By Joe Solmo

As summer winds down into the cooler days of autumn, many trout anglers hang up their rods until opening day in spring, but there is still plenty of time left to get yourself some nice trout in the rivers and streams crossing the landscape. There are many reasons why fall can be the best time to get out there and fish.

                During the fall, the cooler nights lower the water temperatures, which means the trout are more aggressively feeding for longer parts of the day. The fall weather brings the demise of the pesky mosquito as well.  No swatting at them and missing a strike. But, one of the best reasons to fly fish in the fall is that you don’t have to get up as early.

Most insect activity in the cooler temperatures doesn’t happen until that mid morning or noontime sunshine hits them with its warmth, giving us anglers time to wake up fully and not miss a strike due to a yawn. The fishing should remain good through to late afternoon. When the sun decides it is time to call it a day, it’s a good time to pack up as well.

                Another reason fall fishing is so good is that the trout become more aggressive as they begin to prepare for the spawn. A territorial strike on a fast-moving streamer, like a woolly bugger or black ghost, could really make those chilly temps worth it.

                Northern Pike will begin to feed more aggressively after the first frost, but make sure you have a steel leader attached to that big streamer so they don’t shred your line if you chase after them.

                One of the best reasons to fish in the fall is it is less crowded. Unless there is a fall salmon run, most people prefer to be inside on those chilly fall days. Let them have it, there is fishing to be done! Here in the Adirondacks, the views of the mountains, with the trees changing color can make a skunked day of fishing still seem worth it.

   On those windy days that come with the fall, casting may become difficult, but if you can manage, and use dries, remember a lot of sticks and leaves are also floating down river. Making those ant and beetle patterns twitch once in a while should make the fly stand out from the debris and trigger a strike from the hungry fish watching from below. If the rain is pouring, get a streamer down into the deeper water of pools and tails. That’s where you will most likely find them during those times.

          Brookies and browns can spawn into late fall, and even though they aren’t really thinking about food, casting in front of them may cause them to swat at your streamer due to their enhanced aggressiveness.

                As to a list of fall flies to knock ‘em dead, many anglers have their favorites, but here is a complied list of the most common fall flies for trout fishing. First, and foremost, you must have some Blue Wing Olives with you in small sizes, as small as 24’s. Adams or Adams Parachutes are more go-to patterns. Midday using terrestrials, like ants, hoppers and beetles works really well. Many ant species grow wings in fall and spread out. A parachute ant pattern will mimic the wings if you don’t have a flying ant pattern handy. Depending on where you live in the country, the terrestrials will eventually go away due to colder temperatures. That’s when switch to streamers, like Woolly buggers, Black Ghosts, and Hornbergs would be a better choice.

If nymphing is more your thing, try Hare’s Ear Olive, Zug Bugs, or Pheasant Tail Nymphs to mimic the immature form of the other flies seen hatching in the fall. Here in the Adirondacks, stone flies and the Isonychia mayflies, also known as slate drakes, are good fly patterns to use as the insects are in abundance into fall.

So, don’t let the cooler temps keep you cooped up inside. Grab that rod and head out to the local trout steam. Make your friends jealous from their couches while you’re out enjoying nature and catching those fall fish!

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