Getting Serious About Trout

[big_dog1996]

Hello everyone,

It has been probably 5 years now since I picked up my first fly rod, a Redington Crosswater 8wt combo from Bass Pro Shops. I taught myself to cast and spent that summer chasing largemouth bass in local ponds. Since then, I have been bitten by the fly bug.

Growing up in Southern Maryland, saltwater and warm-water fisheries were readily available to me. The Potomac River and Chesapeake Bay are where I spent most of my time fishing for bass, stripers, and bluefish. I have caught a few stocked rainbows on the fly before, but I haven't done a whole lot of trout fishing.

I currently attend college in Connecticut. I'll be a senior this fall, and I have a lot more time (and money) to fish. I am within a 2 hours drive of several trout fisheries, the Farmington, the Housatonic, etc. My goal is to become proficient (if at all possible) at catching trout on the fly.

This past spring I caught my first few brown trout on a fly. They were all 10-12" stockies, but fish nonetheless. I caught them fishing a tandem nymph rig on the bottom of a slow pool. I'll be first to admit, everything I know about trout fishing I have learned from online articles and YouTube videos. However, I now want to get serious about trout fishing.

Starting this fall I'm going to spend a lot more time fishing for trout. I'm going to keep updating this thread with my experiences so feel free to tag along and offer tips. I have no clue what I'm doing, but I'm sure it will be fun.....or frustrating.....

Thanks for reading,

Dom

---------- Post added at 07:46 AM ---------- Previous post was at 07:41 AM ----------

Some pictures of my first couple brown trout to keep y'all interested.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[djb_88]

In my experience the best way to learn is to get out there and try. I taught myself in a similar way and, although I don't consider myself proficient, I've learned a lot and I am confident I can catch trout. Keep watching YouTube, keep reading articles, keep reading the forum, and most importantly keep the fly in the water. When the fish aren't biting, keep fishing. Proficiency is achieved by the persistent. Also, find friends to fish with. It makes every outing more enjoyable and I've found that I learn more with others than on my own. Best of luck and enjoy the addiction.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[big_dog1996]

In my experience the best way to learn is to get out there and try. I taught myself in a similar way and, although I don't consider myself proficient, I've learned a lot and I am confident I can catch trout. Keep watching YouTube, keep reading articles, keep reading the forum, and most importantly keep the fly in the water. When the fish aren't biting, keep fishing. Proficiency is achieved by the persistent. Also, find friends to fish with. It makes every outing more enjoyable and I've found that I learn more with others than on my own. Best of luck and enjoy the addiction.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I usually fish with two of my best friends. They are just as addicted as I am. It's always nice to have someone to talk to on the stream.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[benpuls98]

I am currently in a very similar situation as you are. Grew up in the Ohio, started fly fishing for bass in lakes and streams. Now I go to college in Pennsylvania, where I have a small stocked creek that runs through campus and a trophy trout fishery about 20 minutes away. I would definitely agree on the fishing buddies thing, I've never liked to fish with other people that much until I got to college, but when you find a couple of people who a) you like and b) actually kinda know what they are doing, it makes for a great time and a faster learning curve. The beautiful creations that have come out of some dorm room tying parties are a thing to behold. Also, I would recommend the smallstreamreflections blog, he is from Connecticut and probably fishes around the same area as you.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[big_dog1996]

I am currently in a very similar situation as you are. Grew up in the Ohio, started fly fishing for bass in lakes and streams. Now I go to college in Pennsylvania, where I have a small stocked creek that runs through campus and a trophy trout fishery about 20 minutes away. I would definitely agree on the fishing buddies thing, I've never liked to fish with other people that much until I got to college, but when you find a couple of people who a) you like and b) actually kinda know what they are doing, it makes for a great time and a faster learning curve. The beautiful creations that have come out of some dorm room tying parties are a thing to behold. Also, I would recommend the smallstreamreflections blog, he is from Connecticut and probably fishes around the same area as you.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I'll definitely check out that blog, Connecticut isn't very large so I'm sure we fish some of the same waters. I have yet to venture into fly tying, maybe somewhere down the road I will.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[mcnerney]

I usually fish with two of my best friends. They are just as addicted as I am. It's always nice to have someone to talk to on the stream.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Dom: That is an excellent method to help dial in what the fish are wanting to eat on any particular day, with friends fishing with you, you can compare what patterns or setups are working. Best of luck with your learning to fish for trout. One thing that I have found is that there is always something new to learn in fly fishing, it is a lifetime adventure and part of why I enjoy it so much. I'm looking forward to reading about your fishing adventures!

 

[Rip Tide]

Hi Dom
I'm guessing that you're in school in eastern CT. Probably not far from me.
Come the fall, you may be interested in attending some meetings in East Hartford of the CT Fly Fisherman's Association
Second Wednesday of the month, beginning in September. Free and open to the public.

THIS may interest you as well

 

[big_dog1996]

Hi Dom
I'm guessing that you're in school in eastern CT. Probably not far from me.
Come the fall, you may be interested in attending some meetings in East Hartford of the CT Fly Fisherman's Association
Second Wednesday of the month, beginning in September. Free and open to the public.

THIS may interest you as well

I'm at the Coast Guard Academy down in New London. I'll definitely try to check out a couple of those meetings.

 

[stenacron]

I have no clue what I'm doing, but I'm sure it will be fun.....or frustrating.....

Like a good cross-country vacation, half the fun is getting there!

It will be fun and there will be times of frustration... that never changes regardless of your experience level. If it was too easy you'd quickly become bored and onto something else.

Congrats on your first couple of brownies and look forward to hearing about your adventures.

Tight lines!

 

[Ard]

Hi Dom,

I'm a long ways from Connecticut so can't offer any advice on where to go but can still say nice job getting some browns

If you want to keep a running log of your progress here look into using the blog function associated with your Profile. You post to a blog the same way you do on threads, matter of fact you could take your post here and copy it into an opening blog post. If you consider doing that then your posts are all in one spot. I do it but can't say it'll suit everyone. If you were to want, then just hit edit on your post, then choose Go Advanced, then block everything including image info and copy it. With that done just click save to restore your original post and then proceed to your User Control Panel. Once you see where the Control Panel menu is at on the left side scroll down to find Blog at the bottom. When you click it I believe it will direct you on starting your pages. It's been years since I started one and I honestly forget the steps but hey, I figured it out so I'm quite sure you can too.

Anyway, congratulations on choosing a very special hobby and if you end up stationed over on Kodiak remember to get in touch with me, I'm not that far away.

Ard

 

[big_dog1996]

Hi Dom,

I'm a long ways from Connecticut so can't offer any advice on where to go but can still say nice job getting some browns

If you want to keep a running log of your progress here look into using the blog function associated with your Profile. You post to a blog the same way you do on threads, matter of fact you could take your post here and copy it into an opening blog post. If you consider doing that then your posts are all in one spot. I do it but can't say it'll suit everyone. If you were to want, then just hit edit on your post, then choose Go Advanced, then block everything including image info and copy it. With that done just click save to restore your original post and then proceed to your User Control Panel. Once you see where the Control Panel menu is at on the left side scroll down to find Blog at the bottom. When you click it I believe it will direct you on starting your pages. It's been years since I started one and I honestly forget the steps but hey, I figured it out so I'm quite sure you can too.

Anyway, congratulations on choosing a very special hobby and if you end up stationed over on Kodiak remember to get in touch with me, I'm not that far away.

Ard

Thanks Ard, I very well may end up in Alaska next year.....:


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[kentuckysteve]

Welcome to the forum,Dom.
I too like chasing bass in farm ponds and do not have a lot of experience with the trout.I look forward to your updates.

 

[Unknownflyman]

Great looking trout! This time around here there are so many different kinds of fish to persue with the fly rod, small and largemouth bass, big pike and muskie, panfish, carp, drum and catfish....

But when I get some free time I always seem to end up on my favorite trout rivers after Brook and Brown trout on dry flies. Tis the dry fly trout season.

Many happy returns, and if you get to fish with Ard I'll be jealous.

 

[big_dog1996]

Update: I've targeted trout three times since starting this thread, once in Maryland and twice in Connecticut.

The first time I was fishing a tailwater in Maryland. Summer time flows and dam releases had the water very low and very clear. This is a wild brown trout stream that holds fish year round but is supplemented with stocked fish in the spring. I decided to fish a terrestrial pattern because I saw fish rising but couldn't identify any insect species. I tied on a small foam grasshopper because they're were a lot of them flying around. I was fishing where some riffles emptied into a run and the current decreased. I had to make long casts across the river with a long leader because the water was too shallow to wade up to the fish. On the first cast, just as the hopper came downstream of the riffles, a brown trout rose and ate the fly. I set the hook and my fly came flying back at me This happened probably five or six times that day. Every time a trout tried to eat the fly I missed him and set the hook into the air.

I think I know why this was occurring, although I did not realize it until after I finished fishing. There we're conflicting currents in the stream. There was slow water where I was wading, fast water in the middle of the river, and slower water on the far bank (where the fish was rising). When I made my long casts across the river, I had to shoot slack in order for the fly to drift drag free. Otherwise the fast water would cause it to drag. When the trout rose to eat the fly, I had way too much flyline on the water and was unable to hook the fish. That is why I missed them everytime. Looking back, I think I should have tried casting from downstream of the fish in the same current lane. That way I could've stripped in my slack as the fly drifted towards me. What do you all think? This is all I could come up with.

The second time I went was on the Farmington River in Connecticut. Where I got skunked. I saw fish rising, but they would not eat anything I threw at them. My buddy did catch a 10" brook trout on a stonefly nymph. We were able to identify stonefly casings on rocks in the faster water. Here is a picture. I recently purchased "The Bug Book" by Paul Weamer which does a great job of simplifying entomology. I feel better prepared to identify insects and select a fly to fish because of this book.

IMG_1186.JPG

The third time was on a different river in CT that isn't supposed to hold trout year round. However, this summer has been unusually cool so I decided to give it a go. Plus there are smallmouth in this river so I figured I would at least catch some of those. I dead drifted a rubber legged stonefly pattern through the deeper pools and caught a handful of little smallmouth. When I approached one pool, I noticed a different fish (not a smallmouth), laying on the bottom facing upstream. It would occasionally swim left or right and then return to where it was. I knew this was a trout. I approached the fish so I could cast quartering upstream and allow the fly to sink as passed the fish. The first 10 or so drifts the trout completely ignored the fly. I kept at it. He swam towards it, swam away. Acted like he was going to eat it, but didn't commit. Just when I was going to give up, WHAM I set the hook and landed my first brook trout in 4 years. He wasn't a trophy by any means, but I was thrilled.

IMG_1095.JPG

Well, that has been my progression so far haha. A lot of frustration but a lot of lessons learned as well. If anyone has any tips or ideas, please let me know. My buddies and I are planning to fish in the morning. Hopefully I'll have something to add again. Sorry for the long read.

---------- Post added at 08:26 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:23 PM ----------

Because the pictures wouldn't post on my laptop

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[westcoast]

Sounds like your having fun, that's 90% of fishing right there.

 

[dennyk]

While I can't offer advice to your location, great choice of interests! Now just wait until you get interested in fly tying!

Good Luck with your adventures!

Denny

 

[big_dog1996]

I caught my first trout on a dry fly this weekend. I saw a fish rising in the middle of the river so I waded out downstream of him. The water was only 2-3 feet and clear so I extended my 6x leader to 12 feet. I went for an upstream presentation, so I knew I had to keep my fly line away from the fish. If I over-lined him, he would spook. I stopped about 30 feet from the rises and began to cast. Each cast growing longer making its way to where the fish was rising. I put the fly exactly where he was several times but no takes. The fish even stopped rising. My buddy thought that I spooked him, but I was convinced that I didn't. I placed a blind cast about 3 feet to the right of where he was rising, just in front of a rock. As the fly drifted behind the rock a fish rose to inspect it. He stopped just underneath the fly. My heart stopped. The fish sipped the fly and I set the hook. Fish on! The whole time I was praying this fish didn't get off. I finally landed the fish and was stoked. It was my first dry fly trout and my biggest brown trout yet (which isn't very big haha). After a few pictures I released him to fight another day. He took a size 10 stimulator on 6x tippett.

My dry fly presentations got a whole lot better this weekend. By the end of the day, I was placing my fly exactly where I wanted to out to 30-40 feet while fishing, and out to 50 feet while practicing. I gained a lot of confidence in dry fly fishing, beforehand I never fished dry flies. I can't wait to get back out and try it again!

---------- Post added at 06:47 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:45 PM ----------

I can never get pictures to post properly on my laptop.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[big_dog1996]

Haven't posted in a while. Late summer and the fall so far have been great to me! Late summer got into a great low clear water hopper dropper bite. Now I'm on a great high water streamer bite. I've really learned a lot this year, the number of trout per trip is highest its ever been. I even found some native brook trout in a secluded skinny creek. Frustrating fishing, but rewarding. I'm working on building a 6'6" 3wt to make fishing skinny water easier. Can't wait to see what else this fall has in store!

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[cpiercem]

Beautiful fish. Looks like you are really getting them dialed in and having fun.

 

[adblouky]

Southern Maryland? Raised in Oxon Hill here.