Creek Addict

Hey, look, it’s an update. This one is way past due, and I have more than a few on the back burners. I’ve got time to fish these days, just not too much time to talk about it. Here are some pictures from our weekend up in New Hampshire at the Eastman Inn. We always have a good time up there. Alicia’s father, Art, was home for the weekend from the UAE and got to spend some time with his grandson. The extra hands on deck allowed me some much needed fishing time. Here are some pictures from said weekend. Enjoy.
Wild brookie stream.

Two for one. These brookies (and plenty others) were taken out of glassy flats floating a curly sighter with 2 size 18 nymphs.

Lots of stockers.

Brookie lake.

Moose 1.

Moose 2.

America, Fuck ya!

Weak update, I know. At least it has some pretty pictures though.

My labor day weekend was spent with the wife at The Eastman Inn in North Conway, NH. The weather was gorgeous, the food was delicious, and the fishing was just okay. I decided to skip the stockie bashing this time and look for some wild brookies in the white mountains. Though I didn’t dedicate much time, I found plenty of small wild brookies eager to take my offerings. I probably spent a total of 4 or 5 hours fishing, but managed to catch probably near 100 of these minnows gorgeous wild fish. As pretty as they are, you can only catch tiny fish for so long before you want to head home.

The wife and I spent some time exploring the town, and the short hikes in the area. The White Mountains region of NH is absolutely stunning. The small towns, beautiful scenery, and abundance of rivers, lakes and streams makes it one of my favorite places on the east coast. If you’ve never been, I highly recommend it. If you are thinking about staying at The Eastman Inn, mention creekaddict.com and receive a discount. The breakfast alone may be worth the trip. Breakfast is hands down my favorite meal of the day, and The Eastman Inn does not disappoint. You can expect to have anything from chicken walnut quiche to creme brulee French toast. After the 5 star breakfast, if relaxation is what you want, you came to the right place. Whether relaxing on the porch soaking in the sun and gorgeous mountain views, or warming up in your room with a bottle of wine next to the fireplace, the Eastman has the cure for the stresses of everyday life. The hospitality and relaxed atmosphere of the inn really makes for a wonderful experience.

A heron taking flight over some super glassy water on the Saco. Although I didn’t fish it this time, a dry dropper rig thrown close to the banks normally nets a few good trout.






A video of me euro nymphing for brookies on a gorgeous stream in the White Mountains.

The wife and I spent our 4th of July holiday up in New Hampshire at her father’s bed and breakfast, The Eastman Inn. (Mention creekaddict.com and get 10% off your next stay.) I guess for the past week or so they had been getting some serious rain, which, obviously, caused the rivers to be ridiculously high. Luckily the rain stopped long enough for us to watch some fireworks and catch a few fish.

I fished the Androscoggin River on Friday up near Errol, NH. The river was high, and moving really fast, so wading was not an option. I decided to euro nymph the slower pockets near the dam and netted myself a few fish. I actually caught a small landlocked salmon, my first ever, and snapped a few shots of the little guy. I also caught a small mouth, and a small brown. Not a stellar day, but just catching a few in those conditions was all I could ask for.

Saturday and Sunday I stayed near the inn and fished a slower section of the Ellis River near Jackson. The river was high but manageable. I caught a few stockers there and decided my time was probably better spent on the porch drinking beer than in the freezing water catching stockies. (The water there is still 58 degrees!) The fishing up there is normally amazing, but with all the rain and high water, the fishing just wasn’t that good. Others that I talked to had the same experience as me. Last year at this time we where catching so many you couldn’t count em. This year, you worked your ass off for a small number of stockers. In retrospect, I should have fished some of the mountain ponds, or the smaller wild brookie streams. I probably would have had a lot more fish to talk about. In any case, it’s beautiful country up there, and it’s always a treat just to be up there on the river, regardless of the catching.

Close up of the land locked salmon. I was stoked to finally catch one of these things, even if it’s a small one.

We have yet to see a moose in NH. My wife has never seen one in the wild so I tried to give her an idea of what one might look like.

The raging Androscoggin River.

The wife and I spent the weekend at the beautiful Eastman Inn in North Conway, New Hampshire over Memorial Day weekend. The weather was great, the breakfast was amazing (as always), the scenery was gorgeous and the fishing was just okay. The fish were there, however, and if I did more exploring, I’m sure the fishing would have been much better. I didn’t fish as much as I normally do; even the Creek Addict needs to relax every now and then.

Small NH stocker.

These stockers are in pretty good shape.

Crystal clear water.

Mt. Washington Valley.

Ugly Ellis River Rainbow release.

Pretty fun trip, caught a lot of fish. Nothing too big but still a lot of fun. I woke up every day at 5 and had two different rivers all to my self. I didn’t see another person on the river until i was on my way out all three days.

Hiked about 4 miles up the Ellis River and caught some good looking brookies on ants. So many ants in the air you couldn’t breath without eating a couple. The fish were small but plentiful.
exhibit a:

You can’t tell from the pictures, but the water was so clear you could see straight to the bottom in 8 ft of water.

The next two days I hiked into a river called the Saco River. again, I saw people as I was going in, and as i was leaving. After about 500 yards from the parking at the road the river was all mine. Caught two little browns and a bunch of rainbows about 6 miles down river. Caught the browns on tan cadis flies, and the rainbows in a deep pool with sinking line and a woolly bugger. Small fish, but they were plentiful.
exhibit B

These aren’t all the fish, but you get the idea.
The water here was pristine. I can’t wait to go back.

We took a drive up to Cathedral Ledge, which is about a 15 minute drive from North Conway. The lookout point is only about 100 ft from where you park, but the place is gorgeous. In both the pictures you can see the saco river snaking through the trees.