It’s hard to believe that it’s that time of the year again. I’m not sure where the time goes these days. It seems like it was just the other day I was wrapping up 2020 with a post, and now here we are again. The guiding season is over, and my personal fishing days are pretty well gone. My house is shaking from winter-winds as I type, and there aren’t many days forecasted to be above the freezing mark before the New Year.
I didn’t make good on my 2021 resolution to keep up with my blog. I still have a lot of content rattling around on the draft board, and I hope that in the future I will get around to publishing some more of it. Somehow life keeps getting in the way, but hopefully I’ll have some more interesting stuff to offer here in the future….
Friend and fellow guide Kris Thompson with a nice wintertime brown trout from an early January outing.
2021 was an interesting follow-up to the mess that was 2020. I made it through the pandemic year relatively unscathed compared to many other guides and businesses. While I lost a lot of early season trips, a busy summer and fall made up for it. Despite low water conditions again, the fishing season ended on a high-note, and things were looking very promising heading into 2021.
The winter of 2020/21 was a chilly one, but we didn’t receive a lot of snow. The lack of snowpack made access to area rivers relatively easy, but despite this I actually did relatively little winter fishing for the first time in a number of years. I hit the usual spots a couple times, did a little exploring, caught a few fish, but for the most part I spent my free time tying flies and preparing for what looked like a very busy 2021 guiding season.
A rare treat from early-season low-water conditions. Lack of significant snowpack meant little in the way of spring run-off. As a result, area rivers were in wade-able shape when historically they should have been over their banks. Prime conditions to find the biggest fish at their most aggressive feeding mode.
Lack of water in 2020, and lack of snow in early 2021 was a sign of things to come. There was little in the way of springtime runoff, and the big waters were the lowest I can ever remember for early season fishing. The arrival of warm weather by late March meant fishing season ramped up early. A nice treat for me, but with my guiding season not getting busy until May, it meant many clients would be missing out.
Lack of significant rainfall kept area rivers and streams low through April and May. The result was fantastic fishing for my early season trips. Easy wading, recklessly feeding trout, and mostly pleasant weather was a great way to start the guiding season.
Eastern March Brown. Low spring flows and calm weather patterns were a recipe for fantastic mayfly hatches in the spring of 2021. We had some of the best spring dry-fly fishing in recent memory, with lots of memorable fish caught, and few even more memorable near-misses…
Unfortunately, the fast start to my season was about to come to a screeching halt. I had been plagued most of the spring with a mild pain in my abdomen. Doctors were initially unsure of what was going on, but when my pain wasn’t responding to treatment, they became concerned. A CT scan revealed that I had been suffering from chronic appendicitis, and I needed to have surgery immediately. This meant that my trips for the back half of May had to be cancelled or given to other guides.
My surgery went well, and my recovery was quick. I felt great after a couple weeks and my doctors cleared me to return to work. I was able to get back in time to catch the tail end of some great mayfly hatches and some really terrific dry-fly fishing. My trips in early June were as good as they get.
Sadly, at this point the lack of water caught up with us all. Very warm weather in early June coupled with low flows meant that water temperatures were rising quickly. By the middle of the month, most of the larger area rivers and stillwaters were seeing water temps in the mid to high 60’s. Fishing slowed in a hurry, and by late June it was pretty much over and done with in brook-trout country, and on the Androscoggin.
A happy client with his new PB brook trout. Sadly, this was the last sizeable trout I would see on the Upper Magalloway for the spring of 2021. Consistently dropping flows, and warming weather skyrocketed water temps, and the good fishing was done early in 2021.
Besides the low, warm water, another issues that I began to contend with was the return of significant pain in my abdomen. It actually became so bad that I took a trip to the ER to see if something was drastically wrong. Doctors couldn’t find anything specifically, but recommended I take a break to rest and recover. The combination of my health and the fishing conditions prompted me to clear out my summer schedule and take a break. I was disappointed to have to take this step, but I believe it was in my best interest and the fish’s as well.
I did a little guiding in the summer. Mostly the easy half-day stuff, but it wasn’t much. Water temps through the summer were some of the worst I have ever seen. This meant the only real trout options were the small mountain streams. A few shots of rain through the summer helped keep the small streams in decent shape. Water temps stayed mostly in the high 50’s to low 60’s, and flows stayed on the low side. This meant spooky fish, but a stealthy approach and well placed dry fly were all that was needed to find some small-stream stunners. It was enjoyable to spend a hot summer in the shade of the woods, getting a few folks into some beautiful native brookies, and having a chance to explore some new water for myself.
A small stream alpha-male. Shady woods, cold water, light tackle, and hungry brook trout are a great way to beat the summer heat. Oh, and did I mention the solitude?
As summer drew to a close, I was feeling better. Still not recovered, but I felt well enough to get through what was looking to be a very packed fall fishing schedule. Unfortunately, Mother-Nature still wasn’t doing anyone any favors. Still no significant rain North of the White Mountains, and nothing but hot, sunny weather. Late summer and early autumn flows were the lowest anywhere I have ever seen in my life. Area Reservoirs were almost down to their historic river beds.
Aziscohos Lake was so low, that the effect of the bottom-release dam was negated. The Lower Magalloway tailwater was running a sustained 69-71F by late August. Sadly, Brookfield Renewable still ran the scheduled white-water releases, further wasting-away the limited water, and flushing the lower river with 74/75F water (yeah I took that actual temperature with my thermometer). The long-term effects of this on the fishery will be interesting to see in coming years. And for those folks that were still fishing there under those conditions: BUY A THERMOMETER, and please have more common-sense…
If I thought autumn flows were bad in 2020, 2021 took it to another level. At least last year we received cold weather through September to lower water temps. No such luck this year. As a result, there really wasn’t much river fishing early in the month. Many of my trips at Bosebuck postponed to next year. This left me scrambling a bit to refill my schedule. My salvation was the stillwater fishing. Shorter days and spring-fed ponds were a recipe for solid fishing. Finally the stars aligned late in September, and we received a heavy dose of rain just in time for my last four trips at Bosebuck. The water came up, the fish piled in, and my Maine season ended on a high note!
Big salmon and lots of colorful brook trout were the reward for a last minute blessing of heavy rain in late September. While I am grateful for the opportunity to have had this good fishing, I am more grateful that the fish had the water they desperately needed to reach their spawning sites. I hope that the water was enough, and this trend of dry autumns does not continue…
With September over, I had a busy October to contend with. Pitifully low-flows on the Andro and my stomach still hurting meant I stayed away from float-fishing. Stillwater fishing was on fire, and that was the recipe for a successful month.
As usual, my season began to taper off by early November. I used my free time to do some late season stillwater brook trout fishing of my own, and to try and find some quality late season browns and rainbows.
Cold weather had water temps into the high 30’s by the end of November on the big rivers, and small streams and ponds were mostly ice covered. My fishing prospects grow dimmer by the day as winter tries to get it’s icy grip on the region. I hope that we get a lot of snow this year. The drought that has afflicted this area now for more than a year is a long way from being over.
A gorgeous late-autumn rainbow. A lot of anglers hang up their waders by early October, but these days the warmer weather seems to hang around a little longer. Don't overlook late season fishing. Whether its extended season stillwaters or rivers, some of the nicest fish I see each year come from the late fall.
Overall 2021 was a little bit of a trying year for me. It was another busy season, but health problems and fishing conditions kept it from being my busiest ever. As always, I am grateful for all the folks who came to fish with me, both new and old. And I am grateful for the other guides and businesses that help support me. Despite the setbacks this year, I continue to love what I do, and I can’t wait to get back on the water with you all next year. I apologize to the folks whom I had to cancel or reschedule with, but I look forward to seeing you next time.
I still am suffering from my on-going health issue. I am hoping for some kind of news on this issue soon. When I have some updates, I will try to post something to my social-media accounts. Some medical procedures this past year seem to indicate that it is nothing overly serious, but there is still no exact diagnosis. My doctor and I are hopeful that this issue will be resolved well before next season, and I am booking trips as normal based on this.
Because of both my health issues and the fishing conditions from this past season, a lot of trips were rescheduled for 2022. As a result of this, as well as many new bookings already, my calendar for 2022 is filling very quickly. I am pretty well booked solid from mid-May through late-June. I would encourage anyone looking to book for next season to do so as early as possible. My rates for 2022 will be increasing to remain competitive with my fellow guides in a market where demand for services and cost of doing business is rapidly increasing. My rates have been updated on my website and can be viewed here. Folks booking before January 1st can lock in at my old rates.
One additional note; after a great deal of consideration, I will no longer be offering float trips on the Connecticut River. My guiding career in recent seasons has increasingly kept me away from this piece of water. I feel obligated as a guide to be as in tune with the water I guide on as much as possible in order to offer the highest quality experience possible. I no longer feel that I have that connection with the Connecticut. Going forward, I will be referring float inquiries to other guide services that focus more of their attention on the Connecticut. I will continue to offer wade trips on the river in Pittsburg, however, as I still spend a good deal of time fishing/guiding there in the early season and summertime.
Thanks to everyone again for another great season. I’ll see you on the water.