Cool Catskill streams set up a solid fall trout window

What's next

Expect the cool water to hold through the next few days, so the midday hours should stay productive rather than the bite shrinking to a dawn-and-dusk affair. On low, clear flows like the 12.1 cfs reading, a long leader, a downstream approach and a quiet wade will matter more than fly choice. Gink and Gasoline stresses that adding split-shot until the flies reach the strike zone is often the whole difference on nymph rigs, so on the 378 cfs water be willing to add weight and fish the seams and deeper runs.

With a New Moon tonight, the nights are dark and the daytime light does the work. Overcast stretches and early mornings are the windows to plan around, and bright, calm afternoons call for lighter tippet and smaller patterns. Flylords Mag notes that egg patterns work well behind spawning fish in autumn, and Mainely Fly Fishing reported trout already in spawning colors in the Northeast. If you fish eggs, keep your distance from spawning beds and check state regulations for any fall closures or catch-and-release rules on the stream you choose.

Context

Mid-October is the transition from late-summer low-flow fishing to the fall spawning season for Brown Trout and Brook Trout in the Adirondacks and Catskills. Water in the low 50s is on schedule for the date, and cooler nights typically push trout to feed more aggressively ahead of spawning. Fish tend to move toward gravel runs and tailouts, and streamers and egg or nymph patterns typically take over from summer terrestrials. Rain would raise flows quickly in the smaller drainages, so a bump in water is the main thing that could change this pattern.