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When I was a young and aspiring `rubber jockey / stern squirter’, I cut my teeth fishing the Upper Kennebec and Penobscot Rivers, venturing out to my favorite pools after the dishes were washed and the buses were swept clean. After a quick stop at the local store for some flies and “road sodas’, I would scurry over the rocks with my fly rod to find some rising fish. There are many approaches to catching salmon and brookies on these waters, but I have found several approaches to work effectively. My best advice follows:
Caddis dries, especially olive green and tan bodies around #16 & #18 match the natural tiny ~moth-looking’ guys you see scurrying around the alder trees on the banks of our rivers. Caddis flies hatch in water temps between 52 and 70+ degrees F, which translates into most of June! Caddis are active swimmers an egg layers, so little movement on the surface will actually trigger a strike from an observant fish. Try fishing these dies in the gorges and at the tails of big pools. Use a floating line and a tapered 9’ leader 4x in diameter, and carry some 4x tippet for when you get stripped!
Smelt-pattern streamers, think Grey Ghost, Black Ghost, Montreal Whore, etc. work exceptionally well with a light sinking line at the heads of plunge pools and on the eddy lines of deeper pools i.e. anywhere in Amberjack, Nesowednahunk Falls from river left, Moose Eddy in the gorge on river right, etc.; you get the picture! I like smaller patterns over large when conditions are average in terms of flow. Think: big water, big fly, low water, smaller fly. It is generally accepted that a short leader on a sink line will get a streamer fly down deeper, and produce more action as a result; 7’ 3x in diameter works best.
Always carry a catch and release net and fight fish with respect to their peril. Small fish are hard to release if the fly is deep in their mouth. The general rule is to hold your breath if you have to take the fish out of the water; if you cannot get them free before you gasp, put them in for ten seconds or so, and then give the hook removal `one more shot’. If you still can’t effectively remove the hook, cut the fly close to the hook with a clipper or your teeth and let him live! Theoretically, the hook will degrade or dislodge in a matter of days. Read your regulations book, and remember what our fly fishing godfather Lee Wulff said: “No trophy fish is worth catching only once!” Practice catch and release and you will gain more respect from everyone, especially the fish, as a result. Have fun!
Drift Boat Jones is a full time fly fishing instructor and guide on the Kennebec, Penobscot, and Androscoggin rivers, who utilizes modern techniques and drift boats to explore the remarkable fishery we all share!
Email nick [at] noumbrella [dot] com with your questions, comments and concerns.
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