4-7-10

Started the day late... Didn't get on the water til after 11am this morning.
Conditions:
Overcast/Breezy
Air temp: ~46F
Water temp: ~49F
Clarity: Clear

Not much was going on on the Pine today.. rocks examined showed very little for nymph action. Saw a few trout rising but could not tell what they were feeding on as there was no obvious hatch going on nor was there a sign of one. The day itself was not very productive either. 2 browns.. 1 fat 12"+ brown hiding under the cut that took on a #16 copper brassie. Both were taken on brassies. Sucks when you lose what they are hitting and cannot find any thing else suitable.

A fool... I am not

Got out on the south fork on 3-31 and 4-1. Stream conditions were good. Two amazing days that resulted in amazing fishing. 31st I fished by "The Million Dollar Bridge" caught an assortment of browns and brookies. Weather was amazing. Started my day at 8:30am. Was cool and sunny; around 50F as the day progressed though the day got warmer(mid-70s), brighter and the bite got better. Trout were taking on a Zug Bug that a wayfaring fisherman gave to me that morning that had good success until I lost it to the stream. Changed up a couple times and finally got them hitting on a variety of flies: #12 Orange Hare's Ears, #12-14 BH Pheasant Tails, #12 Brown Mini-bugger, #10 BH Prince Nymphs. No significant hatches were going on throughout the 8hrs i spent on the stream that day. Bite was definitely good and it was a great adventure. Before I had only fished this section of the south fork from the gate to the bridge with spinning gear. This time around was a whole other story. After getting some pointersfrom another angler earlier in the day I had decided to venture further upstream than I had been before. Resulting in some amazing scenery and great fishing. After I was done at the south fork i headed back towards Rushford and fished a favorite stream of mine for the remainder of the day. The day prior a tip from a friend had mentioned the spotting of and success of fishing a stonefly nymph. Using a #10 20 incher i was able to get hooked into a nice run of trout to top of an already excellent day of fishing.

April Fools, I got up a little later in the day. First day of Spring C&R. That means all streams are open in Southeaster Minnesota. This was a great day because it allowed me to finally fish a stretch of stream that i have wanted to fish ever since trout season closed. I wasn't the only one obviously thinking this as when i showed up there was one car already parked at the bridge in Choice. By the time i had entered the stream another car had arrived as well. Normally I seem to be the only fisherman on this stretch most of the year, which i am perfectly ok with =) Another day of venturing into unsung territory to me and it again turned out to be a great success. What i once didn't venture because of what seemed like boring water made way for an amazing treasure after walking into the spot about a 1/4mile. Again, browns and brooks hitting on #10 prince nymphs.. didn't even bother with putting anything else on. That is until i ran out of princes. This gave me a chance to use my new mini-buggers. Tied on #10 black mini-bugger and went for a walk. Got into some amazing scenery and even more amazing water. Riffles for a good 1/4mi and deep limestone boulder riffles. Trout willingly took the bugger and they were nothing far from short. All 12"+ and a couple around 16"