Native Brookies-Nothing Personal...

[stevehalupka]

Cray,

the streams that you know I frequent always has some steady rising fish, all 3 species.

wild freestoners are the dumbest... dumber than educated stockies.

Last year, I knocked down a flower from a failed cast towards some mt. laurel and a brookie took it in. Those are big flowers, size 2's.

 

[Squaretail]

An old flyfishing war dog once told me that he believes the reason wild trout hit leaves and debris that fall into the water is in hopes of a bug that may be attached to it. True or not I dont know, but I have noticed since then of trout taking the debris and spitting it out and then examining it. Almost as if searching for a hitch hiker.
Kinda like Letort trout ripping up vegetation and then checking for scuds and shrimp.

 

[Chaz]

For brookies and wild browns on freestone streams, when the hatches are over, I use attractors or terrestrials. On limestone streams the plan is very different, you usually have to match the hatch or fish nymphs when there is no hatch. It's very difficult to get browns to rise whent here is no hatch or a limestone stream.
During the evenings and early morning hours there are pretty steady hatches on the limestone streams or there are spinnerfalls. Fishing mid-day during bright sunny hours is something I personally don't do on limestone streams, unless there are showers occurring.

Squaretail, One fall day on the WB Perkiomen Creek I was fishing among the leaves when my fly landed on top of a leaf, a brown came up hit the leaf and was hooked and brought to hand.

 

[stevehalupka]

chaz,

it's really no different fishing for finglerings that have turned adult in freestone streams that get hatches up there w. limestone waterways. If fish aren't rising, I'm swinging wets, streamers, or a tandem, tertiary rig covering all bases. They are few and far inbetween the state, but many exist. I would put them up there w. the lil j in terms of hatches, especially the sulphurs. Green drakes, for some reason, I find a lot on freestone wild streams, however, it's rare the fish are keyed on them.

square,

that's an interesting theory, and a good one at that. It was surely an oppurtunistic rise, however, def. fits with what you said. There are a few deep holes that I can never get a fish to rise in on some freestoners. I think this year I may actually fish a weighted small bugger through to see what I can bring to hand, however, do view this as a cardinal sin on any freestone wild stretch.

As I said, I have caught all 3 species on dries in the dead of winter when the waters are open; granted, not near as many during the spring/summer. I'm lucky enough to live near a fingerling freestoner/tailwater that never freezes.

Last year, i was in the sitting and watching a bundle of trout rising conjuring up the ambush and waiting for my gink to dry and down floats a barely living wild brook about 5 inches. I could not believe it. This fish floated at least 6 miles as the only trib that holds wilds is this far up. Could not believe a smallmouth or large brown didn't munch down. I tried reviving but to no avail. Upon opening the fish up after it died, I found a small bait hook inside and a bunch of nymphs. Made me sick.

I can see fishing a tandem off a dry in dire circumstances, but fishing subsurface to small wilds is not fun by any means to me. If I am forced to fish underneath, I'll take some chrome or larger browns.

 

[BrookieBuster101]

Chaz,
For the record limestone creek browns can be caught all day on top just by slapping a beetle against the bank. The hard part about fishing in midday conditions is finding those fish that are still active despite the bright sunlight.

Squaretail,
In the Under Water World of Trout it is explained that fish grab nonfood items like leaves out of boredom. He then parallels this theory with how people, as they walk down a path, subconsciously pull leaves off of the bushes as they pass by. I had always thought this to be pretty far fetched.