A buddy and I have an annual fishing trip. It usually involves a float trip somewhere in New England, a couple of good meals, and much catching up.

I have been dead set on floating one of the premier rivers in Western Mass. This river has been quite the mystery to me, as I have fished it several times, and always seem to bring subpar numbers to the net, if any at all. When fishing with Bill Hager, he often had double-digit days, while I would be lucky to have one or two. I hoped that a guided float trip might unlock some hidden techniques, while also showing me some new spots to try. Last year when we booked a trip on this river, the water was so low, that we had to shift to another location. This year, a similar dry spell coupled with some miscommunication left us without a drift boat.

We stayed at Foolhardy Hill, which I highly recommend and was a real positive of the trip. They have campsites, cabins, and a full outdoor kitchen with all the essentials to prepare a high-quality meal (steaks and grilled veggies for us). The owners are also incredibly gracious and wonderful to speak with. Last year, we were the only visitors on a midweek day. This time, there were two other guests, which our Foolhardy hosts let us know also happened to be on a fishing trip.

As we sat down to prep dinner, I still didn’t have details about our float trip. It turned out that there were some missteps with the reservation (on the guide’s side) and I was basically looking at a canceled trip. My buddy drove in from Maine, I took the commuter rail out to meet him on his drive, so this was a more complicated trip than a drive from Boston. I was still trying to work something out with our planned guide, but also scrambling for any alternative options. Making matters worse, I left all my personal gear at home, so I had no DIY options.

It turned out that one of our fellow guests at the campground was an Orvis-endorsed guide who was just on a friendly trip with an old friend. He was sympathetic to our situation, and let us know that if our float trip didn’t work out, he would gladly help us put together a half day of wading the next day. This was a real blessing and quickly relieved any guilt I had about our plans falling through.

It was a great half day of wade fishing. Matt from Tempco had all the appropriate gear, including size 14 wading boots for yours truly. We met up with Matt, got suited up, and headed out to the river in his van. There were quite a few hatching bugs, but no consistent variety. My buddy has only rarely fly-fished and I was happy that Matt spent the majority of the day coaching my buddy while setting me up to fish a few different techniques. I brought three fish to the net that morning, each using a different technique. 

Hole #1 – The first was swinging a single yellow sally wet fly variant through some riffled water in a well-known spot (one where I have regularly been skunked). The take came within my first few casts, and I had several misses after. I have tried swinging wet flies many times, but can’t recall ever landing a single fish. This was a real confidence boost to try wet flies more often. I’ll also note that I only ever had a single fly on at at time. I typically fish two flies, with the exception of dry fly fishing, and I got the feeling this made an impact given the technical nature of where we were fishing (I’ll also note that George Daniel calls out his use of a single fly in his latest book, so I plan to try this more).

We then noticed some rises nearby and decided to switch to dries. Although I didn’t bring anything to the net, I had several close calls that made for an exciting hour or so.

Hole #2 – We next ventured to a flat section of the river I have never fished, which offered sporadic rises for myself, and an easier casting session for my buddy. Through this section, I put on a gnat variant and went to work chasing risers. At some point, I decided to stop chasing the rises and focus on areas I thought would certainly hold fish. I pulled in a nice 12-inch wild brown and gained some perspective for my next dry-fly outing.

Hole #3 – As we wound down our half day, we headed up to a well-known spot where several fishermen had been in and out of a pool. This area was a favorite of Bill Hager’s and I had seen him pull out a few fish in the past from a small section of fast water that everyone ignores. I mean how could a trout hold in what is two feet of fast-moving water next to a big rock, right? I had on a sculpin streamer at this point, and after not having any luck, decided to tight-line the sculpin through Bill’s section. On my second drift, I pulled out a 15-inch rainbow that put a nice cap on the day for me.

All in all, it was incredible that our trip was salvaged through the coincidence of meeting fellow campers at Foolhardy. My buddy and I will certainly be back in this area next year, but we agreed to pick dates when the flows should be higher. Thanks again to Matt from Tempco for his flexibility and help in getting us on some fish.