Fishing in June 2013

Fishing in June      

                June is the month when many species of birds and fish propagate their own kind.  Water and air temperatures will continue to rise as well as the quality of fishing.  Fishing conditions will be pleasant and the longer days give the angler more daylight time on the water.

This June  inland  water levels will be up during the month due to the recent heavy wet weather. Trout fishing during the month should be excellent, only the dedicated trout fishermen remain and numerous daytime and evening hatches will occur..  The most noted of these hatches is the largest of mayflies, the Hexagenia.  The “Hex hatch” will begin on the  Wood River here in Rhode Island around the third week of the month and continue on into July.  Lesser “Hex Hatches” also appear on the Moosup and Pawcatuck Rivers..  The ” Hex  hatch” usually begisn to occur in slow water stretches shortly after sunset  and continues well into the darkness of night.  White Wulffs, White Millers and even small white popping bugs will take fish when they go on a feeding frenzy during this hatch.  These insects are large and imitations should be tied on about a No. 6-8 hook.  If you plan on trying this fishing into the dark of night it may be best to get situated in your spot prior to nightfall. Getting a feel for where obstacles are, where and how far you can cast without getting into trees and bushes is time well. Total darkness is not a good setting to learn the area. Small and largemouth bass will have spawned in May and will  head into deeper water in June.  Of course, most of Rhode Island’s lakes and ponds are man-made basins which are shallow, heavily weeded and don’t offer much variation in structure. The ponds and lakes that are  natural basins  offer a greater variation in depth,  structure and fewer weeds. Numerous members of the Sunfish family will be on their beds during the month. They are readily visible from shore and can be seen in the shallows guarding their nests.  These aggressive and scrappy panfish put up a good fight for their size and offers  excellent  chances to introduce a youngster to fly fishing using small popping bugs or dry flies. It should be noted that the bigger Bluegills and Sunfish are not found close to shore but usually nest in 4-6’ of water.

Down on the salt it’s business as usual for Mother Nature.  The tidal rivers and estuaries which seemed so barren just a few weeks ago are now bustling nurseries.   Most of their inhabitants will be in the reproductive cycle during the month.  Much of this activity will go unnoticed while some of it will be clearly evident.  Large schools of silversides can be seen along grassy areas, sometimes in such numbers that the milt from the males will turn the water milky.  Stripers take full advantage of this by charging into the discolored area and slashing into thsee preoccupied baitfish.  Clam worms can be seen streaking around near the surface  dark during their mating ritual.  These one and one half to three-inch “tracer bullets” swim about doing figure eights and dipsy doodles and draw the attention of striped bass at this time.  During the height of the “worm hatch”, stripers may selectively feed only on clam worms.  Horseshoe crabs  also mate during June.  These fierce-looking, prehistoric creatures move clumsily about the bottom like motorized armored tanks without a guidance system.  They can be felt banging into your boots while attempting to mate with their own kind or your boots.  In areas where they are heavily concentrated it is best to drag your feet while wading in order to avoid tripping over them.  While bass are gorging themselves on clam worms and silversides, bluefish will be entering our area in large numbers.  They will continue to live up to their reputation of chomping on anything less than twice their size.  Bluefish have been on the decline in recent years and the cause of this is uncertain. Let’s hope it’s a cyclic thing and not overfishing or disease.  Nothing wrong with an occasional big “Chopper” Bluefish to make sure you’ve got your act and tackle together.  In years gone by June was the month to get some nice Squeteague(Weakfish.) Locally, East Greenwich Bay, R.I. was perhaps the best area. They could be caught at all hours of the day. Often times feeding near or on the surface taking shrimp and anything else that was passing by. My favorite fly for them then was the simple Yellow Brooks’ Blonde. The Yellow Blonde remains as one of my favorite flies not only for Squeteague but also stripers and I always carry several. Unfortunately,  “Tide Runners” have been relatively scarce in southern New England waters for many years now. My last Squeteague was seven years ago in early September when for some unknown reason a bunch of 4-6 lbers spent several weeks in a local harbor. This time they were near the bottom and a Chartreuse/White Clouser w/ gold flashabou and a Yellow/White Clouser worked well. There’s another type of fishing that occurs for several weeks in June and that’s the crab hatch. The crab hatch is very similar in most respects with the worm hatch. It’s a  fishery that seems  little known and seldom talked about    Click here for my post/info on the “Crab Hatch.”

June offers something for everyone, fresh and saltwater alike. The fishing is peaking, weather is pleasant and the days are longer. From Bluegills to Bluefish and Smallies to Stripers it’s a great time of year to try it all and I intend to do just that.—–Ray.

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***  In June  I might be inclined to try:****

Early June –Rome Pt./Hamilton No.Kingstown, RI

“              “     Bristol  Narrows, Bristol, RI

June 2^nd & 3^rd weeks Narragansett town Beach /Dunes club –evening tides, 2.5 Hrs +/- hi tide

Father’s Day to end of June>  Bass Rock/Black Pt & rocks North of Narrow River, Narragansett RI

Taylor Pt, Jamestown R.I. Third week crab hatch out going tides—shore or kayak

(c) Ray Bondorew June 2013

Today, Tomorrow & Yesterday-June 2013

Today-Friday..June 21 2013–>> It’s 53 sunny degrees at the backyard bird bath this morning and fair weather with temps in the 80s is forecast through the weekend and into next week,  On Wednesday I did fish for several hours after Maddie ate and I felt she was resting peacefully. I arrived at the rocky ocean front around noon and for the next 1.5 hrs I fished many ‘holes” without as much as a flash never mind a hit.  Then just as i began to think there was nothing around. I managed to get one and shortly after that another. They then came in briefly and I managed 10 schoolies in about 40  minutes. They then disappeared as quickly as they had appeared. I went home and found Maddie up and about and acting like her old self. Thanks to all who sent along best wishes for Maddie’s recovery. The day had been a success until that evening when my knuckles and finger joints of my rod(right) hand became swollen and very painful. Painful and stiff enough to where I couldn’t turn the ignition key in my truck. This has happened several times before but usually on a much lesser scale and is one of the reasons that for several years now I’ve done minimal saltwater fly rodding , opting for freshwater and lighter rods involved. The other reason is that Maddie’s  severe hip and joint ailments make it unsafe for her  to accompany me along the rocks. Catching a big striper from the rocks while fishing alone is great  but I’d rather catch a palm-size Bluegill with Maddie at my side.

Fishing along the shore has been very good lately and I probably over did  it. Last year after a flare-up Ii began to try fly casting with my left hand. That arm needs more use and practice. This latest bout of pain and inflammation told me it’s time to begin  trying my left hand,.  A fly rod  isn’t the only thing i can’t hold right now , I can’t really  hold a fly tying bobbin  either. I was thinking of tying  a few of my Yellow Rebels . It’s the only fly I ‘v e used  for the past two weeks and the one that’s tied on now is looking pretty ratty. However I’ll probably continue to fish with it until there’s nothing left  or I lose it. So much for concern about the proper fly pattern. Yesterday I stayed at home and minimized the use of right arm. Maddie was up and around earlier than usual and we went for our daily walk and that was the highlight for yesterday. We  walked again this morning and I think we’ll both just take it easy for several days remaining on the mend.

Wednesday.. June 19, 2013–>>It’s 56 partly sunny degrees at the backyard bird bath this morning. Yesterday morning I brought “Maddie the Wonder Dog”   to ‘her vet for surgery. I was to pick her up in the afternoon after the anesthesia  had worn off to where she could stand. Maddie’s surgery and well being was all I could think of. I thought if I went fishing for a few hours   it might help to relax me  pass the time of what seemed to be an eternity. My wife and I headed down to rocky coastline along with our other dog Lola. The water conditions were right and I managed to catch several schoolies. I also met up with “Al lthe Guide” who showed up shortly after our arrival. Al also managed a few schoolies while we were there. Here’s a few pics of yesterday’s water conditions and action.

“Al the Guide” battles a bass

‘The “Guide” wins the battle

Later in the afternoon I went to get Maddie and brought her home. She was still groggy and had to be carried from the vet’s office to to my car and  from the car to the house when we arrived home. She remained somewhat groggy and  laid on her bed all evening and night long not moving at all. This morning she looked better and managed to pass the ultimate test-eating. I hand fed her a few bits of chicken to stimulate her appetite then mixed up some chicken pieces, two scrambled eggs, some wet dog food and her post surgery meds. Maddie got to her feet and walked to her food dish and ate! That  relieved me as I  was concerned whether she would eat or not. When Maddie doesn’t want to eat, something is certainly wrong. She’ll eat just about anything. Lettuce and cucumber are the only things she won’t eat, everything else is fair game. With Maddie now resting peacefully I’m thinking about going fishing for several hours–well see

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Monday..June 17, 2013–>> It was 63 sunny degrees at the backyard bird bath this morning. I didn’t fish all weekend and was thinking about giving it a try around mid-morning. “Al the Guide” called around 8:00 a.m. saying he into a bunch of fish. That made me anxious to go but I had one thing to do first and that was to call ” Maddie the Wonder Dog’s” vet.

“Maddie the Wonder Dog”

My wife and I had become concerned about an enlarged area on Maddie’s lower jaw/gum. Instead of going fishing I went down to “Doctor Bob” at Richmond Veterinary Clinic in Richmond, RI. After examining the area  he didn’t like the looks of the growth and said  from his experiences it was probably malignant. However, there was a slight chance that it is a benign tumor. My wife and I  have chosen to have Dr. Bob surgically remove as much as he can and have it biopsied. If it was benign it would be gone and Maddie would be all set for a while. If it was malignant we’d have several options. The least desirable would be  for more surgery, including removing part of her jaw bone. That option is one that neither my wife or I think is feasible considering Maddie’s age (nearly 14.) Maddie, my fishing partner for many years  goes for surgery tomorrow morning and we probably won’t know the results of the biopsy until early next week. It’s going to be a very l-o-n-g  week. I’m trying not to worry and become anxious about her questionable future but rather to look back at all the good times and great memories we’ve had together and believe me there are many.

Thursday..June 13, 2013–>It was partly cloudy and 55 deg. this morning at the backyard bird bath. Yesterday I put off my first trip of the year to fish the rocky ocean front. Rough surf and strong, gusty winds told me I should stay put. I planned to get out this morning instead. The forecast was for a lighter surf, gentle winds and becoming  overcast with rain beginning around noon. I figured on getting in a few hours of fishing of the top of the incoming tide  before the wet weather arrived.. I met up with “Al the Guide” and we headed to “The Rocks.”

The Guide is Smiling

Everything fell into place: perfect surf, wind, weather conditions and an abundance of stripers. In about three hours(9 a.m.-to noon) of fishing we managed to land from thirty to forty bass EACH.

One of many

They ranged from 18-24 ” with  one keeper thrown in to keep us interested. Days like this are not soon forgotten. Action like this  is usually happenss during the fall of the year not mid-June. We eventually had enough and called it quits although stripers were still  around.  As I said, everything fell into place. It began raining  just as we headed back to our cars.  The fish were on 2-2.5″ sand eels  however they were hitting just about anything. The closer the fly matched the bait the more hits. While these fish were about the same size as those we caught from my boat on Tuesday they surely fought harder. Nothing like stripers caught from “The Rocks.” The highly oxygenated white water found here  seems to energize them so they act  like  they’re on steroids compared to those taken in calmer environs.

Yellow Rebel Time

Yesterday-Wednesday..June 12, 2013–> It’s sunny and breezy at the overflowing backyard bird bath this  morning. The surf’s still up a bit and it might be a good day for more striper fishing. Monday was overcast with near calm winds and I launched t my tin boat to once again try out my ailing outboard  and do a little fishing. The motor seemed to be running okay and “Al the Guide” and I managed to boat several stripers each. Once again he used his “Guide Fly” and I my Yellow Rebel streamer. Yesterday Al tried  fishing along the /Pt Judith shore and despite the heavy and dangerous surf he managed to land four stripers. I stayed put yesterday but might try the shore today for a few hours.Friday..June 7, 2013–>> Today is off to a rainy start at the backyard bird bath  and  forecast to remain that way into tomorrow morning. There are fish around as “Al the Guide” called earlier today stating he took several fish from along Goddard State Park in Warwick, RI . I’ve been busy lately and haven’t posted since last week, so here’s a recap. Last Saturday I received a report of a small worm hatch so I ventured out early Sunday morn to check it out. I was up earlier than I had in the past year only to find  a few worms and even fewer fish. I did however manage to get one on a deluxe clam worm fly consisting of orange egg yarn and a few turns of Black Ostrich at the head.

Monday, June 3, 2013 “Al the Guide” reported taking several fish on his new clam worm fly  at a different location. He saw two breaks and managed two fish on repeated casts with his new creation. He said the breaks had a reddish sheen to the water and his deftly presented clam worm fly was grabbed as soon as it hit the water by two SEA ROBINS. Fortunately his years of experience battling bruising fish helped him to land the feisty Robins. Sea Robins on a fly now that’s a first for him. I’ll try to get a pic of his new Clam Worm fly and post it later on. I didn’t laugh but it opened my eyes to some new possibilities which I’ll explain in a few days. On Tuesday, June 4th Al and  I launched my tin boat to try a few spots in Narragansett Bay. Unfortunately my motor stalled out as we headed out and never restarted properly. Luckily my electric trolling motor had enough juice to get us back to the ramp. I spent the remainder of the day and Wednesday trying to get my motor going. Thinking I had solved the problem we launched the boat again on Thursday, June 6th to try the motor out and fish for a few hours. The morning was overcast with near calm winds and was perfect for fishing. The motor ran decent and we managed several fish. Al took his on his Guide Fly and I my Yellow Rebel. As we fished we talked and joked about how with many anglers it’s all about the fly pattern. Al and I agree that  knowing where to put the fly to be most important, proper presentation second and lastly the pattern.  I’ve always said “I’d rather have any fly in the right place than have the right fly pattern in the wrong place.”