Surely spring can’t be too far off?
All I know for sure is that once the ice is off, and the lakes have turned over, I’ll be heading out to cast my first line of the new season on one of a number of my favourite, smaller Southern Interior lakes. There are plenty to choose from – shallow little water bodies like Dee Lake and Crooked Lake in the Okanagan, which are lined with fallen trees and have a rich riparian zone along their shorelines, to some of the lakes in the South Cariboo along Highway 24 (known as the Fishing Highway), with sunken islands and weed beds inhabited by a multitude of sub-aquatic insect species. In the past three or four decades I have spent a fair amount of time figuring out how to read the waters of each and every one of these lakes – with varied success.
Learning how to read the waters of any lake requires having an understanding of lake structure and the ability to identify fish-holding waters. It is best achieved by making observations and then recording them in some sort of journal so that you can refer to them on subsequent trips. Ultimately though, it is knowing how to add all your knowledge and observations together so that you can make something of a calculated ‘guesstimate’ as to where the fish might be, and what they are most likely to be feeding on.
Although fish are relatively opportunistic feeders, they can also be quite selective. Fish are, by their very nature, relatively wary creatures and, while they are constantly seeking food, they also continuously seeking protection from anything which might be inclined to feed on them. Fallen trees, weed beds, sunken islands, and marl along the shoal areas all provide protective cover for subaquatic insects and fish looking for something to eat. Look for areas where there is natural protective cover for both insects and fish, and you’ll likely find fish hanging around that feel safe enough to go after anything that happens to come their way or pass through their feeding zone.
Fish often cruise the shallows along the shoreline after sunset, when they feel they can swim about freely under the cover of the failing light. Creek mouths, where the surface of the water is broken by moving water entering the lake, are another favourite spot for opportunistic fish to hold while waiting for food to come tumbling their way.
Once you know when and where the fish are feeding, the trick is to figure out exactly what kinds of insects they are feeding on. If fish appear to be rising to some sort of small, pale-coloured insect with mottled wings along its back, I usually know just enough to know that it’s a caddis fly and not a horsefly. I can then match the natural with one of the fly patterns I have in my fly box. By referring to my fishing journal, I can then determine the best hook size.
While I know there are some anglers out there who know everything there is about trout and the insects they feed on, including all the taxonomic names, genus, phylum and so on, I am not one of them. That’s why I make notes in a fishing journal. Accurate journal notes (that are legible enough so that you can make out your own handwriting), can make all the difference when trying to read the waters.
When it comes right down to it, knowing how to read the waters really amounts to being able to remember some things and writing down and recording others – ideally, the ones that will help you the most when choosing which fly to tie on for that first cast of the new season.
