Fishing Log

Black and pink tiny flys were the killer the past three trips. Size #6 and #8. Other colors were catching but towards late afternoon it was black all the way!

Chris, keep trying, this time of year I like to fish in 6 to 10 feet of water, try the tails of deep holes. Used double darts on 3 rods all different colors. Caught about 30 to 40. Keep trying.

Here's a photo of my trout earrings I've been working on.

Chris.....what works one day doesn't always work another day.....try diferent things....I'm more of a try something diferent than to change color.....look for pinch points and less water.....I like 8 to 10 ft.....no more....shorten up the length from your ball....I go from 5ft to 20 ft depending on water clarity.....sometimes a flat line with some split shot is all you need......one rule of thumb that I have a problem following myself is NEVER leave fish to find fish.....get out there and good luck......It was a pleasure to fish with Rusty balls and Shadfather......two great guys.....I'll be heading up to Smithfield this weekend......tight Lines......

Chris don't give up. It took me a few years to learn how to fish for shad. The information the guys on this site give you is great. You just need to learn how and where to use it. I have learned that just fishing a channel doesn't always work. I like to find a pinch point in the river usually where there are rapids with a channel going up and shallows to the side . We anchor just to the side of the current so we are partially in the current. I learned from the guys here to not only use downriggers but also use deep divers with the hooks removed and a leader tied to the back loop. I was catching as many with this method if not more than with the down rigger. We also found that just moving the anchor rope from one side of the boat to the other helped. This would move us in or out of the current if we were not hitting them. We also learned to move if you not getting any strikes. All of this I learned from the guys on this board and trial and error. If you haven't done so yet, join the shad club and go to their meetings. They are always ready to help. Keep trying. It's well worth it. Iv'e had my best season so far.

Fished between Bushkill and Eshback on Sunday. We stopped counting after 30. I had my boss out. He is now a convert. That will probably be my last shad trip this year. I want to thank everyone for all the info this year. It made for a very great year. Thank you. P.S We even caught a couple of walleye on flutter spoons

Sorry forgot keith fished with us too sunday...sorry Keith,..lol

Fished Easton sat with Eric to get fish in the spawning tank..caught 46 fished from 8-1

Kevin, they are indeed and many are upstream of that area. Good luck.

Thanks for the info, you guys are the best. Tight lines

Rob & Komar..they are still catching at easton

Planning on going out this Sunday, are they still getting them in the Bushkill area? or should I move farther upstream?Dingmans, Milford?

Fished Reigelsville 6am to 1pm....19 shad 1 walleye and 1 smallmouth...Fish are still around....Water temp 60...Don't give up yet.....All fish were fresh and real fighters.....

Tonight was an extremely excellent session N of water gap from shore. All you wanted. As good as it gets. Slightly more roe than buck. Me and my buddies were using my 1/32 and 1/16 ounce custom hot pink head white body darts and as the sun dropped chartreuse and hot green head worked very well too. No numbers - too busy to count and we were laughing and having a good time. Every roe brought a big pod of followers right to the waders. The fish were as thick as thieves!

FISHED WITH CAPT DAVE SUNDAY..ENDED THE DAY WITH A TRIPLE...19 TOTAL

River is up to 7.5 ft and will stay there until Tuesday......Lots of water coming from up River......River temp 56.....With nights in the upper 30s river temp will drop which could hurt the bite.......need lots of sun and no more rain......

Had a gentleman, Ben Kulp from Morgantown PA out on Tuesday afternoon for a 6 hr trip that paid for a trip through DRSFA ..caught 40 fish...very happy with the outcome ..wants to come back next year

Only have one weekend to fish for shad. Was planning on fishing the Water Gap area this weekend. I'll be making the 3 hour drive to visit family anyway but am I SOL for fishing? Thanks

I don't fish the Delaware normally but I will be near it tomorrow for work. Easton area where the Lehigh dumps in. Will conditions be ok to fish tomorrow or is it not worth my time?

That was me who put the "BEWARE" message below. I had forgotten to sign-in. ShadHarris is correct; the high water from upstate NY can come down like a big wave, but takes time to reach all areas. Years ago, when I lived in Morris County I used to drive 45 miles to the river only to find it running high/muddy with debris. Thank goodness now for the internet and USGS. I like the fishing when the water is tea-colored, not clear or muddy, and I can see the conditions I will encounter from my phone or home pc at any given time. Fishing will probably be futile until the water comes down to between 2 or 3 feet above normal flow in your chosen area.

A lot of folks don't fully understand the impact of Northern rains (and rains in general) on the Delaware. I will do my best to interpret based on current information. I live directly East of the Water Gap, and it absolutely poured last night, at as of 9:45 PM, the gauge has not moved. However, it's forecasted to surge nearly 3' by 2pm tomorrow. It's at 6.5' now, it has not really moved much in past few days. It will crest at 9.3... Lets go way North to Callicoon NY.  It was at 4' yesterday at noon, and just crested at 7' and is already dropping. As you work further south down the river, everything else is still rising which only makes sense as all the feeder streams are still dumping in. It generally crests earlier, North to South but local rainfall can impact that a bit but this is a general rule of thumb. In Barryville, it was 4.3' yesterday and currently at 7' and rising. In Port Jervis, it was at 3.6' yesterday around noon and currently at 7.1' and rising. In Montague yesterday at noon it was at 6.6' yesterday at noon, and currently at 9.6' and rising. The Water Gap gauge was at 6.5' yesterday and IS STILL at 6.5. This is only 30 miles south of the Montague gauge. It is forecasted to crest at 9.3 feet by 2pm tomorrow. Belvedere gauge is at 5.5' and trending downward, but the surge is coming. It will crest 8.9' tomorrow at 8pm.  Are you seeing the trend here? Let's end with Phillipsbugh gauge. It was 3.25' yesterday at noon, currently at 3.6' and is forecasted to crest  at 8.9' tomorrow by 8pm. That more than a 5' surge!    You can track all this information yourself, at https://waterdata.us...rent/?type=flow .   I will never waste a trip to the river again, I study this religiously and have really started paying attention to these gauges over the past several years.   Let me be clear. "don't fish tomorrow". It will be high, murky, and full of debris.  Find something else to do.

The river in Narrowsburg is up 3 feet from yesterday with a lot of debris . The water is stained and visibility poor. Fished 2 hours this morning without a touch. The river was rising when I left, not sure how big the rains were in NY last night but it definitely affected the river.

Fished Monday from 3-7 pm: caught 2 bucks lost 1.