Many anglers have no idea what happens to the trout once summer arrives. Many anglers think that most of their streams that warm up that the trout just disappear. This isn t the case. Water temperature is the most important limiting factor for trout. In trout streams that are marginal which usually means summer temperatures approaching the high 70 s to 80 degrees a number of different things occur in these streams. In some waters that have a lot of tributaries or feeder streams the trout will migrate to the mouth of these streams or even further upstream to escape the nearly lethal temperatures of the main stream or river. Many of these feeder streams are heavily canopied and very hard to fish affording the trout added protection. Two things usually happen in these streams. Either the trout stay in these streams during the hot weather for the duration or in some waters the fish will move back to the main river towards evening as the main stream cools. In some waters where the main river stays in the mid to high 70 s the trout will just find a cool spot under a bank or in some shade. The fish do not feed and basically are there just to survive. As the evening approaches the temperature in the stream will drop by 4 to 6 degrees which will put the stream around 67 to 69. This is when most of the feeding occurs and this is when any major insect activity will happen also. It s good practice to carry a stream thermometer and to monitor your waters. Many streams hold large fish that have escaped the hordes of spring anglers. Remember it may not be the actual temperature of the stream but the rising or falling of that temperature to the proper feeding range of the fish in that stream. The easiest way to do this is to monitor what night time temperatures will be. When you see a couple of days in a row where the temperature is dropping greatly in the evening this is the time to be on the stream. Know the area before you fish it in the evening and prepare for it with heavier leaders and perhaps even a streamer or large Wooly Bugger because when most anglers are sitting this one out you could get quite a trophy especially if there are brown trout in the stream which are notorious for night feeding once they get past around twelve inches. Whether you are fly fishing or spin fishing this is way to get them.
