1st Pool

Most of us (the 3 other guys i talked to) consider the first pool to be the one shortly after the bridge pool. The bridge pool is really the first pool on the "455", and it's not more than 100 yards off the main road. But i have never had a rise, or seen a flash, nor has anyone moved a fish in the bridge pool (if there even are any???) so we do not consider it the 1st pool.

After crossing the bridge, the trail winds up away from the stream and the next one which is beyond view, is the one we call it the 1st pool. In this pool you can plainly see the fish. Most of my prior experience yielded a big -O- on this pool, but after careful study (less fishing more observing and reading the water) I could make out the flow line and a deep pocket channel that runs directly under the overhanging branch against the far wall. This pool is a nightmare as the angle of the tail shoots the water away from the wall and makes it difficult to sneak up on the residents. Stealth while required on any small stream is especially so required on this 1st pool due to the likely activity is sees, these are at least college educated trout.

The trick is to carefully fish the pocket water below the tail and release the 2 or 3 fish (depending on water levels) below your wading position vs. scare them up into the pool, which spooks the entire pool. Then crawl to the rocks nearest to the tail (this is just painful). You can not start your cast early as evidenced by the tangle of flies caught in the branches which overhang the channel. Clearly others had found this line, but not solved the casting puzzle. In fact if i don't mind a bit of a swim i can usually pick up 2 or 3 files on the cheap.

So the question is how to lay one in with out loosing it? The answer is to get close and low with a good sidearm false cast to the wall (it is ok to hit the actual wall as flies don't generally stick to a mud / dirt wall). The back side is well short of the branch, then false cast back and to the to of the lip of the pool toward the wall side. This method has the added benefit of the line flashing behind the fish so as not to spook them. The current will carry the fly into the line above the channel and directly over the fish. Once there the fish will or won't take your fly depending on your selection and their mood. This pool is so deep that one can regularly catch a 10 or 11" brookie from it.If your there in the fall you get the added bonus of full spawning color and all the life energy one could ever hope for.

All this means that you will spend about 25 minutes or more gaining your position (moving forward all of about 20 feet) and will then quickly take 2 or 3 fish (at most) from the pool, vs spending 5 minutes getting into position and 2 hours wiping the water senselessly without rise or success. It has been very hard for me to slow down the process, to think vs fish, to watch vs do, but the end result has been less time casting in frustration and more time in an elegant dance with some of the most beautiful creatures around.