Christmas Flooding on Miramichi

Miramichi flooding (not fishing) in December 14th 2010. I will have better photos in the morning of the river and camps in the area. Rodney

We're fortunate to fish for salmon

Who would think Eastern Canada would be the hottest spot for Atlantic salmon fishing in all of North America.

Fishermen from all over the world travel to our eastern rivers for our Atlantic salmon. And yes, New Brunswick is the place to be from April 15 to Oct. 15.

Only 176 days until we get out our fly rods. And who would be counting the days for a fresh new season of fresh silver salmon and hearing that old Hardy reel screeching? Readers like you I hope? How lucky we are to live near the Miramichi River.

Salmon fishing officially ended today in all of New Brunswick for 2010 season.

The Nepisiguit River was the only river that had an extra week of fishing this fall.

I had a chance to give it a try this week, but had to say no to a wonderful offer from Ron Godin. Sorry to hear he did not have very good luck as the water was too high and the weather was cold and windy.

The last few days of the season on the Miramichi were very tough as heavy winds made it hard to cast. Cristian Stathis and I only had four fish for the last week and did not see many fish. Most fish we saw seem to be very dark in colour.

I also fished with Country Haven Lodge last week with guest Willy Wood and Richard of Maine. We landed three salmon and lost another fish at the Sabbies pool using Ally Shrimps.

Country Haven said they had a pretty good season under the extreme hot weather conditions this summer.

Trout Brook Fly Shop owner Syd Matchett said the last couple weeks on the North West Miramichi was not too bad. One lad hooked five fish at Blacks and Allison Pool on an Ally Shrimp and a Copper Killer. Syd said there were not many fishermen about as the weather stayed cold the last week.

Curtis Fly Shop said they had a good year and sold a lot of flies and gear. There were not many reports of big hook bills being caught, or none with proof with a picture.

They will open up the shop for anyone at Christmas time. It would be best to call ahead if travelling a great distance.

Have you ever wondered how many fish are hooked and landed each season in our rivers?

I have and I hope someday we will be able to go to a website and check out the numbers of fish hooked, landed and tagged each day.

Many rivers in Scotland (if not all) can tell you their salmon counts per season. What pools produce and which ones will have the best chance at hooking up. Just something for our new government of New Brunswick to think about for future seasons.

They do it for deer, moose and bear why not for our famous Atlantic salmon? Let me know what you think of this idea.

I almost forgot to tell you the story of the grilse that was in the net and found a hole to squeeze through to get back into the Cains River again.

Louis Cormier is from Memramcook and a fly fisherman that is a victim of the netter of Sabbies. We saw many fish at the Sabbies pool whilst there had to be 15 rods fishing on both sides of the river each of the last two days.

* Rodney Colford is a third generation salmon-fishing guide on the Miramichi River and has been guiding fishermen ranging from greenhorns to some of the finest fly-fishermen in the world for 27 years. His fishing reports appear Thursday in the Times &Transcript.

Good Fishing Winds Down

After a windy week of fishing last week anglers were still hooking fish on the river.

Green Slimes, Ally Cascades, Ally Shrimps, GPs, LTs, Undertakers and Purple Allies were some of the flies that were working well.

The Ally Cascade which is very new to some anglers has been on the river for a few years now. I have had good luck on these flies for four years now and it is a fly to have in your box for fall fishing.

The yellow and orange blends very good in our rivers and makes it a hot fly for Atlantic salmon fishing.

And with a good fly you still need the conditions of the river to make a salmon take. River levels are very good and with today and tomorrow left it should be an end to a very good season of salmon fishing. Temperatures are in the low 50s Fahrenheit (10C) and many fishermen have turned to using sinking tips to get down to the fish as they are not showing much at the surface.

Fishing on the Cains River was very good this week as we landed fish every day at Moore's Pool. Cristian Stathis of New York landed a 25-pound salmon the first night of his trip using a GP. He landed another at Pool 66 on Tuesday.

Ken MacLeod of Nova Scotia landed a few fish on one of my Green Slimes on a No. 2 hook on the Cains.

Willy Wood, staying with Country Haven Lodge, landed fish almost every day on the Cains and Southwest Miramichi. Many fish were taken on the Ally Cascades. Other anglers were hooking fish at Country Haven and Valentines Pool was one of their hot spots on the Cains.

Wilsons Sporting Camps has been hooking fish on the middle stretches of the river in the Doaktown area this week. Fish were travelling they thought as they landed some hook-bills that looked to be in the river for just a few days.

I have no reports for the Northwest Miramichi this week.

Don't forget to attend the Dieppe Fly Fishing Forum March 26-27, 2011. It's the No. 1 trade show in New Brunswick for salmon fishing so let's see you there. Contact the fly fishing forum or Jacques Héroux for more information.

With another year of Atlantic salmon fishing behind us we will start the countdown to 2011 about two days after this season ends, or at least I will!

And with that I would like to say thank you too all who have read my reports and the ones I have had the pleasure to write about this season. Let's hope next year we all will have tighter lines and bigger fish to look forward too.

(You can follow me on my blog www.miramichifishingreports.blogspot.com for pictures of fishing this season 2010 and the upcoming season.)

Until next year, tight lines.

* Rodney Colford is a third generation salmon-fishing guide on the Miramichi River and has been guiding fishermen ranging from greenhorns to some of the finest fly-fishermen in the world for 27 years. His fishing reports appear Thursday in the Times & Transcript.

Big rise in water levels

Miramichi fishing reports for the morning of October 8th. We have a good rise in water this morning on the Cains, it must be up almost 2 feet in Shinnickburn area. We saw some fish jumping but had none that were interested in our flies. The Miramichi is up on the SW about 18 inches or more on the lower stretch, and salmon are still not opening there mouths! The guy I am fishing with had a pull this morning but only from me sneaking behind him and pulling his line as we laughed from being beat from these Atlantic's again.

If you take notice on my last report I added it and it dated October 5th. There are some nice photos to see there. I am not changing it as it takes to long to reload the photos. Have a look and I will add more to this section tonight. Tight Lines, Rodney Colford

WFN'S ULTIMATE FISHING TOWN

CONGRATULATIONS TO WFN'S ULTIMATE FISHING TOWN: PORT ALBERNI, BC!

Grand Prize Winner: Port Alberni, BC

• Winner of $25,000 community donation
• WFN to produce and broadcast a 30-minute feature about Port Alberni, BC

Second Place Winner: Nestor Falls, ON

• Winner of a $5,000 community donation

Secondary Prize Winners:

The following towns will receive a donation on behalf of WFN and their TV provider:

Thunder Bay, ON

• Winner of $2,000 courtesy of Shaw Cable & WFN

Miramichi, NB

• Winner of $2,500 courtesy of Rogers Cable & WFN

O'Leary, PEI

• Winner of $1,500 courtesy of EastLink & WFN

Niagara Falls, ON

• Winner of $1,000 courtesy of Cogeco Cable & WFN

Dauphin, MB

• Winner of $1,000 courtesy of WFN

Top 10 Standings

Here are the final standings of our Top 10

1. Port Alberni, BC
2. Nestor Falls, ON
3. Dauphin, MB
4. Nipawin, SK
5. Seeley's Bay, ON
6. Port Rowan, ON
7. Miramichi, NB
8. O'Leary, PE
9. Thunder Bay, ON
10. Chilliwack, BC

Congratulations to all the towns competing for WFN's Ultimate Fishing Town. We thank you for your dedicated and community spirit during the contest.

WFN: World Fishing Network
A Great Day For Fishing

Click here for Media Inquiries.

Salmon move upstream

Salmon fishing on the Miramichi is going well and there is good signs of fish in the river. Water levels are very good and temperatures are in the low 50s F the past week. The river had a good rise from the last storm and some fresh salmon decided to make there move upstream so we can have our last chance into hooking a beautiful hook-bill.

Cains River hook-bills are well on there way as anglers at the mouth of Cains are hooking fish and seeing good signs of fish. Black Brook Salmon Club this week are catching a few fish and one hitting the 26-pound mark by Jeff Shearer.

<---Jeff also limit out the day before on the same fly, this fly was tied out of purple marabou on a 1/0 hook.

Guide Donald Colford with the net weighing Jeff's fish.

Other fishermen were hooking fish on GPs, LTs, green slimes, allies orange and purple and bombers, yes bombers. We are still getting fish on bombers in late afternoons. They are also hooking fish at the Island pool on the Cains about a mile up from the mouth.

Johnny Vickery of Bangor, Me. landed a few salmon this week on bombers at Pool 66. David Miller of South Carolina fished six days and hooked a nice 15-pounder on his last evening of fishing. He was using a purple ally shrimp Number 6.

Rob Strange landed a couple grilse on a under-taker at Pool 66. Anglers at Wade's Fishing Lodge was hooking a few fish and one fish was well over 25 pounds and was hooked on a Allies Cascade. Ken MacCloud of Nova Scotia landed a grilse on a GP.

<----Joel Kitchen with a nice hen salmon on the Miramichi!

Country Haven Lodge are hooking fish everyday in the Main SW and also on the Cains. Guide Gary Colford was hooking two or three fish a day at Moore's pool near Shinnickburn and saw many fish running through. Vickers Salmon Pools are hooking a few fish and Marty Vickers landed a grilse at the Washburn Island pool on a streamer pattern.

I fished the North West this week before the rise and had no luck. Water was low and had not raised up, sorry I have no report from the NW after the rain.

With periods of rain for today this should set up the rivers for the last week of the season pretty good. I expect to see many anglers on the Cains this weekend and keeping there fingers crossed for some big fish.

So get some good flies for the last run at them, and try those marabou patterns as they do work very well in this cold water.

Let me know of that fish of your dreams caught on the beautiful Miramichi. So keep your rods high and your reels screeching until next week have tight lines.

* Rodney Colford is a third generation salmon-fishing guide on the Miramichi River and has been guiding fishermen ranging from greenhorns to some of the finest fly-fishermen in the world for 27 years. His fishing reports appear every Thursday.

High river levels on the Miramichi

Update on the river levels on the SW Miramichi river for October 3rd 2010. Water was very dirty today on the main river and the Cains. The levels were very high and must of been a 2 foot rise at the most, it was still rising at noon today. There were leaves and debris in the water and very murky. Not many fish showing but there were a few if you had patients to stay for a while. I fished the mouth of Cains river this morning and only heard of 2 fish being caught at Black Brook in the cleaner water coming into the river.

My father Gary Colford guiding for Country Haven fished the Cains river at Moore's pool and only saw one fish at the lower end of the pool.

Why are the fish not taking? any theories on it? Have the fish been in the river too long, or is it they are spawning, is it our methods of fishing changing as to patterns, is the water now too high or too cold to warm. Is there a fall run yet to come into the river and where are those big hook-bills? Let me know your thoughts by using the comments on the bottom of this post.

Tight lines and tighter loops!

Rodney Colford

Salmon active as season winds down

With days winding down for salmon fishing on the beautiful Miramichi River, it seems like it was only yesterday that we were watching the ice breaking up and getting ready for the opening day. The rush of anglers scrambling to get their last casts of the season in before Oct. 15 is on its way.

<-----Troy Adams with a 20 plus hook-bill!

<-----Troy's wife Marilyn Mallet with a salmon! Who say's women can't fish!!

Reports from up and down the river has fishermen catching and seeing lots of fish. Tyler Story of the MSA said the counters on the Northwest Miramichi were getting about 30 fish per day while the Southwest was getting 10 to 15 per day. Tyler also said he did not see many anglers fishing on the North West, but thought the conditions would be very good for fishing and said he may give it a try on the weekend. I may also give it a try.

Larry Porter of the Hershey Club in the Blackville area on the Southwest Miramichi netted a couple grilse for his sport and saw many other fish jumping in the pool. Across the way at Hogan's Pool we hooked three grilse and a salmon and saw many fish moving through as they jumped up over the bar. A couple of the grilse had massive kipes (hooks) and very sharp teeth with beautiful colors as we released them on their way.

<----This is Troy Adams and his son! landing a big one!

Emery Brophy of Black Brook Salmon Club this week said they were averaging good numbers of fish and Monday alone released 16 salmon. Solar Salmon Club near Upper Blackville also was catching good numbers of fish. Larry Vanperson of Bangor was averaging a couple salmon a day while other members were doing the same.

Byzie at Country Haven said fishing was very good and anglers were hooking up in most pools from Doaktown to Quarryville. Steven Heinz and David Kirstein of Maine had good fishing with guide Randall Connors, netting a 20-pound hen and a 15-pound hook-bill on an Alley Shrimp. Steven said he was out fished but had a great trip just the same.

<----Steven Heinz and David Kirstein of Maine

Many other anglers landed fish this week. Damir Sahic of Fredericton landed a few salmon and Jacques Heroux landed a salmon on Sunday at Pool 66.

<----Jacques Heroux with a salmon.

Steven Heinz and David Kirstein of Maine

James Vickers fished the mouth of Cains river this week and landed a few salmon and grilse with Axel of Ontario and Jim Corrigan of British Columbia. Peter Doiron landed a salmon and a grilse on a copper killer and a General Practianer. Up river in the upper stretches of the Southwest, Jason McCallum fished at Half Moon and never saw a fish but water was dirty at the time and had heard there was a grilse landed up river further.

<---This Damir Sehic of Fredericton area.

Wilson's Sporting Camps in the middle section of the Southwest Miramichi were seeing lots of fish and said conditions were very good. They were also hooking fish on small No. 10 flies of any pattern and later hooked some on bigger flies.

Cains River has good water levels and there are fish in most pools. I have not heard of any fish being landed with sea lice on them yet but would think the time is here and anglers will be hooking into some fresh fish this week.

I fished at Moores Pool this week with my father, Gary Colford, John Conley, Jim McClearin, Terry Paige and Doc Maiorino. They all hooked fish and said there were good numbers of fish in both the Cains and the Miramichi. River conditions were very good and temperatures are in the 50sF (10sC) with more rain in the forecast.

<---Steven Heinz and David Kirstein of Maine.

If you're heading out and looking for a public stretch on the Southwest, drop in to the Atlantic Salmon Museum in Doaktown, W.W.Doaks, Curtis Miramichi River Outfitters and get your Miramichi River Maps which shows all the public water.

The Dieppe Fly Fishing Forum will hold its seventh edition on March 27-28, 2011 at the Dieppe NBCC. For more information on this great fly fishing show, visit their web site at www.flyfishingforum.ca or call Ron Godin at 506-859-7289. I hope to see you there.

<----School teacher Rob Strange of Fredericton landing a salmon at pool 66 on the weekend.

<----Rob senior with a salmon as well.

The choice of flies this week seem to be of no particular pattern or size. We took fish on hooks as small as number 12's to 1/0. Flies like your shrimp patterns, black ghost, shady ladies, copper killers, LT's and almost your fly box if you could tie it on. Yes, they were taking different patterns up and down the river, so try em all. I would like to thank all the fishermen for their reports on their fishing and very sorry if I missed your catch this week.

Let me know of that fish of your dreams caught on the beautiful Miramichi. So keep your rods high and your reels screeching until next week have tight lines.

* Rodney Colford is a third generation salmon-fishing guide on the Miramichi River and has been guiding fishermen ranging from greenhorns to some of the finest fly-fishermen in the world for 27 years. His fishing reports appear every Thursday in the Times & Transcript

Salmon fishing shows vast improvement

Salmon fishing and river conditions on the Miramichi have improved greatly over the past week.

Colder nights have put the water temperatures in the 50F (10C) range and the height of the river is very good for the lower stretches, but could use a bit of rain to raise the up river levels.

Everyone is asking if the fall run is here?

Well there are some big hook-bills landed and even some fish landed with sea lice. Last week at Black Brook Salmon Club they reported landing 114 Atlantic salmon and many were sea lice covered fish. There was a report of a 40-pound salmon being landed at Vickers Pools this week.

Troy Adams from Dieppe landed a 25 & 28-pound-plus hook-bills on Tuesday. Richard Lac from New Hampshire fished with me this week. The first day we saw lots of fish from many sizes, but could not hook up. Then on Tuesday Richard landed two grilse weighing about five pounds each on a Ally Shrimp No. 8 single hook at the Half Bar pool.

On Sunday, Jim Corrigan landed a grilse while his buddy Axel raised several fish on Ally Shrimps at the Swett Pool. Damir Sehic landed two grilse on Saturday at Pool 66.

Ken MacLeod landed a grilse at the Nash Bar pool on Sunday and lost another on Monday. His friend Jeff Mosher also landed his first Atlantic salmon on one of my yellow body bombers at Pool 66 in Howard. Then on Monday he lost a 25-plus salmon as he took his fly in the very first run. Bill Moore and Ron Falusey each landed a grilse and Clark Hallman landed two grilse at the Swett Pool all on Alley Shrimps.

A great story of a young man's life being ruined by fishing Atlantic salmon this season as Jason MacCallum from Moncton was introduced to salmon fishing by Andrew Clark (also of Moncton) and has the fever very badly as he landed a fish each of his three times out fishing.

Andrew said it's nice to ruin someone's life with instilling the passion for salmon fishing on him. Way to go guys and thank you for the update.

Other rivers like the Cains River is still fishing slow as fisherman are not seeing many fish from above the Sabbies River. Reports from the Northwest Miramichi had fishing improving over the last week and water levels were still pretty good with river temperatures in the 50sF.

The race is on for Canada's Ultimate Fishing town on the WFN on. So visit the site and vote for Miramichi as your fishing town (http://www.wfn.tv/ultimate-fishing-town/miramichi). Lets go New Brunswickers and get back in this race for the best fishing town in Canada. We only have 6,642 votes so get going and vote.

Also register soon for your booth at the Dieppe Fly Fishing Forum 2011 at http://www.flyfishingforum.ca/info_exhibitors.htm and contact Ron Godin.

Let me know of that fish of your dreams caught on the beautiful Miramichi. So keep your rods high and your reels screeching until next week have tight lines.

* Rodney Colford is a third generation salmon-fishing guide on the Miramichi River and has been guiding fishermen ranging from greenhorns to some of the finest fly-fishermen in the world for 27 years. His fishing reports appear every Thursday in the Times & Transcript.

Vote for Miramichi

Here are a couple of interesting stories. Miramichi is in the race for Canada’s Ultimate fishing town – please visit the site and vote. As well the MSA had a very successful fund raising dinner in Fredericton on Sept 15^th. DFO Minister Gail Shea was the guest speaker – see story below.

timestranscript.com - Miramichi steps up Ultimate Fishing campaign ...

Organizations such as the Miramichi Salmon Association and the Miramichi Watershed Management Committee are the sentries of sustainability on the Miramichi, ...
timestranscript.canadaeast.com/rss/article/1224170

dailygleaner.com - Decline in salmon numbers gets federal ...
From left, Miramichi Salmon Association president Mark Hambrook, ... Mark Hambrook, president of the Miramichi Salmon Association and president of the New ...
dailygleaner.canadaeast.com/rss/article/1222669

Midday Fishing Report

Miramichi fishing report for Monday September 20th. Fishing the last few days has been great! just the catching has been tough! The river levels are perfect on the South West Miramichi and there are a few fish starting to come in with sea lice! I would expect the big fish should be starting very soon to come in from the estuary. The water temperatures are also very good and going from 50 F in the mornings and to 60 F by the evening. There are anglers hooking up and most seem to be in the morning fish. Flies of choice are Allies, GP's, Copper Killer's and still a few dry flies.

Back in a day or two with a full update and catches of fish!! If you have a catch that you would like posted please send it a long and I will gladly mention it for you. And your photos too! miramichifishingreports@hotmail.com

Tight Lines,

Rodney

Salmon Now Getting in the Taking Mood

This is last weeks report sorry for the late post!

With less than a month remaining in our season mother nature is trying hard to bring us better fishing conditions for the Miramichi. Cooler temperatures and rain is getting the fish in the taking mood up and down the river. River temperatures are in the high 50's to low 60's (F) for the most part of the day.

Fishing reports from local fisherman the past week has picked up considerably since heavy rains hit us. And with the showers the past few days we are expecting fresh fish to begin coming in from the estuary very soon. There are lots of fish in the river both salmon and grilse but they are mostly old fish. There was a lady at Black Brook pool that landed a 32 pounder this week, that should be the start to many fall fish.

Another fisher-lady that is no longer fish-less is Shirley Smith of Moncton. She landed a 31 inch salmon on a white tail green machine at Pool 66 on Monday evening. Her husband Steve also hooked into a few fish.

Roland Krause of Fredericton hooked and landed his first grilse while being coached by his son Michael. Brother in-law James Wood hooked a grilse and raised a few more. I landed a salmon about 15 lb's on a blue bomber. The bridge pool in Upper Blackville was producing while many local fisherman were hooking up and seeing lots of fish in the pool. There was several fish near the Stop Sign pool as Ron Falusy, Clark Hallman and Bill Moore each landed a grilse on Tuesday using copper killer's and alley shrimps. My father Gary Colford was guiding for Country Haven Lodge this week and hooked a few fish in the Doaktown area.Damir Sehic of Fredericton landed 6 fish and 1 weighing 25 lb. Jim and Matt Martin both landed salmon at pool 66.

I fished Saturday with Jacques Heroux on the Cains and saw nothing for the couple hours we fished. Jacques then went fishing at Pool 66 and had great fishing saturday night...released 1 grisle and 1 salmon both on same thing Murray.

I fished Monday also on the Cains at Shinickburn and saw no fish all day. Other fisherman said they saw fish at Salmon Brook and Buttermilk Brook pools. Peter Beresford landed a grilse at the Sabbies Pool on a copper killer. Another angler said he fished the Dungarvan and saw fish by the Furlong bridge pool.

Solar Haven Club in Upper Blackville had good reports of fish being hooked. Al Bridges of Bangor said he hooked a few salmon. Larry Vanperson and Johny Vickery also from Bangor landed 23 salmon in 4 1/2 days on the river. Flies of choice were Rod's bombers.

Wilson's Sporting Camps on the main SW said conditions were very good and water levels are perfect height and with a good temperature. Many fish holding in there pools and no sign of any fresh fish yet. Green machine with a white calf tail is the fly of choice this week.

Fisherman on the North West Miramichi said fishing had improved. There were a few fisherman hooking fish at the Wayerton Bridge pool. Water temperatures was very good in the low 60's F and with the past rain things did improve for the better. All was needed was the fall run to start.

Also don't forget the Dieppe Fly Fishing Forum March 26th and 27th, 2011. This trade show is beginning to be the number one show for Atlantic salmon fishing in Eastern Canada. Contact the Fly Fishing Forum for more information on this event or Jacques Héroux.

Let me know of that fish of your dreams caught on the beautiful Miramichi. So keep your rods high and your reels screeching until next week have tight lines.

* Rodney Colford is a third generation salmon-fishing guide on the Miramichi River and has been guiding fishermen ranging from greenhorns to some of the finest fly-fishermen in the world for 27 years. His fishing reports appear every Thursday in the Times & Transcript.

Fishing Improving on the Miramichi

Well fisherman and fisher-ladies get your waders and rods ready for some good fishing conditions on the famous Miramichi, as the heavy rains will get the fish moving. The water temperature is in the low 60's F and DFO said there are lots of fish in the estuary that should start running soon.

Fishing conditions have improved on the Miramichi and tributaries and holding pools are catching fish. No sign of fresh fish yet running but conditions are well on the way for a good fall. With heavy rains expected for the week there should be good levels for the upper parts of the river. The forecast is predicting 60 to 80 ml of rain from Tuesday to Friday this week, and with the rain from hurricane Earl we just received it should bring the levels up considerably and get the fresh fish moving up stream.

Monday and Tuesday I fished with Ken MacLeod and his buddy Jeff from NS on the lower section of the river. We started about noon on Monday and the pool was thrashing with fish like you wouldn't believe! The three of us landed 12 fish and lost another 6 fish using any fly you put on pretty much. Ken said its like putting the two hottest pools on the Humber river in NFL all in one pool. Tuesday we landed 8 more fish and Jeff landed a 25 lb plus salmon. Flies we were using was brown, black, white and green bombers, green muddler, black cosseboom, blue charms and green machines.

Other anglers the past week that landed fish were Mike Bonner and his brother landed a grilse each in the Grey Rapids using a green machine on Tuesday. James Vickers landed a grilse on a green machine on Sunday and I landed 3 using bombers also on Sunday. Steve Crandlemere of Sussex landed a 40 incher and his son Zane landed a grilse each. Merle Colford landed a grilse and lost another. John and Alex Colford landed a grilse each this week.

Black Brook Salmon Club had a wonderful week with many anglers limiting out each day. Doc 92 and his wife Sue Sheerer were having a great week after spending 3 long weeks on the river. Kim Smith and his wife Benny were also having a tremendous week with Benny limiting out on Tuesday and Kim landing three.

Trout Brook Fly Shop on the North West Miramichi said fishing has improved with the rain from Earl and anglers were picking up a fish here and there. There was good reports on the crown reserve stretches at the Elbow, Crawford and the Depot as fisherman landed seven fish in 1 1/2 days.

Wilson's Sporting Camps said they had a six inch rise in water and conditions were good. They had fish in there holding pools and with rain in the forecast things should improve for the fall run.

Let me know of that fish of your dreams caught on the beautiful Miramichi. So keep your rods high and your reels screeching until next week have tight lines.

Rodney

After affects from Earl on the Miramichi River

Colford's Atlantic salmon river report from the Main South West Miramichi. With heavy rains hitting us from Earl we have yet to see that much of a raise in the river. The lower stretch of the SW Miramichi only got about a 6 to 8 inch raise so far. I talked to Syd at Trout Brook Fly Shop and he said the NW Miramichi only raised about 4 inches. Syd said there is not many anglers fishing but the few that are have saw fish around. The same goes for here on the Main SW river there are fish moving around the pools now from where they were before holding in cold water spots through out the pools.

This is a photo looking up towards the mouth of Cains river.

Today is very windy for casting and a lot of slim floating and making it hard to fish wet flies both casting and your drift/swing of the fly. The temperatures were very good this morning in the mid 60's F. I landed a grilse on a brown bomber, while James Vickers from Moncton landed a grilse on a green machine. Merle Colford lost a grilse and landed one on brown bomber also. There were a few other fisherman that hooked a few fish too around 10:00 am on dries.

I hope this fills you in a bit for the river conditions, I will post more later today or tomorrow if there are any changes.

Update from tonight: The river raised another 6 inches from this morning and looks like it is still raising this evening. The fishing was great as I landed 2 grilse from 7:00 pm until 8:00 pm. I witnessed a 40 incher being landed after telling the guy what he should use for a fly. I told him my flies work for this pool so put that one on! then he hooked his fish. Lucky call by me lol! All in all the river is up at-least a foot or better. I will update you again tomorrow.

Tight lines,

Rodney Colford

These are 'tying' times for fishing

On the Miramichi River system this week, there hasn't been much fishing to talk about except the weather. Heat was the topic and early morning dashes to the river seem to be the most excitement for most fisherman during the high humidity.

Most anglers took the time to tell stories on the banks of the river or practise their casting. Others said tying flies at times like this made for better days and gives the fish a break.

We all know the weather is very important topic when it comes to fishing and the heat is not the best topic for Atlantic salmon or us anglers when fishing. But after weeks of dry weather with only a few showers to be heard of, 40 to 50 millimetres of rain (about two inches) are forecast for this weekend.

Well that's enough to get excited about. It gives us hope that conditions will be much improved next week.

If the heavy rains come, what can we expect from our rivers?

With the rivers being so low and the water temperatures so high, it has to be better for the fish whatever precipitation comes from Hurricane Earl.

I would think the first day or two from a raise in water it will be very dirty from all the algae we have on the bottom of the rivers at this time. Let's hope when the rain comes it rises the water and puts lots more fish in from the bay to tighten our lines.

There were a few fish landed last weekend after a couple cool nights on the lower stretches. Saturday and Sunday morning seemed to be the first mornings that the fish wanted to take in a few days. Local anglers at Pool 66 hooked fish with one weighing in at 20 pounds. There were a few more around the 15-pound range and a couple of grilse. Flies of choice were brown bombers and small black patterns for the wet flies.

Black Brook Salmon Club also hooked a few fish Saturday and Sunday morning with the brown bomber with white ends being the fly. They said there were plenty of fish holding at the brook and early morning was the better time to fish as fish moved throughout the pool.

Monday at Pool 66 Steve Smith landed and released a grilse on a blue bomber and was netted by Dennis Grant. Joel Kitchen had a couple friends from Ontario fishing with him and landed a 35-pound salmon at Pool 66. They also lost a grilse. The fly of choice was a woolly bugger. I told him he must of been trying everything he had to get to the woolly bugger. It worked and that is all that counts under these conditions so I think I will dig mine out - if I can find them.

Wilson's Sporting Camps said there are plenty of salmon holding in their pools and are taking very well in the mornings. They urged people to take caution in the heat and to break fish off after the hook-up. Bombers were working best in the pools.

Curtis Miramichi River Outfitters had a good event over the weekend as Dennis Grant hosted a fly-casting school. They had a very good turnout on each day including myself for Saturday afternoon. It was a fun time for beginners to the more experienced casters. They said fishing was very slow but a lot of fisherman were in the shop getting flies. There were a few anglers that hooked fish on bombers and bear hairs but most were waiting for the weather to change.

The Cains River is very low and fish are holding in the cold water brooks. The Renous River is also extremely low and warm with fish holding wherever there is cold water flowing in. The Northwest Miramichi has fish holding in the cold brooks and there are rumours of fish in the tide waiting for a raise in water to get them moving upstream.

I hope this is the last of our hot humid weather and conditions will soon improve for your fall salmon fishing. The forecast for the next couple weeks is below seasonal temperatures so things are starting to look up with the rains we are expected to get. September is always a big fish month, so I look forward to hearing from you for that big fish being landed.

A tip for the anglers who have boats anchored or seats/benches out on a gravel bars - keep an eye out as the water may rise quickly and these items could be gone the next morning.

Let me know of that fish of your dreams caught on the beautiful Miramichi. So keep your rods high and your reels screeching until next week have tight lines.

* Rodney Colford is a third generation salmon-fishing guide on the Miramichi River and has been guiding fishermen ranging from greenhorns to some of the finest fly-fishermen in the world for 27 years. His fishing reports appear every Thursday in the Times & Transcript.

A few locals hooking up

August is taking its toll on fisherman through out New Brunswick who fish for Atlantic salmon. Over the past week the Miramichi river has slowed down considerably due to no rain leaving rivers low and anglers wondering when the conditions are going to change for the good. With not much rain in the forecast until the weekend, anglers will have to keep there fingers crossed and hope the expected rain to hit the headwaters will and increase the height and keep the temperatures low. Ideal temperatures are 55 to 65 F for fall fishing. The last week temperatures were 68 to 76 F depending on the area of the river fished.

A few lucky fly fisherman over the past week managed to hook up. Ian Fortune fishing near the mouth of Bartholomew landed 2 grilse and 2 salmon using brown bombers with split wings. Damir Sahic of Fredericton landed a grilse at Pool 66 on his third cast using an Undertaker number 10 single hook. Rob Strange of Fredericton also fishing Pool 66 the next day landed two 15 lb plus salmon using a Green Butt Bear Hair on a number 10 double hook. He lost another one on the same fly. Allie Keenan and his two brothers each hooked a fish at the mouth of Keenan brook.

Guides at Black Brook Salmon Club said conditions were good in the mornings with a couple fish each day this week but warmed up in the afternoons and evenings. Flies of choice were bear hairs, undertakers and bombers.

Curtis Miramichi River Outfitters said things were slow with reports of a few fish hooked down river at Mountain Channel which is a low water pool.

Wilson's Sporting Camps on the Upper Miramichi said water height is down making some pools impossible to fish. The deeper holding pools still had some good numbers of fish that were looking at the dry flies. They were still getting a few fish on small wet flies and stripping to speed the fly up as it swung across the current.

With conditions not as we would like to see them for August fishing. It should start to improve in the next couple weeks as the nights are getting colder and more and more rumors of Jack Frost in the air. September always has lots of rain for us and along with cold frosty nights you should see some good fishing in the weeks to come. And if your new to the sport or wanting to know a peak time to catch your first Atlantic salmon, check with fly shops, guides, outfitters or even a fish reporter like me to find one for you.

Let me know of that fish of your dreams caught on the Beautiful Miramichi. So keep your rods high and your reels screeching until next week have tight lines.

* Rodney Colford is a third generation salmon-fishing guide on the Miramichi River and has been guiding fishermen ranging from greenhorns to some of the finest flyfishermen in the world for 27 years. His fishing reports appear every Thursday in the Times & Transcript.

August salmon fishing conditions improving

Fly fishing conditions on the Main South West Miramichi over the past week was awesome depending on the stretches you fished. With a few showers and cool nights air temperatures dropped to 8C over the weekend. Which made the fishing very good as the river temperatures got down into the low 60's and up to mid 70's on warmer afternoons.

Certain pools on the river are holding fish and when the temperatures drop, the fish move around through out the pools. This making the fishing very active and great for the dry fly fisherman as you can get a fish too roll several times for the fly. Anglers near the mouth of Cains River had great

fishing too as many limit out from Friday to Tuesday morning until the heat wave hit us.

Laura Colford, 10-year-old daughter of Times & Transcript

columnist Rodney Colford, caught her first fish of the 2010 season, weighing in at 15 pounds.

I had a good friend Mike Levine from New Jersey fishing with me as he landed 4 grilse and 2 salmon all on bombers I tied. My daughter Laura age 10 hooked and landed her first of the season

weighing 15lbs. I managed to land 4 grilse and release them all on dry flies over the week. Maurice Mallet hooked 4 and landed a grilse. Troy Adams lost a salmon on a dry fly and rolled a few more as Troy and his wife Marilyne got away for the weekend to the Miramichi. Donnie Keenan landed a grilse on one of my Whiskers Monday afternoon.

Black Brook Salmon Club was also having a good weekend on through to Tuesday as many members and guest had 1, 2 and even 4 fish per day. Head guide Gayden Curtis said most fish were taken on brown bombers, green machines and small black flies and some fish had sea lice.

Wilson's Sporting Camps on the Upper Stretches said they are putting the bomber fishermen on notice . The conditions are ideal for good bomber fishing , the water is at a normal August level and still a good flow in most pools. We are seeing a lot of fish down low in the pools as well as a few still moving through. Flies of the day were the bombers.

Curtis Miramichi River Outfitters were getting reports of a few fish being hooked. Fisherman were hooking a few at Corn Bar in Blackville as Ian Fortune was one to limit out on Monday. Curin Baker of England lost a salmon as well. Bombers were the fly of choice for the day.

Chris Edmond's reported fishing Sunday on the NW at the Chimney Pool. They got into a few fish on Alley Shrimps, GP and Silver rat. He also said the river was low but very good temperatures which helped in hooking up. He also saw a deer crossing the river and a small bear following very close behind the deer. I also had a couple guys in from Woodstock that were fishing the crown water on the NW and they said water was low and warm but did see a few fish, but had no takers.

I had reports from some fisherman fishing on the Cain's River. Pools like Salmon Brook, and the Brophy Pool have fish holding. James Trenholm said they were on the Cains and the water was very warm. They saw some fish but none were taking on there trip.

The middle of August is now closely approaching the river and so far it has been a very good season minus a couple hot weeks we had in July. Lets hope with a little luck we can have a great start to a Fall season and catch some massive salmon up and down the river and tributaries. And with some rain in the forecast next week and below seasonal temperatures the rest of August we may just get some good fishing.

Tip of the week when tying an Improved Clinch Knot please make sure to tighten the knot before clipping the remaining leader. If you hook a salmon with a loose knot that is cut short it may tighten with the fish and untie before you can say fish on. So tighten it good and leave it a bit longer when using a dry fly, wet flies too if you use a clinch knot. Let me know of that fish of your dreams caught on the Beautiful Miramichi. So keep your rods high and your reels screeching until next week have tight lines.

* Rodney Colford is a third generation salmon-fishing guide on the Miramichi River and has been guiding fishermen ranging from greenhorns to some of the finest flyfishermen in the world for 27 years. His fishing reports appear every Thursday in the Times & Transcript.

Grilse numbers are huge on the Miramichi

Fishing on the Miramichi over the past week was very good for most anglers up and down the river. Different days we saw fish jumping as we were traveling from pool to pool by boat. And although there was a late decision on closing certain parts of the river to help salmon up and down the system survive the warm water conditions, things worked out very well for most anglers with there decision they made. The weather for the next couple weeks seems to below seasonal temperatures and a couple days rain. If we keep our fingers crossed and temperatures stay low the cold water brooks and pools will stay open.

On the lower stretches of the river from Quarryville to Howard anglers were catching fresh fish with sea lice. Most anglers were having better luck in early mornings when temps were in the lower 60's through to lunch time. The warmer afternoons did get the river back up to some high levels near 78 to 80 F. Before the water dropped off fisherman were hooking up almost every time down through a pool near the mouth of Cains River area. Green machine in the faster water seemed to be the fly. And in the slower pools almost any dry fly was getting there attention. Fisherman in this stretch of the river that hooked up were Glen Keenan, Donnie Keenan, Raymond Clowater, Dwayne Hollier, Alex, Johnny, Jonathan, Donald, Danny, Merle, Pat, Rick and my son Zachery Colford and myself.

I fished last Tuesday with Norman Perreault and son Nick. They both landed a grilse each by 10:30 am.

I fished this last week on the lower section of the Miramichi around the mouth of Cains river. Bob Rebmann and his good fishing buddy John Baird and myself were fishing. As the first day started things were not looking very good as the water was very dirty. We fished for a couple hours before calling it a day and wait for things to improve. The next morning brought some hope as anglers near the mouth of cains river at pool 66 were into fish on almost every cast. Fisherman on the Islands at the mouth of cains were hooking and rolling fresh sea run grilse with sea lice on them. We were fishing up from the mouth as Bob hooked his first salmon and lost it after a few seconds. I told Bob he would hook up again, and when we get the first one it would not be so hard after that. And it wasn't to hard as he hooked into another one which he

landed. We ended up with 5 fish for the day. The next day we also got into a couple fish, and many other locals hooked and landed fish.

At the end of the week the guys from Tennessee Bob Redmond and Author John Baird hooked 19 fish and only two was a salmon with the rest being grilse, most with sea lice. In front of the camp at the Hogan Pool we were hooking a few fish. Joel Kitchen landed four on a number eight blue charm before telling me I think your fly is falling apart that I got from you. I laughed as I told him there not guaranteed for life, but I will replace the wing just because you took your green machine off and hooked four fish on a different fly pattern. I would think after the four fish hooked, that fly paid for it self for sure as we laughed.

Country Haven had a couple very good days as they limit out on Saturday and Sunday and all pools were fishing very well. Dry flies and green machine seem to be the most popular pattern.

Derek Munn of the Ledges Inn was also into fish on all of there pools. Anglers were reporting seeing several fish in the air almost every time you look down river. They also had a couple 20 pound fish but for the most of the fish they were grilse reported being caught.

Keith Wilson on the Upper Stretches at Wilsons Sporting camps were also hooking several grilse. Most of the fish were taking small black flies and green machines, but for the dry fly enthusiast almost any pattern did the work. Keith also said the water was getting up into the mid 70's so they were hooking most in the mornings.

Fisherman on the Renous were also hooking fish and saw several good sign of fish jumping and rolling. Ronnie Steeve's and his brother Dale and Dale Gildert all hooked up last week. There were great reports of fish in Quarryville at the moth of Renous.

Cains River had reports of fish all the way up to Moore's Pool near Shinnick Burn. Salmon Brook, Cold Brook and the Brophy Pool all had fish in them. Anglers were hooking some on dries and wets. Tyler Coughlan hooked a few on dries at the Brophy Pool and more on the Miramichi.

The river reopening came into effect on Saturday, and includes salmon pools located at the confluences of: Gray Rapids Brook and the Southwest Miramichi River, Salmon Brook and the Cains River, Butty's Brook and the Renous River, Morse Brook and the Southwest Miramichi River, Black Brook and the Southwest Miramichi River, Donnelly Brook and the Southwest Miramichi River, Betts Mills Brook and the Southwest Miramichi River, Porcupine Brook and the Southwest Miramichi River, as well as the Southwest Miramichi River surrounding the pump house.

On the maligned Northwest Miramichi River a policy of hook and release recreational angling remains in place on much of the river system, which recorded startlingly low spawning requirements in 2009.

For another week of fishing on the Miramichi lets hope next will be as good as the last. Once again until next week keep your rods up and your reels screeching.

Rodney Colford

Times & Transcript