Our rivers, streams, and tributaries are all showing the effects of the past few weeks of limited moisture - despite a spate of rainy days in June and July, the NYC DEP website showed that the NYC reservoirs have receded from their over-100% capacity earlier this year to about 87% capacity. The “dry spell” is confirmed by their records over the past three months: the amount of precipitation we have received in June, July and now August are all below the average “historical” levels. 

For example, in June we received a total of 3.66 inches of rain compared to the historical average of 4.6 inches; during July 4.19 inches were received compared to the average of 4.57 and during this month of August only 0.41 inches of rain fell as compared to the historical average of 2.08 inches of rain. Our apple trees are showing signs of water and heat stress, with lower branches dying out and leaves dropping off early.

A drive along the Beaverkill and Willowemoc showed such a dramatic drop in volume, even in the tributaries on both streams, over the past few days. The Beaverkill at Cooks Falls hit the 80-degree temperature mark twice, last Tuesday and Thursday - and according to the USGS website, water temperatures at that location never dropped below 70 degrees all week.

Those who wish to fish should try some of the many ponds, lakes and reservoirs in the area, and wait until cooler weather and rain replenish our free-flowing streams. There is no sport in fishing our local streams during these hot, dry days of summer! Even in the unlikely case where an angler does catch a trout, the stress of being hooked, even if released, can result in fish mortality.

However, the tailwaters of the East and West Branches of the Delaware have been a popular destination; hatches include the light-colored typical summer flies, Light Cahills and Sulphurs, the tiny Blue-Winged Olives and various Caddis, some Tricos in the mornings, and occasional Isonychias in the afternoons. Word has it that those who fish with tiny Sulphurs are doing well, even into the evenings. And it is a refreshing change when thermometers rise above 80 degrees to step into cooling waters in the low to mid-50s and cast to rising fish!

A couple of weeks ago Streamside featured part one of a “crash course” description on how to build a bamboo fly rod. John Apgar, Steward of the Catskill Fly Fishing Center’s Rod Shop, generously provided the commentary and instruction. John runs the rod-building classes at the Museum, and had recently completed teaching a rod-building class. Here are the final steps in constructing a rod:

We left off describing how the six strips of bamboo for the butt section are planed: the bamboo is run through a machine that has a straight tapered groove of 60 degrees in it, and you must plane two sides (referred to as the test side) of each strip (the non-enamel side) in the planing form, which you set up for the taper you are building, until no more bamboo comes off either side. Rough out the tip sections on the butt side, then you flip the planing form over and reset that side to your tip dimensions, and repeat the process again until no remaining bamboo comes off any of the six pieces.

The strips are then laid out, and glue is spread on all the planed surfaces that you’ve just finished. Be sure to align the nodes in the correct order that you have decided to set up the rod.

The strips are then bound together - you roll them into a hexagon and run them through the binder. Then they are hung up to dry to let the glue cure. This can be finished overnight or may take a couple of weeks, depending on the type of glue that is used.

After the glue is dry, unwind all the thread from the binder and remove all the excess glue from the outside of the rod blank, then gently sand away all the remaining enamel.

Fit the ferrules and cut the rod to the desired length. The hardware and finish are now applied: Glue on the reel seat and the cork handle, then lay out and place the guides according to the guide spacing chart you are using. Hold the guides in place with a piece of tape over one of the guide “feet”. Pick out the color of thread (silk or nylon) you choose to use. The largest or last guide is called the stripping guide. A common practice with most bamboo rods is to put an agate stone in the stripping guide - John said it’s like the cherry on top!

Next, coat all the thread windings with several coats of varnish. The last procedure is to apply two coats of varnish on the entire rod, either by careful brushing or dipping, and let it dry…..once it has dried, you are ready to use your rod and go catch a fish!

John recommends several books as guides for building a rod: as mentioned previously, at the top of the list is the classic A Master’s Guide to Building a Bamboo Fly Rod by Everett Garrison and Hoagy Carmichael, in addition to the following: Fundamentals of Building a Bamboo Fly Rod (Maurer and Esler), Fly Rods Galore (George Barnes) The Lovely Reed (Jack Howell), Constructing Cane Rods (Ray Gould)Handcrafting Bamboo Fly Rods (Wayne Cattanach) and Best of the Planing Form I and II (Ron Barch), in addition to a number of videos you can find online.

John will be instructing another Bamboo Rod Making Class on August 28 - coming up soon! For more information, please visit cffcm.com, email office@cffcm.com or call (845) 439-4810.

Judy Van Put is a long-time member of the NYS Outdoor Writers Association, and is the recipient of the New York State Council of Trout Unlimited’s Professional Communications Award.