By FRAN BETTERS, Focus on Fly-fishing
Press-Republican
---- — This past Wednesday saw the first appearance of the most awaited fly hatch of the year. The Green Drakes began coming off the waters bringing fishermen from around the country to fish this famous hatch.
They are not disappointed when the spinner stage of the flies come down to lay their eggs on the surface. These large ivory bodied flies with their long slender tails and gossamer wings not only catch the attention of the anglers, but their presence on the surface sends the fish into a feeding frenzy.
It often turns into some of the best fishing nights on the river, and many large trout can be taken by those wise enough to wait out the arrival of the spinners as they mate high above the water and come down to lay their eggs.
This often does not occur until just before dark and sometimes even after dark. Many an angler has learned with dismay the next morning that after he or she left the stream early, the spinners came down, and he missed the fishing opportunity of a lifetime.
This hatch usually lasts from a week to ten days and the trout feed on both the dun stage of the fly and the spinners. During this period, there are other hatches occurring on the river as well. You will most likely see lots of Caddis along with some Gray Foxes and Light Cahills.
The abundance of Mayflies and Caddis that occur the entire month of June puts fishing at its best.
This past week, a half dozen fish over 20 inches were reported taken from the West Branch of the Ausable and the Saranac. George Bailey was one of the happy anglers who took a six pound 24 inch brown on a size 16 Sulfur dun. A number of other large fish were taken on brown Haystacks imitating the March Browns. For those just getting into the sport of fly fishing, if you want to insure your best chance of catching a trophy fish, be sure to stay on the river until it gets dark — even a little later — as this is when the larger fish begin to feed. Best patterns to use this week are the Coffin Fly to imitate the spinner stage of the Green Drake and a large size 10 Bomber during the dun stage.
Fran Betters was a fishing and fly-tying legend on the West Branch of the Ausable River and owner of the Adirondack Sports Shop in Wilmington. His wife, Jan, carries on the business where his books, flies and rods can be purchased. Contact Jan at 946-2605.
