For four woefully short months, we get to experience fall. For those who live in latitudes where the seasons change (and I’m not talking about simply going from green to brown, and back again), fall is arguably the best time of the year. Football, cooler weather, pumpkin everything, and pretty spectacular fishing are generally on the docket.
Changes in conditions require changes in approach. Even though the trout fishing can literally be the best of the year, failing to plan is tantamount to planning to fail. The same summer tactics that have been working from late June to September aren’t going to cut it. Bugs aren’t going to be hatching in the hot morning sun, because there isn’t a hot morning sun anymore. The water isn’t going to have as long of an opportunity to warm up, and neither will you as the fly fisher.

There is something inherently disconcerting about changes, particularly as it relates to going from a place of comfort. If you’ve been in a summer groove, making the necessary adjustments to adapt to fall fly fishing could be hard – even if the payoff is worthwhile.

While the particulars of technical presentation and fly selection will vary greatly from the Mid-Atlantic to New England in the fall, there are some general concepts that are universal to regions across the country that go through a change in seasons. I’ve compiled four items of note that I have tried to focus on as much as possible as I physically and mentally make the transition to autumn.

Layers Wet wading is out. It can be downright cold in the mornings, and brisk all day if it happens to be overcast. But certain sunny October days can also make you work up a sweat. With gear technology where it is today, there is absolutely no reason to be uncomfortable to the point where it interferes with fishing. Really, the only problem you’ll have is if you neglect to check the weather and anticipate a swing in either direction.

A fleece, light rain jacket, and then breathable base layers are necessary. Keep a spare of each in the car, and lash an outer shell to your pack. If time on the water is at a premium, not having to head in early is a big deal.

Early Start I’m no astronomer, but I’ve noticed that the days are getting shorter. That means that it gets dark sooner, and fishing wraps up right around dinner time. On the positive side, that means you can go to a nice dinner without feeling like you’re leaving fish behind. Conversely, you ought to be on the river for sunrise to optimize your time.

This is simply a matter of logistics. Unless health or some other extraneous circumstance prohibits it, a day fishing can literally be an entire day fishing in the fall. Sunup to sunrise isn’t that long of an interval, and you’ll have plenty of time to sleep when things wrap up before 8:00pm.

Wade Right This is more of a conservation note than anything. Browns and brookies spawn in the fall. Having a devil-may-care walk in the creek in the summer may be okay, but tramping across gravel in the fall can do some real damage. Pulling brightly colored brook trout out of small mountain streams is a ton of fun, but an improper approach can literally decimate spawning beds.

In the fall only wade when you have to, where you have to.

Flexibility The most technical advice on the list is this: be ready to vary your techniques.

Think about it. On a single day you can have temperatures in the 40’s and then in the 80’s. You’ll encounter fish pre-spawn, in the spawn, and post-spawn during autumn. Snow and rain will probably factor in sooner or later. And let’s not forget: some states have regulation changes in the fall.

So flexibility might apply from September to December, and it also could be applicable within a single day. A few minor variables one way or another might make all the difference. That is the case in fishing already, but in a season of so many transitions it seems to be magnified.

Carry another rod rigged up in the car, be ready to head to another stream, and certainly don’t try to do the same thing that worked last time if it is clear it isn’t working this time.

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Fall is good. Fly fishing in the fall is good. An ounce of preparation is worth pounds of trout, literally.