What a better way to celebrate Father’s day then to get in a few hours of fishing. We were spending the weekend with a friend in the Arnold area, so Lake Alpine was the perfect solutions for a quick morning outing.
Reports from the local shop told us that the lake had iced out no more than three weeks prior and that the fish were biting on variety of lures, bait AND flies. We got a slow start, but arrived around 9AM. I noticed immediately that the fish were hitting the surface, just out of casting range of my 5wt fly rod. I tried to patiently observe what they could possibly be hitting and was rewarded with several flying ants. My initial rig was a flying ant to a soft-hackle Hare’s ear. Cast after cast and no fish. All casts fell short of the zone that the fish were rising, but I had hope that I could “interest” one enough to cruise over and take the fly. I switched up to a Rickert’s Seal Bugger and continued casting. Still no luck. I next tried a #12 prince nymph. Still no strikes. At th is point, the fish were still hitting the surface, but with less frequency and now further out of range.
My friend spent most of his morning going between his two kids and keeping them rigged and baited. In between, he fished conventional lake hardware. Not that we are sure, but neither child received any strikes on their power bait rigs.
Note to self – remember to bring float tube to flat water locations. I am not going to say that I WOULD have definitely caught fish had I been within casting range of their zone, but my chances would have been better.
All-in-all, a very relaxing morning and a very fun day watching two children get hooked on a sport that I love myself.