Author Archives: Theaux Le Gardeur

End of August Shop Schedule

With everyone, even staff (my hat’s off to the guys pictured above- Dave, Jacob, Hudson, and Peter) who were so great to work with during the summer season. Great News-Hudson and Dave will be continuing into the fall! If you need to place an order online before September, we’ll still be shipping in-stock products including gift certificates during this time. Thanks to all of you who have supported the shop this season through some wildly strange weather! I gather that between us, we’re all trying to get some fishing in before school starts so we will have limited hours through the end of August as follows

The shop will be open from 10-3 on:

Monday the 21st
Friday the 25th
Saturday the 26th
Monday the 28th

Early May Gunpowder River Fishing Report

The Gunpowder River is clear and coming down nicely from 329 CFs on April 29th to a now ideal 103 CFs. Consequently water temps are rising a bit from a chilly 47.3 F and should be closer to the mid 50’s by the end of the weekend. We’re starting to see some clean gravel as the Didymo gets washed through. Swinging wets and nymphing other than drop-shotting is still tough and requires a lot of clearing between drifts and swings. A few Hendricksons and March Browns are still hanging on and have been returning on calmer, less windy days.Small Caddis and tiny Blue Winged Olives are flitting about and Sulphurs are certainly around the corner…

April 29th Beginner’s Fly Fishing School

Early spring is the perfect time to learn how to fly fish. Please join us on Saturday, April 29th between 9 AM and 12 PM. Our Fly Fishing Schools are 3 hours long and included the use of gear. In the first half of the course we cover basic knots, casting skills, fly types and techniques for the river. Following instruction bank-side, during the second half we’ll practice the techniques on the water. One gets to try the four main techniques while fly fishing including: dry flies, wet flies, nymphs and streamers. Your guide will demonstrate and teach techniques that will help and prepare each individual for a trip on their own.

Please contact us at 410-357-9557 to confirm availability, prepay and book the trip and we will send you an email confirmation for your very own fly fishing school on the Gunpowder River.

Gunpowder River Mid-April Fishing Report

The Gunpowder River is clear, flowing at 97 Cfs and is 48.5 degrees F. While we’ve seen just a few March Browns and Hendricksons by mid-day, windy afternoons have kept them largely off the water until well into the afternoon. That said, BWO’s in the #20-22 range have been peeling off in the mornings with little fanfare. Because the trees are still leafing out, shade is still hard to come by making for tough conditions on bright days so starting early or late is one’s best bet. Didymo has been the real story of late and is still making it difficult to fish the gravel with traditional and euro-nymph rigs. Until the gravel cleans up, skating caddis or swinging wets might be the best approach. In the past week warmer water temps up to 56.5 degrees have been knocking the Feb-March Didymo blooms out but the “rock snot” is still slowly letting go and washing through. With a nice and thoughtful increase in flow from Prettyboy that started yesterday we should start to see a marked improvement in conditions leading into Earth Day Weekend!

Backwater Angler Celebrates 22 Years

We quietly celebrated our 22nd Shop Birthday last month! Thanks to all, both old and new that have helped us reach this milestone! We could not have been successful without your support and loyalty.

Fishing continues to improve on the Gunpowder as flows have been around the 60 Cfs range of late and river water temps are swinging upwards towards the magic #. Nymphing has been consistent with stonefly and attractor patterns in the #18-20 range. If the wind dies down try some tiny BWO’s between Masemore and Bunkerhill or a few black flies above Falls. A Bald Eagle sited well downstream of Corbett Rd. this morning was flapping merrily along with a fresh rainbow from last month’s stocking in its talons. May we all be so lucky this spring to connect and enjoy the bounty the Gunpowder River provides!

Please note: We will be closed April 2-7 and will reopen on Saturday the 8th. We will be closed the 9-12th and will reopen on the 13th.

March 25th Beginner’s Fly Fishing School

Early spring is the perfect time to learn how to fly fish. We have 4 spots available on Saturday, March 25th. Our Fly Fishing Schools are 3 hours long and included the use of gear. In the first half of the course we cover basic knots, casting skills, fly types and techniques for the river. Following instruction bank-side, during the second half we’ll practice the techniques on the water. One gets to try the four main techniques while fly fishing including: dry flies, wet flies, nymphs and streamers. Your guide will demonstrate and teach techniques that will help and prepare each individual for a trip on their own.

Please contact us at 410-357-9557 to confirm availability, prepay and book the trip and we will send you an email confirmation for your very own fly fishing school on the Gunpowder River.

St. Patrick’s Day Weekend Gunpowder River Fishing Report

This week the Gunpowder River has been clear. It has dropped in flow from 106 Cfs on the 14th to 61.6 Cfs on the 18th.Consequently the River is warming up a bit from 42.44 degrees F on the 14th to 46.5 degrees F on the 18th. Bright and windy days have resulted in tough fishing on the Gunpowder. That said, tiny BWO’s, Little Black and Brown Stoneflies and a March Brown or two have been coming off between gusts. Fishing small, unweighted streamers that can be cast and drifted along the log jams are always a good bet. Nymphing has been challenging as the Didymo algae is still hanging on above Falls Rd. Remember that the Gunpowder River 5-fish-a-day stretch downstream of Corbett Rd.from the Colonial pipeline downstream through Phoenix Rd. is under Closure 1 and will not reopen till March 25.

Gunpowder River Stream Report


The Gunpowder River is clearing, dropping from 105 CFS and is 43.5 F. Small streamers and jig nymphs have been working fine. It’s been a bit too windy to fish with small dries. But with water temps on the rise we are certainly getting closer to seeing some Little Black Stoneflies, Black Flies and BWO’s coming off. Midge cluster patters like Griffith’s typically work fine and will keep one from squinting. A peacock elk hair caddis is a great searching pattern especially when using hopper-dropper style with a #18-22 zebra midge trailing the dry.

Please note: The shop will be closed on Saturday the 18th and will reopen on the February the 23rd.