Last Tuesday evening I had a few hours to spare so I decided to go visit a local stream just a few minutes from my house.
I feel fortunate to live in Milton for many reasons, not the least of which is its location in relation to the trout streams of Southern Ontario, something that has been pointed out to me in several conversations with conservation authorities. I’m conveniently located near the headwaters of the Credit, Grand and Eramosa rivers, within a short drive of the Saugeen River and its bountiful tributaries, and have many smaller streams of note, such as Bronte, Sixteen Mile, Black, Silver and Limestone creeks, all of which sport Ontario’s only native species, the Brook or Speckled trout. Tuesday I decided to check out Sixteen Mile Creek.
Trivia Note: The Brook trout is not really a trout; it is a member of the Char family. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brook_trout
I remembered a few lessons from my first outing, and packed a little lighter, since access to the creek required a good quarter mile hike, downhill, in waders. I previously mentioned how warm my waders were, but the cost of that is the weight. They’re very buoyant in water, but can start to get heavy over a long walk. Faced with that prospect, all I took with me was my rod/reel, small fly box, and net (optimistically).
A quick survey revealed so many nice locations to work from, with diverse water conditions ranging from fast rapids and swift rills with defined feeding lanes to deeper, slower pools. I chose to start in swifter water with small side pools (just beyond the point, top left of picture) that would test my accuracy and casting ability.
I kept the casting philosophy in mind this time, and did not try to overpower the rod. Casting was markedly improved, and I found I was very close to my target locations, which was really encouraging. Still needs work, but I’m making progress.
I had been fishing for approximately 30 minutes when I happened to glance behind me and there was a chap standing about 30 feet away, watching. At first I thought he had just walked up and was waiting for an opportunity to pass, because my line had been flying back and forth over the area, but he told me he had been watching for the last ten minutes or so! I guess he was enjoying the show?
We chatted for a few minutes, and he showed me a picture him and his friend had taken earlier of a small rainbow trout (operative word was small). Nice to know that there were fish in the water, but I don’t think they feel threatened by me. I moved to a new location and worked for another 30 min or so when I noticed a young girl sitting on a rock about 50 feet away, again, just watching me fish. Thankfully my casting technique had been pretty good up to that point, for me at least. If I’m going to put on a show, I don’t want it to be a comedy. Or maybe I do?
I fished for another hour or so, in different locations, but again I had no illusions about catching a fish. The waters are still running very quickly, and the selection of flies that I had were limited and not best suited to the spring waters. Scratch that. I do need a larger selection of flies, but in the hands of a better fisherman the few that I have would probably be fine. I’m just not that guy, yet. Weighing all things, I had a better outing from a casting perspective (one small tangle, took two minutes to fix) and although I’m still learning through trial and error, it is moving in the right direction.
Once again this was a great outing. Two hours, midstream alone with my thoughts (notwithstanding my small audience) and nature. I’m telling you, I felt like I could fly 🙂
Today’s tip: When facing an uphill, quarter mile hike, don’t take the shoulder straps off, your waders become really heavy. Good work out though. N.B. I’ve ordered new flies, next time the fish better watch out!
Come Fly With Me 