What a difference a day makes! Water levels on area rivers and streams had been dropping slowly but steadily for days and weeks – on Saturday afternoon the Beaverkill at Cooks Falls was flowing at just 305 cubic feet per second, until the rainstorm began. We received warnings both on the computer and telephone of severe weather, heavy thunderstorms with hail and even a tornado traveling north to our area on Saturday evening. Our friend’s roof and barn and trees were damaged by the tornado, and heavy rains raised the Beaverkill more than eight times – cresting at a level of 2560 cubic feet per second shortly after midnight that night.

As of Sunday afternoon, the Willowemoc and Beaverkill were high and muddy – and as wading is treacherous in the high discolored water; no fly-fishers were seen in either stream. However, as we drove along the Willowemoc on our way to the lower Beaverkill, there were four anglers casting their bait from the right bank along Junction Pool. 

In high, discolored water your best bet is to fish deep, with large dark-colored weighted nymphs or streamers as the fly of choice. A Bead Head nymph is quite popularly used when the water is discolored, along with a Black Leech or Woolly Bugger to try and entice a hungry trout. (Experience has shown that a large, dark streamer is usually a ‘hit’ with trout in muddy water.)

Hatches were a bit disrupted with Saturday’s torrential downpours; however the day after the storm it was as if a huge light switch had been thrown on – the first tree leaves bathed the hillsides in light greens, with pear and apple trees bursting into bloom; daffodils and forsythia adding their cheerful brightness to the landscape.

And coinciding with the blooming of these flowers during this time of year is the Hendrickson hatch, often referred to as the second major mayfly hatch on our Catskill streams.

The Hendrickson is known for the two dry fly patterns associated with its hatch, the Red Quill in size #14, which actually represents the male Ephemerella subvaria, and the Hendrickson on a bit larger size #12 hook, that represents the female mayfly. Being of a lighter color, the Hendrickson is easier to see on the water, but the Red Quill is equally important, and fly fishers should have success using either. 

As described by Art Flick in his classic New Streamside Guide, he writes “the second fly of importance is Ephemerella subvaria; strangely enough, it is represented by two artificials. The Hendrickson represents the female, the Red Quill the male. 

“This is the only May fly that requires a distinction in the artificial between the male and female, but there is a marked difference in the naturals, not so much in their markings and color as their habits. As a rule, the male will emerge on one riffle, the female on another and trout are usually selective to such an extent that they will only take a Hendrickson if they are feeding on the female, or a Red Quill if the opposite is the case. 

“This may be easier to understand when it is realized that usually the male of this fly emerges in a different part of the stream than the female. For example, mostly females may be coming off one riffle, and the next riffle upstream would produce almost all males. To my knowledge, no other May fly has this peculiarity.”

Art Flick goes on to describe the first artificial fly to imitate this mayfly and given the name of Hendrickson by Roy Steenrod, of Liberty, New York in 1916. Roy was fishing with his friend, A.E. Hendrickson, on the Beaverkill below Junction Pool at Roscoe when he created the fly and named it after his friend.

Here is Art’s description of the fly as originally tied by Roy Steenrod:

Wings: flank feather mandarin or wood-duck drake

Body: pink fur from vixen of red fox (color comes from urine burns) 

Hackle:natural blue dun

Tail: few wisps dun spade or barb feather

Hook: No. 12

Art adds the following notes “Mr. Steenrod’s dressing called for wood-duck feathers for the wings, but as our lawmakers at one time frowned on the use of this plumage, mandarin may be substituted. His dressing for the body called for fawn belly fur, and although the difference is slight, I have had a bit better success with fur of a slightly pinkish cast.”

Hendricksons and Red Quills had started to hatch on area rivers and streams last week, along with the preceding Blue Quills, and should start up again in good numbers once the flood waters subside.