One Bug Fly-Fishing Tournament

I like tournaments with a twist, fishing tournaments that stray from the standard “biggest fish wins” format. This weekend, I was a spectator at the One Bug Tournament put on by the Friends of the Upper Delaware River in Hancock, NY. The proceeds from the tournament help preserve the coldwater habitat that has made the Upper Delaware River System one of the very best trout fisheries in the Northeast. The concept is that anglers may use only one fly, chosen before they hit the water, and fish it for the duration of the tournament. Once the fly is lost or damaged beyond repair, the angler is done fishing for the day. Anglers fish in two person teams with each measured fish over 12 inches adding points to their team total.

One interesting twist to the tournament is that anglers are awarded points for keeping their fly throughout the day’s fishing, so conceivably, an angler who caught one small fish and then lost their fly might not score as well as an angler who got skunked, but held onto their fly. Another award, the Squirrel Award, goes to the guide who goes over and above to make sure the contestants don’t lose their flies. This may include, but certainly isn’t limited to, climbing trees to fetch wayward flies.

Anglers choose their flies based on the conditions and which flies they would be less likely to lose. For example, while conditions might be more suitable for streamers or nymphs, these flies are far more likely to snag on the bottom than dry flies.

The Upper Delaware River — which I fished Friday with Joe Cermele of Field and Stream and guide Joe Demalderis of Cross-Current Guide Service— is a world-class fishery. In unseasonably windy, cold conditions, we threw big gnarly streamers and Joe D. put us on some gorgeous brown trout, topped off with a pair of 21-inchers.