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3. 21 trout - and non-selective, "interhatch" feeding

The first time I hit this spot on the Rifle River was the 4th day of the season. The air was filled with mayflies (Hendricksons and Red Quills) and caddisflies (tan wing brown body, #14-16), and this hatching went on for SEVEN HOURS STRAIGHT. I caught 13 browns but felt like I should have caught 50, I missed at least that many strikes and had many steadily feeding fish repeatedly refuse my flies, only to keep feeding below me once I'd passed them up and waded on. They ranged in size from maybe 7 inches to a 13-incher, the majority of them over the legal limit of 8" (of course I let them all go). I re-fished the entire stretch again (I can get out and walk 5-10 minutes to my car, depending on how long I enjoy the trail, with wild orchids, huge pine trees, and at night, flying squirrels) and the lowest 1/4 mile or so three times, and still had hits and caught fish every time! It was certainly a day to remember for me, especially since I couldn't get myself to leave the stream until dark. "Dammit, they're STILL rising!" I then realized I knew what crack cocaine felt like!

Well, today went beyond, yet was totally different. There were next to no flies on the water and next to no fish feeding on top, save for some little ones. Yet, a #12 brown Elkhair caddis brought up 21 fish, mostly browns with maybe six little rainbows (baby steelhead - I could see redds here and there), again the majority of the fish legal (and still swimming right now) with the biggest being 14". I lost a few fish and probably missed as many strikes as I caught, but hooking percentage was way higher today than last time.

I think this is a personal record for me. And the most amazing thing is that there was little, random, mixed fly activity, saw a few different sized mayflies (big brown ones, little white ones, etc.) & very random caddis, almost a smorgasbourd of flies but few and far between. I think we are sort of between hatches now, those of spring tapering off and those of summer about to start, but with the random mixture out there fish were willing to hit anything that looked good. And I guess a little brown caddisfly about the size of a #12 hook looked really good!

No fish shots, these weren't the nice big fat ones that get shown off on here but all nice, healthy looking, well-colored and spunky, rod-bending fish. If you want to see a Rifle River brown, I posted one back in April. But I couldn't resist a few pink lady's slipper orchids, and a big mamma snapping turtle looking for a spot to lay her eggs, that I saw on the trail back to the car.

Going back to another favorite spot on this river tomorrow...

Jonathon

Good looking my man it sounds like you had a blast of a day. Well done!

Jonathon;

Congrats on a great day on the water for you!!


Did you stick w/ the elk hair caddis exclusively the whole time or did you try anything subsurface as well?

Thanks,

Adirman

Good for your day. What kind of flower is that?

Congratulations on some fine fishing, Jonathon.

Thanks guys. I had a really hard time getting to sleep last night...

Adirman, I went with the Elkhair caddis almost the entire time, switching to one of my POG Buggers (Peacock, Olive, and Grizzly) for a short downstream walk back to a jump-out point, but I got no hits on it. It was a rather silty area and I was probably kicking up too much mud.

Feathers5, these are pink lady's slipper orchids, Cypripedium acaule. Spectacular, aren't they? There were probably several hundred blooming along the trail back to my car.

Heading back out there to a different spot in a little while...

Jonathon