ARMSTRONG NEEDS STRONG ARMS June 15, 2007 - So what's the deal with Maine lately? I'm beginning to understand why the state's moniker is "Vacationland." Check out the report filed by Hudson's Dave Armstrong upon his recent return from potato land… "Just getting back from Grand Lake Stream where the salmon were plentiful and hungry. Shawn, Hank and I had a blast and caught a ton of fish. Day one we were throwing streamers and catching fish. Day two the caddis started hatching and we switched to dry flies and never looked back." "This was Shawn's first experience fishing a hatch and fell in love with dry fly fishing and I think that a dry fly purist has been born! He now claims that he will never go back to fishing subsurface. He out fished me this year, which was actually really nice to see. He can cast with the best of 'em now and was dialed in all week." "We caught somewhere in the neighborhood of 15-20 salmon a piece on dries and the best spot was right in our backyard. The caddis hatch was pretty prolific and we had steady action on size 14 CDC and elk hair flies." "Hank even managed to break in his new Sage with a nice salmon in the rapids (which Shawn promptly broke off while netting...at least I have something to make fun of him for...). "Hank had the time of his life and fished a lot and by the end of the week...was casting really good. He loves the gear that you set him up with and I expect that he will be using it quite a bit when he gets home to Missouri." "Thanks again for your help in setting Hank up with that outfit. He had a great time fishing and had a huge smile on his face the whole time." While were on the subject, add the names of… Bob Thunberg, Mike Peluso, Phil Perry, Al Glockner, Jim Howe, John McCarthy, Steve Noel, Dale Mills, Bob Shay, Vic Dennet, and Tom Johnson to the list of fly anglers that will be visiting blueberryville during the month of June. DANIELS CHECKS IN "We've been fishing the Natchaug River in eastern CT, in the towns of Ashford and Chaplin along RT. 198 twice weekly now. This wonderful river provides easy access, miles of great holding water, moderately deep slow pools and is designated as a CT Trophy Trout area. It is lightly fished most days and we've seen steady action from late afternoon into darkness. Browns and rainbows 17" and up are smart, but not uncommon. A nice hatch of March Browns earlier, now Pale Evening Duns and larger Sulphurs and just recently on an unseasonably colder and overcast day, tons of BWO's. There is no shortage of fish, once you become familiar with the system. As one who rarely fishes below the surface for trout, we've had wonderful dry fly opportunities for several weeks now. For those into the more technical aspects, some wonderful eddies and back currents holding large fish, will test your abilities! A large state park area with facilities borders a fine stretch of the Natchaug but can be crowded on weekends with bait guys and swimmers. There are better stretches! As a Rhode Island resident the Natchaug in eastern CT has become my "home water" in recent years. Interstate 395 to CT Route 101 E to US 44 will get you there in short order from the Central MA area. CT licenses are available at the junction of RT. 44 and 198. If any one or two anglers would like to spend an afternoon learning the Natchaug system, contact me at flifishri@yahoo.com and we'll work out a reasonable plan." Good fishing and safe
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