The fishing this week on the Gunpowder has remained challenging, but some anglers are finding rising trout taking midges and blackflies. Jon managed his first trout on a guide trip, nymphing amidst a pod of risers and it was a nice brown as shown in the photo above. In the background Jeff’s client was working over another group of risers until the action waned in the afternoon. We had numerous guided trips this week and while the fishing has been slow at times, most anglers caught a few trout using nymphs and streamers. The water temps are climbing and should soon be in the fifty degree range throughout most sections of the river.

Midges, blackflies and olives on cloudy days are bringing fish to the surface, but the window of opportunity is often small. On a really warm afternoon last week I witnessed stoneflies dropping out of the trees and flying down onto the water’s surface. The bugs continued to fall onto the water in waves, but only a few browns hit the bugs on the surface. I heard a report from an angler fishing a section of river where he saw a good Quill Gordon hatch, and fish taking them. One of our guides even saw a lonely Hendrickson, hatching a few weeks early. Multiple reports from customers mention trout caught on the surface this week, so dries are now an option on warmer days. The river is slowly waking up and we are on the verge of some good fishing in the coming weeks, as the water temp continues to climb.

This video post features some midge fishing footage, a grand slam I got in four casts, and up close footage of some interesting insects found while seining the river bottom.