Well another opening day has come and gone, and it was an uneventful one in terms of fishing at best. All signs were pointing to a good hendrickson hatch…the water temps were above 52 degrees at Parmalee and Mio for 5 days running (51 degrees is the optimal number), and bugs should have been there yesterday, but for the most part, did not show with the exception of a sporadic rogue fly here and there. Olives in size 16 & 18 were prevalent and reports of small fish being caught were brought into the shop yesterday.
If you were here on Friday, you know how hard the wind blew. Gusts as high as 40 mph or more happened all day with a constant wind too hard to try to fish in. Thus, if you did not make it up here for the weekend you didn’t miss much except for the camaraderie that is associated with such an event as the “opener”.
The coming week and into next weekend should be good for hendricksons. Water levels are dropping nicely to near normal. As always, once the hatch is in full swing, there’s really nothing that’s going to stop it. Too many cool or cold evenings in a row can and will prevent spinner drops from happening at that time. If this happens, simply change your tactic to mid-morning, especially if it is sunny and warm. I’ve seen great spinner drops of henny’s at that time!
BTW, our fly display case is stuffed to capacity with the help of Jerry Regan, Tim Neal, Scott Wejrowski, and myself. We have many local patters tied by these individuals that are tried and true. A little known fact is that Tim was the originator of the Borcher’s parachute in 1983…a very effective hendrickson dun pattern. He also has a hendrickson “stillborn” pattern that is great to use in a heavy hatch especially when you are up against a finicky big fish. The fly has a trailing shuck look to it, therefore, rendering it an easy target due to it’s “crippled” nature. Again, a fly that came about with years and mega hours of fishing and fly tying under ones’ belt.
Best advice? Don’t be an armchair fisherman! Get out there and experience the natural wonders that surround us. Remember, there is no substitute for the experience you’ll gain each time you step foot in the water…have fun and stay safe!
