January 21, 2005
Howdy friends and Sierra Drifters. Best
fishes to all for this “Wolf moon” fish report from the Eastern High Sierra.
The tempest appears to be over for the time
being with regards to the weather here in the Sierra and California in general.
As a matter of fact it has been very pleasant in the Owens Valley this week with
warm early spring like days reaching the mid-60’s and only dipping down to the
mid-20’s for the lows along the river. This trend is forecast throughout this
upcoming weekend and well into the initial part of next week.
The fishing has improved just recently due
to the stable and warmer weather. We got punished both by the weather and the
trout during the parade of cold fronts that left the Owens Valley soaked with
rain and snow and the High Sierra blanketed with well over 15 feet of snow in
the passes.
The two track dirt roads along the river;
especially those nearest the wild trout section are still pretty much a quagmire
and prudence should be used for navigating this area with anything less than a
Sherman Tank or hover craft.
There are weather and road condition links
on the resources tab above.
Check out the shot of McGee Canyon and
13,000 foot Mt. Morgan from our headquarters here on McGee Creek near Crowley
Lake...
Mammoth Mountain skiers and boarders
rejoice! An epic ski season is upon the High Sierra. Many folks like to combine
a ski/snowboard trip with a winter fishing trip this time of year….give as a
call or email to check our availability and then check out Mammoth Mountain Ski
Area at
www.mammothmountain.com. Mammoth Mountain is offering “January Midweek
Madness” including some great midweek specials for Tuesdays, Wednesdays and
Thursdays of this month.
It is still too early to forecast the up
and coming summer fishing season, however one thing is certain. There will be
heavier run-off this spring, especially in the freestone creeks initially and
then the tailwaters will be released at more substantial flows as the reservoirs
and lakes swell. Crowley and Bridgeport should be a blast this season as they
will have plenty of water providing habitat for a lengthy duration of weed
beds. We will be doing a forecast in the forthcoming months so you can plan
your spring and summer trips into the Eastern Sierra.
Look for another brand new- state of the
art flats boat that will be joining the Sierra Drifters guide team this summer.
We are adding a 23 foot, 250 hspwr, Bay Ranger for your fly-fishing comfort.
This boat will accommodate up to 4 anglers in style and is without question the
finest machine in this area. Sierra Drifters will also be launching an
additional drift boat this spring and this brand new custom fly fish’n Willie is
larger, wider and even more comfortable than the great boats we are currently
running.
Joining the Sierra Drifters guide team this
season will be long time fly fishing resident and Crowley Lake streamer tugging
legend… Phil Therrien. Phil is a gifted expert fly tier and innovator, and a
FFF certified caster. Currently residing and guiding in Colorado Phil will be
making his debut this summer and we will have a biography on him available on
our website in the future. His sense of humor alone is worth booking a trip
with this excellent guide.
Lower Owens River:
Fair-good
I felt like the Phoenix this week rising
from the ashes (or should I say digging out from the snow) as we had some very
poor “catching” a week or so ago and on top of it all some very poor water
conditions on the river. After the monsoons hit the valley the run-off left the
Owens very stained with tannin leaching into the waterway. The debris was so
thick it prevented even a single retrieve to come back with out some form of goo
on the fly.
Conditions have changed favorably this week
and the flows have been highly reduced to 100cfs as of this report. There is a
link to the Owens River flow rates above. You will see some very early
generation baetis #16-18 after 1pm most afternoons. The midge activity has been
excellent in the wild trout section the last few days and the warmer days have
the fish more active on the top for sure. Nonetheless we still suggest you
bring along a solid selection of Drifters Crystal Olive Zebra and Tiger Midges
#18-22 for nymphing. Midge cluster and midge adult patterns #20 and BWO
imitations #16-18 are also some bugs to have handy.
Veteran Sierra Drifter Doug Rodricks from
West Hills, CA got “Old Knot Head” to come out and hit a Loeberg recently. Old
Knotty has played the game before and gives most who hook her “the fin”. Dougie
won this battle with his good “Mo-Jo” after a fine presentation. Check the
photo of the bull head this Kamloops rainbow has...
Doug Rodricks
The drift boat sections have been better
recently but are still on the slow side of average due to the erratic cycle the
river has been experiencing. If you choose to “dip and strip” lay out a few
more casts that usual in your piece of water. The fish have not been very
opportunistic and you may have to tease them into grabbing your streamer.
Pleasant Valley:
Poor-fair
Tubers working the deeps near the dam with
fast full sinking lines are fairing better than those plying the inlet for
sure. The reservoir level is still too high for good presentations near the
inlet. I like our Loebergs, Crystal Leeches or Punk Perch here #10-12. It is
in fact dropping slowly and should be in good shape within a couple weeks if the
power that beeez (LADWP) does not do something crazy. Major work is being
performed on the powerhouse so you will not get any huge releases from
generation for a while. The river section is fishing fair. Use a dry/dropper
bead head combo with a #16-18 crystal zebra or tiger as the nymph.
The Gorge: Fair
It was tough hiking here last week and
there is still plenty of ice and snow on the north facing slopes down in the pit
especially in the upper middle area. The warmer weather will help out the hike
into the pit and you should have a fair snap in the late mornings using midge
imitations and smaller pheasant tails or hares ear patterns with some flash as
an option. #18 Adams and Griffiths Knat #20 patterns always get looks here if
you want surface action.
Not only is the footing here a bit suspect,
but I find an abnormal amount of rock slides and mini-avalanches occur during
this time of year as the wet and frozen ground thaws and expands causing the
rocks to fall. This is also the case when walking along the service road at
Pleasant Valley. Be more attentive than usual to where you stand and rest while
climbing down and do not choose a path along large broken shale slides now.
Please remember that this entire area is
NZMS positive and rotten with the critters. Walk and wade in the streambed as
little as possible, do your moving on dry ground. For more information on the
snail go to
http://www.flyline.com/environmental/nzms
You can pick up our guide flies at the
following stand out locations:
The San Diego Fly Shop, The
Troutfitter/Trout Fly in Mammoth Lakes, Stroud’s Tackle in San Diego, Malibu
Fish’N Tackle in Thousand Oaks. There are links to these locations at the
resources tab above.
The days are beginning to get longer and it
will not be long before we are using “spring like” in the fish report. Looking
forward to fishing with you soon.
Be the fly…Tom Loe
Sierra Drifters Guide Service
