Fly Fishing Report for the Upper Delaware and Catskill Rivers

Decent Fishing throughout the River System

Over the weekend the Baxter House guides put a lot of time on the water. Several of us were doing 2 trips per day. Since my last report our guides have fished both Trout and Smallmouth Bass and covered lots of river miles.

Overall the fishing is good. The main reason is the cooler nights and recent rainfall.

The Trout are more active since the water temperatures dropped into a more suitable range. Over the weekend our trout trips had a steady pick of surface feeding Trout to keep busy with. We also did really good on our nymph rigs in some places.

Yesterday I did 2 floats both for Trout.. My first trip was a nymphing float where we targeted a couple of big riffle areas. The action was pretty steady and in 4 hours we had 8 fish. We had 2 small ones but most were 15" to 17" Wild Rainbows. On this morning float there was also some super heavy activity with Trico's. The amount of insects in the air and on the water was huge. There was a small amount of surface activity but the river is high and it was very windy. I expect that when the water comes down there will be a good rise of trout to these tiny insects.

We also had boats out for evening hatch floats every day recently. There have been fish sporadically rising from when we put in around 5:00 pm. As is normal the action slowly improves as darkness approaches. We have been doing well fishing a combination of small Olives, Sulfurs and Midges. CDC Knock Down Duns and Cripples have been the best. Small rusty spinners and midge patterns are also working well.

Below the surface it has been all about size. #18 and #20 nymphs are whats working. I have been fishing 3 fly rigs with descending sizes down to the #20. Every fish has been on the tiny flies. Copper Johns, Pheasant Tails and Midges are working well.

The Bass fishing hit a bit of a slow down with the recent cold front. Over the weekend water temperatures dropped below 70 degrees just about everywhere. The bass have been a bit sluggish during the morning but get back to feeding after the sun warms them a bit. We had several groups out and all had lots of fun. The biggest difference from last week is that the surface bite has slowed from the cooler water.

Last week we were having fast and furious Popper Action. Right now you have to work at it. The strikes are not as frequent but the fish have been good sized. The best approach at this time for steady, fast action is slow and deep. The hot surface action should return quickly as the temps climb back up.

On Saturday we had a great group of young anglers out chasing Bass in the lower river. Below are some shots from the trip.