On Monday, May 9th, Don Varner, Bob Hassett, Sid Aslin, Tim Klotz met at the commuter lot to head to Montauk and catch up with Charlie Trankler who got an early start. After planning out the day, the group spread out across the park. The water was a bit high and was really moving fast, it wasn’t possible to cross at the top by the spring. The flood on Friday, which they said crossed the bridge, really changed the river. There are new holes and previously existing holes were filled in. The walking was a bit treacherous; the gravel and sand were soft and shifty. In some of the sandy areas, you sunk up to your calves, which could be a problem in the fast-moving water, one guy (not in our group) went for a swim due to the quicksand.
Even in the fast murky water, the fish were biting, and several decent size fish were netted. After a morning of good fishing everyone met for lunch the FATC to compare stories and strategies. But, with the first 90-degree day of the year everyone was ready to get back to the water.
Once again everyone spread out across the park and fished until 5:00. The afternoon session was mixed, from a few fish in the net to a quite a few. The successful flies were wooly buggers, hare’s ear nymphs, cracklebacks, soft hackle, THE BIG HURT, and various other midges. On the way home the afternoon stories were told over a good Mexican dinner in Sullivan. It was a really good day.
