I need advice from my American friends...

Hey Lauder, Andrew is right the weather is touch and go in March but in the parks this is the month that the brookies "turn on" although I have been catching fish there throughout February.

I'm apprehensive about giving out camping advice since I haven't camped out there myself. However I have fished the Hughes River quite a bit this winter which is at the base of Old Rag Mountain and I have seen tons of hikers/campers heading up there.

I suggest you call some fly shops and they might be able to point you in the right direction. Check out [url=http://www.murraysflyshop.com:3c223]http://www.murraysflyshop.com[/url:3c223] or [url=http://www.blueridgeangler.com/welcome.htm:3c223]http://www.blueridgeangler.com/welcome.htm[/url:3c223]

I have gotten some decent tips from those sources. I also suggest a couple of books which I consult regulary when trying a new stream and have been invaluable to me:

Trout Fishing in the Shenandoah National Park by Harry Murray and Flyfisher's Guide to Virginia by David Hart. In that second book there is a decent section on West Virginia waters as well. A Delorme Virginia Atlas and Gazetteer will help you find all these streams.

This article will also give you a good flavor of what fishing down here is like.
[url=http://www.flyfisherman.com/south/hmshenandoah/index.html:3c223]http://www.flyfisherman.com/south/hmshenandoah/index.html[/url:3c223]

[Lauder]

Hi Andrew,

We live near Kingston in Eastern Ontario. We are looking at the week after March break at the moment, that would be the week of the 21st. If we can't meet on the water this time I am sure we can another. Do you attend the Fly Fishing Forum in April?

Hi Devil,

Thanks for the information, We will follow up on it. can we buy you a coffee when we are there?

Lauder

Sure, let me know when you all come down and maybe we can meet up. I'll be hitting the water pretty regularly on the weekends.

[Andrew Mann]

Hey Devil,

What can you tell me about local weather around March 15...

Do you think the Quill Gordon hatch will be on? Will brookies take dries at this time of year? Will the water temp be the low or mid forties? So many questions...sorry.

Would you be available to give advice or even spend a little time on the water? I have a six day window to drive to Virginia, fish, and return to Canada...My time on the water will be precious, and I'd rather not "waste" it trying to find a productive place to fish. Any help you can give would be greatly appreciated.

Drop me a line here, or contact me through my email.

Thanks,
Andrew

Weather around that time is pretty unpredictable. It could be anywhere between the 40s, 50s, 60s or even 70s. One day it might be 50 and the next something else.

The Quill Gordon happens in the latter part of March. This month I have seen tons of little stoneflies.

They should take dries. Last time I went out which was two weeks ago I fished various dries with a beadhead prince nymph as a dropper. I never actually hooked a brookie on the dries but they attacked it often enough. One thing about these brookies is that if they are feeding they will hit whatever floats by. If you are not hooking them then most likely you need to switch to smaller size. Starting out with a size 16 is always a good bet.

I dropped you a line on email as well.



[This message has been edited by Devil's Ditch (edited 24 February 2005).]