Fishing New Brunswick: The Kennebecasis River

I called James yesterday around 1pm to see if he wanted to go fishing. Of course he said yes :) Since it was getting a little later in the day I suggested we try fishing for some trout and what better way to do that than to do some fly fishing. We decided to go to the Kennebecasis River near Sussex since it is only about 45 minutes from home.

I picked James up close to 2 pm and we were ready to fish right around 3pm. We decided to try a stretch or river that we have both fished in the past in the Penobsquis area. James said he had not fished this area in the past 10 years so I was glad we decided to give it a try.

We got into the water below the bridge and walked up to the bridge as I have caught some decent trout there in the past. We each caught a small trout and had a few decent trout come up for our flies. We then decided to start our way down the river. The water was fairly high from the recent rain we received. It was cloudy and actually a little cool. The water temperature was much cooler than the Canaan was the other day.

As we made our way down the river we both caught lots of little trout but did not really see anything too big but the constant jumping and catching of the little trout made it a great afternoon and evening. We walked down quite a ways and when we decided to stop we just got onto the railroad tracks and walked back to the road. This made it a very easy walk back to the car. It certainly beats walking back through the bush.

James was getting tired out part way through the fishing so he decided to go rummaging through the woods to see if he could find a chair to sit on for awhile....and guess what....he found one :)

The flies I used on the trip were a white wolley bugger, a black wolley bugger, royal coachman, and a mosquito. I used the mosquito last and would have to say gave me the most action.

It was a great change getting the fly rods out and doing some fly fishing on a great river, The Kennebecasis River. The stretch we fished is designated as catch and release only.

Part way down the river my line got caught in a tree and when I tired to get it out my leader came off my fly line.  I have always used an item to attach my leader to my fly line because I have never learned to tie many knots.  James was good enough to tie my leader on for me.  He used a nail knot and told me he will show me how.  If you are like me and are not good at tying knots you could try some of these books or guides to help you.  I think I should pick some up as well :) Complete Book of Fishing Knots, Lines, and Leaders, The Complete Book of Fishing Knots, Fisherman's Ultimate Knot Guide, Practical Fishing Knots, and The Book of Practical Fishing Knots.

Fly Fishing The Kennebecasis

One place that I love to go fishing is the Kennebecasis River. This is where I learned how to fly fish many years ago. There are many different spots along the river that I fish. The most common spots that I fish are by Lone Pine Campground. Sometimes I park right on the side of the highway at the bridge.(If you see a silver Saturn parked there, it is me) I fish down the river from here. It is a very nice stretch that winds and turns a lot. It has some nice deep pools that hold many trout. I also go on the old highway and park at the bridge behind the campground and fish to the campground. Again, this stretch has some nice spots to fish as well. Sometimes, I go up from the bridge and have good luck.

I have also fished by Portage Vale many times. I park by the "green barn" by an old corn field and fish down the system. This area is quite over grown and is hard to fly fish. I have also fished at the bridge at Penobsquis and make my way down the system to the railroad tracks. I have caught many trout along this system as well. I usually get out at the tracks as I have fished down from this area but have never had much luck. I know people have caught nice fish past this point but I have not.

I have never hit the sea run in all my years of fishing the Kennebecasis but still have great fun catching the brook trout on the fly. I usually catch trout in the range of six inches up to 12 inches each time I go. I usually wait until the end of June before I start hitting this area. Depending on the summer I usually have good luck into August. Again, it depends on how the weather is during the summer.

The flies I usually use on the Kennebecasis are the Adams, the Mosquito, and I find that anything that has a lot of green in it works very well. I have tied some flies with no set design but are all green and I have had great luck with them.
(Me catching a monster trout)
I do need to mention that all the stretches I fish on the Kennebecasis are catch and release. It has been this way for nearly 15 years. If I want to keep some trout I will try some different areas. These stretches are relatively easy to fly fish and as they are fairly open. There are parts you have to be careful.

If you are someone that is not too worried about always catching monster trout but instead are happy with a day of good action using your fly rod I would definitely recommend spending some time on the places I mentioned on the Kennebecasis.