Susquehanna Flats Photo Update

Here are some pictures from our recent adventures on the flats. Thanks again everyone for coming out fishing. Lots of good fish and good smiles.

Susquehanna Flats Update

The start to this year's season on the Susquehanna Flats has been a pleasant change from the last couple of years. Though we have had to contend with windy days for much of this month, water conditons have been decent due to the lack of rain and snowmelt.

We have been catching fish on the fly and light tackle since late March. Much of our fishing has been along the channel edges and deeper water. Heavy wind has made alot of the shallow water too turbid too fish. Good weather forecast for the next few days should help change this trend, and hopefully we will get some good topwater and shallow water fishing soon.

This week we have had some good fishing on the fly. We have caught a bunch of fish on hallf and half patterns along the edges of grass beds, and still along the channel edges. Topwater action is still a little slow, but we are having more bites on top each trip as the water temps warm.

Susquehanna Flats Update

Still waiting for the stripers here in lovely Havre de Grace, MD, Susquehanna Flats shoreside.

I have been fishing the last two weeks on the flats, hoping the unseasonably warm weather would bring an early start to our flats season, but this has not been the case. Water temps and conditions are the best I have seen in years. Yesterday we had surface water temps consistent from 53 to 55 degrees, well warm enough to be catching fish. water clarity is also great, so I expect fast fishing when the fish do show up.

We have been catching some fish. Brad Gladfelter and I fished several times this week. One evening we caught 6 small rockfish, and Tuesday morning we caught 4. All of the fish were 16 to 20 inches and believe most of them to be resident fish. Alot of bait fish have shown up in recent days. White Perch have arrived in good numbers, as have some river herring and shad. I watched a few wading anglers catch several hickory shad in the Susquehanna yesterday evening at the mouth of Deer Creek. So things are just days away, and I will keep you posted as we get catching fish. Heading out now to try again.

March 1 Fly Fishing on Gunpowder River

Avid fisherman Scott Burns and I took advantage of the good weather the first day of March and fished the Upper Gunpowder River. With temps forecast in the 60's we had hopes of a late morning hatch of blackflies and maybe a few stones.

We fished the catch and release area of the stream above Falls rd. nearest Prettyboy Reservoir. Rains the night before had caused spillover at the dam and raised stream flows to 250cfs+.

Early fishing was tough but we managed to hook a few trout while fishing blackfly larvae patterns in size 20 and 22 below an indicator. Light gray patterns with a dark rib seemed to work good, though we dropped a few fish on the small hooks. We saw a few stray little black stones zipping across the surface, but no takers. After a while we switched to streamers and had some takes, landing the brown pictured below on an olive and black zonker.

Around noon we noticed the first of the blackflies begin to hatch and almost immediately fish began to rise. Though we saw many risers for the next hour or so, the fish were inconsistent and tough to fool. The high flows did not help our cause with the dry fly. We ended with our morning adventure with a good brown hooked on 7x and a size 22 cdc blackfly pattern, never got him to hand but fooled him none the less.

The warm days forecast this week should bring even better fishing to this stretch of river. A good way to cure the cabin fever.

Lancaster Fly Fishing Show

I spent this weekend at the Fly Fishing show in Lancaster, PA. This was the first year the show was held in this location and it seemed a great success. Guides and Outfitters from around the country highlighted their services and fly shops and tackle manufacturers showed off the newest gear. Guest speakers and celebrity fly fisherman kept the crowd well entertained.

I spent the show alongside long time Shimano/ G.loomis representative and avid sportsman Dick Kondak. We were promoting the newest fly rods in the G.Loomis lineup. The NRX series was the star of the show, boasting new nano graphite technology making a lighter, stronger, and more responsive fly rod. The folks who took the time to cast the NRX rods all gave rave reviews.

We also showcased the Pro 4x series of rods, the newest in the G.Loomis lineup. The Pro 4x rods use some of the same nano graphite technology as the NRX with a retail price attractive to both beginner and avid fly anglers alike.

The entire line of G.Loomis Fly rods are available at the Backwater Angler fly shop in Monkton, MD http://www.backwaterangler.com.

Susquehanna River Walleye Fishing

The last few winters I have made an effort to target walleyes fishing the Susquehanna below Conowingo dam. Seems that there have been a greater number of walleye in the river in recent years. They are aggressive feeders and can be caught right through the winter months.

I caught and released this nice fish on a recent trip, fishing from shore below Conowingo. I find the fishing best in periods of moderate water flows. Fish can be caught using a variety of techniques. I have had the best success fishing small jigs slowly. 1/8 an 1/16 ounce heads with grub tails or other soft bodies work well. I have had the best luck on chartreuse. I have heard reports of anglers having success on crankbaits and other hardbaits also.

Winter Fly Fishing Gunpowder River Maryland

We have been blessed with unusually mild temperatures in the central Maryland region this winter. Coupled with higher than average stream flows, conditions on the Upper Gunpowder River have been perfect for winter fly fishing.

Fly fisherman on the upper river above Falls rd. can expect to see a good bit of midge activity, especially on the 50 to 60 degree days like we have had in the last week or so. Black Stoneflies have begun to appear on sunny days throughout the catch and release area of the stream. Both offer anglers a shot at some dry fly fishing through February and March.

Popular patterns are many small, dark midge patterns in sizes 18 -22. Grizzly midges, griffiths gnats, and blackfly imitations will work well. Try substituting your summer trico patterns for blackflies, fish will often be fooled.

Quill winged , hair winged, or zlon winged stonefly patterns will take will take rising fish wherever you can find the bugs hatching. Bodies are dark brown or black. You might have to walk awhile to find some bugs hatching , but should find some risers if yo come across them. you can't miss the size 14 stones as the skate wildly across the water trying to gain flight.

March can also bring good fishing with all types of small nymphs. Many of the fish pictured here were taken fishing small dark nymphs under an indicator. Target areas where riffles fall deep.