March 10, 2022 – The Consolation Prize is Never That Great – Northampton County Limestoner

Something to pass the time?

Yeah, still no trip to State College this week, and Friday is now off the table too.  As I was arriving late this morning at a limestoner about an hour from home, I got a text from the boy asking to be picked up from school at 10:30 AM because he wasn’t feeling good.  Just cold symptoms, but miserable enough for a kid who doesn’t complain to complain and go to the school nurse.  Thankfully, Tami was home and was able to go get him, but if he needs a sick day tomorrow, I am up because she is due back to the office on Friday.  I guess I am not seeing Sam this week, and next week is booked with work and school stuff, so I may end up fishing solo when I do get out there this month and just giving him a high five at the shop (or maybe a drink or dinner or something).  At least I found the motivation to fish for a few hours today.  I will thank myself tomorrow for this small consolation prize, I am sure.  Even though it was midday and sunnier than forecasted, a few fish were caught.  This creek has not been the same this winter, but I am hoping it is the weird weather this year and not storm damage and added pressure.  There were again spinners and bobbers in the trees today, too.  I guess everyone wants to catch a wild trout, and I can’t blame them, I suppose.  A few olives were active, as well as midges, but not enough of them to get any fish to suspend up and eat.  I had a size 16 pheasant tail soft hackle on the dropper just in case, but all the fish took a bottom rolling caddis larva.

A couple of the target species despite dropping water temps.

I was hoping that it was warm enough and buggy enough to start getting fish outside of the usual winter holes, but I worked a lot of pocket water today in a short time with only one wild brown to show for it.  There was snow in the region this week, and still some left in the shady spots, so the stain may have been the cold kind from melt, but it looked sexy at least.  I did stick another wild brown in a deep hole, and I caught the rare rainbow from this creek too.  I think I have caught maybe three that I can remember, and two of them were tagged fish from a club tourney way upstream or something.  I also landed a tiger here once, but the wild browns used to rule the day exclusively.  This was one of those bows I talked kindly about in my stocker post this month, however.  It had been around a long time by the looks of her.  The fins were perfectly shaped, translucent, and tipped in white, and she fought really well too.  Sadly, because the fish was long but skinny and took the caddis larva in a spot where I have fooled a few good wild browns in the past, it took me a minute to see it was a rainbow in the stained water.  I was a little disappointed, of course, but when I tried to end the fight prematurely, she had other plans.  She was one of those respectable stockers, a rolling stone and a survivor—roughly 16 inches too.

Refused to be underestimated.

I spent a good bit of time at a deep snaggy plunge after that and stuck another average wild brown, but not before losing two nymphs, a jigged bugger, a couple midges, and nearly a bobber too.  That eventually popped up in the tailout and made itself available for a net job.  The water was cold, so the mist and depth of the water (plus losing all that tungsten, of course) chased me back to a couple favorite holes.  I actually caught my first brown of the morning at the head of a favorite pool, but I was convinced that there had to be more fish in the softer water in the back that were not ready to eat the first time through.  As a result, I really took my time and pains not to muddy it up the second time I fished it. I was encouraged to see one or two blue winged olives on the water, too.  Actually, I stopped a few times today at some flatter, dry fly water and just watched and waited for nothing to show.  Maybe another week, or maybe just another day when the snow melt didn’t send most of the fish into shock.  Anyway, I fished the slow, deeper stuff at the back of this hole and eventually hooked a pig.  Okay, to be honest, I did invoke the name of Karen, at this point almost like my pet white sucker.  I may have thought something like, Man, at least Karen must be in that sweet pocket.  Something, anything.  I did that once last year and landed Karen AND a huge stocker brown, the only one I can remember catching in this creek, but that is an improvement on what happened today.  When this pig rolled over after one run, I knew it was not a big brown trout.  It was Karen, but Karen was not alone today.

Karen, Karen, and suitors.

I know that I landed three more suckers in five casts after that.  The smallest was 16 inches and maybe a male suitor.  He actually fought a lot harder than Karen or the slightly smaller Karen twin I also landed.  The females were over 18 inches.  All were hooked on or around the mouth too, so at least THEY were interested in food today.  Or maybe they were territorial because they are spawning.  At any rate, I put quite a bend in the 3 weight and muddied up the hole pretty good.  The chances of getting a wild brown out of here now were slim to none.  I tried two other spots that were dry earlier in the day, but they were still dry, so it would have to be a flurry of eager white suckers that would close out this brief trip.  I did sit and watch a few bugs flit about, hoping that one particular flat near my parking spot might come to life, but it was not happening today.  I figured I would be better off at home checking on the boy and letting Tami get out of the house for a bit if she wanted, so I cut the afternoon short.  On the drive home I came to terms with the reality that I would not be taking the long drive on Friday, but the year is young.  Not counting the one good day Eric and I had last month, I am long overdue for my first slaying of the year, but it will happen eventually, I know.