January 30, 2006
Howdy friends and Sierra Drifters. Best fishes to
all for this early February “trout hog day” fish report from the Eastern
High Sierra.
The guide team at Sierra Drifters would like to
thank all the familiar faces and the ones which will hopefully become
familiar that attended the recent seminar at the Fisherman’s Spot in Van
Nuys. We had a great time and the staff and guests did the best job
possible “off the water” of showing why fly fishing is such a great sport
comprised of very nice people.
It appears as though winter has perhaps given us
her best shot and the coldest/darkest days are over. Let me tell you
folks, we took a few hard hitting winter broadsides during January and the
fishing reflected the cold weather. The cool weather mayflies (baetis)
commonly called blue winged olives are increasingly making an emergence
every day after noon until 2 pm. The trout are eagerly anticipating this
hatch and the bite is revolving around these all important cold weather
mayflies. It will improve steadily through February into March so if you
are into dry fly fishing at its best, give us a call and we will put you
on some gulpers!
Fishing has recently picked up after a very slow
period that I attribute to very cold water temps and some less than
desirable water and weather conditions. The access roads along the Owens
River have dried substantially and the majority of snow has melted in the
upper Owens Valley, but you will still encounter many areas that will get
you stuck when the ground thaws in the afternoon so use caution when
driving on the unimproved dirt roads all along the Owens after the morning
thaw.
Lower Owens: Fair- good
The big news is the baetis hatch beginning at
12:30 pm everyday and continuing until about 2. The cloudy days can be
epic this time of year in the wild trout section or on a drift so be
prepared for this hatch and have several BWO patterns in the #18-20
range. Nymphing in the big pools and riffles below these deeper sections
of river can be productive with nymph patterns like birds nest, hares ear
and Pt’s in the #16-20 range. You will also find actively feeding trout
searching for midge larva in the #18-22 range. Our crystal olive zebras
#16-22 will get you grabs in this area prior to the bwo hatch when
nymphing under a strike indicator or larger dry fly.
Flows remain at 125cfs below the dam at Pleasant
Valley Res. Very nice to wade at this release. There is a LADWP
flow link above. Water temps are 37-44
degrees most days and climbing with the warmer weather recently. The
temps will gradually creep up over the next several weeks although you may
encounter some cooler water after a cold front passes.
The drift boat sections have been very slow until
recently and the cold water made even the rock solid “dip and strip”
method slow going many days. We have also had a rough time of getting to
our “put ins” as the mud, snow and ice made the roads impossible to
drive. Conditions have improved a bunch but there are still areas that
are not accessible at this time so check out your path before you venture
in to the point of NO RETURN!
Spruce-a-bu’s , Loebergs and Crystal Leech
patterns have been the go to flies recently #8-12 used in conjunction with
a medium sinking tip line. The trout are holding on or very close to the
bottom and you will observe numerous leeches on the fins of the fish you
fool indicating the rascals are tight to the dirt and gravel!
Larry and Lisa Daniels from San Bernadino, CA
braved the cool weather a while back and hit a pleasant day on the river.
An impressive grab-to-net percentage got them into an above average day
with the highlight being a very nice double. Good shoot’n kids!
Larry & Lisa
Daniels
The stage was set for the river to go off with big
fish as soon as the weather turned warmer for a few days and we had the
right “sticks” at the right time a couple days ago. The warm front
brought the water temps above the forty degree mark for the first time in
several weeks and the baetis hatch went off big time with the clouds
blanketing the shadows and bringing the doggies out from under the cuts.
Cap't Bruce Smith
& 1st mate Shelly Ehmer...22" Rainbow
Captain Bruce Smith (skipper of the long range
tuna clipper SHOGUN) and his fly fish’n first mate Shelly “Sharkey” Ehmer
from San Diego, CA
hit the Lower Owens just right this weekend. The couple spanked 50 fish to the net in
a couple of days with 9 fish over 18 inches. The icing on the cake was
the excellent dry fly fishing with bwo’s for almost 3 full hours the
cloudy first day. Sharkey had big fish honors with some rainbows that hit
the 22 inch mark both days, while Bruce took the numbers crown overall
with some late afternoon surges. The Loeberg was the fly de’jour both
days while using the dip and strip method. The big fish went on the grab
both days around noon just prior to the baetis emergence and these two
seasoned fly fishers were ready! Several Loebergs were put in the
streamer hall of fame by these kids never to terrorize the water again!
This trip was a total hoot for all except the trout.
"Bow on a BWO"
for Bruce
"The Shark
circles once again..."
Bruce! "Custom
Paint Job" on this one!
"Shark Attack"
Pleasant Valley
Reservoir: Poor-very good
The inlet/ transition section has not been fishing
well for wading fly fishers lately; this in part due to the unusually high
water level of the reservoir for this time of year. Freeze tubers
however; are doing very well from the launch ramp area all the way into
the slower moving water in the inlet area trolling or casting streamers
like Loebergs #10 and Crystal Leech #10-12. Fishing is good here from a
tube but is difficult from shore as of this report. Full sinks for the
deeper water in the rez proper, have a medium sink tip for the inlet
section and look for the channels in the weed lines. There are some huge
rocks that can be spotted from a tube that are favorite spots for the
trout to hold behind. Cast to the back and front sides of these for best
results. Hopefully the LADWP will lower the level without blowing out the
river and the inlet section will fish well as in seasons past at this
time.
The snow and heavy ice are pretty much gone down
here but you will still encounter some patches on the north and east
facing exposures so watch your step especially if wearing felt soles.
The Gorge: Fair-good
May be a tad slow in the mornings down in the
“pit” but as the sun clears the rim and the baetis begin to emerge you
will find steady action and plenty of eager wild browns willing to devour
your bwo imitation #16-20. Stalk your fish from the base of the pool
casting upstream making your presentations progressively longer with each
cast until you go bendo! There is still enough snow and ice in patches
here to ruin your day with a slip so wear hiking boots with an aggressive
sole to hike in and out.
The snow pack is above normal once again for the
Eastern slope of the Sierra Nevada Mountains and it looks to be another
solid year of water for the creeks and alpine lakes. Spring may pose some
challenging conditions with run-off, but the fall should be another
memorable one with good water levels in all areas here.
Get off your caboose, give that big screen TV set
a break and come fly fish the Sierra’s with us this spring. We're looking
forward to fishing with you.
