| LAST UPDATE-Today is
Friday, February 5th, 2010 at 9:30 p.m. You can now follow us on twitter-which
will be invaluable in keeping you informed of changing conditions during the
course of the day-for example if it rains and the rivers go off-color. We
haven't had a lot of snow this winter but we have had cold weather.
Right now, rivers have skim ice but most water is open.
However, it is now bitterly cold once again and we do have about 2-3 inches of
snow on the ground. February is usually a snowy
month in the Catskills so snow pack conditions may change. Remember that the fishing season has
officially ended and only the no-kill on the Willowemoc and Beaverkill are open
as well as the border waters on the West Branch and main stem.
However, icy conditions have made for very limited fishing. This report will continue
to be done every Wednesday or Thursday from now until spring when we resume daily reports. Hope you have all had a good
season-for many it was outstanding due to all the rain and the much cooler than
normal temps. Don't forget that fly fest is coming up on February 13th, which is a Saturday. As usual it will be held at the Catskill Fly Fishing Center and Museum from 10 a.m. til 4 p.m. This year we are donating three Collins #1 necks to the event. Three different winners will each receive one. Go to the discussion forum, the tying topic and you will see a number of posts that give you all the other relevant information. Looks like it will be a busy event. Just a reminder for anybody who wants to special order flies for the coming season, now is the time to do so. E-mail us or call the shop and speak with Dennis. ON GAS DRILLING-For more info on this subject go to the discussion board we have posted and updated all the recent events on this subject. You can also go to www.catskillmountainkeeper.org for information as well as the dec website at www.dec.ny.gov/energy. Just want to give everybody a "head's up" on new fishing license prices. Remember that Oct 1st was the start of the new license year. Remember that credit cards cannot be used to purchase licenses-cash only. For residents, a yearly license is $29, a weekly license is $15 and a one day is $5. For non-residents a season license is $70, a one week is $35 and a one day is $15. Please remember that this coming year, for the first time, a separate license is required for salt water-for residents it is $10 for the year and for non-residents it is $15. These are now on sale. If anyone wants to know other license costs, just call us at the shop. For those who fish the Esopus or any other river that has Didymo, go to the discussion forum, subject fishing, and you will see an informational as issued by the DEC of steps to take to prevent the spread of this problem as well as how to clean your gear. Check out the Home Page and the maps available to all. CFS=cubic feet a second
Feb. 5th-Friday 9:30 P.M. |
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| River | Flies | Today's CFS Flow |
Water Temp (°F) |
Fishing Quality |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beaverkill | streamers, nymphs | 515 | 32.2 | ONLY NO KILL OPEN |
| Delaware | streamers, nymphs | 2740--Calliccon, 2210-Lordville | 32.5 | ONLY BORDER WATER OPEN |
| East Branch | closed | |||
| Esopus | closed | |||
| Neversink | closed | |||
| West Branch | streamers, nymphS | 485 | 37.0 | ONLY BORDER WATER OPEN |
| Willowemoc | streamers, nymphs | 309 | 32.1 | ONLY NO KILL OPEN |
| ********** | ||||
The 1st picture on left was taken on our 10th Anniversary. Wayne Elliot, formerly with the DEC, Bob Rumpf and Ed Van Put. The second picture is of comic Robert Kelly and Greg Hughes (Opie of the Opie and Anthony radio show) on a guide trip with Tony on Sept. 28th, 2009. A number of customers are selecting flies in the fourth. A really good time was had by all who attended. The picture of our rod winner, Byron Nekerson, receiving his Sage ZXL from Dennis is now posted. It is the third picture down from the top. New Fourth picture is of one of our customers, Chuck, who took this fish on Sunday, November 7th, 2009 while he and his friend Tom were fishing the Beaverkill. Fifth picture is of Tom with his fish also taken on Sunday, November 7th. Sixth picture was taken by our own Walt Ackerman and shows one of our customers, Stephanie, with a nice fish she took on Sunday, May 10th. Seventh picture is that of one of our customers, Adam W., who took this fish on Saturday, May 28th. It was one of many he landed that day. Eighth picture down is of Walt's customers, Steve, taken on Wednesday May 14th, 2008 while on a guided trip with Walt. Nice fish! Bottom picture was taken by Tony of his customer Alan, who took this fish on Wednesday, May 6th, 2009..
Want to take a moment to thank all of our customers who, especially in these tough economic times, continue to support the shop through their active participation on the Bulletin Board and with their purchasing dollars. With your support we will be there for our 13th year even bringing in some New brands for us. To those who have finished fishing for this year, we look forward to seeing you in the spring.
STREAM CONDITIONS-Fishing update-Friday, Feb. 5th, 2010, 9:30 p.m. It is now 26 cold degrees with mostly cloudy skies. We will NOT get any snow from the coming storm-only areas of south of the Catskills will get impacted. We continue to have little snow accumulation (there is about 2-3 inches of snow on the ground). Skim ice is once again forming on the rivers although most water remains open. February can often be a wet month and conditions can change.
The Beaverkill and Willowemoc- both rivers are at fishable levels but skim ice is once again forming on the surfaces. The West Branch - Only border waters are open for fishing. The East Branch is closed to fishing. The Neversink- is now closed to fishing until April 2010. The Main Stem is still somewhat high. The Esopus is now closed to fishing.
In general, fall fishing was better than in most years due to the warmer than normal air temps. Streamers and nymphs are the choices on all rivers in this cold weather.
TODAY'S WEATHER- It is now 26 degrees with cloudy skies. Tonight a low of 11 with cloudy skies. Tomorrow, Saturday, a high of 24 with mostly cloudy skies, breezy and colder. Tomorrow night partly cloudy and cold with a low of 6.
The gage height is currently 2,81 feet and was 2.73 feet at noon yesterday. The flow on the Beaverkill is now 495 while the normal flow is 305. It is somewhat above normal.
Extended Forecast- Sunday partly sunny, breezy and cold with a high of 24. Monday mostly sunny and 27. Tuesday turning cloudy and 28.
Reservoir Releases-Cannonsville-An agreement reached among all involved parties (including conservation organizations) regarding releases from both the Cannonsville and Pepacton Reservoirs is that for the month of May, daily release will be 215 cfs. Beginning June 1st and for the months of July and August as well, the daily release rate will be 260 cfs. In Sept, the rate of release will decrease. This flex flow management program began Oct 1st, 2007 and will continue for the next three years. However, the exception will be that to meet Montague standards, higher releases will occur at any time to meet the Montague formula. RESERVOIR INFORMATION- Cannonsville 88.0%, Pepacton 86.1%, Neversink 83.4%- Ashokan 93.1%, Schoharie 75.0%, Croton 95.8%, Roundout 90.1% Combined storage was 89.5% as of Oct. 7th. For this date reservoirs are usually at 73.6% of capacity. We are +15.9% above normal reservoir capacity.
Trees are bare and creak in the wind, the ground is white and frozen-nothing too pleasant. Libby wrapped up her grouse and woodcock hunting season (she did really well). We are burning wood like crazy but starting to prepare for spring in the shop.
****If on any given day there is no report published, it means that our server was down early in the morning when we do our report. We attempt to publish every morning between 5 and 6 a.m. and continue to do so daily through October. It could also mean our computer is giving us problems.
Our winter hours are from 9 to 2 or so on Saturdays and Sundays. Remember we are closed in inclement weather. If there is something special you need just call the shop at 607-498-6146 or e-mail us at flyshop@catskillflies.com.
FLY OF THE WEEK
It's the 2009 season and below you will find our twenty first fly of the season. A different fly will run for each week from now through October. If there's a fly you would like to see let us know or better yet, send us a sample with a materials list and we will post it and give you credit.
Mickey Finn
This is a pattern I like when a bright fly is called for. It was first tied by John Alden Knight back in the 1920's and was originally called the Red and Yellow.
• Hook-3XLong #6-#10
*Body-gold tinsel
*Thread-black
*Wings-red and yellow bucktail
*Rib-gold wire
At the Shop
Simms new boots with the Vibram soles are proving very popular. They do the job they were intended to and people really like them. We now carry Mountain Khakis-pants you can hike in, climb in, fish in or just live in.
All species specific flies are tied in the shop. This assures accurate color and silhouette.
The SAGE Z-Axis rod combines near weightlessness with a groundbreaking level of performance. With Generation 5 (G5) Technology, going ultra-light no longer leaves you at the mercy of wind or unexpectedly big fish. The SAGE Z-Axis is an amazingly light fly rod, while increasing strength, smoothness and sensitivity to “line feel.” We love it.
Drop by the shop and give it a try. It has turned out to be a very
popular rod with fishermen. Get ready for the brand new ZXL-which
is slower than the Z-Axis. It is a medium fast action rod which
casts beautifully and comes in a rich mahogany color. The new technology
is amazing.
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