To cap off Spring Break I decided to make a day trip to the West Branch of the Delaware River. I invited a friend to join me. Greg never previously fished the WBD. During the drive I enthusiastically described the nirvana attributes of the WBD during late April (wadable water conditions, opportunistic snouts poking through the surface for larger maylies, butterscotch wild browns colors, dancing rainbows and beautiful scenery). There is no river in the United States that I would rather target trout, than the WBD in late April.
The forecast called for lower sixties and ten to fifteen mph winds. The flow at Hale Eddy hovered around 380 cfs and recent reports of dark caddis, blue quills, hendricksons, and dark stoneflies encouraged us. A visit to the friendly guys at the West Branch Angler Resort confirmed promising conditions. The only caveats: heavier angling pressure due to a FUDR One Fly Tournament, hatches later in the day (anytime after 2:30 pm) and the overnight frost cooled off the river. Not wanting to wait hours for dry fly action, we drove to the Lower WBD and hiked to a well known riffle. There were already 3 anglers nymphing the upper run. They were floating the river with a raft and we knew that they wouldn’t spend too much time here. They talked about how great this riffle fished yesterday, w/ smaller hare’s ear and pheasant tail nymphs. After a fish less hour, they gave up and rowed downstream. Greg and I continued to nymph. We nymphed and nymphed, changing flies, prospecting new water, adjusting weights and basically wore out our arms. Over the next four plus hours, we determinedly dropper nymphed this riffle and didn’t land a fish. I lost two after the initial bite, but never managed to solidly hook a fish. There were plenty of blue quills on the water and sporadic tan caddis, but rising trout were ghostly scarce. This awesome riffle was frustrating and skunked us! I can’t recall another time not finding fish here, especially in the Spring or Summer. My best guess is that the cold overtime temperatures stunned the fishing and set things back. That, or the ever present wind gusts shut down rising trout.
It was 4:15 and we hadn’t experienced any promising dry fly fishing! Aargh, what is going on with my beloved WBD? I decided to move us upriver. Around 4:45, we found ourselves at a new stretch with one angler present. As we walked the bank, I predicted to Greg that if we were going to see rising trout, they would be in the shallows, off the first point ahead. It was at this moment, that our trip to the WBD became a joy. Within seconds of my prediction, we observed three solid snouts, gliding about as they engulfed blue quills and henricksons. I dropped to my knees, crawled a few more feet and positioned myself 25′ above the feeding fish. Next, I stripped out line and cast my #14 rabbit’s foot hendrickson emerger. The cast landed six feet upstream and I fed line downstream, purposefully placing the fly in the trout’s feeding lane. The fly appeared to drift in slow motion, as did the large snout and white mouth that absorbed my fly. It was an ideal presentation and a perfect take. I lifted the rod up, the brown shook it’s head and then bolted to the center of the river. Maintaining side pressure and a tight line, I let the fish run and wear down. After a few more light charges, I was able to lift up the fish’s head and guide it gently into my waiting net. This first cast fish measured a legitimate 22″ and was a beauty to admire. After a celebratory whoop and pics, we pulled back from the point and looked for more risers. It was Greg’s turn and I wanted him to savor dry fly fishing for large browns. Soon, he was casting to a brown, twelve feet off the bank. On his eighth cast, the fish slid over and took his fly. This fish fought well and minutes later, Greg admired a buttery 18.5″ brown. It’s always a treat to help a friend unlock some of the secrets to dry fly fishing on the WBD.
Over the next two plus hours, we targeted numerous fish feeding on quill gordons and hendricksons. If the wind kicked down for more than a minute, the rises increased. My snowshoe rabbit emerger pattern fooled a few more trout, then I tied on a foam spinner pattern and duped several more. I wasn’t able to locate another pod of larger fish collectively feeding. Yet, groups of smaller fish were willing to take a well presented surface imitation. I must have hooked another six to eight more fish, with a measured 20″ and 17″ as the largest. Any fishery that provides four wild trout on dry flies between 17″ and 22″ merits special consideration. Add in several smaller browns and rainbows, and you have a joyful fishery. The WBD is a fickle and frustrating fishery, not suited for every angler. I tend to dry fly fish a 16′ leader or longer, cast accurately to feeding fish, impart multiple mends to manage line, wade like a heron and carry an arsenal of fly patterns. There are no guarantees on this river. At the same time, there can be wonderful hatches for robust, wild trout. These fish will bite if you catch the right conditions and bring your A-Game of fly fishing skills. I can’t wait for my next trip to the WBD. Happy Spring and remember to take a kid fishing!
