How do you begin your trouting trip? That Rabunite clan (www.rabuntu.org) always fishes first with a net! Lawbreakers? Nah, they’re all reformed these days. This is a legal method that you should adopt to enhance your own catches, especially in the midwinter cold. As a card-carrying Rabunite, let me explain.
Savvy Rabunites fish with a net first: the internet! We use that net to assess current conditions for our favorite streams and to predict what they’ll be when we arrive streamside.
First we check current conditions via the USGS online stream gauges. Some of our destinations have gauges on them, while others are close enough to a gauged river that can serve as a surrogate for our target stream.
https://waterdata.usgs.gov/ga/nwis/uv?site_no=02330450
All the gauges will show streamflows, while some will measure extra parameters like water temperature. The Hooch-Helen gauge even has a “river cam” showing you real-time video of the river!
Check online to see if your stream is high, low, or normal. Is it blown out by last night’s heavy rain or already recovering? Are water temperatures above, at, or below that prime zone for trout (50-62 degrees)? Will you be able to toss dries or retreat to dredging nymphs?
Next, we predict the future by checking our weather apps. In my area, the Atlanta TV stations have some mighty fine apps that forecast hourly air temperatures, storm front arrivals, and rainfall totals. Will a warm afternoon boost water temps and turn on winter trout? Will a rain stain the water and ignite the earthworm hatch?
From the warmth of your home recliner, know the present and predict the future before loading your fishing gear, then point your truck in the right direction. “Resolve” to fish first with a net, the internet, and enjoy more trout success in your angling new year. Good luck!
Note: for a deeper dive into this topic, see my past columns in the October 2020 and January 2021 issues of The Angler Magazine- Atlanta edition.
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