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Jason du Pont

Watch Your Step Out There!

I know that many anglers don’t like seeing snakes, let alone venomous ones, but I think the bigger problem is NOT seeing them. The copperhead above, that I almost walked within striking range of on Tuesday, was cooling down on the river’s edge. Fortunately I was guiding, and stopped to take the time to point out some important things in the water in front of us. This snake certainly topped the list of things to be aware of when it caught my eye. During the hottest weather it is not uncommon for snakes to move toward water, either helping them better regulate body temps, or …

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Crayfish In The Gunpowder River

The sweltering heatwave of last week was an ideal time to test out my underwater camera housing. The view finder requires the person filming to be underwater, but I just tried to point-and-shoot from the knee. I was filming below the C & R section where the water wasn’t as cold as the upper river. When I got home to review the footage, it was interesting to see the variety of life under the water’s surface. Black nose dace, chubs and sculpins swam around, as I panned the camera over the bottom. Crayfish of all sizes were everywhere on the bottom. I even found two …

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Trico Mayflies On The Gunpowder River

Rain brought some relief today from the heat wave that we experienced this past week. The river is still low and clear at 35 CFs at the Falls Road Bridge. The water temperature on the Gunpowder is a frigid 50 degrees, and despite the hot weather most anglers are still wearing waders. The fishing on the Gunpowder during mornings is good for the Trico hatch, which has finally started to get the trout’s attention. Tricos in small numbers over the past few weeks have grown into the typical morning event we experienced in previous years. I noticed small numbers of Tricos in the Monkton stretch …

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Savage River Summer Fly Fishing Report

I just returned from a few days on the Savage River before the holiday weekend. Fishing midweek always limits the number of anglers on the water, and the campsite on the river was nearly empty. I crossed paths with Max and Alex who were heading back to Baltimore, and met up with fellow Savage enthusiast, Neil. The air temps dropped into the sixties when we arrived on Wednesday morning. The river was crystal clear and flowing at 55 CFs, which was the lowest I’ve fished it in over a year. In the pools the trout were easy to spot, and many trout were holding inches …

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Sight Fishing For Wild Brown Trout On The Gunpowder River

The Gunpowder River is flowing at 37 CFs and is 55 degrees at the Falls Road bridge. Wet wading is an option in the shin to knee deep water, as air temps reach the upper 80s and 90s. Conditions in the upper miles of the Gunpowder are similar to spring creek fishing. Low, clear water and wary browns require stealth, long leaders and delicate casts. The anglers who enjoy sight fishing will find the trout are easy to spot in these lower flows. While walking the river I spotted dozens of trout, and quite a few browns in the 10-15 inch range. In many cases …

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The Sights And Sounds Of Warm Water Fly Fishing

Fly fishing warm water gives anglers a chance to experience completely different situations than cold water fishing. Insect hatches tend to not be something of importance on warm water, but I witnessed another type of “hatch” over a month ago. Thousands and thousands of small tadpoles covered the shorelines of the reservoir, and looked like peppercorns scattered across the sandy bottom. Weeks later I returned and found that these small tadpoles matured, and were everywhere along the shoreline. It appeared as though the ground was moving, as I stepped along the water’s edge. I filmed while trying to avoid stepping on the tiny, leaping amphibians. …

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