The Shokuryoshi Experiment
When it comes down to it, some tributaries and rivers play host to more trout than others. From tailwaters to headwaters, all of these different sections of a watershed all have their own pros and cons.
Looking back through journal entries, and observing the different areas and spots I fish, I have learned a lot about where to go and how the time of year, or time of day affects the fishing.
In the mindset of a shokuryoshi, why waste your time at a tributary where the fish are few and far between? When it comes down to the numbers, waters with higher fish density would be more ideal, but the density is only part of the equation. Some other factors that I have started to take into consideration since starting this experiment are the size of fish, river access (both access points, and how easily I could traverse the water), and how difficult it is to catch the fish in that area.
Go With the Flow
For the last few years, my goal has been to fish as much of the watersheds in my area as I could. Throughout the season, I would change my focus based on the availability of water and access. At the start of springtime, I would hit the local creeks and generally fish those until mid-June or early July when the snow in the higher elevations had melted.
For about a month or so, I would prioritize fishing creeks up in the higher elevations before the water levels started to taper off and the fishing became less active.
There was usually a short gap in time where the bigger rivers weren’t quite fishable, so I would spend my time on the local creeks while I waited for the flows in the main rivers to drop a bit.
After that, my focus was on my favorite river for the majority of the summer. I would generally fish this river until early November when the frost set in and the fish activity really died down.
Later in the season, around mid to late September, I would start to visit the tailwaters of that same watershed to take advantage and fish for the trout that follow spawning salmon as they make their way upstream. Throwing egg patterns to the rainbows lurking downstream from redds made fishing in a section where the trout are notoriously picky just a little bit easier.
In rotating through the different areas of the watershed, I felt I had become a more well-rounded angler. Chasing trout in different waters leads to experiencing different situations and learning how to approach and solve different problems you may encounter. Along with that, it helps break up the monotony of fishing the same spot over and over again. With that being said, repetition and revisitation of spots can help you to learn more about the rhythms of fishing in your favorite areas. One of the things I’ve learned in fishing more of my favorite river is timing…
Timing
In my experience, timing plays a big role in fishing. The more you get to know a river, you may observe little details regarding different aspects of timing.
In the first part of this post, I talked about visiting different waters depending on the time of year. The time of season you fish may also influence your approach and tactics on the waters you frequent. I notice a change in what colors and sizes of flies work as I’ve fished on my favorite river throughout the years. This could be attributed to the hatch at the time, or even the flows. It may even be the time of day.
Time of day can be a more relevant factor as I plan my fishing sessions. Through an observation I had about a local creek early this summer, I have started to see a pattern that holds true on a lot of waters I’ve fished in my area. I noticed that I would tend to have better catch rates in the evening, rather than the morning. This is something I picked up pretty early on, and tried to be on the water in the evenings when I could. Thinking about it more one morning while on the creek, it crossed my mind that with the way the creek flows, the fish would be looking upstream into the sun. Many of my strikes that I got in the morning came from trout chasing the fly from under a shaded ledge, often crossing the current to take the fly.
Taking into consideration the harsh morning glare I face when looking upstream on that creek, I started looking at maps of my favorite river, and the spots I fish often. For the most part, you would be facing east when looking upstream on some of my favorite sections of water. It was all starting to click, but would this be a reason why I don’t have as much luck in the morning fishing these spots?
Thinking more on a few spots that I’ve noticed tend to fish better in the morning, I noticed that they faced either true north or more south. The stretches of riffles and pools would be shielded from the morning sun by the steep ridge and the trees that crown the eastern side of the river.
The Evening Hatch
Now, with all these observations that I’m citing to solidify my case of why I prefer fishing in the afternoon and evening, there’s a little more to back it up. In my translation and reading of the book, “Shokuryoshi-den” by Hideo Tomon, there’s one part where the author writes about a certain river in Japan, and tells of the difference in approach of anglers. There’s mention of the river being tough to fish. Some anglers would have high-yielding days on the water, but were often met with a few days of low catch rates following. He then goes on to say that the more experienced anglers would visit the river later in the afternoon to target the rising char. In waiting for the evening hatch, their target species became more accessible as they were coming up to eat hatching insects on the surface. Along with this, he also mentions that this was a way to have consistent yields without overfishing the river.
Shifting back to the experiment, I wanted to bring up one other set of considerations I take into account, and how all these factors influence my decision on what water to fish.
The Fish
There are a few things regarding trout that come to mind when selecting what waters I plan to fish. In no particular order, these are: fish size, fish density, and how picky the first are.
Starting with fish size, smaller fish tend to be easier to catch than bigger fish. It may not always be true, but in most of my experiences fishing with a tenkara rod, I’m more likely to pull several smaller trout before catching a big one. Along with that, smaller fish are often brought to the net much faster than a bigger fish. Maybe that’s my own personal skill, but in the numbers game, more fish caught was a better use of my time.
Part of the reason for bigger fish being harder to catch is that I find they’re often a bit more picky, at least in the waters around here, and are less likely to strike at just any fly that drifts past them. It can also be a factor of the waters fished as the smaller streams in the mountains don’t hold these larger trout as often.
The density of the fish population in the chosen water is equally important in my decision of where to fish. If one had to rely on catching fish to make their living, I doubt they would choose a stream with low activity or opportunity to catch a fish. Some waters just hold more fish, and sometimes it comes down to how accessible they are. For me, having water that is relatively easy to traverse while still having plenty of opportunities to catch fish takes priority over any waterway that only offers maybe one of those traits.
Comments