Reservoir Browns

So I've been wanted to get down to the esopus for a few weeks to chase the spawning ashokan browns and the bigger bows that follow them up, they aren't lake ontario fish, but it's only 55 miles from my place. My buddy could only go real early sunday and that fit me cause the Giants, broncos and Yankees are on today.
 
Both of us on the river by 630, it was still dark and a nice 37 degrees, the cold water help me realize I got a couple of more leaks in the waders. I planned on throwing nothing but big streamers, but had a nymph rig already tied on so I gave it a shot and got a couple of small rainbows right away.
 
But I wanted some big browns so I switched to a streamer and landed a big brown right away, my buddy put on a streamer after and got one of his own. It was awesome we landed 4 large reservoir fish and got snapped off twice in about 2 hours. All the browns landed were females, no big hook jawed males, wish we could have stayed longer but there is something great about only having a few hours to fish and nailing em, going home takin a nap and watching the giants kick some**** now lets hope the yanks and broncos do the same.
 
Sorry all pics were a little blurry

other direction, the esopus runs into the res. and then out of the res. the upstream side of it is fantastic trout water, the downstream side is bass and carp. I was upstream around phoenicia.
 
If you can move your boat to the western side of the res. you'll have great opportunities for big trout in the spring and fall, when the fish stage to run up the esopus.
 
Man i gotta say to there was no one around us, I did see some cars parked to fish the res. but as far upstream and downstream as I could see there was no one around, and being able to keep fishing new water with big streamers for big fish is tough to beat. Can't wait to get back down.

Nice trout... is the rock snot any better now?  Man it was really awful in May down there.

Nice fish there jk! I left my house in jersey sunday 6am.. pulled in at west hurley just at sunrise..from there drove over spillway to frying pan where i put an 11 sticker on my boat.. went to the weir and met a couple catskill fishermen and spooned a bit but the gate wasn't flowing so it was slow..i went to coldbrook and caught a couple small bows.. from there went to tremper pool and the next pool upstream released a small bt..from there went over peekamoose.. stickered two more boats on the roundout..it was windy and i tried spooning from shore but nothing doing with my blue/silver croc. today was freezing am too but the nev too wasn't happening from shore , guess the water temp needs to cool off a few more degrees. Looking from your pic, i am guessing you were fishing just up from the 5 arch .. i walk down the cold brook side over the tracks. Should get better around halloween but who knows with those runs anymore. Imo, those poor fish get stringered pretty quick when word gets out if you know what I mean. I try to fish it during the weekdays.

jk,you bet! parking resi mirror permit is always in my truck just so you know, you could fish without res pass right to the chimney hole..at least that is what the signs read down there, but now that you mentioned it, that is a resi gate so that nyc resi tag is probably required for parking. You bet, streamers work great in fast pocket water!

It fish like that ,get me tying smelly old eggs and borax in a tupperware (had them in the freezer from last fall.. they smell okay,, I'm going to bring my insulated hodgemans and hopefully get up there this weekend..need rain got the temp.. it's tough fishy for the most part but i've been doing it since my early 20s that is well over 20 years..hmm i don't think i need a guide,just alittle luck and good timing.