Obsession With Small Streams

I sat there at the kitchen table with three different map books and my trusty OnX app open, searching for something most people would never even notice on the paper before me. Sure, its easy to find lakes and rivers all over the North Country, but for me, I was searching for somthing a bit more obscure. The thin blue lines that when you switch to arial view look like nothing. Usually they have no names and they appear to end in the middle of nowhere. Sometimes these thin blue lines are just big enough to hold brook trout. However sometimes they are nothing but a wet area in the woods. But, that's where the obsession comes in. This strange need to see what is really there in person. Recently I found one of those tiny blue lines and decide to take a drive to see what was there. Sitting just 45 minutes from my house I figured that if it was nothing there were other places to fish, but when I arrived I found cold clean water flowing. It was small, not much more than six feet in width. The freestone bottom looked promising. So, I grabbed the smallest rod I had, tied on a parachute adams and gave it a try. Even with a 5'6" rod there wasn't much casting to be done. It was more like finding small runs and let it drift through. Within just a few minutes I found what I was looking for. My size 14 hook was sipped by a beautiful little trout.

I quickly brought it to hand, thanked it, and let it swim away. I causiously worked my way downstream and found a nice little pocket of water sitting below a rock. I let my fly drift around both sides of the rock. On the third drift I was on again. I had hit the jackpot. I spent the next hour working around rocks, runs, and riffles. Once I hit a private property line I turned around and headed back to my truck. I knew this experience was not the norm but I'd take the success this time.

While I was on this trip I was successful, but many times I haven't been. But I think that's where the obsession comes in. Looking at a map and trying to figure out if it is really fishable water or not is fun for me. Several times I've showed up to locations and found nothing but a damp spot in the woods. There is a chance that in early spring it may flow but there is no guarantee. So with my sucess and failure I've learned a few things. Here's a few tips if you want to give small stream fishing a try.

1. Follow the line. If the line looks like it connects to a river or lake in any way, chances are it will have water in it. Lines that start and end without touching another water source will have a higher chance of being empty.

2. Watch out for property lines. A lot of these tiny steams will run through private property. You may find public access at certain locations but be respectful of posted property.

3. Be prepared for failure. Somtimes you get lucky, other times its an empty grass land that is mucky. Or the stream looks promising only to find nothing. Always have a backup plan just in case there is nothing there when you arrive.

4. Lines that end in the middle of nowhere. There is a good chance that if a line runs from the middle of nowhere to a body of water, that middle of nowhere is usually the starting point. There is a good chance that is a ground spring running to another piece of water. Chances are the water will be much cooler than your regular fishing locations. Cool water is what the trout are looking for.

5. Small water small fish. Be prepared to find smaller fish. Brook trout usually grow to the size of their habitat. So don't expect to find any monsters.

6. 

   Obstructions. Many of these small steams have all sorts of things in the way. Over hanging branches and even long weeds along the bank can be a pain to work around. You may have to adapt and cast in some very non traditional ways to get your fly in the water.

7. Walk soft. We all have heard about spooking fish but in these tiny streams you need to be very careful. A lot of times you can be only a few feet from a fish so any misstep can mean the difference between success and failure.

8. Start dry. Since many of these tiny streams are shallow I always recomend starting with a dry fly. There is a good chance you won't find a hatch on them but Brook Trout are vicious little critters. They will attack anything that moves on the water. I like to start with a larger dry fly just to cover the water and see if anything is in there. Once I get a few strikes, I'll downsize my fly to fit in their small mouths.

Tiny stream fishing isn't for everyone. I often get strange looks when I talk about it. It can be a lot of effort for little to no reward. But for me, there is somthing exciting about finding a no named blue line on a map, exploring it, and finding these tiny beauties.