Future Water

A couple weeks back I ran across a podcast by a fellow named Ben, who posts under the appellation of "The Huge Fly Fisherman". I'm sure some of you are familiar with his often witty, frequently acerbic takes on the world of fly fishing. He can be very entertaining and informative, though I don't always agree with everything he has to say. Just as I am sure some of those that read this blog disagree with my views and observations. Which makes for interesting discussions and debates.

On the podcast in question, Ben used a phrase that I liked very much. Future water. Ben used it relative to how one should fish while drifting down river in a boat. He noted that the boat bound angler should be fishing ahead of the boat in "future water". I have borrowed the phrase and am applying it differently, to discuss water not yet released to our rivers because that water is stored in snow that has not yet melted. Future water.

The importance of a healthy snowpack is certainly understood by most anglers. The more snow we have means there is more stored water that will end up in our rivers. There is always a however, however. How and when that water is released into our watersheds is as important as having the snowpack to begin with.

This winter we have had a solid, if not spectacular amount of snow. Enough to ensure we will have runoff. That is something that has been missing from our last couple of seasons and the implications of that have been both good and bad. On the positive side of the ledger, our largely snowless winters have meant very favorable conditions for trout to emerge out of their redds to survive and boost our trout populations. On the negative side, our hatch dates have become somewhat out of whack and more importantly, there has been less groundwater available to keep our springs cool and full throughout the season. Our rivers have become lower and warmer as a result. A dry year like we just experienced exposes how important it is to have recharges to our groundwater supplies. Healthy amounts of water stored in snow is critical to this process.

A healthy snowpack, combined with a quick warmup and rain will, of course, result in flooding. This is not at all bad if the flooding is not too severe and it comes at the right time. What do I mean by the right time? Perhaps more appropriately I should say that floods can come at the wrong time. Those same trout fry that have happily emerged from their redds into a world of relatively gentle flows in recent years can be wiped out by the thousands should a severe flood hit just when these diminutive young trout are emerging from their gravel beds, typically in the March timeframe. In fact, Tom Rosenbauer hypothesized in one of his articles about the Battenkill that ill-timed floods may have been a partial contributor to the downturn in trout populations documented on the river in the late 1990's. Certainly, losing two age classes of trout in consecutive years is going to have a negative impact.

Floods play an important part in maintaining a healthy watershed, so getting water over the banks of a river plays a positive role. If the river has an active and healthy flood plain with functioning wetlands, the water that spills over the riverbanks percolates back to the river itself over time via springs. The life of the future water of winter is extended by virtue of seeping back into the ground during floods. The Battenkill is blessed with healthy riparian areas that are able to capture flood waters and return them back to the river gradually. Beaver dams play an important part in capturing this water in the upper portions of our river as well. Curse the engineering rodents if you will, but they too help store water for future use.

Floods also help cleanse the bottom of rivers. John Braico and Jacob Fetterman, who are doing such great work in the valley, have explained that sediment deposited on the bed of the river is only scoured and transported during periods of "bankfull" and higher periods of flow. These high-water events distribute latent energy stored in wood, leaves and detritus further down the watershed and scour fine sediments that form on the streambed. This is essential for macroinvertebrates. Floods also help dig holes in and around large woody material, creating habitat so critical for our finny friends. And their forage.

We are still locked into a very cold and increasingly snowy winter. There are signs of that chill abating and rain is in the forecast. The first phase of spring runoff is upon us. There is plentiful future water to nourish our rivers once runoff commences in earnest. Let's hope that the upcoming release of water is timely, and our rivers are once again replenished with cold, clean water.

Below are a few pics from recent trips to the river.

Geese and ducks enjoying the open water along the Arlington stretch of the Battenkill. The lack of ice is a mixed blessing. Mergansers remain active as long as there is open water, which there often is.

Shelf ice is still hanging on along the edges of the river downstream of the Rte. 313 rest stop in NY

I have seen the Spring Hole completely covered in ice, so this is not too bad, all things considered. Not a place I would fish, however.

The Spring Hole is ice free as of 2/26 and looks pretty fishy!

Half a dozen trout grouped together in a deeper part of a spring creek that flows a short distance before entering the river. This water never freezes and provides great refuge for trout wise enough to nose up into this excellent wintering habitat. (Fish 5 and 6 are to the left and difficult to make out).

Winter takes its share of trout. Even though this fish was situated in a spring creek, I spooked a heron that was stalking fish in a deep hole. Whether or not this trout was killed by the bird I spotted or succumbed from the rigors of spawning I don't know. This is a reminder that trout live on the edge of life and death all the time.