South Branch 4/19

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Reeltight
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South Branch 4/19

Post by Reeltight » Thu Apr 19, 2018 12:47 pm

Fished four different spots this morning that are usually pretty heavily stocked. First spot first cast fish on. Caught around 8 in the first 30 minutes. After that it was like somebody flipped the switch because for the next 45 minutes I didn’t even get a bite. Next spot I fished for close to an hour without a bite. Spot number 3 was fish on immediately. Stayed there about an hour till I couldn’t feel my toes anymore. Caught about 15 there. All of them except two came on salmon eggs. I tried a spinner and they didn’t want it. Spot number 4 I only tried for about 15 minutes. I didn’t even have a bite. I was very surprised because this spot is very popular and always gets quite a few fish. The water was on the high side, very cold and not to clear. One of the trout I caught had a bunch of what looked like tiny black shrimp in its mouth. Anyone know what they are? Didn’t see another angler all morning.

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Twism86
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Re: South Branch 4/19

Post by Twism86 » Thu Apr 19, 2018 12:58 pm

The water is probably still a bit too cold the trout to start actively going after spinners. With all this rain the trout are sure to be nice and spread out along the river, so thats probably why spots that were heavily stocked didnt produce many fish.

As for the trout with stuff in its mouth, was it a stocked rainbow? You wouldnt happen to have a picture or can search for an image that matches what you saw? A good rule of thumb is always to take a pic of anything that seems out of the ordinary. The state NJDEP biologists are always more than happy to take a look and let you know whats going on. Plus get alerted of any issues that may be going on.

Tom
"Stupidity is scary but genius can be frightening.
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lightenup
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Re: South Branch 4/19

Post by lightenup » Thu Apr 19, 2018 1:00 pm

Scud...freshwater shrimp, they come in lots of colors and sizes and the SBR has loads of them, also could have been midge larvae, but if the looked like shrimp more than tiny worms with bigger head they were probably scuds.....buy a fly rod, get some scud imitations and have fun!!! Just my guess..;)

Sometimes catching a fish makes them puke up their food, also if you were squeezing it a bit when removing the hook, it could have forced food out of its stomach into it's mouth....like Twism said take a picture for a more postitive answer.

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njcatchrelease
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Re: South Branch 4/19

Post by njcatchrelease » Fri Apr 20, 2018 4:44 pm

I agree with lightenup, it was probably scud. Also as he stated the color varies from light to dark on different sections of the river.
Tight Lines

barkeater
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Re: South Branch 4/19

Post by barkeater » Fri Apr 20, 2018 7:47 pm

I fished 4/19. Sounds like scuds but they were actively taking midges. By the way, lots of Hendricksons today but very few rises.

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Twism86
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Re: South Branch 4/19

Post by Twism86 » Sat Apr 21, 2018 8:13 am

Today should be another good day out there!
"Stupidity is scary but genius can be frightening.
Genius built the atom bomb. Genius topples nations."

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Rusty Spinner
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Re: South Branch 4/19

Post by Rusty Spinner » Sat Apr 21, 2018 8:41 am

barkeater wrote:
Fri Apr 20, 2018 7:47 pm
I fished 4/19. Sounds like scuds but they were actively taking midges. By the way, lots of Hendricksons today but very few rises.
I had an all day guide trip yesterday on the SBR, and I saw the same. Wednesday's Hendrickson hatch, by the way, was as strong as I have ever seen in this state. That hatch is finally back in numbers and timing since that freakish warm winter we had maybe 6 or 8 years ago. That winter saw hatches normally going off in April and May going off in January, February and March. The insects like the Hendricksons hatched sporadically which is bad for their reproduction. That insect needs to hatch en mass to overcome its predator base. Also, the sporadic hatching meant they mated and egg laid at different times rather than over a short 2 week time frame. It has taken many years for that hatch to repair itself, but the last two years have shown a significant increase in their hatching and this spring they seem to be fully back to normal or even better than normal.

Today will be a dry fly afternoon, and if it remains fairly calm this evening, we will have an epic spinner fall (more dry fly action).
"A sinking fly is closer to Hell" - Unknown

Reeltight
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Re: South Branch 4/19

Post by Reeltight » Sat Apr 21, 2018 9:10 am

lightenup wrote:
Thu Apr 19, 2018 1:00 pm
Scud...freshwater shrimp, they come in lots of colors and sizes and the SBR has loads of them, also could have been midge larvae, but if the looked like shrimp more than tiny worms with bigger head they were probably scuds.....buy a fly rod, get some scud imitations and have fun!!! Just my guess..;)

Sometimes catching a fish makes them puke up their food, also if you were squeezing it a bit when removing the hook, it could have forced food out of its stomach into it's mouth....like Twism said take a picture for a more postitive answer.
You are 100% correct! I looked them up and that’s exactly what they were.

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