Last Trip In NY- Battenkill

Next Friday I'll be headed across the country to the University of Montana. On Tuesday and Wednesday Chris Stiles and  I fished the Battenkill for my last trip in New York. We started fishing streamers. The flow was low, but with an add on sink tip I was able to get the fly down to the fish in the deeper runs and pools without bouncing on the bottom. While Chris drove downstream I decided to fish down to where he would be. I got to a nice riffle that runs into a deep run. I worked the head of the run and then began to fish the middle. I casted at a slight angle upstream and mended to give my fly time to sink. On about the third cast, just as my line tightened in the current and began to swing, I had a big take. It was very decent fish and I played him well into the shallows. I didn't put the tape to him but I estimated this brown to be around 17 inches, a very decent Brown for the Battenkill.

When I met up with Chris he told me he had missed a couple nice fish in a large pool. Later that evening as we continued to fish, the fish started to become much more active. We fished into the darkness and Chris and I both missed a couple nice fish. Then as the moon began to rise Chris hooked into a very nice fish. We only got one glimpse at the fish before it spat the hook. It was a big loss but it was overall a successful day/evening. It was very interesting fishing late at night. The winds we're really blowing and the only way we could really see was from the light of the moon. It was a great night fish.

Day 2 was not what we had hoped. We drifted a section of the river that we had never fished before. It was a beautiful stretch of river with many deep pools and nice runs. However, fish were scarce and we didn't experience many hits on the day. I had one nice fish on early in the morning but the hook pulled a few seconds into the fight. Overall it was a very slow day and the water temps were warmer than the upstream sections of the river, which could be the cause of the lack of fish.

Even though it was a slow second day, it was a great trip and I enjoyed every bit of it. I've had the privilege of fishing with Chris for the past 2 years and I have learned so many things from him. He's a great guy, great friend and great fishing partner. His knowledge of fly fishing the southern and central Adirondacks is second to none. Thank you Chris. And so ends my time in New York for now. I'll soon be off to Montana where I'll still be chasing fish, every day that I can.