WRITING ON THE FLY
By George Liset
Even though it is mid-September, and the official start of fall is just a few short days away, I am not giving up on summer. The cold mornings and warm sunny days is a sure sign of what is around the corner. I have just finished stacking some cord wood for the fireplace and I am ready for fly tying season, but I’m not that ready.
When my college friends, Linda and John Duncan invited me up to Alton to see their new building site, I packed my truck with my fishing gear and headed north. John and I played football together in college. His wife Linda is proof that football players can get smart and beautiful women to marry them.
Their new house is being built right in the middle of some good fly fishing. There is a great bass pond just a stone’s throw away and Lake Winnipesaukee is at the bottom of the hill. Hopefully the house will be done by spring. After we caught up I headed down to Alton Bay to check out the Merrymeeting River.
I was hoping that the hard rains from the previous night might have helped the water levels and cooled the water a little, but no luck. This summer was really dry on the Seacoast and Southern New Hampshire. The rivers, streams and brooks are at a trickle. The trout ponds and lakes are fishing pretty well. I thought that the conditions on the rivers that flow into Winnipesaukee might be a little better to entice the Salmon to come up early this year. Last year the Salmon didn’t start running until the last week of the season which left a lot of anglers disappointed.
Unfortunately, it doesn’t look much better this year.
After checking out the water temperature, I decided to wet wade the river. After putting together my Orvis three weight Superfine rod, I tied on a foam Hopper with a size twenty Tiger Nymph for a dropper. From past experience I knew there would be a number of small pan fish swimming around.
Three casts later a mighty four inch Perch was bending my fly rod. Now, I know what you are thinking, how does he do it? Just say it is a gift. The next hour or so I worked my way up the river catching more Perch, a BlueGill and some smaller Sunfish. These small fish are fun to catch on a light fly rod. If you are lucky enough to get a bigger fish on a light rod it can be an adventure.
Last year I caught an eighteen inch Pike on my light rod on the Merrymeeting River. I had all I could do to keep him from breaking my light tippet. You never know what you can find lurking in the weeds or under fallen trees. Every cast is followed by anticipation of what could be.
Walking back to the truck I thought it would be a couple more weeks and a few rain events before I would need to check out the rivers that flowed into Wnnipesaukee for Salmon. I was planning on heading to Mount Washington Valley next week; however, I might just get the urge to want to catch some more of those four inch monsters on a light rod. Just saying!
George Liset of Dover is an award-winning outdoor writer and avid fly fisherman who shares insights of his time on the water exploring New Hampshire streams and rivers as well of those around New England. George is a graduate of Wheaton College, Illinois, and the University of New Hampshire. His column Writing on the Fly has been honored by the New England Press Association and the New Hampshire Press Association.