As l sit here in my office, thunder and lightning illuminate the skies. Sheets of rain sweep across my yard. Thoughts of fly-fishing a caddis emergence are not so far from my mind, but not an option. Many years past remind me that l have missed the early days of the caddis hatch that would have been--whether it be flood water, snow storms or other extreme climatic conditions that have restricted me to remain indoors.
It is not only tail waters as we have here that are subject to adverse climatic conditions. My local river, the famous Usk in south Wales, also was subject to flood stage and many other adverse climatic conditions that more or less curtailed fly rod fishing. That's how it goes, as we say in Wales. There is little you can do about it.
Man as yet has not found a way to effectively harness the elements that adverse climatic conditions create. Here in Arkansas we have had our fair share of that this year. I have many personal friends who have had to endure the adverse climatic conditions we have seen here recently. Our thoughts are with them and those we do not know who have suffered.
Rivers are remarkable in that after an extreme flood condition they resume back to normal flow rates. Fish manage to survive against all odds and further provide us with the opportunity to fly fish. But we may see a different river as high water conditions degrade shoreline structure, take away trees, deposit large amounts of silt, sand, mud and gravel through the system, which in many cases also provides new habitat. It is not all as bad as many may believe.
It was not two days after the recent deluge that l was back on the river fishing with clients. BSD to White hole still showed color in the water ; but despite that, the fishing was awesome. By Monday l was fishing at Rim shoals. Here again awesome days and trophy trout were caught. Tuesday Mike Tipton and his nephew fished with Teresa and me. We caught fish all day and we rescued a drowning squirrel. BSD this last Wednesday, March 26th, saw an awesome day of 65 fish caught. What more could you ask for?
We will probably see high water for a long period of time. Wade fishing will be very restricted but not a waste of time. Fish will be found very close to shoreline structure and over flooded grass. Make no mistake trout know that earthworms and other food forms will be found here. Fly fishers have to adapt to these new challenges if they wish to catch fish.
Look for the flooded back waters behind islands and for any comfort zones such as those found behind structure. You will find fish here. Stocking for this river system does not reduce when we have high water. It is a yearly managed program related to fish growth required for the time they are stocked; and they have to be stocked to make way for growing on fish for the next year.
There are in excess of one million fish to be stocked into our tailwater systems.
Will we see less pressure on our rivers during high water? You can be sure we will. Fish will survive longer and the overall average growth rates will be better than days when we see long periods of low water.
Fishing high deep fast flowing water requires to a large extent as much skill as fishing lower levels of flow. It is not as simple as many believe, thinking that weight is the answer … far from it.
In many cases when l float and fish high water, weight is not an issue. It is more related to fishing in the right zone with the technique used. Working close into shorelines with streamers can be deadly. Fishing over shallow flooded zones with weight will hang you up. Look for slack back water eddies. You will find fish here and they may take emergers and midge. There are many ways to catch fish in high water conditions if you make the right choices. Granted you may have to take advantage of this by the use of a boat.
Caution! High water is dangerous and it takes experience to deal with the elements of high-water flows, at times exceeding 12 miles per hour for our rivers. Running close to shoreline structure or into zones with which you are not familiar are not good choices. Neither is letting a boat drift downstream with the motor shut off. You may have to move in a hurry, either from the shore line structure or floating timber. You must be alert at all times. l know from bitter experience fishing many rivers around the world that circumstances may change in seconds, You need to be aware that it can happen.
No fish is worth your life or others who may fish with you. Make sure you have close at hand in the boat floatation devices and wear life jackets. You may also need to render assistance to others while fishing who have sunk boats and are in a perilous situation. I have seen that happen here many times during high water flows.
Do not stand up and fish during high water. You are safer fishing while seated..
Simply please take care. You have loved ones.
Davy.
