Catching and Releasing - It Feels Great!

The 2010 Atlantic Salmon season is off to a great start! A client who has been fishing with us for several years caught and released a nice grilse and a 15-pound salmon this morning using traditional spring flies. We wanted to capture it in a picture but he said it was bad luck! 

We’ve been at the other end of the river for the last several days and had a nice 23 pound salmon on within an hour of hitting the water. She was down deep and did not want to come up; she was very close to being landed then back out she went again. The sun was shining just right that day so we got a really good look at her. She looked like a torpedo! We realized we couldn’t land her within the proper time limit so we gave her some slack and sent her on her way down the river. Almost immediately we had a grilse right back on.

The salmon are really tightening our lines this week.

NOTE:

See how to properly catch and release your salmon on the Atlantic Salmon Federation’s website.

Smelt In The River

When the Atlantic salmon fishing season opened on April 15, the smelt had already made it up river, meaning the hungry salmon can’t be far behind! We’re back in Canada and excited to be hitting the river.

The light rain predicted over the next day or so will keep the river up, which is good for fishing from the boat. There are still some beauties up river waiting to come down right past us in the rapids, and we’re eagerly waiting to hook and release them back into the Miramichi River.

Doug Underhill had some good pointers on how to get ready for spring fishing in his fishing report on April 8. Doug writes a nice report every few days. You can read more about him on his website.

Over the winter we lost a dear friend of ours, Anne Pearson. She fished with us for many years and enjoyed both spring and fall fishing. Last year she caught and released a really nice 46-inch salmon she was very proud of, as were we. This spring will be dedicated in her honor, and her traditional fishing week will now and forever be Pearson’s Peak Week! Tight Lines for Anne!

Maine Tour and Season Kickoff

The spring season kick off is in full force! Kevin McKinstry, Westervelt Sporting Lodges Manager, and MBR Lodge Manager Katherine Hughes headed to the Maine Sportsman’s Show (April 2-4), where many attendees were interested in the lodge. Even more fun was catching up with current clients at our booth, where we were visited by a special guest, Lucy,  the National Field Champion Cocker Spaniel, from Dixmont, Maine.

Congratulations to Paul and Elley from Bethel, Maine. They won a three-day fishing trip for the 2010 fishing season and we thank them for stopping by our booth at the show.

Augusta, Maine, was very welcoming during our stay. We had two great dining experiences: the first at Slates in Hallowell, just down the road from Maine’s state capitol building and the second at the Wharf, which is just down the main drag from Slates.


If you are traveling through this summer (maybe en route to MBR!) and are looking for a nice place to eat, stop by Slates. You can read their reviews on Urbanspoon. Good music and the Maritimes go hand-in-hand, so you definitely don’t want to miss the Wharf. You can also see their reviews on Urbanspoon. Kevin is a chicken wing expert of “world renown,” and highly recommends the wings served at the Wharf.

The week was finalized by having lunch at The Anglers' Club of New York in Manhattan with new friend and author of “Land of Little Rivers” Austin McK. Francis. His website is: http://beaverkillpress.com/ and is positively beautiful to visit.