Float Trips Available On The Gunpowder River, Maryland

I am now offering float trips on the Gunpowder River to take advantadge of the better flows and cooler water temperatures in September. Access will focus on areas where pressure is lightest, and rest assured, the wild browns are plentiful. Streamers, dries and even nymphs can be drifted through runs as the boat floats and we will wade some of the best riffles and pools to allow more time for hookups. Expect to fish while seated in a comfortable chair and the longest casts need only be thirty feet off the bow or stern. Streamers are always producers. We typically moved some good trout while …

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The Many Faces of the Ausable River, Michigan

I recently made the journey from North Baltimore County, Maryland to the Grayling area of Michigan. Matt, a Gunpowder regular joined me for the 14 hour drive across several states with my raft in tow. Nick, a Michigan native and former college chum of Matt was waiting at what felt like the farthest northern tip of the state. We pulled in his cabin’s drive around 1:30 a.m., but he wasn’t there. He pulled in ten minutes later and said he just got done mouse fishing. “Rolled two fish,” he said. Mouse fishing at midnight puts me a little out of my element, but we had …

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Fly Fishing the Canoe Hatch on the Big Water of the Ausable River, Michigan

On a recent float trip down the Ausable River in Michigan three anglers encountered the most prolific aluminum hatch ever documented on film. East coast anglers may find these “hatches” are spotty at best in comparison on most of their local waters. Brown and rainbow trout were biting subsurface and our indicators barely floated for thirty feet in the better runs. The screams and splashes didn’t bother the trout, but line management was taken to a whole new level to avoid hooking anyone. Personally my biggest concern was being run over while wading, as I was constantly playing a game of river Frogger to avoid …

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Bamboo Fly Fishing Rods built in Baltimore, Maryland III, Hon

Not much progress to report on the rod this week because I just got back from a week in the wilds of western North Carolina. I fished a little bit while I was down there but many of the streams I saw were low and warm and the ones that weren’t low turned in to a river of clay-colored slurry as soon as anyone even mentioned rain. I realized how spoiled I am with the Gunpowder River just a 30 minute drive from my house in Baltimore City. Even after a heavy rain the upper river is never more than slightly off-color and the cold …

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Great Flow rates for Mid-Atlantic Fly Fisherman along the Gunpowder River

The Gunpowder river is flowing at 156 Cfs, water temps are in the 60-62 F range throughout the catch and release section. We’ve had steady trico hatches from 7:30 till almost 10:00 just about every morning. The barn swallows are happy, the fish are eating, and you should make time to fish before the you have to start shopping for school supplies. Caddis are present along the river about mid-morning in the #16-18 range and are a great fly to switch to after squinting through the trico hatch. By late afternoon, grasshoppers and ants cast dangerously close to the banks should elicit a few strikes. If you’d like …

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Backwater Angler Overnighter

Fly fish the Savage River and the North Branch of the Potomac River with a Maryland Licensed Guide on October 4 and 5. During your Backwater Angler Overnighter, you’ll enjoy a day and a half of guided fly fishing in Western Maryland, an overnight stay in a stream side cabin and have three meals on us for $550 per person. Related Posts: A full description of the 2007 Backwater Angler Overnighter Watch a Video by Jason du Pont of Insects along the Savage River Read Theaux Le Gardeur’s description of one of last years’ outings in western Maryland