Week of October 19th 2025: And We're Back - But Mind the Redds!
Week of October 19th: And We're Back - But Mind the Redds!
Thank you to the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, NJDEP website, and in particular the hatchery folks, the truck drivers and volunteers, who make the fall stocking possible. The reports are positive with fish being caught almost as soon as they are in the water. We get to see some larger fish stocked and with water levels being what they are, you can really see them when the sun is right!
Walk carefully and look for spots on the bottom which are the nesting grounds for spawning fish, a redd (Bookmark Troutbitten and this link to learn more about redds.) They are oblong or circular spots in the gravel that have been cleared of algae and debris. Fish ready these for eggs or have deposited eggs which fall between the stones. Do not step on them! Do not fish for the fish hovering around them; let these fish spawn in peace.
Guides have clients on fish with nymphs and egg patterns; some fish may chase streamers in deeper pools. A cautious approach is key so use long leaders but be wary of going below 5x, depending on your gear and comfort level. The brood stock trout from the NJDEP are some impressive fish and the average fish stocked in the fall is between 14 and 16 inches. They’ll spread out as the days and weeks continue, jockeying for their winter slot and feeding in the process.
It took me a few days to bring one to net, with limited time and the mistake of fishing a light tippet too aggressively. Hey, it’s been a while. I used a mop with a heavy bead to sink a blue tungsten bead on a #18 curved hook with UV2 Roe yarn in white (orange beads with pink are killer - and I have it on good authority that apricot is too). The time was early in the AM and, after losing two in two days, it felt good to hold a trout again.
The two I lost were later in the day on different days, making easier to come up with all sorts of excuses for not catching tons of fish immediately: they are full from eating since dawn, the sunlight makes them skittish, they had been pounded with fall day. I eventually come around to face the fact I have to play my part too. The first I lost may have been what I call an “exciting snag.” A quick take from (obviously) a huge fish that breaks off with a hook set. The next time out I changed leaders after I realized the daisy-chain I was working with was not worth the money I was saving on leaders. To extend my new leader a few more feet, I added two more feet of tippet. I was sight fishing for fish feeding in the middle of the water column and they had ignored everything I threw, so with the new leader I decided on a bugger which I planned to swing and strip through. It worked and my heart raced and the knot broke where the two lines had met moments before. No excuses for that one. I left and thought about what they had been feeding on and went back to the bench.
Here’s what I am going to try next late afternoon out:
Fly tying 101 and open tying nights in the shop begin in November. Can’t wait that long? Join South Branch and the New Jersey Fly Tyers Guild at Sunken Silo on October 30th.
Be safe out there - the rocks are slick and there seems to be a large number of yellow jackets along the banks. See you out there, Roy B.