) and some illustrated step-by-step instructions for some of my own original fly patterns, KBFs included. Stay tuned...

Jonathon

P.S. Any Hex reports from you Michigan guys??
No matter how big the one you just caught is, there's always a bigger one out there somewhere...
Martinlf
Martinlf's profile picture
Moderator
Palmyra PA

Posts: 3047
Martinlf on Jul 1, 2009July 1st, 2009, 4:46 am EDT
Welcome back, most of us are still around. Great fishing report; glad to see you are having a good season.
"He spread them a yard and a half. 'And every one that got away is this big.'"

--Fred Chappell

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