I was forced to hide from the brightness yesterday, my eyes dilated from my annual eye exam, but today has dawned gloriously bright and clear once more. I am drawn to the appearance of warmth, though I am fully aware of our sunrise temperature, once more in the teens.
I have been watching the river gages more closely of late, noting that the high releases on the Delaware reservoirs have ceased, returning those tailwater rivers to wadable flows. We are forty-seven days from my own awakening, and a reasonable chance of finding wild trout looking toward the surface.
There was floating ice on the mainstem yesterday morning as I drove along PA 191, south toward Honesdale. It was twelve degrees when I left the house near nine, but that sunshine made swift inroads toward dispelling the worst of the chill. The ice floes were absent on the return trip, though the water was still only a couple of degrees above freezing. The river runs at a nice wadable flow, but I know better than to think of fishing there.
This sunshine tries hard to tempt me to the river, though the daytime highs will not reach forty in some of my favorite haunts. Breathing cold air is not in my best interest yet.
I should get my travel kit in order for the weekend, ensure that I have the hooks and materials packed to tie whatever strikes my fancy during the Flyfest celebration. There are times when a visitor asks about a pattern I have discussed here or in the Guild’s Gazette, so I try to have a selection that will allow me to at least come close, if not faithfully reproduce the requested fly. That is always a challenge with a small travel kit.
Of course, I did get a reminder yesterday that it is time to write something for the forthcoming March Gazette, and it seems the right kind of day to take care of that. March is a perfect time to look ahead toward spring and the flowering of a new dry fly season, and that will lift my mood as the memories flow as quick as the ice-free rivers!
Bright Waters Catskill 