As the cooler weather arrives the idea of standing around in water becomes less and less attractive. Sensible anglers call it a season. They put their gear in the closet, and leave it there until April.
I get it. I really do. And I was really getting it Friday, Oct. 30, when I was standing in the Blackberry River, water up to my navel, and wet snow falling, fishing “specks” to the rainbow trout that were stocked a week before.
In cold conditions the bugs that trout eat tend to be smaller than the big fat bugs that we see in spring and summer.
You can be polite and decorous and call them “midges.” Or you can do what I do and refer derisively to these itty bitty flies as “specks.”
I have never been able to get a handle on specks, which I define as any fly that is size 20 or smaller.
They are hard to handle, especially with cold, stiff fingers. They require extremely thin tippets which are also hard to handle.
They are also hard to see.
So imagine standing in the swollen stream, cold water playing about the wadered, thermal-clad lower extremities, and large wet blobs of snow falling off trees and landing, with uncanny accuracy, on the angler’s head, denting both hat and spirits.
I’ve done this every year for decades now, with just about zero fish to show for it.
Why? Because other people do it, and do it well.
I want to be one of the Speck People.
My speck game improved a modest 800 kajillion percent this year, thanks mostly to the fluorocarbon tippet material made by Bozeman Flyworks.
It’s X-rated, meaning it comes in the diameters familiar to fly-fishermen: 0X, 1X etc. down to 7X.
For $10 you get 55 yards, compared to $15 for 30 yards of the fly shop stuff.
And it’s stiffer than the fly-shop brands.
I like stiff, because I am tying droppers. Other speck anglers prefer a more supple fluorocarbon tippet. Your mileage will definitely vary.
For imitating Blue-Wing Olives in the nymph stage, the winning pattern has been Barr’s Emerger, size 20. It’s a beadhead nymph so it gets down in the water column relatively quickly.
I’ve also used various sparkly things and zebra midges, all in sizes 20 and 22.
There is some distance to go here. Catching recent stockers in a medium-sized stream is one thing. Catching fish on specks in the Housatonic, Farmington or Esopus is another.
But it’s a breakthrough.
And it means I’ll get another few weeks of fishing in before I hang it up — no small thing in the COVID-19 age.
On a cloudy Wednesday at the start of October, my girlfriend, Taylor, and I decided to enjoy the autumn afternoon by getting off our laptops and into the woods for some much needed movement. Having just moved to Norfolk as a new reporter for the Lakeville Journal, I was on the hunt for panoramic views of the landscape I now call home, accessible with the hour and a half of daylight left to us. Haystack Tower it was.
I’m not entirely unfamiliar with the landscapes of the Northwest Corner: I visited family and friends in the region as a child and would drive up on high school joyrides from my home in Westchester County. But calling somewhere home brings new meaning to a place, and I was eager to see a familiar view with a new sense of belonging.
To extend the walk a bit, we chose the yellow trail loop, starting from the bottom of the road leading up the hill off North Street. Our journey began on a neatly mowed path through a gently sloping meadow, with stands of purple-white New England asters poking out from a mosaic of green and red leaves and grasses on either side of the trail.
Our trail took us into a forest sporting half-autumn colors: some maple stands blazed gold and orange while others remained dark green. The occasional fiery swamp maple glowed bright red below the overstory, catching the glints of sunlight that managed to penetrate the cloud layer and canopy.
As we trudged up the forested hillside, my field of vision was so washed in texture — a chaos of rocks, roots, bark, and leaves of every shade — that my eyes almost started to ache.
The trail plateaued after a short climb into a new type of forest: three-story oaks underscored with hickory saplings. With a new composition, the forest assumed a browner and yellower hue than that of the maple-dominated lower hillside.
We eventually reached the imposing stone tower at Haystack Mountain’s summit, and we quickly climbed the winding stairs to find what we came for: 360-degree views of forested hills folding over one another as they spread into the distance, interspersed by patches of valley farmland. A copse of orange maples framed Route 44 as it passed through Norfolk below. This was the beautiful patchwork landscape I am lucky to now call home.
A relaxed jaunt down a wide carriage road took us around the mountain’s northeastern flank as eastern hemlocks leaned overhead and clung to the steep slope below. Reaching the car with daylight to spare, we decided to prolong the outing with an evening pint.
At Norbrook Farm Brewery, we were asked if we wanted to join a game of jukebox bingo. It looked like fun, but we couldn’t get enough of the October evening air, so we headed outside instead to sit fireside on the patio. Settling into an Adirondack chair, I sipped the brewery’s brown ale (the “Beckley Furnace Ale”). It was malty and crisp, and certainly one of the better in the style I’ve had recently. Taylor is partial to seasonal beers and opted for their pumpkin ale, joyously titled the “Gourdo.” I’m usually not a fan of pumpkin-flavored anything, but I agreed that this was a nicely balanced beer and enjoyed the few sips I took.
As the light faded on the hills, we noted that the foliage across the fields looked to be nearly peaking in the soft glow of the evening. A chill settled in and I huddled closer to the fire, eager to lean into the swiftly changing season in my new home.
Chilly rain sprinkles did not keep area art lovers away from the opening of the Kent Art Association’s Fall Juried Art Show on Sunday, Oct. 13. Judges for the event were association members Liz Maynard and Conrad Levenson. The show will continue until Saturday, Nov. 2, during the association's open hours.
Kent artist and long-term resident Carolyn Millstein (above) paused for a photo next to her piece, “Near Oakdale."
“SHELTER,” an art exhibit supporting The Gathering Place opened on Suday, Oct. 12, at the Royal Arcanum Building in Norfolk, Conn. Featuring works by fourteen area artists, proceeds from sales will benefit The Gathering Place based in Torrington, Conn., which provides essential services to the homeless across 26 towns in Litchfield County. Open weekdays, this vital resource offers everything from hot showers and laundry facilities to housing assistance. The exhibit runs through Nov. 24.
