Chris Brumenshenkle expertly snakes his fly line toward a Brown Trout rising in the riffles of the Clear Fork Branch of the Mohican River, then demonstrates the use of a net in the careful handling of a soon-to-be-released fish.

Lower; a 6 to 8 inch Brown Trout is representative of the stocking size of fish in an annual program by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources on this pristine river.

FLY FISHING; Some Art and Some Science--

The Clear Fork Branch of the Mohican River splashes its way through the gorge below the covered bridge in the state park of the same name near here. It’s always in a bit of a hurry.

From high on the ridge it is mid morning before the sun drips through the Hemlock Trees and wrestles the early morning shade into submission.

Ken Aebie of Danville was standing on shore when I arrived that morning; still shivering, and shivering some more, as he nursed a steaming cup of coffee and chased the bone numbing chill from his very early morning of river fly fishing.

Dave Meadows from Crestline arrived and quietly shared his exquisite craftsmanship in hand made, bamboo fly rods while Chuck Barber of Mt. Gilead busied himself hand tying flies and Chris Brumenshenkel of Mansfield suited up for his gentle assault on the river’s population of Brown Trout.

They are among the 40 some members of the Mohican Fly Fishers, a group dedicated to both the art and the science of that ageless sport. They were gathered there that morning to share their pleasure with public participants in the annual Mohican Wildlife Weekend.

Dave said, “See the trout rising across that riffle. Today we are having a good hatch of Brown Caddis and Blue Wing Olives,” aquatic nymphs morphing into their airborne phase in the annual cycle of birth, breeding and death—finally becoming a treat for the hungry trout.

This river is one of very few in the state with water both clear and cool enough to sustain a trout population, restocked annually by the State’s Department of Natural Resources with 6 to 8” fingerlings. The stocking program stretches from Bellville to where the river crosses SR 3 below Loudonville.

“In late November they stock the river with brood trout up to 30 inches long—trophy fish which are beyond productive breeding,” Dave explained.

I marveled at Ken’s midge fly and the bare #26 sized hook (right) that will soon be the foundation of yet another prized, hand-tied creation of his. I fear I would need a nuclear-powered magnifying glass just to assemble this terminal tackle.

Clearly, however, an early morning romp in this pristine river with a cherished fly rod is one of those experiences God does not subtract from a fisherman’s allotted time on Earth.

The choreography of Dave Meadow’s fly line is clear against the smooth flowing river in the shadow of the covered bridge at the Mohican State Park.

A Blue Wing Olive and a White Mayfly (left) were recently sampled in the river at Gatton Rocks by Meadows.