Hatch Charts & Reports

Wood River Hatch Chart

The Wood River begins its journey at the confluence of Breakheart Brook and the Falls River in Arcadia Management Area just off route 165 in Exeter Rhode Island. It is a small stream varying from 20 to 30 feet wide as it travels through the state forest. This area is its most pristine section of the river where you will find small runs, riffles, and nice pools that hold Rainbow, Brown, and Brook Trout. With a substantial winter and its canopy of pine trees this section runs cool throughout the summer months. You will also find wild Brook Trout and an occasional Wild Brown Trout. (Please utilize barb-less hooks and practice catch and release whenever possible). The hatch chart below is specific to this area of the Wood River. As the River leaves the state forest at Barberville Dam it picks up velocity and grows considerably. you will find similar conditions only much larger and warmer water temps as it travels through the towns of Hope Valley, Richmond, Hopkinton, and eventually into Connecticut where it joins the Pawcatuck River and empties into the Atlantic Ocean.

Note: Many of the insect hatches below can be found throughout New England's Rivers, Streams, and Still waters.     

Rhode Island Saltwater Hatch Chart

Below is a basic list of forage fish, crustacean, and aquatic worms. These are naturals to watch for when seeking predatory fish such as Striped Bass, Bluefish, False Albacore, and Bonito. The Herring are first to arrive and most experienced anglers know a 6" to 10" fish in huge numbers pushing into estuaries to spawn brings along with them some of the biggest Striped Bass of the season. This is the time to concentrate on the Saltwater Rivers below brackish water with large 6" Herring Flies in natural colors. The Shad will follow shortly after and provide excellent action for light tackle fly-rods straight through to October. However be aware when smaller Shad are around big Striped Bass can be lurking and will aggressively move into shallow water to feed on these smaller and sometimes larger Shad. The Cinder Worm (worm hatch) can be one of the most exciting and most frustrating of all and the Stripers love them. It is the closest thing to dry fly fishing for Striped Bass. Beginning after the first new moon in May watch the Salt Ponds for the mating swarms of Cinder Worms.     

2006 Fishing Reports

October:

October 22, 2006: Sunday morning I headed out of Point Judith by myself with fly rod in hand. Hitting my normal spots the harbor of refuge was void of life. Did I pound as hard as I should have, probably not. My friend Mike Miozza was on the water as well and he decided to head West toward Charlestown Breach way. Good thing I followed. Just off the beach gulls were working and fly rodders were fighting. Bluefish, I asked. No Stripers... At last fall Striped Bass. As the gulls settled we found fish on the East Side of the Breach way 100 yards off the point. Today was a day when fly rodders did better than traditional tackle. Too many fish to count had been taken with deep retrieves in 15 feet of water. My favorite fly was Gray & White Clouser Minnow. There were the occasional blue fish in the mix. They were big and fought hard. The striper were fat healthy schoolies ranging from 22 to 27 inches. There wasn't much bait present and we fished through the out going tide. The water was flat, clear and around 61 degrees. dp

October 1, 2006: After the rains I thought I would try a little wade fishing in Charleston Breech way. With the tide incoming tons of Peanut Bunker were pushing into Ninigret Pond. Shad were easy pickens at this point. Glass Minnows in Olive were the fly of choice. With all of the bait I would have expected some good size boils on pods of bait. Evidence of Striped Bass, nothing.. In addition to the Shad a school of small Blue Fish moved into the upper channel creating great action with light tackle. Good size Blues were breaking in the heavy surf at the breach way mouth. No Striper to be found today. dp

September:

September 20, 2006: Albies are here, are they being caught in good numbers is another question. False Albacore were about from Point Judith Light to Green Hill Beach. Small pods of Peanut Bunker are bringing these pelagic fish to the surface however, the low quantity of bait is not keeping them up for very long. Suggestion: If you see a pod of fish make your way over to them and shut your motor down. Sit tight, these fish will pop up again. Don't waste fuel trying to chase these fish, you'll only break up the schools and put the fish down. Good patterns have been Polar Fiber's in size#2. Lets hope it is a late season and these fish will be here for the bunker migration south. dp

September 24, 2006: Frustrated with inconsistent saltwater fishing and bad weather, I decided to try my luck with trout on the Wood River. Arriving at the Pines Section at 3:30 (Sunday) I was greeted by rising trout. Fish rose consistently in each pool fished. Black Caddis were fluttering around brushy edges and trout picked them off with regular rhythm. The occasional sulphur did appear however the best fly for the afternoon was a black caddis in size #16. All in all I ended the afternoon with 8 fish one of them a 17" brown trout. The river is low in height and around 59 degrees. With fall upon us there should be many more days of great fishing on the Wood.

September 9, 2006: I had two clients Saturday for a trip on the Wood River. Taking a one month break from the Wood due to heat and low water levels the river is back in prime condition. We covered stretches reaching below the pines to well above and found trout rising consistently. Arriving around 9:30am fish were feeding on Midge, Tricos, and Flying Ants. We were successful using terrestrials and larger mayfly imitations. Water temps were 59 degrees and levels are low. Cool fall nights will continue to improve the fishing activity. dp

August:

August 13, 2006: Three of us scheduled a trip with Joe Pagano on the Stuff-It for some blue-water fishing. Shark and Tuna were the targets. Traditional tackle was rigged as we set a chum slick 18 miles off-shore. I foolishly rigged my ten weight T&T just in case a fish of reasonable size had come to investigate. Water temps have dropped to 68 degrees as we sat adrift in 120 feet of blue water. At this time of the year you would expect to see various activity such breaching blue fin or the occasional whale rolling nearby, non of this appeared and the ocean seemed lifeless. 2 hours into the drift we hooked into the first fish. As we set the hook a Mako Shark in the 100lb class came to the boat to investigate the source of chum. Loping my fly 20 ft into the water the Mako approached cautiously. The brawny torpedo nosed my fly twice, sniffed our chum bucket and actually looked as if it was thinking, throwing caution to the wind the Mako sped off as we battled a blue shark that took the bait on our traditional tackle. Twenty minutes later John landed a nice blue shark in the 70lb class. We proceed to land 3 more blue sharks throughout the day. 12 to 14 weights are recommended when chasing fish of this size and caliber fly tackle. Reels capable of holding 300 yards of backing with heavy cork drags are also a must.

Mako Shark on a fly... Maybe next time.

August 6, Sunday: Micro size peanut bunker are saturating south county beaches. This bait has brought in droves of snapper blue fish. These blues are tons of fun with 8 and 10 wt. fly rods. Have a rod pre-rigged with 8 to 12 inches of wire. If your looking for striped bass focus on early morning before sunrise inside breachways such as Charlestown and Quonochontaug. If you can get to the Block Island rips you'll find stripers there as well. Water temps are a balmy 74 degrees. Things should pick up with cooler nights approaching. 6hrs

July:

July 30, Sunday: Warm weather has kept us from the Wood over the last two weeks. No need to stress the trout at this point of the season. With the Farmington River running at 400cfs and 61 degrees we knew this would be the place to fish. Arriving on the river late morning the three of worked the rivers pools, pockets, and eddies. Typically New England rivers and streams at this time of season produce fish late in the afternoon and into the evening. During the heat of the day you should focus on terrestrials. Large trout can be found hiding along and under banks. Fish will reside there and pick up ants, ants, beetles, and hoppers that will hang along river banks. As evening approaches and the sun sets the fish will move into the river system and take up feeding lanes for late day hatches. For us the best action was mid-day using patterns such as black deer hair beetles, parachute ants, and foam poppers. Take a look at the photos page and see some of the wonderful brown trout that were brought to net using these tactics. Early evening brought a light hatch of Isonychia in size #12 and Needhami Duns in Size #20.

July 16, Sunday: This morning I decided to take a break from loading and un-loading the boat at a crowded marina and headed on foot along Narragansett Beach to Narrow River. Outgoing tide did not produce any fish in the river however, as I made my way back to the wall along beach street and ocean road I decided to make a few cast. Long behold stripers were working the surf. The successful fly was olive and white clouser minnow. As the sun rose and the beach began to crowd. I decide to to take a better look from the wall. Three good size stripers ranging from 26 to 33 inches were working the beach back and fourth. Many times swimming into the rocks below right against the wall. They had no trouble cruising in 16 inches of water. This activity is quite a site to see. When fishing these conditions don't focus your cast straight out toward the surf. Time your presentations and work parallel to the rolling waves placing your fly just beyond the cresting wave. In many cases the fish are riding the waves picking up sand eels. As they move out of the foam they will run into your fly in clear calm water. Try this technique.

July 10, Monday: The greater Wood River continues to be in good condition. Late afternoon you will find trout rising sporadically to fluttering caddis. Don't forget the inchworms wiggling and dangling around stream banks. 8:15 pm continues to bring gray drakes in droves. The first Hex appeared at 8:45 with a good dun hatch lasting through 9:30. Water levels are now what they should be and water temps are around 70 degrees. This hatch should continue through July, it may be heavier some nights and light on others. Throughout the day focus on midge (griffith gnats) caddis, small mahogany duns and various terrestrials.

July 9, Sunday: Spent the morning fishing the incoming tide in the Point Judith area of South County. With not much surface activity we ran into pods of bluefish in the harbor of refuge. The bait seemed to be holding in groups around 15 feet deep. 7 hours of fishing with no striped bass to be found only bluefish. Water temps out side the east & west walls are still cool for this time of the year. look for more activity with the weeks to come.

July 6, Thursday: After a week long vacation in Florida, I had to hit the Wood River. Again,I am excited with the quality of water we have this year. Water levels are medium and temps are around 66 degrees. Arriving at the Pines section around 6:00pm John and I headed down stream in search of muddy water. Once settled in, fish rose to sporadic tan caddis and Lil' Mahogany's size #18 & #20. 8:30pm brought one of the heaviest Gray Drake hatches I have ever seen. These mayfly's swarm over water with gravel bottoms not spending much time on the surface. Trout leaped vigorously for a meal. 9:00pm brought the first of the Hex Duns, shortly after spinners were fluttering on the surface. The hatch lasted a good hour into darkness and brought several fish to the net.

June:

June 20, Tuesday: Arriving on the wood River late afternoon we had found much of the same activity from previous nights. Water temps have crept up a bit approaching 69 degrees. Sporadic Caddis fluttered around the river with mix of Lil Mahoganies and your occasional Yellow Sally. Early on the trout reacted to Tan Caddis in size #16. 8:15 brought swarming Gray Drakes, at that time Rusty Spinners in size #12 & 14 are the ticket. 9:05 brought the first Hexagenia Spinners to the water. Due to the light spinner fall the trout did not seem to react to them that well. If you are looking for heavier Hex activity over the next few nights try some of the lower stretches of river such as Frying Pan Pond or the areas in and around Hope Valley. Water temps should be in the low 70's bring the Hex Duns to the surface. dp

June 18, Sunday: A few of us hit the Wood later this evening in search of the Giant Hexagenia Limbata Mayfly. Sporadic Caddis flies were fluttering around the river. Water temps are approaching 68 degrees, ideal condition for this hatch. The activity remained slow throughout the evening with very little surface activity. 8:30 brought swarming Gray Drakes. a few fish reacted however no Hex mayflies appeared. This hatch is expected any day and should be tremendous once the first emergence begins. Best bets: Ants and beetles throughout the day along with tan caddis in size #16. Early evenings warrant Lil' Mahoganies and Rusty Spinners in size #12 through #16. Be ready with Hex Emergers and Duns in size #6 and #8.

June 17, Saturday: Late afternoon and into the evening I had the privileged of fishing with Capt. Bob Hines. We focused efforts on Ninigret Pond in Charleston. Sporadic worms began around 6:00pm and continued to bring Stripers to the surface. Several fish were landed throughout the early evening and the action was steady. Thunder and lightening drove us off the pond around 8:45.

June 17, Saturday: 6:00am Narragansett Bay outgoing tide was the setting. Warm weather and high sun resulted in tough fishing. Adult Menhaden were on the surface on the North Side of Patience Island. The occasional boil kept us on the school. Fishing large Deceivers we were bit off by hard hitting fish of which we expected they were good size Blue Fish. After moving around quite a bit we ended up at Ohio Ledge along with about sixty other vessels. Marking several fish with no surface activity Capt. Ray Stachelek ended the morning with one small school size Striped Bass. dp 4hrs.

June 15, Wednesday: Fished the Pines section of the Wood River from 5:00 pm to 9:00pm. Water temps were around 64 degrees and high level in comparison to previous seasons.With recent heavy rains trout are spread throughout the river. Noted hatches: Tan Caddis size #16, Lil Mahoganies Size #14 & 16 and sporadic Green Stones in size #16 & 18. No Hexagenia mayfly's were visible. with the next few warm days and receding water levels the hot sun should trigger the Giant Hexagenia emergence. Once the water reaches the high 60's the hatch should be heavy beginning around 8:15. Flies of choice: Rusty Spinners early morning, Tan caddis, Mahogany Dun's and Parachutes throughout the afternoon and evening. Watch for the big Hex after 8:00pm. dp

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