Falling Springs, Franklin County, 02/09/2020

[3wt7X]

Time Fished:
02:15pm- 04:45pm

Weather:
Partly cloudy with temps in the mid 40s. There was a breeze, but it was not too bad.

Water:
Falling springs was bank full with good color. It was a chalky green color.

Hatches:
Small midge clusters. Little to no other insect activity. I did not spot any olives or stoneflies. The stream bottom looked much more dead than my local limestone spring creek. Not as much vegetation.

Tactics:
I nymphed with an attractor followed by a walts worm for the better part of the trip. I switched over to small streamers as the sun went down and the clouds rolled in.

Results:
It was a nice break. There were a few anglers out and about. The fish were not staged up in feeding lies. They were tucked tight to cover. I took a few young browns nymphing, along with a pretty wild rainbow. I ended the day with a nice wild brown ambushing my small weighted bugger on a long cast. Great way to finish!!!

 

[Dave_W]

Nice!

Haven't had an FS report for awhile and I was just thinking earlier today that I should go hit it and write it up. Good job.

 

[marcq]

Next on my list of Cumberland valley limestone streams to hit. Nice fish

 

[drakeking412]

That rainbow is gorgeous especially the tail.

 

[larkmark]

nice fish!

 

[blueheron]

Nice report, thanks.

 

[wgmiller]

marcq wrote:
Next on my list of Cumberland valley limestone streams to hit. Nice fish

This is one you really have to check your ego on. Tough stream, for sure!

 

[LetortAngler]

Beautiful wild bow and brown 3wt7x. I always look forward to seeing your reports on the CV streams.

“This is one you really need to check you ego on, tough stream for sure!”

I agree. But I think the stream is tough for other reasons, especially in the upper sections. In the summer of 2017 Falling Springs was surveyed for the first time in a number of years and the results were beyond disappointing. From 321 kg/ha in 1976, Falling Springs as of 2017 is in the single digits at 6 kg/ha for Rainbows and around the same for Brown Trout - a population almost non-existent.

Although recent, this study was done during a drought year when stream flows were way below their average CFS (plus a large weed die off). Flows are way better now in all the CV springs, and hopefully we will start seeing some more fish, and get better results in the next survey.

 

[Dave_W]

LetortAngler wrote:
In the summer of 2017 Falling Springs was surveyed for the first time in a number of years and the results were beyond disappointing. From 321 kg/ha in 1976

FS was surveyed last year and the results were improved (although still poor) with good YOY production.

Also, it should be remembered that in 1976 surveys often did not differentiate between stocked and wild fish in total biomass.

FS was stocked in the upper sections at the time as well as having hatchery escapement in the FFO which lasted well through the 1990s.

 

[Mike]

Dave,
That’s true and it is possible that it wasn’t done in this case either. I participated in a number of surveys there in the late 1970’s. There should be spring and fall data from that period reflecting that stockies and hatchery trout were kept separate from wild trout. Those data would be much better for comparative purposes.