Battling Gusting Winds on the Sipsey

I have fished in windy conditions a number of times on the Sipsey but this past Wednesday had to be the worst. I met Jay at the Pump Station parking lot around 10:30. I have followed his blog “The Naturalist’s Angle” for a number of years. It was good to see him again and get to fish with someone who loves fly fishing as much as I do. The water level on the Sipsey has been up and down for the past months, and today we knew we would be fishing high water. In fact, we waited for a half-hour to get to fish at a suitable level.

The wind was blowing so strong out of the south that it was difficult to get a good drift at times. We did see some limited midge action after lunch in some calm water closer to the banks that proved productive using smaller dries.

Jay landed the first rainbow dead drifting a size 18 beadhead midge pattern in somewhat calm water. All the trout taken today were in the stocker size, which was a lot of fun on our 3 weights. One can really diminish the excitement of landing smaller fish on the Sipsey if they are using anything above a 3 weight. Most of the trout caught here are 12” and under; one very seldom lands trout in the 15” range and above. 13” to 15” are considered special here.

I started the topwater action midafternoon after seeing a small hatch in some calm water just off the opposite bank from me. This rainbow nailed the size 20 dry in fast action. We both lost numerous trout during the afternoon because of a slow hook set; these trout were fast!!! We continued to land trout on top right up to the horn sounding telling us it was time to leave. This was the first time Jay has had the opportunity to fish the Sipsey up close and have success. Do you think he might be coming back???