Took the day off yesterday to fish and was undecided up until I went to bed on whether to go to the coast for stripers and blues, or to head west to some trout water. We did get some rain last week and the USGS streamflow info showed that some of the areas were showing at or 3/4 the average flow. I decided to go after trout and got up at 3:45 and was on the road by 4:30. Took me a little time as I needed to pack the car, make some snacks and get the coffee made. I headed for the EB of the Westfield and was there and headed down the dirt road that parallels the river by 6:45. Only other person I saw was a couple walking their dogs.
I had not been to this river in a very long time and had only fished below the dam when I last fished it. Figured it was a bit bigger river, so chose the Cortland Pro-Crest 1-620-1 8' 5/6 wt with a 1494 Medalist and a Maxcatch DT 5wt line (does surprisingly well). Considered bringing the Fenwick 856, but I had used that the week before and wanted to give this rod some time. It does roll cast very well.
The conditions were tough and the water was low, but there were a few deeper pools in the 1.5 miles I walked downstream fishing as I went. I was nymphing and wasn't having any success. so stopped fishing around 11:30 and walked back up to the car. Beautiful place, and probably great in higher water earlier in the year. I have studded wading shoes and some of the bigger rocks were a challenge - really was happy having the wading staff along.
Some pics:
I was going to head north and see what another spot had, but the water was pretty warm on the EB Westfield, so I decided to head east and hit the Swift River. The Swift starts out at the bottom end of the large Quabbin Reservoir and the water is cold as it comes from the Windsor Dam. There were a fair amount of cars, which meant anglers at the Route 9 parking area, so I went south of there and ran into a few more anglers, but found a spot with no other people around and I have had success there a few years ago.
I decided to try the Cortland FR2000 5/6 1-625-1 here with a Battenkill c&p 5/6 reel with some WF Cortland 333 line on it. I switched to using a yarn indicator with a PT nymph and a black BH midge as a trailer. I also switched up the waders to a lightweight pair and could tell that the water was colder and that these things had 3 or 4 leaks in them. The fishing was better hear, from a riffle to a run to a decent little slot in the middle. I could see some fish swimming at the end of the pool and I actually caught 2 brookies - one 9-10" and the other about 7". My oldest kept calling me about a problem with some software and my stomach was rumbling - so I packed it in for the 1:15 ride home getting home at 6pm.
All in all a good day spent outside doing something that I love to do.