Week of May 9, 2026: Everyone's favorite: Sulphurs and PEDs
Week of May 9, 2026 - Happy Mother’s day; Sulphur and PEDs
Happy Mother’s day to all the mom’s out there! To those moms who fish or tolerate us who do, we thank you for the life, love, and support selflessly given.
Happy belated May Day! I hate to miss a report, and especially one in the Spring, but I took some time off for an annual trip to Penn’s creek in Pennsylvania’s Bald Eagle State forest. I love fishing big rivers; they offer challenges and opportunities that test skill and endurance. Poe Paddy campground offers access to wild brown trout and has clean amenities and a group camp site. This year it was cold and windy the first few days and nights (down to 30 degrees), but everyone in the group was catching and by Monday we were in tee shirts. The bugs we wanted to see fish eating really show up, but the caddis did and fish were caught on nymphs, dries and streamers. There were mayflies around and, looking up, we could see March Browns that looked like swallows. The sulphurs came out just as I was getting ready to leave and the fish started to pay attention to sulphur nymphs and wets.
When I got my cell signal back and checked what was up back home, I learned the sulphurs had started popping in NJ, too. A good hatch was reported on Thursday evening. It's many of anglers favorite hatches here in NJ, but things are getting tougher when it comes to catching. The stockies have wised up to eating aquatic insects and are getting more selective. Early in the morning, we are seeing BWO taken from the film and tiny pheasant tails working when nothing else seems to. Caddis are coming off throughout the day. Depending on conditions, you could see sulphurs show up, but the likely time is late. If sulphur duns are on the water, but not getting takes, try a BWO or caddis emerger. PEDs and PMDs are deadly in the waning daylight when fished like WD40s, RS2s, Lenny’s Fat Lady midge (or other dark midges) trailing a caddis dry. Early and late are the best times for witnessing numerous rises. Leeches and buggers can find fish in between the blooms of bugs and, of course, “when in doubt, mop it out.”
Weather wise we will see rain this week and it will stay cool. Nothing could be better. I fished through the rain on Saturday and was catching fish with some consistency.
For my wife, Mother’s day came early and we enjoyed an evening with our kids before seeing my mom on Sunday. More to the point, the late afternoon and evening cleared up and, according to tyer and fellow weekend clerk, AJ (check out his instagram for new tying videos), the water began a slow boil with rising fish. It pays to stay out until the magic hour.
Sunday morning began with some clouds and random sprinkles, but the fish were active early. BWOs and OWBs (olive wooly buggers) worked before I had to open up. I saw several fishing working a run and got them on the swing with a #18 BWO Transitional Dun wet fly we have here at the shop; spend some time checking out the wet fly section and don’t skimp on the caddis - try the Deep Six caddis pupae as an anchor fly in the AM. To end this morning’s session I stripped a wooly bugger through deep pools making my way back to the parking lot and picked up a few more that came up from the depths or from behind rocks.
Looking ahead, this week looks primo. It stays cool and cloudy with some rain possible on Wednesday. After that, it will be sunny and cool until next week when we can see temps in the 80s. There’s plenty of water to fish now, but without more rain and higher temperatures it could be dicey if the water gets too warm.
See you out there,
Roy B.