Fished the Whitewater yesterday. Water is clear and spooky. Water temps did not get above 38 degrees, and the wind was brisk. Fish were tough to approach. Line slap and indicator plop would frighten fish that were holding on the bottom 6 feet below the waters surface. The reaction of the fish reminded me of a time long ago when the police showed up to a high school party of under age drinkers. Bodys scattered in every conceivable direction. All places of conceilment whether under, over, or behind, were sought out with white hot intensity. The fear of being caught I imagine, was much the same as I had experienced way back when. Needles to say I did not touch a fish using the up stream, cast over the fishes heads approach. Nor did I find fish in fast, broken water. After I lightened up a little by removing the round foam indicator and all weight except for 1 small bead head Prince nymph my presentation was much softer. I replaced the foam ball with a yarn indicator, a technique that is almost manditory when nymphing the flatter slow moving sections of our rivers. The key to sucess was most likley in the long down stream drift though. By Scouting pools from well back of the rivers edge I could spot the pods of fish. This would enable me to re-position well up stream and feed a long drift into th hole. That was the ticket! A #20 soft hackle hares ear was my best fly. An abundance of insect life was present on the rocks and the weeds. Caddis, Mayflies, Scudds and Stoneflies all were there.