Flash Floods

We have had some serious rain in the last two days, culminating in a thunderstorm this afternoon that has washed out many area roads.  At the moment I am stuck at the house with no way to get out.  This will keep most all rivers unfishable for the next day or so and the big rivers likely high and dirty into if not through the weekend.   For the next few days I would recommend hitting a pond or lake.  

Some people had some good fishing today in the rain.  I had a client call me yesterday afternoon multiple times begging to get out on the drift boat early this morning at 5 am before he left VT.  I was apprehensive as I knew we had some serious rains forecast and his response was as long as its not dangerous I would like to go even if it was muddy and he didn't catch a thing.  Well 3:30 AM rolled around to pouring rain though I checked the local flows and things were still good.  I called the client as we agreed at 4:15 to no answer.  A few more calls and he answered only  to bail on me cause it was raining.  As if he didn't know it was going to rain despite me telling him that 2-3" was in the forecast. Must be a few too many beers at the hotel bar last night  Boy was I upset, but did not let him know it.  A good example of why deposits are required.  I think he  missed some good fishing as conditions before the water rose were decent.  As I mentioned earlier some friends got out today and got into some nice browns.


Fishing in the past week was not great.  The Winooski watershed faced high water all week, as the flows leveled off way above averages, though the Lamoille was in good shape. We got into fish, though the trout fishing was not on fire with the cooler water temps and high and many times dirty flows.  I had to change plans a lot last week to get clients onto fish and even fishable water.  The top producing fly was a #16 hares ear.  Hatches have been spotty, with little hatching on my morning outings and less than consistent hatches in the evening. There have been some solid Pale Evening Dun/ sulphur hatches and I witnessed a wicked spinner fall on the Winooski right at dark and even though water was very high and dirty I saw a few fish rising in some back eddies. There were also two different sizes of caddis in the air,  though it was too dark to determine even the color. The next night on a Winooski trib there was almost no bug activity , and the fishing was very slow.  


We did get into a few very nice fish, and nymphed up some real nice bows in slow, deep rip rap bends in the middle of the day. Streamers were surprisingly slow for us last week even with the higher water.  That was a bit of a surprise to me.  Regardless, for the remainder of the week, streamers and nymphs will be the way to go on most waters.  I like to fish a big heavy stonefly in yellow, orange, or brown with a small dropper based on what I am seeing in the air and on the rocks.  


Good luck and wade safe in the high water out there.