Easter Shad

Years ago Fritz and I brought Henry to a rain swollen Rappahanock and Henry was the only one  able to whisper a shad in the churning river. 

Hen in lower right hand corner

fish on

A smile tells the tale

This memory is stuck in my bones and for  several months Henry and I have been planning an adventure during the Shad Run and we had to wait till Henry returned from a Ritchie Family get together at the Paris Marathon to make it happen.  I've been fishing the run and hoping that it would hold through Henry's visit and thankfully it did (just barely).

A heavy surge of identical white perch have invaded the river

There was a smaller slot size of shad running too

Water levels were steady and just under 3.0 on the Fredericksburg Gauge -- perfect -- I'm not sure how long the run will last, and on Friday we it seemed like it was over, Henry Caught to and I felt a bit dejected. That changed for us Saturday as untold multitudes of silvery ocean-run shad finned by us heading upstream.  They weren't striking often, but more than enough to bend Henry's pristine Henry's Fork and a new (to me) rifle of a Echo 10.5' 5wt.

Hen celebrates after a successful fording of the fast water on the left (no sure thing)

I was proud to have caught seveal on this self styled clouser

Together we brought +20 to hand.  The run was alive and we were part of it.  If this is my last run to the run it was a great run.

This Echo shooting a 7wt WF line w a 10' sink tip rifled heavy flies