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.
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This is the first of it's family I've seen, collected from a tiny, fishless stream in the Cascades. The three species of this genus all live in the Northwest and are predators that primarily eat stonefly nymphs Merritt R.W., Cummins, K.W., and Berg, M.B. (2019).
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Report at a Glance
| General Region | Yorkshire Dales National Park, Yorkshire, England |
| Specific Location | River Wharf, above Burnsall |
| Dates Fished | July 17 |
| Time of Day | All Day |
| Fish Caught | Brown Trout |
| Conditions & Hatches | Water Temp 56 degrees,peaty but fairly clear Water 12-14 inches above normal--very wet summer of heavy prolonged rains. Sproradic hatches of pale watery duns but not fishable. (yup, that's what he called them. |
Details and Discussion
CaseyP on Jul 17, 2007July 17th, 2007, 9:00 am EDT
Czech Nymphed (three heavy nymphs fished on a short line, moving up or downstream every 10 casts or so) all day because of high water. had good success; 8 or 9 landed, several more given a long-distance release, and a bunch of bites until i got the hang of it.
two real wild trout, one about 8 inches long and so beautiful we forgot to take the photo, and one about 16 inches that put up the best fight of the day.
the one in the photo over in the photo forum took a good 5 minutes or more to land. there are supposed to be lots of grayling in the river, but they weren't interested in our offerings. guide was overjoyed when the fish began biting after a slow start; it's been a dreadful summer with too many days cancelled because of bad conditions. we did sit out one thunderstorm on the bank in the photo...the other excitement was a military jet that flew very suddenly and loudly at low level over our heads--good thing i like those birds!
in the late afternoon we found some quieter water with a good riffle and I began to learn how to fish all those soft hackles you all were so kind to teach me. had three bites, but lost them to overenthusiastic hooksets from upstream. oh, heavens, another set to learn! then had to leave when the clouds gathered again.
not a day i'll soon forget!
(Oops, just noticed i could have put the pictures in here...next time)
two real wild trout, one about 8 inches long and so beautiful we forgot to take the photo, and one about 16 inches that put up the best fight of the day.
the one in the photo over in the photo forum took a good 5 minutes or more to land. there are supposed to be lots of grayling in the river, but they weren't interested in our offerings. guide was overjoyed when the fish began biting after a slow start; it's been a dreadful summer with too many days cancelled because of bad conditions. we did sit out one thunderstorm on the bank in the photo...the other excitement was a military jet that flew very suddenly and loudly at low level over our heads--good thing i like those birds!
in the late afternoon we found some quieter water with a good riffle and I began to learn how to fish all those soft hackles you all were so kind to teach me. had three bites, but lost them to overenthusiastic hooksets from upstream. oh, heavens, another set to learn! then had to leave when the clouds gathered again.
not a day i'll soon forget!
(Oops, just noticed i could have put the pictures in here...next time)
"You can observe a lot by watching." Yogi Berra
Martinlf on May 13, 2012May 13th, 2012, 6:25 pm EDT
Beautiful fish, Casey. Thanks for sharing. We are all learning, and the day we stop, take us off the stream.
"He spread them a yard and a half. 'And every one that got away is this big.'"
--Fred Chappell
--Fred Chappell
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