Harmans

[David]

Well, the girls couldn't wait until later in the month to go to Harman's when they found out we won the trip. After seeing the weather conditions for the weekend, I couldn't argue! We headed down Saturday morning.

Absolutely spectacular... The cabin. The view. The fishing. The activities!
Thank you Harmans... just a wonderful place.

I will post much more after I get some rest, but here are some pics...
The view from the cabin
NOT the biggest fish of the weekend (the opening for the net is 14.5 inches)
The girls having fun in 104 degree water with an air temp of 38...

 

[Fishidiot]

Excellent!

 

[turkey]

Looks like fun David. I think I have my wife talked into taking a trip down there.

 

[bigslackwater]

Been there 3 times and love it! Cant wait to go back.

 

[csoult]

That's great David!

 

[Missy]

We did have a wonderful time at Harmans! (tho not sure the pic of me was completely necessary) in Dave's post. The lodging was top notch and had everything we could think of! The location is private, right on the river with a beautiful view of the mountains! I can't wait until we go back to fish, hike and just relax!

Thank you, Harmans! We loved the trip!

 

[David]

Fishing report...
What great water... deep holes, strong runs, and rocky riffles.

I only got to fish about an hour or so on Saturday. It has been a year that has not afforded me many fishing opportunities, so I knew it would take a while to shake off the rust. But, on the third cast, I caught a 17-18 inch rainbow on a big golden stonefly nymph right in front of the cabin. What a way to start off!
I wanted to explore, so I headed upstream... I apparently picked the wrong side of the North Fork as I soon ran into an impassible cliff (unless I wanted to take a swim). I headed back down to the pool in front of the cabin. I saw a rise, but couldn't see any hatches. For those that have fished with me in the winter... you know what that means...
The riser was in a tough spot with deep water below and an ice shelf on the shore. The only option was a long cast with down stream drift. I SLOWLY got into position AND I switched over to one of my favorite ways to fish... #28 midge dry. In doing so, I was guaranteed that the fish would NOT rise again. I tried a couple casts to entice, but no such luck.

Saturday evening I got some sage advice from Becker and Biker (thanks guys!) to prepare me for the next day. Their guidance was spot on what and where to fish... eggs and holes.

I got out Sunday ready to see what was in the stream. There were very nice conditions... maybe a little high according to the gage which I don't like to see in the winter, but a beautiful greenish tint to the water and very fishable.
Started off with eggs and stones and picked up a few fish.
Tried going further upstream (on the other side of the stream this time) and got to Becker's recommended hole. Crushed them there...thanks Shane! I caught numerous trout... but all on a tiny PT nymph on the swing or with twitches. I got excited thinking I might catch a BWO hatch later in the day! The nymphs were definitely active.
I then tried exploring the water above, but ran into a cliff on that side, too. There was a trail to go up and over the cliff, but there were obviously enough fish below to keep me occupied.
Moved down some and caught several more on PTs. Then I caught the 15-16 incher in the picture (in the first post) on an egg pattern. Numerous more fish came on the tiny PTs. I got to watch a guy land one that was about 24"...and fat as can be!

As the day drew long, I slid back down to the pool in front of my cabin. There were a few more rises... so of course that meant I took the time to rework my leader and tie on some of the small stuff. AGAIN, that effort was rewarded by no more rising fish.That is the game with winter risers... They just don't look up consistently. The BWO hatch never materialized, but it is obviously not too far off!
But to consider the possibility of a big fish on a dry on January 5th with snow on the ground? Absolutely worth it! I had caught more than enough fish to make me happy... and the smallest was about 13". The largest ended up being my first.

What great water with so many fish (and if there are that many in the winter, I can only image what the other seasons provide!)

Thanks again to Harmans... Next up I'll talk about the "other stuff" that made the trip great!

 

[SBecker]

Awesome! Tell me how hard those fish fight!? I am so looking forward to my trip there in March and May.

 

[steveo]

Sounds like you had a great trip. What cabin did you stay in? The wife and I have been down twice and have reservations to return this fall. Todd runs a first class operation and that area of WV is awesome.

 

[David]

Ps... Missy was just mad that she was getting splashed at the time!

 

[David]

Cabin 2. Missy is already trying to figure out what dates we can make it back. She wants to get cabin 2 again or #15.
I'd be perfectly happy in any of them

steveo wrote:
Sounds like you had a great trip. What cabin did you stay in? The wife and I have been down twice and have reservations to return this fall. Todd runs a first class operation and that area of WV is awesome.

 

[geebee]

I never thought about a winter trip there - maybe just me but it looks way cool just then.

Great report.

 

[SBecker]

I have stayed in 1 and 3, both awesome. I love the look of an A frame cottage. Believe in March I will be in the Fly Rod Chronicles Cabin which is the biggest. I am looking forward to it.

 

[magi123]

Fly rod chronicles #20 and #16 both have 50" TV's, pool table, and hot tub in case you care. Cabin #1, 3, 14, 15, 16, 17, 19, 20 all are A-frames with big windows in the front of the cabin.

MID WEEK WINTER TRIP, you can get a free night!!! Just check our "SPECIALs PAGE ON THE WEB PAGE".

 

[David]

The cabins, amenities, and surroundings:

The cabin was spacious, rustic, but has all the bells and whistles. Each cabin is different, but ours had a whirlpool right in the living room... right in front of the fireplace. That is a great design...

Catching numerous fish during the winter time... going back to the cabin and get in the hot tub right in front a blazing fire with a cold one in hand... that's living!

As you saw in the first post, there was also a hot tub outside... a toasty 104 degree water will take the chill off quickly. And those water jets will relax any muscles that are tight from standing in cold water all day.

The kitchen has plates, silverware, pots / pans, dishwasher, fridge / freezer, oven, microwave, etc... Fully equipped. We had brought Brenna's venison backstrap....And it tasted even better in that beautiful setting.

Sunday, we took a hike on one of the numerous trails... What gorgeous scenery and incredible view. It is humbling to see how small we are with the mountains as a backdrop. Sarah also did some rock climbing. We saw deer tracks, turkey tracks, rabbit tracks, and one set that might have been a coyote...

There is national and state forests, history / nature exhibits, and plenty of other trout water to explore in the surrounding area (although there certainly is NO NEED to fish anywhere other than Harman's stretch!)

Thanks again to Harman's for a very generous offer to stay at such a wonderful place! Missy is already trying to coordinate some dates for when we can go back down!

 

[krayfish]

The place looks quite nice.

'beckerspool' ????

If a pool is named after Shane, it's time for me to find a new hobby.

 

[David]

As I recall, there was even a sign there paying homage!

 

[SBecker]

LMAO

 

[David]

Forgot to mention one of the coolest things... Brenna loves wolves, so she started howling as we were hiking. something howled back once (from a distant ridge, luckily) that sent chills down my spine. Could have been a wolf, but more likely a coyote... but it doesn't matter, that was a chilling sound to hear ring through the valley.

 

[SBecker]

Don't pussyfoot around what you really believe it was........Bigfoot