Fly and Gear ordering and delivery: We can get flies to you within two to three business days from the time you place your order via Priority Mail. If you provide a budget for flies, we will select them to match the budget and get them to you on time for your trip. Please see the bottom of this column for ordering options.
We also have custom Perfect Fly selections in 3 different price ranges for this stream that come with or without fly boxes. They make excellent gifts. Click Here To Order or Call us at 800 594 4726 or email us at sales@perfectflystore.com.
Type of Stream
Freestone
Species
Brook Trout (stocked and some wild)
Brown Trout (some and some wild)
Rainbow (stocked with some
holdovers)
Size
Medium
Location
Central New Jersey
Nearest Towns
South Branch
Clinton
Season
Year-round in special reg areas
Access:
Fair to Good
USGS Real Time Stream Data:
Near High Bridge
Non-Resident License
State of New Jersey
Seasons:
The season runs almost year-round. It is closed for 3 weeks.
Spring:
Springtime provides some good
hatches and good fishing if the water levels are good.
Summer:
The fishing is good during most of the summer provided there’s enough rain and cool temperatures to keep the water cool.
Fall:
Fall can be an excellent time to for fly fishing the Musconetcong River, again depending on the amount of rain the area gets.
Winter:
It’s possible to catch trout on warm, winter days and the fishing is sometimes surprisingly good.
Recommended Tackle & Gear
Fly Line:
5 or 6 weight
Leaders:
Dry fly: 9 & 12 ft., 5 or 6X, Nymphing:
71/2 ft., 3 or 4X, Streamers 0-2X
Tippets:
Dry fly: 5 or 6X, Nymphing: 3 or 4X,
Streamer 0-2X
Best Fly Rods:
Perfect Fly Superb Five or Ultimate Six
Fly Reels:
For 5/6 fly line
Fly Floatants and Misc Items:
Floatants, KISS Strike Indicators
Tools & Accessories:
Nippers, forceps, retractors, etc.
Fly and Gear ordering and delivery:
Email us at (sales@perfectflystore.com) with the dates you will be fishing and we will send you a list of our fly recommendations. We can get flies and gear to you within two to three business days from the time you place your order via Priority Mail. If you provide a budget for flies, we will select them to match the budget and get them to you on time for your trip. Your can also call us at 800-594-4726 and we will help you decide what flies and gear to use. All orders are shipped free in the U.S. If under a $100 order requiring Priority mail is a charge of only $8.10. Orders over a $100 are shipped free via Priority Mail.
Copyright 2013 James Marsh
South Branch Raritan River Fishing Report – 11/01/24
The stream is still flowing well below a normal level and clear. Good hatches are taking place.
Rate: 39.0 cfs
Level: 5.76 ft
Afternoon Water Temperature: 60
Clarity: clear
USGS real-Time Stream Flow Data near High Bridge
7 Day Weather Forecast: (click the box below for more detailed weather information)
Recommended Trout Flies:
Brown Sculpin and White Belly Sculpin and Articulated streamers, size 6/4
Black Matuka and Olive Matuka Sculpin, size 4/6
Blue-winged Olives: size 16, 18 nymph, emergers, duns and spinners
Aquatic Worms, size 12, pink, red, and others
Midges: Cream and Red (Blood) midges sizes 20/22, larva, pupa and adult. Our larva and pupa midge flies, pre-rigged in tandem, are very popular here. You can fish them under a strike indicator keeping the larva fly near the bottom. https://perfectflystore.com/product/pre-rigged-tandem-midge-larva-pupa-tippet
Green Sedge Caddis: 14/16, larva, pupa and adults
Mahogany duns, size 18, nymphs, emergers, duns and spinners
Great Autumn Brown Sedge, size 10, pupa and adults
Fly Fishing South Branch Raritan River New Jersey: The South Branch of the Raritan River is a tributary of the main stem of the Raritan River. It’s one of New Jersey’s better trout streams. The South Branch flows for about forty miles from Bud Lake to the little town of South Branch where it joins the Raritan River. Fly fishing the South Branch Raritan River can be both very rewarding and enjoyable.The stream holds many wild trout in its uppermost sections. Cool water flowing from Bud Lake during most of the year, allows stocked rainbow and brown trout to holdover well. There are also plenty of wild brook trout in this area.The section from Bud Lake downstream to Long Valley varies from twenty to forty foot in width with plenty of fast, pocket water. There is ample public access.Below Long Valley downstream to High Bridge, the stream offers some public access but access to this areas is somewhat limited. You have to make sure your not fishing on private property. The water doesn’t stay quite as cool during the hot summer months as it does in the uppermost section, but it stays cool enough to sustain a good population of holdover brown and some holdover rainbow trout. The best section in this area is in the Ken Lockwood Gorge. At times the stream in the gorge area can be a little congested with anglers. The South Branch is only about an hour or less from New York City. The area in Califon has a two and a half mile section of year-round fishing that’s Special Regulation water consisting mostly of catch and release fishing. There’s another Special Regulations area in Morris County. These Special Regulation areas have a one fish limit but it must exceed 15 inches or otherwise, the trout must be released. I suggest you keep a close check on the current regulation because they are subject to change.The section form Ken Lockwood Gorge to High Bridge has some great fly fishing waters and a good population of trout. Fishing is also good below the High Bridge downstream as far as the little town of South Branch. This section is heavily stocked. These sections have a typical, ideal trout stream configuration of runs, riffles and pools.Access is available in most areas but there are sections of private property, so you need to pay attention to where you fish. You can access the river from Route #46 which crosses the South Branch just to the south of Bud Lake at the streams uppermost end. Route #78 crosses the river just to the south of High Bridge. Route #513 follows along the stream with plenty of access points all the way from Long Valley to the High Bridge. Parking areas are available but some of the river is bordered by private property.
South Branch Raritan River Fly Fishing Guide: Most New Jersey anglers will tell you the best trout stream in the state is the South Branch of Raritan River. They would probably add that the best place for fly fishing would be the Ken Lockwood Gorge, a beautiful area of the stream designated by the New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife as a trout conservation area.The gorge consist of two and a half miles of the Raritan River’s South Branch between the towns of Califon and High Bridge. The gorge is surrounded by mountains such that one gets the feeling they are on a remote, secluded stream. You can find parking along the side of the road at either end of the gorge. You can walk along a good trail for the entire length of the special regulation area. It’s best to park at the bottom of the gorge near High Bridge and walk up to the river. The water consist of fast pocket water where an upstream presentations is always best. The South Branch Raritan River also has some larger size slower moving pools but they are connected by fast runs and some riffles.You can fish the waters of the Gorge year-round. The stream can get crowded on the weekends, especially during the spring and fall season when fishing is at its best. Its best to fish the stream during the week when you can avoid the crowds. The Claremont stretch is located outside the town of Long Valley. It’s the first truly productive public water on the South Branch. This section has some native brook trout and naturally reproducing brown trout. There’s a large parking area specifically for angler’s and those who utilize Patriot’s Path. A trail meanders alongside the river in the town of Califon. The Claremont section averages about ten to twenty feet in width. It has some deep pools and pockets but is shallow and easy to wade. The fish in the upper section can be extremely selective with regard to flies. Multiple hatches are not uncommon. The fish are very extremely wary, so making a sneaky, quite approach is absolutely necessary for success. Casting room can also be a problem. Tree branches, fallen trees and protruding bushes overhanging the stream presents a problem at times. A natural drag-free presentation of a dry fly is a must or your fly will be rejected by the trout. The best brown trout holding areas are often located along the banks underneath the overhanging brushes. In the Ken Lockwood Gorge area, the river is different. It widens, gets deeper, and increases in flow. It’s more difficult to wade than the upper section.Most anglers think the best time of the year to fish the gorge is the Fall. According to the anglers that frequently fish the South Branch, the opportunities seem to get better near the end of autumn. Like the Claremont area, the Gorge contains some native brook trout and some naturally reproducing browns. A few rainbows will probably be caught, but they are most likely holdovers from stockings at other locations.Fly fishing the South Branch Raritan River can be a wonderful experience. Most anglers wouldn’t believe such good trout fishing opportunities exist close to New York City and near many of the most populated areas of the nation.
South Branch Raritan River Hatches and Trout Flies: Our information on aquatic insects is based on our stream samples of larvae and nymphs, not guess work. We base fly suggestions on imitating the most plentiful and most available insects and other foods at the particular time you are fishing. Unlike the generic fly shop trout flies, we have specific imitations of all the insects in the South Branch Raritan River and in all stages of life that are applicable to fishing. If you want to fish better, more realistic trout flies, have a much higher degree of success, give us a call. We not only will help you with selections, you will learn why, after trying Perfect Flies, 92% of the thousands of our customers will use nothing else. 1-800-594-4726 Hatches on the South Branch of the Raritan River are outstanding, offering great dry-fly fishing at times. The earliest hatches are the Little Winter stoneflies. They start in March. In April, you can expect to see hatches of Quill Gordons, Blue Quills, Blue-winged Olives and Hendricksons/Red Quills. Various species of Blue-winged Olives will continue to hatch until late June. There will be a second wave of Blue-winged Olives that start in late September and last through October. American March Browns and Sulphurs will start hatching in the middle of May. The March Browns will end about the first week of June but the sulphurs will continue to hatch on throughout the month of June. Little Yellow stoneflies, often called Yellow Sallies, will start hatching in the middle of May and last until the first of July. There will be a second hatch of Little Yellow Stoneflies taking place from the middle of August through the middle of September. Cinnamon Sedges (caddisflies) start hatching in mid May and last through the month of June. They are the most common species of caddisflies. Green Sedges are also present and hatch from about the first of May into the first week or two of June. You will find some Light Cahills present from mid May through the month of June. They will hatch from the faster sections of water. Slate Drakes hatch from about the middle of May all the way through September but they start out fairly heavy, slow down during the hottest weather, and increase again during the month of September. There are a few Yellow Drakes in the slower sections of the stream with softer bottoms. These large mayflies hatch from mid-June into the first two weeks of July, but its never a very heavy hatch. There’s a White Fly hatch that occurs in the slower sections of the river in August. It last into the first week or two of September. Terrestrial insects such as grass hoppers, beetles, and ants are also important food items during the warmer months of the year. You can use imitations of them successfully from July through September. Most of the baitfish and minnow trout feed on in the Raritan River are sculpin. Streamers that imitate sculpin work well during low light or stained water conditions.