plans for april 1st

[Brad]

so where's everyone going for opening day of trout season??? i still dont know the area very well but i'd like to find somewhere close (im in potsdam) where theres some good stream fishing...and if anyone is around the potsdam area and doesnt have anyone to go fishing with send me a message and i'll prolly be up for it

[forevrwyld]

If its not ice bound, try the St. Regis River around Hopkinton. You will cross the West Branch of the St. Regis on your way there, and it looks real nice, but don't be fooled.

I won't be there, too many trouts in CNY to stalk, but interested in your results. Fish deep, fish slow, think like a stone fly!

'Ev

[aaronlawson]

I just scouted out some brooks near my house (Black Creek and Mill Creek in the town of Ohio) and all of them are largely ice-bound! I thought I would have a great opening day here because of the small amount of snow we got this winter but if the cold doesn't end soon the ponds and rivers will have ice issues on the 1st.

I'm hoping to try some hike-in ponds early season when they ice-out, I'll probabaly see Forevrwyld out there too somewhere -he's in this neck of the woods.

[forevrwyld]

I drove down from Indian Lake on Monday and crossed over many of the stream Aaron mentioned, a week ago I was psyched for opening day, but it seems winter has returned. Long range forecast is for more of the same, and I don't see much stream fishing going on in the southern ADKS's (except perhaps West Canada Creek) on April Fools Day. Oh well, that's normal anyway...and it wouldn't be right if we got into heavy action before the end of April.

A sorded convoluted plan seems to be developing for a trip up the Oswegatchie into the Five Ponds sometime later in April. Seems to involve heavy lifting of materials to repair lean to's, fly fishing with panther martins tipped with worms??, brook trout in a hot oil bath, and beer

Did I mention beer?

Prowling Little Woodhull Creek with a JP Ross 2/3 beaver meadow tipped with my favorite BH Zug Bug sounds a little better !!

But ...... "Whatever it takes!"

'Ev

[Ordin Aryguy]

Late April. Five Ponds. Leanto. Heavy lifting. Hole digging. FISHING. BEER.

There's a chance we will probably meet up then, 'Ev.


Ordin

[wildbrookies]

I`ll be staying home and then going to my nieces first B-day party!!!!

I won`t be missing much,I never catch trout until they become very active.....some time in May...

But, .......Good Luck to all whom venture out on that foolish first day of April...

[serotonin]

I won`t be missing much...
But, .......Good Luck to all whom venture out on that foolish first day of April...

Hey WB... got any good advice for guys just gettin' in from winter...?
To Tell you the true, I pity the fools in April too.
The fishin' was Much better las' mun'h.

[wildbrookies]

Ah come on Sero...you are a very huge exception...I had a feeling I might tempt you to bite ....actually, a guy like you can catch trout any day of the year!! Rain, cold, sleet, snow squalls,you name it .....we`ve seen pictures of you beaching abnormally large trout along with your guide , of course.....Miss Daisy. all year round!!!!

And to make more excuses....its just seems that its very hard to get anything to move around here until May ....when I was a wormer( I hate even talking about those days )....I had a tough time in early April with them also ....there are a few spots you might dredge one up ,if you are lucky, but, after years and days of skunkings through April, my brother Marzrw, has finally convinced me to just give it up and sit tight ....usually our first trout will succumb to a fly up north, seems they are more resilient in colder water ....especially wild brookies ....but, I will keep the faith and maybe sneak out on the warmest day in April and shake out the kinks in my pitching arm... but, don`t be waiting for any juicy reports of my bro and me slewing trout around the month of April...having one bump our fly, would be a huge success story....I`ll be rooting for you guys though....don`t be afraid to post your reports...I don`t mind seeing everybody do well...it gets my blood flowing and maybe it`ll get my gander up enough to take to the waters around here...

Wb...

[Gman]

In early spring I drive south till I find a place that looks and feels like spring....just kidding. Although I might have tried that a time or two.

I try to find a creek that is predominately spring fed and not influenced as much by runoff. It'll be lower, warmer and clearer. Also that creek has to have a good population of wild or holdover trout. Streams that depend of stocking won't have many fish for a month or so. I'm certain there are a few creeks like that near Potsdam.

[ADackR]

so where's everyone going for opening day of trout season??? i still dont know the area very well but i'd like to find somewhere close (im in potsdam) where theres some good stream fishing...and if anyone is around the potsdam area and doesnt have anyone to go fishing with send me a message and i'll prolly be up for it

hey, my wife (ADKsara) has family in Canton and we havn;t been up to see them in a while.. so, i might drop you a line as the time gets closer...

if not, i would suggest going to St. Regis and take a left then your second right. this will take you along the East Branch of the St. Regis. after traveling down the road a bit you'll see the river.. if you keep traveling you come upon some falls... this is a pretty good spot, bring waders... then from there fish down stream all the way back to hopkington on RT. 11...

this is a great wild area, i'm sure you've been through it... this is one of my favorite spots...

later...

[Old Rivers]

Personally I don't think it's a coincidence that trout season opens in Adirondacks on April Fools Day. I have been fortunate to catch only a few early season trout in Daks and that is usually only on very small streams in isolated "Honey holes" with worms or salted minnows.

[Nessmuk]

The only fishing I do successfully in April is ice out pond fishing. There is still 18 inches of ice out there, so I bet ice out won't be till the 3rd weekend in April. So, its quite likely I will not go out on the 1st. But come April 21st I'll be hiking in with the float tube....gotta love ice out fishing! Last May I shared a pond with a moose!! It was nothing short of awesome!

As a side note, I'm brewed up 5 gallons of my "Black Fly Buzz" Dark Lager this winter....it should be ready about the time the little flies arrive (about May 15th)...Black Fly Buzz....for when they drive ya to drink! My "Ice Out" IPA is prime right now, and my new homebrew "Tip Up Madness", a bohemian lager should be done by the end of the month. This weekend I'll have a honey ale with a touch of spruce in the brew kettle....its a great summer brew! Last month in the Home Brewer magazine they featured an article about fishing and beer....a perfect match!

[wildbrookies]

Been wonderin` where you been Nessmuk....now I know, you`ve got that brewery smokin`!!!! Wait`ll my bro Marzrw reads your post, I`m sure he`ll have somethin` to say about your brews ....I love the names you chose for them...do the individual beers resemble their names alittle?

Wb

[Nessmuk]

I been checking into the forum from time to time through the winter. That ice fishing hobby got the best of me this year...so most of my posts were over on the Ice Shanty Forum. But the ice is on its way out and when I saw this thread I just had to jump on in! Even though we still have snow up here spring is definitely in the air...and I hope aaronlawson is right...not much of a snow pack may create an earlier stream fishing opportunity around here! But I know the ice is still out there.....and that is going to take some time to break up. I stand at my mid April estimate for ice out.

As for the beers...my 'Ice Out' IPA hits the palate with a crisp smack of fuggles hops....it is truly refreshing. The Black Fly Buzz is a rich, malty dark lager...but it packs a sneaky little punch....kind of like those pesky flies. And since this was my maiden voyage into the ice fishing world I brewed up a bohemian lager and had to name it 'Tip Up Madness' in honor of my new found sport. I ice fished all but one weekend from January through March 9th....and finished the season off with a 3 day ice fishing blitz on Piseco and Sacandaga....what a blast...we hit it just right...it was sunny, warm, with venison and onions simmering on the stove and homebrew chillin on the ice....and of course nothing beats seeing 20+ flags go up. For once its a bitter sweet sight to see the ice go out...but my heart has always been with the fly rod so I welcome the change.

[wildbrookies]

Ness,
Sounds to me like you are pretty hooked on this new winter sport....glad you stayed with it ...alot of people don`t hang in there after they have a few skunkings...way ta go! ... Also, I`m impressed with how many fish you iced in your first year ....awesome...great memories and nice to read back in your fishing diary of those kind of entries....

Also, I think this could be a pretty good early trout fishing season...depends alot on the level of the rivers,if the spring rains come and blow them out, then we would have to wait....but, my personal early season villain is the water temp ... can`t seem to entice a trout to my fly until the temps. are in the 50`s....we`ll have to see how mother nature treats us in the month of April...

And....glad you described those new beers to us.....they sound delicious...boy, you are one busy person, now with your new found sport of ice angling on top of flytying/flyfishing, and brew making and hunting....sounds like a great way to enjoy life ....good for you...keep intouch this April and good luck!!!

Tightlines,tightflies

Wb