My previous trip to fish the Yellow Breeches wasn’t such a great experience due to the heavy rains that swept through the area. This time conditions were much better and I was hoping for a better fishing experience not only for myself but for Jude.
Jude is a fine young man. He is being mentored by Jin through a Big Brother program and is in the middle of his college career. He’s relatively new to fly fishing but he is very quick learner and very enthusiastic about the sport. My job for today was to help Jude out a bit. He had spent time fishing with Jin, but Jin felt I could give Jude a different perspective, which was fine with me.
Both of them were already fishing at the Yellow Breeches at Allenberry Resort by the time I arrived. I rigged up and managed to get a couple of small native browns near the small dam before I waded out to meet them. Jin told Jude that I would be helping him a bit today, then waded down stream and set up to nymph a deep pocket.
“I really don’t care how many fish I catch today,” Jude said. “I just want to beat Jin by catching the biggest one!”
I told him that it would be up to him (and the fish) to make that happen but I would do my bit and try to put him in a good position to fulfill that hope.
It was still early morning and chilly—too cold for any topwater action—so we fished subsurface. I figured on the aggression strike so I tied on a Baltz Bronzeback in size 16 but set a fairly shallow depth. I showed Jude how to cast with a bunch of junk (indicator, very tiny split-shot, weighted nymph) and not get it tangled in one gigantic mess or to hang it on the branches of a nearby tree, strip and mend line, prevent drag, watch the indicator for a bite, and the proper way to set the hook. I told him it’s really simple—like chewing gum, watching TV while listening to the radio, rubbing your tummy clockwise with your right hand while your left hand pats the top of your head in a counterclockwise move. Simple.
After a while Jude got the hang of it and stuck a couple of fish. We then worked on stripping line in while fighting a fish, when and how to give line back when a fish runs, and how the action of the rod acts like a shock absorber, helping to keep the fish on the hook. I should have brought a net because Jude hooked a nice Rainbow that was hanging just outside the main current. He stripped it in and I just touched the leader when it tossed the hook. It was a nice fish and I told him that fishing rules say if you touch the leader, it is a caught fish.
It was the biggest fish of the day and Jude agreed with me on the ruling. However, Jin disagreed and demanded visual proof. It was hilarious.
EQUIPMENT: We used a medium action 8 to 9 foot 4 weight rods, weight forward trout lines, dry flies and an assortment of various nymphs from size 14 to 18.
DIRECTIONS: From Virginia, take US 15 into Pennsylvania, past Gettysburg and other tourist attractions, then make a left turn onto US 74 outside of Harrisburg. Follow US 74 until the intersection of US 174, where there is a local graveyard on your left with a Rutter’s gas station across the street. Turn left and follow Boiling Springs Road one mile to Allenberry Resort and Inn and the Yellow Breeches. If you need equipment, flies or information you should drive about one mile further and stop at the well-equipped TCO Fly Shop in Boiling Springs town.