Fly Fishing the Kancamagus

Above, wild brook trout. George Liset photo

WRITING ON THE FLY

By GEORGE LISET

One of my fly fishing challenges every year is to fish waters that are new to me. This is never a problem in a state like New Hampshire because there is so much water to fish. A river like the Connecticut could take a few years to hit all the great fishing spots, then try to hit all the lakes, ponds, rivers and small streams.

I like to think that I am like most fly fishers when it comes to choosing a place to fish. I have a number of favorite places to fish. I have some spots that are close and others that might be a little bit of a ride, but I know when I get there I’ll be catching fish. The trouble with new spots is that you are not sure what the fishing will be like. One is also not sure what fly rod to bring or what flies to use. So when I get invited to try a new spot by a friend it makes the process easier.

When my friend Terry Sharbaugh asked me to take a ride up to the Kancamagus, to fish a couple of brooks that flow into the Swift River for some small Brook Trout, I had to say yes, for a couple of reasons. The first is that I knew we would get into some fish. The other was that Terry was an outdoorsman. Terry was from California and had been a firefighter for the National Park Service. Terry fought fires in Alaska and all over the Northwest. Terry also was a hunter and fly fisher having hunted and fished all over the west. So it would be like fishing with the famous mountain man Jeremiah Johnson, and who could pass that up.

The Kancamagus is a beautiful ride during any time of the year. Most people take a ride up during foliage season. The Swift River borders the Kancamagus highway for twenty six miles from Livermore to the confluence at the Saco River. We got up early to beat the crowd on a rainy morning. Terry wanted to hit the Sabbaday Brook before the tourists visited the Sabbaday Falls.

When we arrived there was only one other car in the parking lot. We rigged up our light weight fly rods. I used my trusty Orvis three weight superfine rod. We started at the bottom of the falls. Terry instantly started catching fish. Terry caught a number of three to five inch Brookies that had some great color. Terry had tied on a size twenty Caddis. I started with a size eighteen soft hackle. I did get a take but the fish wiggled off my non barbed hook.

To be honest, I was paying more attention to the falls than the fish. I don’t know if I have ever fished in a more beautiful spot. Terry headed up above the falls to fish and I just stayed to watch the falls. I did catch a couple of brookies before I headed up to join Terry. There is not much of a trail above the falls so you end up walking up the brook over kettle sized boulders that were slippery and unstable.

Above the falls I changed over to a size twenty Blue Wing Olive and caught a couple more brookies. Terry was doing his mountain goat imitation going from pool to pool. I was happy where I was. I asked Terry what the difference was between fishing brooks out west compared to New England. He said the size of the boulders and the fish.

As we headed back we rested on a bench overlooking the falls. The tourists were beginning to arrive. A number of them stopped to ask how the fishing was. We told them we got into a number of nice wild brook trout between three and six inches. One couple, upon hearing about our fishing success, gave us a puzzled look. I knew the look. It was the look that was thinking, why didn’t you just go to the pet store to fish. I just shrugged and said, “I know, but there are no waterfalls at the pet shop.”