Welcome back.
The river was in great shape yesterday as far as flow and color were concerned. Temperature was not the best, but it has also been worse. Today will likely be the last of the decent water for this latest river rise. After today, I would expect low, clear, and cold water. Thats three strikes on the Mad!
I dropped in around 11AM and was disappointed to see my walk was being walked. Since my ride was on the way, I decided to stick to my plans and do what I tend to do...relax, and hope to get at least one.
It was cold, in case you didn't get that, it was cold...I must be getting wimpy as I age because it seems every year it takes longer to get my "Steelhead" hands. This year with limited fishing I have no cold hands tolerance. A friend, Phillip did advise IceBreaker gloves. I will be giving these a try. I have more gloves than my wife has shoes!
I began the day with a top of the water column presentation and was having no luck with every color presented. I decided to get the fly down and that seemed to do the trick. Totally opposite of how I would normally fish the conditions, but, never draw absolutes with anything. There is always a time and place to look at other tactics.
Eventually I found out they wanted a slow or no presentation. Once again, way outside of my normal fishing technique.
I ended up with three to the net. 19 inches topped the tape and the other two were in their mid teens. I did not measure them because it was cold...I only measured the 19 because I thought it may have been 20 inches or so (look at the shoulders on this guy). Did I mention my hands were cold :). I missed a double take and one other, seeing both, they too were in there mid to late teens. That made for a nice day on the water. Took a bonus chub and snagged a poor Sucker to round out the Mad River "Trifecta" :).
It was a great day to get out. I know a couple of others did as well and had a tough day fish wise. So if you were on the water and were skunked, know other good anglers had the same result. In the end I think it was about figuring them out...thats what I seem to have a knack for.
The next forecasted rain is Thursday and the temperatures are supposed to be in the 50's and 60's the whole time. This should kick the river into overdrive; both fish and fishermen will be in a frenzy. Good luck finding unmolested waters but if you do, you have a great chance at a big score.
Please remember to catch and softly release. These fish do not belong on a wall!. Take a good photo or two and the fish can be recreated for a lifetime of enjoyment. They are also not going to be good eating if they are big. If you must sink your teeth into a Mad River Brown please make it a one or two year old...about 12-14 inches. That said, the best fish in the area is at the fish farm upriver...eat all your Omega 3 from there if you would.
Be safe on the water!
About Me
- Ron Lewis
- Fairborn, Ohio, United States
- My name is Ron Lewis. I consider myself to be an avid fly fisher and have migrated towards quality over quantity these last few years. Not that going out and catching a half dozen Browns on the Mad River is a bad thing...I am just hooked on the high I receive while bringing a 28" Brown to hand, or have a day when eighty-one inches of fish are released in three hours. And yes, these feats were accomplished on the Mad River in Ohio. If you find yourself in the area get in touch. Also, be sure and look up Ohio Trophy Trout Hunter on Facebook and join the group. Guide Rates: Bridge to Bridge - $250 Custom Walks - $Call for Pricing Instruction on the Mad River - $200 (Instruction on the river consists of a personal assessment of the anglers skill sets, and then formulating a 3 hourish lesson designed for targeted angler improvement.)
Saturday, March 28, 2015
Tuesday, March 24, 2015
Ohio Trophy Trout Hunter on Facebook!
Be sure and join the group Ohio Trophy Trout Hunter on Facebook.
No political rants...I promise...just poor writing and bad photography along with sketchy information. It's defiantly worth your time.
Be sure and invite your friends as well.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/736396083115178/
#ohiotrophytrouthunter
No political rants...I promise...just poor writing and bad photography along with sketchy information. It's defiantly worth your time.
Be sure and invite your friends as well.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/736396083115178/
#ohiotrophytrouthunter
Photo Dump...
It's the Mad River
Let's talk about the Mad River.
We finally received the rain the forecasters
forecasted. I lost count of the 1" to 3" forecasts that ended
with little more than a wet road. If only my profession allowed this
level of accuracy. OK, enough of my ranting.
The river spent a week flowing over 1000 cfs, which
was desperately needed. I do not remember ever walking the river in
January and having to worry about sending mud trails downstream until this
year. I am happy to announce this is no longer an issue. Due to snowmelt
and rain, levels approached the 4000 cfs mark and returned to "safe"
fishing levels after roughly 5-6 days. The snowmelt did leave the water
very cold, so our normal winter warm-up feeding frenzy did not occur. Flowing 550 cfs and possessing a deep emerald
green color, the Mad began steadily producing fish Wednesday 18, 2015 and
promptly ended this awesomeness around Friday 20, 2015...crazy stuff.
I believe the main culprit here was clarity.
Between my 3.5-mile walk on the Wednesday and our multi-bridge float on
Saturday, the water was crystal clear and only the deepest of holes held color.
Even at flows over 400 cfs on Saturday, the water clarity was a certain
issue.
The other bearing issue was river population...not
population of gilled critters...population of rod wielding types! I am
not complaining. I love seeing the river utilized and respected.
Just please refrain from fishing in front of me :).
Scott Smallwood and I floated his new Ransom and
had the privilege of meeting many of you on the water Saturday. We
commented several times how the trip was awesome and that we were spending more
time anchored and talking to other fishing folk (cannot use fishermen since we
met Bill and Kelly on the water) than we were casting.
Joy comes in many forms!
So lets get down to productivity....
Wednesday I walked a couple of bridges but spent
almost all of one bridge out of the water due to impassable runs. I
passed up a lot of great water in this section. I did get to stay in the
water the entire second bridge and managed a 21" as well as a
17"...very respectable and much needed. I met Todd on this walk and
on the Saturday float. This was another bonus; we are planning some
future excursions in Indy as well as here on the Mad, and I like fishing with
new people.
Saturday, we didn't do as well with the fish.
I had one decent streamer hit and miss in a run, and one 10" nymph
to hand in a hole. I will still remember the float for a long time
though.
If you have not had the opportunity to float and
fish you are missing a lovely experience. There is nothing like standing
above the waterline and being able to see most everything that is going on
around you. It truly is a great experience, so, if you are on the fences
about getting a boat, please do it, then, invite me along :). That was a lot of commas!
I am sure I have forgotten a few things in here I
meant to bring up but I will close with this note to safety. The river
has changed! If you were on it two weeks ago, it is not the same river
today, and will not be the same tomorrow due to a lot of structural
rearrangement. If you cannot see the bottom please walk with caution.
Brian and I did do some short walks at 750 cfm and I have to say there
were a few concerns. I have walked this river in way higher flows for
many years and know it better than most, and I am telling you to be cautious
this season out of great concern.
Please look up and find my new Facebook group
titled Ohio Trophy Trout Hunter
(https://www.facebook.com/groups/736396083115178/). This is purely a
fishing related informational group, and you will not have to suffer my
political rants...just my poor writing skills and a few awesome pictures.
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