If you believe the weather forecasters (and this time I want to!) this long, long Catskill cold spell is finally to be broken! We are expected to enjoy high temperatures in the forties for 5 of the next 6 days! Now I would be putting together my tackle and a winter fly box right now if it wasn’t for a few sobering facts of life. Though there has been a little open water recently, I expect that all of the available parking areas are filled with snow, likely piled up with the gifts of the plows, not simply snow covered, yielding open water that I cannot fish.
Yes, there should be some melting, so the parking situation could improve, but we have out of town doctor visits scheduled for two days this week that eliminate any chance of wandering a river. Of the two days I have available, one should be a rainy day, and then the next one drops down to 35 degrees. So much for the momentary excitement I felt when I first saw that forecast!
We had a great turnout for Flyfest yesterday, and I cannot thank Mr. Tommy Roseo and family enough for their hospitality once again. Their Rockland House has been home to many angler’s dinners and event for decades, and they have been friends and supporters of the Catskill Fly Tyers Guild and the Catskill Fly Fishing Center and Museum for the duration. Everyone had a great time and a delicious lunch, topped only by a superb dinner last night!
I had a steady flow of people at my table and enjoyed talking to them and demonstrating a few of my favorite flies. There were so many great interactions that I only managed to tie four dry flies between 10:00 AM and 2:30 PM. Thanks also go out to all of the tyers and to all of the new and renewing Guild members who signed up during the event.
Since I didn’t get many flies tied yesterday, I found myself winding thread again today. I tried a nice dark grizzly cape for the hackling on a Quill Gordon 100-Year Dun, and later tied two pairs of my Translucence Series dries.
I re-blended my silk dubbing for the Isonychia a while back, lightening the original dark claret coloration considerably. The isos are an unusual mayfly. Their bodies often appear olive immediately after hatching, but begin to darken within minutes. The dark claret color so often associated with the species is prevalent in many fly patterns. I fished the hatch successfully for years with a blend of claret dyed and natural beaver upon the advice of my late friend Dennis Skarka, the longtime owner of Catskill Flies in Roscoe. I got a good supply of the claret fur from Dennis, who carefully dyed it himself.
Encountering a massive hatch more than twenty years ago, I had the opportunity to pick a large number of duns from the surface for observation. While the dark claret color predominated, some showed an overwashed effect with tan or olive tinged tan colors on the bottom of the abdomen. Just two seasons ago late in September, I picked a dun off the back of my hand that was tan in color, with claret colored segmentation. All of these experiences led to the changes made to my Translucence blend.
(Photo courtesy Mike Saylor)
Come on spring… only 42 days to go!
Bright Waters Catskill 