I’m pretty new at fly fishing (a little over a year but still feel really green) so take this all with a grain of salt...

I love fishing rivers and streams! I’m still trying to figure out nymphing but have had a lot of fun with dry flies and spend most of my time on moving water. A few tips that have really changed my game (trout specific):

Are there fish? - make certain that your river has fish and is in a stage that they will feed. Check water temp (above 50), river level (is it too high and blown out?), and make certain that the system holds fish (many streams and rivers have suffered from human influences such as agricultural runoff and vegetation removal).

Find the fish - read books and look up videos (Orvis has some great ones) about prospecting for trout and where fish like to hold in a river. Many times fish won’t be actively rising but will still take a well presented dry if you know where they are.

Don’t screw up - are you doing all you can to not spook the fish? Stealth is your friend, don’t splash around. How is your presentation? Practice accurate casting and know the roll cast like the back of your hand for those tight spaces.

Know the river - different types of rivers fish differently due to food abundance and seasonal variations. Headwater or tailwater? Freestone or spring creek? Do some research on how to fish these different systems (again, Orvis learning center is your friend) and modulate your strategies and expectations accordingly.

If you like small streams, get used to small fish (and the occasional river monster) - ‘nuff said

Use the right gear and experiment - establish your go-to flies and if you don’t see a hatch use those as searching patterns (my current 4 are Royal Wulff 14-16, BWO 16-20, Parachute Adams 16-20, Orange Stimulator 12-16). Don’t be afraid to experiment, on a creek near my house I changed from 5x to 6x and began catching fish that were 1-2 inches larger (6 in is 2 inches larger than 4in, right? ����)

Things not working? Try moving and check your stealth/presentation before changing flies. Still not working? Change your gear to lighter tippet, smaller (or sometimes larger) fly, different day. Still no luck? Make sure temps and time of day are conducive to catching fish (times of day depend on weather and time of year). Still no luck? Again, make certain your stream actually contains fish.

Go out, have fun, and remember that even without landing a fish a day on the river is still better than a day almost anywhere else.

If you are ever in Oregon (mid-Willamette valley) let me know and we’ll go wet a line together.

Get a guide on the river you are fishing. It will cut years of learning curve.

Bring plenty of split shot and mend mend mend

Here’s a good video to start out with. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=df5jCGSeKV4

Are you familiar with joke structure? This is not that. Spending time learning about your particular river system, learning what insects are hatching, water temperature fluctuations, recent rainfall, hydrology, water quality, time and migration of particular species, also just familiarizing yourself with the surrounding geography. This is basic stuff. No jokes.

Sure, blind casting a mepps at a random pool in the river will work sometimes too.

You don't need an expensive setup, although that's what a fly-fishing shop would try to sell you. I have two rods: a 7wt 50-year-old fiberglass pole that I bought as a young teen for about $12, and a 3wt carbon-fiber pole I bought for $70 about 15 years ago. Throw in an identical pair of Pflueger Medalist reels and I'm all set.

Here's a hint for when you're ready: go shopping for a nice pole and check out several, getting a feel for the casting action, bend and flex... but don't bite! Then go to a decent sporting goods store and do it again. You can get a nice rod with good action without the big name price tag.

Super cool spot. Spinners an crankbaits

I have dishes that river many times when I loved in San Jose. My best spots were up from Knights Ferry . And also about a mile down stream form there. If you go up to the C/R section of the river. Some big bows hang there. 4 to 6 lbs

Fly fish

Safety is #1. Let someone know your plan, keep a safety whistle, lighter, headlamp all close by. I keep a wool blanket in my trunk for emergencies.

#2. Study the river, spending many hours on a river system observing the complex orchestra of nature occurring at that particular site will inevitably provide you with insight that will help with angling.

Red hook and eggs. Either float or sink.

Decades ago, when I lived in N. VT, I normally fished mountain creeks - usually with worms. However, in larger rivers I often switched to the Rapala Countdown lures 1" - 1.5". These lures were a perfect match for the native minnows in the rivers, and in deep pools could be allowed to sink for a few seconds before retrieval. I'd target early mornings - especially after a light rain.

I caught larger trout [browns/rainbow/brook] but my brother did much better. In PA, on a small river, he nailed a 7+ lb. brown. Good luck.

Fly fishing is my personal favourite thought it’s completely different to spinning. On a spinning setup you could try fishing with flies and a bubble if local angling rules allow ot

Like most things, fishing takes time and eventually you’ll become better through taking in knowledge and via experience.

Everyone has flat spells too and it could be the conditions or just bad luck.

Mostly trout stocked in Schroon River below lake although some bass and pike in slow sections but not much access there. There’s not a ton of shore access on the Schroon anyway but try along Schroon River road and at Starbuckville Dam. Best bet is drifting worms in the current with one or two split shot or casting lures across and swinging downstream while retrieving slowly. Lures would be small spinners like Mepps and Panther Martins or small gold or silver spoons.
It’s a bit late in the season for trout on the Schroon as it’s lower and probably fairly warm. It’s stocked in spring and managed as a ‘put and take’ fishery because trout don’t holdover through summer as well. There are some good sized fish though and an occasional landlocked salmon drop down from lake. Best bet is the big pool below Starbuckville. Have fun!

The Schroon River is at the lowest and warmest it’s been in years. Trout are in cold water refuge holding on for dear life. Fish the lower schroon or Hudson River in Warrensburg for smallmouth bass, they are a blast. Or head north to the boreas river, north of Schroon Lake.

I should probably note I did see some strange fish behaviour I had the trout following the small spinner lure and then they would get close then dart away. Is that indicative of anything?

I don't know where you are at, but in my area, northern California, specifically El dorado County, the rainbow trout have just completed their spawning and the browns started a week ago, and no one is biting around here at this time. I'm trying to wait it out soon soon.. good luck to all.

Best of luck 👍, it's always a struggle to get a good, reliable honey hole, with the water levels constantly changing at my old honey hole. The water has risen twenty ft. From the rainfall we've had here over the past few months, so I'm hunting for new spots constantly. Good luck

Still nothing, dude, that sucks. I switched to using rooster tails and panther Martin's. My last one was on the rooster tail. A friend told me to use Dubai roaches or crickets if you want to get bites. They swear by them, and I'm going to try some out this Saturday when I go out again. I'll keep you posted if I catch anything, but try those bugs ago.

I caught this. This morning going back out for more

First thing I do is I wade out to knee deep water, then look down to see if I can see my feet. This is a good guide to tell if the water is clear enough for fishing.

When the current is up, trout try to avoid fighting against it. They often hug the bottoms and sometimes even move towards the edges. The food comes to them so they rarely move far.

I also fish slightly heavier lures which make a bit of sound. The weight is to make sure they reach the bottom, and the noise to assists in getting the trouts attention.

Lastly, bright orange lures work well when the water is cloudy.

I usually work edges with a spinner, Small jerk bait, and a jig Seconding the provo bounce if it’s tough-

Also look for structure Under cut banks, trees ect

Look up the Provo River bounce rig. Game changer for fishing a river with high flows.

River carp, you just want knotless knot, 20lb braid and patience. Boilies or meat will take them. Do they know you're there? Sounds a daft question, but carp get alot harder to catch when they know their been fished for. Just try and sneak the rig in, sit well back and be patient. Every time you go and look at them, they are probably spotting you, making them harder to catch.

Start with whatever you were baiting with. I stick to maize, chickpeas or boilies. My river isn't large but sometimes you need distance and all of the above attracts fish and flies well. My setup is strong becasue my river is overgrown and full of snags. Try 8-9 inches of soft-coated braid and a simple hair rig. 3 pieces of maize or 1 16/20 mm boilie. Tight clutch so they don't run into snags.

Tricky if you can't get upstream of them, you are always casting against the flow.

Personally I only use balanced baitd on rivers, so a wafter and like a slip d, combi or similar. Presentation I think is more natural.Used on a heli set up.

Anyway you get above them, free lining bread will work as well, drift it down.

Wafter and casting one-two hours before the usual pre baiting time, it leads them to come “on time” at least it’s the way it works for me in France

You’ve already sorted “find the fish” from the sound of things. Honestly, on rivers simple and strong is the way to go. Running lead or groundbait feeder, with a foot or two hooklength (I like a soft fluorocarbon, but coated braid works too) and a standard hair rig. Boilie or pellet (boilie will stay on the hook much longer) are good options for bait.

Rivers are easy once you learn a couple things about how they form and function imo.

Rivers wind in constant bends to greater or lesser degree along the path of least resistance, eroding a channel as they do. Most of the time there is a main channel where the current is fastest, this erodes the outside of a bend. A sandbar will form on the inside of the bend opposite the main channel.

Now you know how to judge where the water is deep and where is shallow.

Humans usually exercise control over flooding, so you need to learn the source of your water and how activity upstream influences your experience. Ime, droughts and floods can severely effect fishing in good and bad ways each. Droughts reveal the deepest holes and structure and concentrated the fish, but if they stay concentrated too long the total population crashes, but great fishing initially. Floods are dangerous and can utterly alter your honey holes, even change course entirely; they shut down fishing for awhile, but they also bring new fish to restock your honey holes.

A kayak will grant you much greater fishing opportunities, especially if you can buddy up and park a vehicle downstream to fish between road crossings.

Poison ivy is a scourge.

Aerial imagery let's you view rivers in drought years to find deep holes not visible otherwise.

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I tried using a bright yellow top water lure with a rattle, and I also tried a gold and red spinner. I'm glad to hear you suggest those ones because I was worried I had made a silly mistake!

Don’t overthink it just get fishing with what your confident with.

I think it's important to know what kind of fish lives there and go from there. No sense fishing for bass/trout/pike if only catfish lives there or vice-versa.

I'm not too familiar with the lingo yet... when you say bottom rig, is it just weighting the hook so it sinks and stays on the bottom? And use a nightcrawler so it will try to wriggle and get a bottom dweller to scoop it up?

Don't be disheartened about just casting and honing you skills while seeing whats in the water. I had an aggressive catfish hit my texas rig with craw.