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Aroostook Outdoors
by Wayne Selfridge, Caribou
Tricking County
Brookies
It's February as I write this April
column, and it's hard to envision open-water fishing with three feet of ice still covering the lakes, and the flowages nothing more than
unmoving white ribbons stringing their way through the contrasting
spruce-green landscape. Today, though, there is divine intervention. A week after
Aroostook was inundated with 18 inches of snow, coupled
by below-zero temperatures and drifting winds it is 53 degrees! Rivulets of water are flowing down the driveway and forming puddles without an ice
sheen. Except for my bathtub, I haven't experienced
moving and pooling water in months. I'm in the mood now, so let's talk angling.
It
will be a while before we launch boats on county lakes, so I'll focus on April's fast
waters. To experience a pulsating current against
waders as an angler hunts for early squaretails is a satisfying way to inaugurate spring.
Usually the ice-melt waters are too fast for
flyfishing, and it's difficult for our finned quarry to see a gob of nightcrawlers.
The answer to this dilemma is to use
artificial lures with lots of flash and vibration. My
first suggestion, and my favorite trout hardware, is a spinner. First let me say that I do
not receive endorsements, so when I suggest a tackle
item it's because it works. Over the years I have experimented with many brands, I swear
by Panther Martin spinners. I believe that this brand's
success in comparison to other manufacturer's is derived
from two factors. First, the drilled blade is directly attached to the shaft under the
eye, not on a clevis; secondly, there is an exaggerated
convex/concave blade design that creates a sonic attraction along with the flashy sight
enticer. You'll have better luck using gold blades with
either a dotted-yellow or black-body pattern. Use size 4’s for your smaller flowages and size 6’s for the mother rivers.
There's
a couple of lures that work almost as well. The 1/8th oz. Little Cleo in any two-tone
color, and the gold, 1/12th oz. Phoebe. As with the
Panther Martins, these two mini-spoons also have that magnified hydro-curvature that trout
want to devour. On medium and small Aroostook rivers and
streams, such as the Mattawamkeag Branches, Meduxnekeag, Madawaska, Allagash and Little Black Rivers, stock up on these three proven creel
fillers and you'll score big. When angling for trout on
the larger waterways; the St. John or Aroostook Rivers, I'll use the larger versions, as
well as three-inch orange or brown floating Rapalas.
Presentation
is key. Fast moving water will quickly carry your artificial past your target pool or
cover. A retrieve against the current will make the
lure run too shallow to catch fish. Cast at an upriver angle so your lure has time to sink
to a depth where the fish will see it, then adjust your
reeling velocity that will allow lure action either with or across the current. It may
take some unproductive practice casts to coordinate the
retrieve trajectory with the current speed, correct depth and range.
How many times have you seen trout in a
ripple or pool only to be disappointed by a seemingly disinterested fish. In most cases this indifference has nothing to do with loss of appetite,
they probably observed your approach and take you for the predator you are. If you must wade, do so quietly, careful not to dislodge
excessive sediment. If you can, walk the shore taking
advantage of shadows and concealment. It pays to wear drab-colored clothing too.
Conventional wisdom dictates walking upstream. However,
I believe that if you take these stealthy precautions to stay out of the trout's span of
vision, you can have equal success regardless of direction.
Let's hope that Aroostook has a fair-weather fishing season
with few black flies and mosquitoes.
~Wayne
Selfridge is a seasoned outdoorsman who has hunted and fished throughout the world as a
military veteran. He works in law enforcement and also
serves as the Sporting Journal's Northern Sales Manager. He is also a member of the Friends of Aroostook National Wildlife Refuge.
© 2000 Northwoods Sporting Journal
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