At this writing, the last weekend in September, our Catskill rivers and streams are in fine condition heading into Autumn. Despite a somewhat dry start to the fishing season in spring and early summer, regular rains and showers have kept our Catskill waters replenished, in fact rather consistently above the historical average flows for the remainder of the summer and into the early fall. And as a result, water temperatures for the months of August and September on both the Willowemoc and the Beaverkill have been favorable - and are now remaining in the 50s to low 60s. This all bodes well for trout growth!

Fly hatches have been somewhat sparse of late, and fishing is challenging this time of year, especially with the beautiful bright blue-bird skies we’ve enjoyed. Late-season fishing demands a major shift in tactics as water temperatures plunge, flows drop, and fish become highly selective. During this autumn transition, trout shift their focus from aggressive summer feeding to conserving energy and preparing for winter. 

During the mornings there are still some tiny Tricos and Blue Winged Olives about - in midge sizes (#20 and smaller) with a few Light Cahills and Isonychias seen later in the afternoon into the evening (size (#14) as well as some small caddis flies. We’re watching for the larger (size #10 - 12) cinnamon-colored October caddis fly, which should be appearing soon.

It has been predicted that we may be in for some very beautiful and vibrant foliage this year; the autumn leaves are just beginning to show some color but are not falling yet, and so it is still easy to fish with and see your dry fly on the water. Some fly fishers have reported success fishing with emergers, as well as below the surface with nymphs and soft-bodied wet flies. 

A method that has become popular is to fish with a dry dropper rig - made up of two flies. For those who doubt whether it is considered ‘sporting’, this method fits sport fishing ethics, as it requires precise casting, careful mending of the line and micro-adjustments to match the water depth and insect activity. In fact, sporting authorities such as the International Game Fish Association (IGFA) have officially accepted and regulated multi-fly and dropper-rig setups for sporting records.

A dry dropper rig is fairly simple to set up - it uses a smaller, highly visible attractor (floating dry fly, such as a size #14 - #18 Isonychia, Elk Hair Caddis, Blue Winged Olive, or parachute fly) on the water’s surface with a submerged nymph (such as a weighted Zug Bug or bead head Pheasant Tail nymph in sizes #18 - #22) tied about 16 to 24 inches off the bend of the hook. This should drop the fly down near the bottom where the fish are most likely to be holding. Rather than fishing the riffle areas, concentrate your drifts on the slow-moving runs, deep pools and the soft water edges with some depth next to the main currents. 

Our local Beamoc Chapter of TU met at Upward Brewing Company on Thursday, September 17, and discussed plans for the upcoming Work Bee at the Hazel Bridge Fisherman Parking Area on the Willowemoc. This will focus on a pilot attempt to control the knotweed in about a 150-foot area downstream of Hazel Bridge and will involve planting creek willows along the streambank (which will also help prevent erosion), planting about 5-6 sizeable Norway Spruce trees evenly spaced further up the bank, and planting some wild sumac along the upper grassy edge near the parking area. The existing sumac seems to be holding its own, and both the sumac and creek willows can be transplanted locally. In addition, after the frost, volunteers will knock down/ cover the existing knotweed with layers of cardboard and wood chips in an attempt to block it out. Beamoc will be sending in an application for permission to do the work; DEC officials who visited the site had a positive reaction to the proposal. More information and dates will be forthcoming as soon as we receive the official “go-ahead”. 

With conservation and protection of our natural resources of utmost importance, members of the public are invited to Beamoc meetings, and invited to join the organization! For more information, please visit www.beamoctu.org/