The river is flowing at 138cfs and the temperature is 45 degrees, both dropping quickly with the cold front hitting today. The Gunpowder has been fishing best with streamers and small nymphs. With the cold streamer fishing could slow down, but with the water being higher fish may still be active enough to chase a bigger fly. Some patterns that have been effective have been the slump buster, grey ghost, and wooly  buggers.

Nymphing should be the go-to tactic if you want to maximize the amount of fish caught in the winter months. The most effective patterns have been those imitating midges: Zebra midges, WD-40s, etc. We often pair these with a hare’s ear or a euro-style nymph to help get the smaller flies down. It’s best to target the faster runs because there will be more food available so fish will eat more readily.

As always, keep a look out for the redds on the river, especially through the areas with more gravel.