Fishing Your Local Waters

There’s a popular saying that I hear quite often every year since I’ve picked up a rod. You’ve probably heard it too: The one about how we “never have enough time in our lives to fish as much as we’d like.” This is usually spoken in wistful tones by the weekend warrior departing the river on a Sunday afternoon or the resident old guy in your local fly shop. It’s a sad truth, and an unsolvable problem.

But what if the issue is with space, not time? It’s a fact that proximity to good fishing isn’t equally convenient for all of us. Fly anglers hail from every part of the country and all walks of life, but the percentage of them that live within an hour of what’s considered "blue ribbon" fishing is pretty low. As someone who grew up in the suburban Northeast, it was clear early on that feeding my fly fishing obsession wasn’t going to be met by the occasional weekend day when I could pull off a long drive to a known spot. If you can learn to fish where you live, the amount of time and quality of experiences you have goes way up. It may involve some thinking outside the box, but fishing locally, no matter what you’re after or where, will open your world to what’s possible on the fly and really round you out as an angler. Here’s a few things I’ve learned from my time in un-fishy places.

The Launch 350 blending in after stopping this downtown Boston carp.

Fish Warm

I had trout-shaped blinders on when I started fly fishing. Turns out, making these salmonids your primary target year-round in suburbia isn’t very practical. Coldwater fisheries (especially naturally sustaining ones) in these places are few and far between, and, if you come from an area like mine, the water gets too hot to safely release trout for a good chunk of the summer. The strength of an urban or suburban fishery is almost always going to lie in its warm water species.

From agreeable bluegill to picky carp, the world of warm water fishing is a diverse and exciting adventure for those who haven’t tried. A good river system can turn into a who’s who of fun fly rod fish, providing tons of opportunities for new and multiple species on every outing. Despite the range in what you might find, a solid five or six weight setup is all you’ll need most of the time.

Even if you’re not sure what’s swimming in your local waters, the main takeaway here is to keep an open mind. Bring a diverse spread of flies with you as you explore and keep an eye out for all sorts of surprising fish. If you’ve never targeted warm water fish before, there are thousands of great sources online where you can learn the basics of what you might need to be successful. You can also check out a rundown of some common species and how to catch them here.

Get Online

Whether you love or hate what the internet has done to the fly fishing world, there’s no denying that it is an incredible resource. Unless you get the Blitz Blog delivered by carrier pigeon, the web is likely how you found the highly informative article you’re reading right now. 

There’s two main ways to track down new water online. The first is the straightforward process of entering wherever you live into your favorite search engine, typing in the word “fishing” after it, and hitting enter. Whatever you find, fly specific or otherwise, will at least give you a starting point on bodies of water or species you can expect to encounter. Scrolling back on old forums or U.S. Fish and Wildlife data can also be an absolute gold mine of information.

The second method is really where your mystery solving skills can shine. Block off an hour, open a satellite map on your phone/laptop, and start scanning around. If there was little in the way of website resources about your area, satellite imagery is a great source for an unbiased look at what might be around you. If you did find something via method one, maps can help to cross reference what you’ve read with what your gut says after seeing a spot from above.

Scouting out a piece of water in NYC’s Central Park.

You’re looking for two aspects of spots with online maps- general fishiness, and access. I usually start without the satellite layer toggled and just scroll around for anything blue that indicates a water body. This will reveal sections that might be hidden on satellite when trees or other cover get in the way. Once you’re keyed into an intriguing piece of water, turn that satellite layer back on and look for likely holding spots for fish. These areas will differ depending on what you’re targeting, but logjams, deep bends, shallow mud flats, and the like are worth looking into. For access, search out public parks, bridge crossings, or even a road with a good shoulder to park on. Just be sure to check local regulations around ownership of waterways so you avoid trespassing. There are also a few good additional apps you can download (for a fee) that you can use to identify and mark public land. 

One last piece of advice is to utilize the pinning tools on your online maps. This might be a given, but staying organized is really helpful once you start to accumulate a good number of spots. The free versions of these programs have some features you can use to further sort your data, even if it’s just putting a quick label on there. 

Hit The Water

The potential of your home waterways likely goes way deeper than whatever the internet will initially give up. Research never hurts, but time spent on the water is irreplaceable. There’s no set system to start fishing your local areas- Just cover water and follow up on as many hunches as possible until you find something. Be prepared with a good mix of patterns and leader materials that you can change quickly depending on what you encounter. 

Don’t be discouraged by lack of information or a slow start. Every local lake or stream near your home is not a sleeper spot waiting to be discovered by some lodge investors, but that doesn’t mean it’s not worth checking out and putting in the time to learn it like you would any other aspect of fly fishing. Even when you do find some good fishing near you, circle back occasionally to spots that underperformed. There’s always a chance you hit one on an off day or slow time of year, and you never know how returning to one of these places could change your entire view of a system. I know it’s happened to me. 

Hunting down bowfin with the Spray 400.

Learning to fish locally allows us to utilize what I think is one of the greatest strengths of an angler: Our creativity. The research and learning process behind targeting the densely populated areas where many of us reside teaches us quite a bit about what fish need, not to mention the satisfaction that comes with figuring these places out. Many of the waters close to us may challenge what we think we know of fly fishing, but there is a clear win/win solution here. It comes when we develop new skills that apply on a much larger scale, and when we discover quality, surprisingly unpressured fisheries that we can hit more often. If your days with a fly rod are what’s most important to you, it’s time to turn your attention away from the blue-ribbon streams and once a year bites and put your weeknights into the water at the end of your street.

Meet the Author: Ben Groppe is a multi-species angler and overall fish fan, dedicated to enjoying, preserving, and occasionally documenting the fisheries he loves. Off the water, he’s sharing his passion as one half of the blog Long Haul Fly Fishing.