On Sunday we floated the Androscoggin River again for smallmouth bass with our client Katie. Throughout the week I had been watching the forecast for this day and had reason for concern as there was a chance for thunder showers. For those of you that know me, I will fish in any conditions, except for thunder showers. It just seems silly to me to challenge such a magnificent event that should be enjoyed inside a safe structure. As we got closer to Sunday the probability of thunder showers dropped significantly and we were on. We had already had to reschedule a few times and I was glad we were on for a fabulous day on the water. We were going to be rained on for sure, as when I woke up early to load the truck it was pouring, but Katie had reassured me that she would do fine in this type of weather. A dry bag with an extra set of clothes is vital in these types of situations and even more important in the early and late seasons due to the cooler temperatures. Take it from me you will appreciate the complete change of dry clothes if you ever need it.  Also being outside in less than ideal weather conditions and being comfortable has a lot to do with your mental state of mind.  If you do not want to be outside in the elements any discomfort will be exacerbated and a complete distraction.

Best fish came from fishing the “fry bash”

Welcome sight to come to for lunch

We began our float from Durham and as we got out into the current I brought out the spinning rod that was already strung up with a Mepps Aglia lure.  I walked Katie through how to open the bail up on the reel and cast the line out toward the shore and retrieve at a steady pace back to the canoe.  Well this demonstration went exceptionally well and I had a feisty smallmouth bass on the end of my line on the first demonstration cast.  No pressure for Katie now!  The river was much lower than the previous week and changed the structure of the holding water near shore.  With this change I kept the canoe further away from the shore so that Katie’s lure could work more productive water and not hang up in the vegetation (aka “lettuce”).  If you catch any vegetation you need to clean your lure off completely or your success rate for catching fish will drop dramatically.  Katie hooked into some nice bass and a few strong suckers along the way to the lunch spot.  Along the first section of the river the rain was steady, but did nothing to temper Katie’s spirit.  Having good rain gear with you will ensure that every time.

Lower water presented different challenges

Distance view of lunch spot

For lunch we set up on a nice sand beach island at the halfway point.  Jeff had launched another canoe loaded with all of our supplies and paddled ahead of us to have the lunch spot set up and ready for when we arrived.  I have complete confidence in Jeff’s abilities after our first camping trip together exhibited his exceptional skills in the outdoors.  We were camping on Spencer Bay on Moosehead Lake at the end of September many years ago and the winds were hurricane like in there intensity.  Jeff managed to expertly set up our tarps over camp with the wind with very little difficulty.  Skills like that are invaluable and every guide service should have someone like that.  Coming around the river bend and seeing a tarp set up on a sandy beach so we could get out of the rain was a phenomenal feeling.  For lunch we had an appetizer of pasta caprese, main course of chicken caesar salad and for desert we had fruit parfaits packed in mason jars.  Of course we had snacks, which consisted of hard and soft pub cheese, crackers and chocolate caramel chip cookies.  This lunch hit the spot and gave us an energy boost we needed.

Jeff’s canoe was fully loaded

One of many good bass

The second section of the river is by far our favorite part of the river as there is much more structure and hiding places for bass to lurk.  With the river being much lower, we were careful about the path that we took down the river as you never want to end up broadside drifting down a river.  Rocks just under the surface can tip you over before you knew it was there.  Not a good way to spend your day retrieving your equipment from a river. We switched to a white grub jig to fish along the large rocks on the southern side of the river before we hit the swift water.  Katie was retrieving her jig and not more than 10 feet from the boat a bass came up and grabbed it.  That was an exciting moment for Katie as this was the first time that day she got to see the bass in action going after her lure.  As we moved into the quicker water I changed Katie’s lure back to the Mepps Aglia and the action stayed steady.

Calm after the rain

Bass love rocks

I think I may be taking my experiences in the woods and waters of Maine for granted as every trip I have been on this year my clients have been intrigued and fascinated with things I see all of the time.  On one of our stops along the river I pointed out the fawn deer tracks in the mud as well as raccoon tracks scattered all along the muddy bank.  We saw two muskrats as well and I showed and explained their habitats and behaviors in the wild.  A nesting pair of bald eagles in the wild is great, but throw in a juvenile eagle then that is incredible.  The coloration is a golden color with darker mottled feathers throughout.  Many people mistake them for golden eagles. We could hear the eagles calling to each other along the pines that line the river.  Another phenomenon that many people do not know of is the behavior of crows.  We watched as one crow perched on a tall tree and called continuously as other crows appeared from distances away.  This has been shown time and time again that the first crow that finds food, most of the time carrion (dead meat), will be the one that alerts the others and will not feed until all have arrived.  That is the ultimate survival mechanism for any group of animals.  The last phenomenon that I get really excited about is called a “fry bash.”  This is when larger fish work together and herd smaller bait fish toward shore and when they are shallow enough and disoriented the larger fish make one final push and feed voraciously.  The surface activity is what alerts any angler to this event as there are many boils and splashes.  This occurs with numerous species of fish, including bass, trout and salmon.

Do you think Katie is having a good time?

Very peaceful along the river

We were on the final stretch when we witnessed a fry bash.  I quickly paddled over to the shore where it had just taken place and had Katie cast into the disturbed water.  This time I told her to reel in very quickly.  Instantly she hooked into a nice bass.  After that one was released I told her to cast again and this time the best bass of the trip took hold.  After some pictures and releasing the second bass we repeated this process again with a third bass from the fry bash party.  There were no doubt more, but the area went quiet as they probably moved on to other schools of bait.  If you are fly-fishing or even using lures for trout and salmon when this occurs there are some very important things to remember.  Speed is one huge factor in being successful here.  These larger predatory fish are taking bait fish that can move very fast and you will need to retrieve your presentation rapidly to be successful.  With trout and salmon do not cast into the middle of the pod of fish, rather cast along the sides and they will many times wait to pick off the stragglers as they try to escape their fate.

Toward the end of the day we noticed a change in the weather pattern and could tell there was a thunder storm forming.  Growing up we always noticed that the leaves on the trees would flip upside down and the lighter side of the leaf would lighten the tree up considerably indicating a coming thundershower and this was happening along the river.  We could also feel a cooler breath of wind indicating a front moving through.  A small rumble of thunder as we took out confirmed that we were right to have started to paddle faster to the take out spot.  I found it funny that I was feeling bad that we were cutting the trip short until I realized we had been on the river over 9 hours and Katie’s arm was getting sore from all of the casting and catching along the way.  We were in the truck driving back to the put in spot to pick up Jeff’s vehicle when we spotted one of the bald eagles perched in the middle of the river on a tree that had washed down the river.  This was an appropriate end to our wonderful day to see such a magnificent bird watching over the river and our hope is that this will continue for many years to come.

Jeff should be proud of his camp