Big Doings on the Shad Run

Lifetime memories made on the Shad Run

It's a treat to introduce someone you care about to one of your favorite fishing experiences, and so it was for Henry and I, after a monster day on the shad run on Saturday, to bring Izzy to the rodeo on Sunday. 

Hen points from casting rock to the strike zone

The Shad weren't as aggressive, but they were still running by our feet in untold multitudes as we pushed into the current on slippery rock-perches leaning from Fredericksburg toward eagles nests and osprey perches on the Falmouth side.    

Early sun rise over Falmouth, VA

The streamer of choice was a Fritz-inspired #6 streamer 1x hook w a short white maribou tail, a body of red chenille, heavy dumbbell eyes w a bit of flash worked into the body.  




Izzy, perched mid-flow on our casting rock hooked 8-10 shad before she got the rhythm of hookset and retrieve and had a wide and warm Ritchie smile on her bright face as she brought to hand her first unassisted Shad.  

Izzy backs and glory (and dries off) after her first shad

What a treat for Henry and I. Interspersed with Izzy refining her technique  were moments of wonder and humor.  When rays of sun peaked through the clouds they illuminated swarms of shad right at our feet staging in holding water before racing up the next chute.   For anyone, but for Izzy in particular, it was amazing to see the shad massed inside her pole tip.  

 This shad video is amazing

Dad-help-sacrifice led to great humor as Hen, in an attempt to free Izzy's snag, tipped off the casting rock and like batman diving off a Gotham skyscraper plunged into the main channel up to his neck no doubt concerning the shad as well.  Heroically holding Izzy's 50.00 rod high and safe he lost his grip on his expensive Sage-Orvis outfit into the swift flow as his waders filled and he was swept toward the rapids.  After choice exclamations commingled with nervous laughter from Izzy and I (and shouts of worry from an upstream angler) his toes found purchase on hidden rocks and he angled his way to safety.   Once we knew all were safe and we couldn't get any wetter :-) we saw Henry's fluorescent yellow line glistening in the black water and were able to catch the line with a boot toe and pull line, rod and reel back to safety.  Rod recovery compete, we made our way back to dry rocks to regroup and only then as Hen started to emerge from the water did we realize that his waders keep water in as well as they keep water out!  Picture a water balloon filled to its max.   Hen + water must have weighted +600 lbs and he needed to flip onto his back on a rock and raise his legs to allow the trapped water to gush out and lighten the load.   What a day and memories.

Our kit needed a bit of drying out once home!

Alighting on the film

Heaven has got to be like April on a VA trout streams.  Stream temps in the low 50s, clear running water incubating bugs to life and causing brook trout to look up for their next meal.   They are so eager to slurp the hatch from the film of the surface...it's a show to watch. 

Low Water in the log pool

With a Friday off I headed to my home waters of the upper Rapidan and was pleased to find only a truffle hunter parked at the upper limit of the fire road.   I was greeted by a swarm of flies as I started rigging a trusty 2wt built for casting in these narrow confines.   I didn't tie on a dropper as is my habit and was rewarded with amazing dry fly action for my stay.    

Tight casting required in this crystal clear pool

The Glide Run is one of the loveliest on the Upper Rapidan

The flow was low this high on the mountain and the dry spring caused the trout to be staged in the pools not the normal holding runs... so I went pool hunting.   I soon was reminded to approach each pool stealthily as a spooking even the bottom/near side of the pool would decrease me chances throughout the pool.   

With no schedule to keep I approached each pool slowly and really worked on alighting my fly first cast in the right spot with the right presentation and brought brilliant brookies to hand in 7 of the first 10 pools before I stopped counting and let the morning flow through me.  I watched in wonder as brookies submarine-porpoised 2-3 inches out of the water attacking their surface meals.   All my brookies were caught on a single warrior of a parachute-adams before the hackle was torn off and I retired.  An amazing day in an amazing place.

Swarms of trout food!

                          "The older I get the more I strive to spend time in beautiful places that inspire me"

                                                                                                                            said some angler

Nymphing darts on the Run

          The Shad run has yet to be steady.  The run has only been thick one day thus far.   My seventh trip was greeted by snow squalls and falling temps, grey sky and gusty winds breeding shivers.  I had to really work for my fish. Resident shad were in the usual holding water in small numbers and after moving around I finally found shad in one of the lower (bridge-side) deep slots of holding water.             
          Swinging streamers didn't work today and the best presentation was to cast upstream of your target water and nymph these heavy shad-dart-type flies back through the target following the fly with rod tip until the fly rides up at the end of the drift.  All in all a great day to be out on the river corralling these silver swimmers.

The Best things in Life are the People we love...

The Places we've been,

 the Rivers we've fished 

and 

the memories made along the way