More Salters, and a Big Surprise

On Friday I went back down to the Cape for some Salter fishing. I'm back in MN now, so I decided to try to fish where my odds would be highest before I left. It was between Salter streams and the Swift, but I think I made the right choice.

Spring-fed waters allow green plants to grow year round

I caught 4 brookies out from under the brush in this bend pool

I started out around 8 AM, when it was about 25 F. The fish were not as aggressive as last weekend, so a slower retrieve was key. Once I figured that out, I consistently found fish in deeper water. I got more than one fish from several pools, so I think the fish may be podding up for winter in the deeper pools.

After catching quite a few brookies, I found myself at the pool below. It looked like nice water, but nothing special.

I let my fly drift by the woody debris in the water, when I saw a sudden flash. I pulled up, and saw an enormous fish on the other end of the line. I thought it was the salter of a lifetime, but as I got it closer I saw a flash of pink. Fortunately, the stream was small enough that there was no room for the fish to run, so I was able to land the rainbow quickly, even on my 2 weight.

This stream isn't stocked, but the pond at its source, 2 miles upstream, is. So even though it's a stocker, it's pretty cool to see it where I caught it. Also it's by far the biggest fish I've ever caught out of a stream this small.

After the rainbow I caught a few more brookies, then moved on to another stream. I knew the tide would be rising when I arrived, so I decided to check out the mouth of the stream at the bay. I've never caught a fish there, but I know the fish are there at least some of the time, so I decided it was worth a shot. I didn't catch anything this time either, so I moved upstream to more familiar waters. The tide was high, but I managed to get one nice fish out of the murky waters. After that I called it a day, leaving in time to beat rush hour traffic home.

Largest of the day - caught in the estuary at high tide