Water, Water, Everywhere

The village of Russell can be located in the town of Russell in St. Lawrence County way up there in northern New York.  Heading south from the village for a couple of miles will bring you to Whippoorwill Corners where if you were so inclined you could turn east on county route 17 and head toward the village of Degrasse which is five or six miles distant.  However no more than a half mile from the Corners on the north side of the road there is a marked State area where one can freely camp.  This area has a small brook running right through it named aptly Plum Brook.  I say that because it is a brook, not because I ever saw any plums in the area.  This first photo is a view downstream of the brook as it appears from near the camping area.  Small rapids appear here and there causing that sound that is so soothing to the ear.  I’ve camped there in the past and I had no trouble sleeping with the never-ending music of the water passing by.

The second photo is a view of the same brook, but upstream from very near the same place as the first photo.  The scenic value is wonderful and a tonic everyone should experience from time to time.  It is not uncommon to see wildlife at this wayside stop, including, but not limited to, deer.

Leaving that place (which isn’t easy for campers) and continuing east toward Degrasse one can locate the Silver Hill Road heading south to nowhere.  This third photo is taken right from the roadway at the first small bridge you come to.  Do you spot that boulder in the stream toward the right side of the photo?  I happened to catch the largest Brook Trout I’ve ever seen right in the eddy behind it last year.  Right between the camera and the rock my bobber can be spotted while my grandson’s is over nearer the left shore as we try again, but with no luck this time.  However, our fishing partner, and brother-in-law Ron, did manage to catch a fair sized Brookie here which he tossed back to grow some more.

Continuing along the Silver Hill Road past Cook Road and the McCarthy Road soon you will come to this breathtaking spot as shown in photo four.  The brook passes right under the road, but this is to the upstream side a 100’ or so from the road.  This is Brook Trout fishing water at its best, and a summer day in the Adirondacks is never a day wasted.  The stream comes cascading down over rocks, through sylvan glades, under forest causing dappled sunlight on its floor.

From the lower right hand corner of photo four the brook tumbles next over this small set of rapids, quickly dropping four feet or so to a new level.  I got a nice bite here Sunday, June 26^th, but it got my hard working worm, and I got nothing.  Swim on oh great piscatorial wonder, maybe we’ll meet again another day?

These is a little fished brook of pure mountain waters winding its way down to the Degrasse River which flows to the mighty St. Lawrence River, and on to the Atlantic Ocean.  We fished the various spots on it for some four hours, and never encountered another fisherman in our travels, or maybe that should be travails.