Late July Fly-fishing Report Update

Hi folks, I have a few little details to cover before I get started.

First of all, I added a April/May/June report for local southwest Maine rivers and streams with photos and video. It was posted in calendar sequence after my latest post, so if you missed it, scroll back.

Second, if you are on Instagram but not following me, you should, because I provide real-time fishing and related outdoor updates almost everyday. @mainelyflyfishing.com

Third, if you like stickers, check out the cool Maine outdoor stickers my daughter is selling, along with other outdoor related items. www. reclaimedsignco.com

Just a few of many stickers available. Also check out all of her merchandise at Cool As A Moose stores.

Fourth, my book, “Flyfisher’s Guide to New England” is pretty much out of stock everywhere. An updated edition is currently stuck on a boat somewhere on the West Coast waiting to be unloaded. Hopefully, back in stock by early September. In the meantime, you can upload an electronic Kindle version on Amazon, and LLBean and Trident Flyfishing might have a few left. Don’t forget my other books though. “In Pursuit of Trophy Brook Trout?” does outline all of the places that trophy brook trout can be found, along with technique and tactic information.

Fifth, I did a little guiding in June, mostly teaching fly-fishing beginners. For example, I took Thomas out to various spots on the Presumpscot River, and before we were done he landed his first trout on a fly and learned how to fish dry flies and the different approaches for nymph fishing. So much fun to watch someone hook their first few fish with new skills required.

Thomas with first trout. The brown took a pheasant tail nymph.

Now onto the update…..

July weather couldn’t have been more different than March, April, May, and June. Massachusetts saw flooding rain several days and certain locations broke July rainfall records. Western Massachusetts rivers were over their banks. Most of Northern New England received good rain as well. In Windham, Maine where I live part of the year, we had over 5 inches of rain. The western Maine mountains missed the early July rainstorms but did receive some decent rain later on. Flows did not increase significantly through mid July and remained low, but I hope they have improved since then. I haven’t been in the Rangeley area for several weeks so I need to get an updated report, but for most of New England, the drought is over.

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For most of July, with river flows ridiculously low, western Maine mountain fishing consisted of hitting the lakes and ponds or fishing the lower Mags, Upper Dam, or Middle Dam. Since hatches started early this year, they ended early as well, so sporadic Hexes and misc. caddis provided most of the action on lakes and ponds.

Drake hatches are frequently concurrent with Lupine blooming. When the Lupine are done, so are the major hatches.

We did catch many nice-sized brookies and salmon by fishing the thermocline with sinking line and streamers. We went out to drop-offs when it was windy. We cast full-sink lines with Cosohammer streamers, let them sink 20 feet or so, and then retrieved them halfway to the surface, before letting them sink again. We would do this several times until we cast again. Because of the wind drift, we covered new territory with every cast. Fishing was exactly fast, but several times an hour, we would feel the heavy thump of a good fish on the line.

You can catch nice trout in the middle of a bright summer day, but you have to go deep for them.

I saw good fish being caught at Upper Dam (usually by one angler who happened to be at the right place, at the right time, with a fly pattern that intrigued the salmon.} The flows were low below Azischos Dam so the fish couldn’t really hide from the anglers. Persistent anglers did well. On a family fishing trip, Will Folsum landed a 3 pound plus brook trout at Mailbox Pool on a small black nymph while the river was flowing at 750 during a weekend kayaker release.

With water low and warm throughout Maine, many switched to the salt in pursuit of stripers. I caught them randomly while doing other things. Caught a few kayaking Scarborough Marsh and a few after swimming of the dock at the Cumberland Town Beach. My buddy, Will, going over the Cousins Island Bridge, spotted out of the corner of his eye a school of stripes smashing bait on the surface, stopped his truck, pulled his bass rod out of the back, and caught a few nice ones.

Every year I kayak Scarborough Marsh for stripers
This might have been the smallest striper I have ever caught.