It was freezing.
I arrived early at Bonair Park to beat the crowd but unlike the previous year, the parking lot was nearly empty. It was just myself and a Trout Unlimited member and we both were wondering if the heavy snow and rain the previous night, and the low-30 degree temperature today, would force cancellation of Kids Fishing Day at Four Mile Run Stream.
We checked Four Mile Run and despite all the rain it was running a little murky but very fishable. Then we spotted the stocking truck pull into the parking lot and watched as workers hauled buckets filled with trout to the stream. We knew the kids would have a good, but cold, day of put-and-take fishing.
Jin arrived later with his daughter and we grabbed a spot that was productive for us last year. There wasn't much fishing pressure because the brutal cold kept a lot of people at home. Jin’s daughter hooked a nice Brook trout and quickly brought it to net. She hooked, but lost, two more before the cold drove us to McDonalds for hot drinks and apple pies.
Jin and I returned in the afternoon to try our luck after everyone had left. The action was slow but we each managed to hook, land and release a few trout. They were sitting tight on the bottom so we used a variety of nymphs with split shot and indicators.
My productive fly was a Size 10 black Wooly Bugger fished with a small micro split shot about one inch from the hook eye and another shot about eight inches up the leader. The indicator was set according to depth and drift...keep moving it up or down the leader until the fly drifts without hanging up on the bottom.
EQUIPMENT: I used a 3 weight rod with a floating line and six feet of leader. Although I used a bugger, the fish were eating anything. Powerbait or canned corn was the preferred choice of most of the anglers.
DIRECTIONS: The park is located at the intersection of Lee Highway and 850 North Lexington Street. Four Mile Run Stream runs through the park. Four Mile Run is a small, narrow and shallow stream with a few deep pockets of water.