On Western Maryland excursions I spend mornings fishing the North Branch in my Patagonia Watermasters and Sticky River Walkers, and use my extra Cloudveil waders and 8X Stealth Boots on the Savage for the evening hatch. It is too easy to shrug off concerns about invasives and wade from one fishery to another in a 24 to 48 hour period without treating, or changing into new gear. The issue isn’t being the first to contaminate another fishery, or whether others are disregarding protocol, but the problem becomes the increased frequency of spore loading, especially when leaving the North Branch or Gunpowder to fish other rivers. Every time an angler enters one fishery after leaving an infected one it increases the exposure levels and thereby can increase chances for infection of whirling disease, transfer of Didymo or other invasives.

Cleaning methods can allow fishing two rivers in the same day, but is usually NOT recommended, with felt soles due to the inability to disinfect and scrub ALL particles from the porous sole. Consider this recent article on a proposed felt sole ban in a New Zealand Paper after the spread of Didymo has reached both North and South Island fisheries. Two more Didymo outbreaks in July 2008 made US papers in the North East with the Mad River in Vermont and the Elk in West Virginia.
Despite the presence of invasives in Maryland while fishing the Gunpowder, Savage and North Branch this past month I managed some nice trout on each river.

This video post highlights trout from these tailwaters; Big rainbows in the three to five pound range, on the Gunpowder of all places, wild Savage River browns and a nice North Branch rainbow.