The Upper Delaware fishing report for 2020

Adventures and big fish around every bend on the Upper Delaware River…and the scenery ain’t bad either! Eagles, herons, deer, turkey and bear…what a great resource!

The Upper Delaware River fishing report for 2020

My vision this year? Lookin’ GOOD! Outstanding fishing opportunities await you!

BY ANTHONY RITTER NYS AND NPS LICENSED GUIDE

This season marks my 26th year offering half and full day river charters using a McKenzie driftboat on the Upper Delaware River.

Undoubtedly, this river is one of the best resources in the county and only two hours from the New York / New Jersey area.

Clean water, a big “Western” type stream, fantastic unspoiled scenery, big wild fish –and a variety of freshwater gamefish to target on your adventure. What more could the sportsperson desire? Ready to come along? I cover over 75 miles on the “Scenic and Recreational” Upper Delaware River recognized by Congress as a federally protected stream due to its superb qualities. I guide for wild trout, American Shad, smallmouth bass and walleye depending on the time of year and stretch of river. Both fly and light action spin techniques can be used with success on this river and a driftboat is the best type of watercraft to get you to the fish since the location of this river is in a steep valley and at times far from a highway. In addition, most of the land on both sides is private property. Being on foot comes at a great disadvantage on the Upper Delaware River. Having a driftboat is stable, great in the rapids and only draws a few inches of water even when there are three anglers on board.

When the water temperature consistently reaches into the 50’s, that’s the time to be on the river. That’s the magic number for wild trout –both rainbows and browns – as well as “The Poor Man’s Salmon” – the American Shad. In the Catskill – Delaware region of New York and Pennsylvania that would be starting in late April. In fact on many trips in the spring, it’s not unusual to catch “The Delaware Grand Slam” (trout, shad, walleye and bass) on one stretch of river.

TROUT The Upper Delaware River is one of the few streams in the east that has wild trout. Rainbows, browns and brookies – we have them all. Wild trout have been in this river since the late 1880’s. T hey grow large, have incredible strength on rod and reel and are gorgeous –– beautiful vivid colors and spots, well proportioned throughout and a real class act when they are hooked. Many of m y customers from the city once they have caught (and released) a Delaware trout tell me that these fish are the strongest and biggest trout that the y have ever caught in their lives.

When it comes to fooling the trout – keep it simple. Spin anglers will do well with #7 Countdown Rapalas and inline spinners like Blue Fox Vibra x and Thomas EP Spinn. Gold and silver lures in #3 are all you need for a successful day on the river. Light to medium action open face tackle on 4-6-pound test works great. When the bugs start hatching in early May be sure to have your fly rod strung up because many of the fish that were hitting spin tackle in the morning will switch over to bugs in the afternoon since there are so many naturals on the surface. At times, this river can be a true food factory for the fish!

I tie my own patterns, a few samples which can be seen in this article, which are available to m y customers. Throughout the years I have found that emergers and flush floating dry fly patterns will fool these wily fish. The key to fishing – and hunting – is to be patient, wait for your best shot, have confidence, a good attitude and always remember to always observe what’s on the water. Mayflies, stoneflies and caddisflies can onl y hatch in clean, well oxygenated water which is free of any pollutants and chemicals. This is the main reason why the Upper Delaware River is special and why it breeds big fish and their numbers are plentiful. What a great river and fishery! How can you go wrong with a day on the river? Here’s your guide of 26 years, Tony Ritter, near Ten Mile River south of Narrowsburg, New York.

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SHAD During late April through early June, as we charter trips for trout, our guests are also into American Shad. These fish come up from the ocean once a year to spawn and they are a ball on both fly and spin tackle. Related to the tarpon, shad will test any angler’s skills as they take line out with great speed. Their mouths are quite soft so great patience has to be applied to brin g these strong fish to net.

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Their journey begins in the Atlantic Ocean and by the time they have made it to Port Jervis, it is usually late April. These fish swim in pods of hundreds and will sometimes journey all the way to Hancock, New York and into the East Branch and finally to the Beaverkill by late June. Buck shad, the males, are the first to appear. They are then followed by the roe shad (females) carrying eggs. Some fish can exceed seven pounds! In the fast current, a fresh shad will absolutely take the rod out of your hands thus the name – “Poor Man’s Salmon” –– a fish that any metro angler should try at least once in their lives!

As I mentioned shad hit lures out of impulse ––not hunger. Any flashy or colorful lure, jig or fly will catch shad but these three key points need to be followed. Location? Find an area where the river “pinches” or bottles up and at the base of a riffle or river gradient. Temperature? Your best bet for aggressive fish is water from 50 to 66 degrees. Technique? Make certain your dart, jig or fly is in the shad’s comfort zone – which is bouncing along the bottom in about two to four feet of feet of water. Look for foam lines and color changes. That’s where the fish are!

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SMALLMOUTH BASS A staple of the Upper Delaware River is the smallmouth bass – or “bronzeback”. The noted author Dr. James Henshall who, in his 1881 book on the smallmouth bass wrote: “inch for inch and pound for pound, the gamest fish that swims.”

If you want to run up the numbers on your river adventure on the Delaware River these fish

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will not disappoint you. On our charters in the summer and fall months, it is not unusual to catch up to 50 fish on a half day (4 hour) river trip – and you can double that number to 100 fish for a full day. Really…100 fish!

The best time to target these fish is the summer when the water warms to over 70 degrees. The warmer water triggers the smallmouth into overdrive with very aggressive feeding. The artificials

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This little fly that I tied is called a CDC Loop Wing…

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Little flies…BIG FISH! A nice sample of the beautiful wild trout that inhabit the large pools near Callicoon, New York. Look at those colors!

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we use is real simple. 4 inch Senkos rigged Wacky style on a #1 Aberdeen or circle hook and 3.5 inch Kei-Techs tipped on a light, wide gap jig. The topwater bite can be great as well right towards dusk or on overcast windless days as the light begins to fade. Pop-R’s, Tiny Torpedos and Chug Bugs are all great lures.

One last note about these great fish, if you are introducing your kids, or grandkids, to the pleasures and sport of river fishing, I promise you that these fish will never disappoint the youngsters. After thousands of river trips over the years, I can assure you that children don’t care WHAT they’re

catching…as long as they ARE catching and these fish won’t disappoint the kids. Wow! Here’s Jim Phillips with a big smile and a big rainbow on a spring river adventure just south of Kellams Bridge on the Big D.

WALLEYE I’ll wrap up with the walleye. These fish can be caught throughout the year in the deeper pools of more than 10 feet but by far the best time will be the fall as the water gets very cold. November into December is the best time to haul in a monster. My boat’s personal best was a fish of 31 inc hes and 11 pounds caught on a Countdown Rapala. Your average walleye in the Delaware will measure from 17 to 22 inches which is not too shabby and they can be caught with jigs and deep diving crankbaits.

After 26 years fishing professionally on the Upper Delaware River, this great resource never ceases to amaze me as well as my many customers from all over the county and world. Let’s keep it a great river by taking out what you brought in and if you see the stray can or piece o f litter please pick it up so that the river valley is left as pristine as when you arrived.

The river today has bigger and more fish than ever before so I hope that you’ll practice C-P-R: Catch, Photograph and then Release your fish so that they can be caught again and more importantly that they can spawn and produce more fish for you and the next generations of anglers to enjoy.

Welcome to the Upper Delaware River, enjo y your river adventure this season and I hope that I’ll see YOU on the river!

Anthony Ritter, a NYS and National Park Service licensed guide has operated a driftboat fishing service in Narrowsburg since 1994. His websites can be accessed at: www.delawareriverfishing.com and www.gonefishingguide service.com