July 23, 2006
Howdy friends and Sierra Drifters. Best fishes to
all for this mid July fish report from the Eastern High Sierra.
The overall fishing has been very good to
excellent in most areas with the only exceptions being the larger
tailwaters. The immense snow pack this winter is melting off big time and
Crowley Lake and Bridgeport Reservoirs are absolutely full to the
spillways. The East Walker and Lower Owens Rivers are at very high
release rates and will remain so for quite a while. Fly fishing and
wading these locations can be very difficult and not on the “must do” list
at this time in our opinion.
The weather has been whacko with a mixture of very
warm to hot days and the constant threat of moderate to severe
thunderstorms on most afternoons. If you are planning to be on open water
in a float tube or boat especially in the alpine lakes be prepared to exit
pronto during these types of conditions.
"Two Bug Doug"
The Sierra Drifters Guide Service staff welcomes
one of Mammoth Lakes finest fly fisherman, Doug Dolan to the crew. We
have been recruiting “Two Bug Doug” for quite some time and his fly
fishing prowess and people skills are going to be a great addition to our
excellent staff. Doug will be a full time, year round guide that will
offer his expertise and services with a 23 foot custom Ranger flats boat
for trips on the larger lakes and a 17 foot Willie drift boat for Lower
Owens float trips. In addition “Two Bug Doug” will be fully licensed and
permitted to take you to all the prime walk and wade waters the Eastern
Sierra has to offer. This guide has got serious “game” in the moving
water department and his extensive local knowledge of the regions waters
has given him an excellent reputation with local fly fishers and guides.
He is currently listed as fishy enemy #1 on the “most wanted” list by the
local trout and has a huge reward posted for his subsequent capture!
You can read a bio on “Two Bug” Doug Dolan
together with the resumes on all the other excellent and friendly Sierra
Drifters Guides by clicking on to the guide’s page above.
Crowley Lake and
Bridgeport Reservoir: Excellent
Reminder…The special regulation season at Lake
Crowley starts August 1st and the lake closes for the season on November
15th, 2006…although the marina & boat rentals will close October 31,
2006.
Both of these fine stillwaters are reaping the
advantages of plentiful water the last two seasons. There have been
several “epic” days recently in both locations with our clients enjoying
continuous and plentiful action while using the stillwater nymphing
technique. One hundred fish catch & release days are not out of reach and
this is hooking and landing about half your grabs on the right day.
The major inlet areas are keys to your success, as
well as being able to identify the submerged river channels and weed
beds. McGee Bay and Buckeye Bays respective to their locations are
without a doubt the places to be. You will find large concentrations of
trout from 8-13 feet of water in both lakes. The chironomid hatches are
large on Crowley with some very dinky perch fry beginning to show in the
weeds. The key hatch on Bridgeport along with the chironomids is the
callibaetis mayfly emergence and the damsel fly nymph migration. There is
a lot weed at Bridgeport and it is essential to find the creek channels or
weed free flats for consistent fly fishing. Tugging a streamer from a
tube at this time can be difficult in either location due to the lack of
open water; too many boats or heavy weed. Stationary casting is the best
bet if you wish to get your grabs with a steamer like our Punk Perch,
Loeberg, Damsels and Blood sucking Vanderleeches #10-14. Use one of our
pupa patterns as a trail fly 24 inches behind the larger streamer.
From a boat or anchored tube stillwater nymphing
has been a slam dunk in the late mornings running twin Gillies and crystal
emergers #18 and 20. Tie a crystal tiger or zebra as the dropper during
the off hatch periods.
The browns and cutts are showing on a regular
basis and they are on the deeper side most days until the clouds darken it
up. Drifters guide “Fill” Therrien put Lord Matt Conrad and Lady Allison
Conrad from Coto de Caza, CA……on some really nice fish recently with the
exclamation being this gorgeous 20” brown.
Lord Matt Conrad
and Lady Allison Conrad
The curse of Dr. Joe Mallinger from Escondido, CA
was exorcised at long last due to the Herculean efforts of Mickey “the
turtle” Baron in a two day rip lipping clinic put on by Smoke’n Joe and
the turtle. This was no small task and we are all breathing a sigh of
relief. Fun times Joe!
Dr. Joe Mallinger
Veteran Sierra Drifter Bruce Blumenthal from
Agoura Hills, CA wanted his son Jefferson to experience his first trout on
the fly. Piece of cake!!! Bruce pretty much got schooled by Jeffy in the
big fish department and the lad came up with the largest cutt we have
caught and released to date on Crowley.
Guide Tom Loe
with Jeff Blumenthal & his "Huge Cutt"
Guide Tom Loe
with Jeff Blumenthal & his "Jum Bow"
And Bruce
Blumenthal with his "Jum Bow"
News From the
Bridgeport Fisheries Enhancement Program:
Quick
update....we have stocked about 3,000 browns in the 3-4 inch range
recently in the rez.
The East
Walker will get about 5k in the next two weeks. We are selecting high
water spots with plenty of cover and the little buggers are eating
whatever moves as soon as they hit the water. There are still several
thousand in the bin. The browns are aggressive and showing their red
spots. Bright colored beauties.
Our
Virginia Creek Project will be operational by the end of the weekend and
we will have some rainbows for a trial phase in the bin very soon. This is
a spring fed flow-through bin that has even better potential than Paradise
Shores.
Best
fishes and hey, keep slayin' em.
Skip
Hot Creek:
Tis’ the time of year when you will prevail on the
surface here. The afternoon caddis snap is a good choice if the wind is
not ripping. Dark bodied #18-20’s. I suggest tying one size smaller than
the naturals for best results. The morning mayfly event is also a daily
occurrence, more anglers at this time and location below a substantial
riffle is paramount to your success. 6X is a must, no short leaders.
Water clarity has been good except after a major overnight T-storm. Give
it a few hours to clear up.
San Joaquin River:
Very high water here making the popular plunge
pools and riffle water difficult and downright dicey to wade and fly
fish. The clarity remains very good overall and there are ample meadow
sections throughout the middle fork region to get you into fish. Have
some larger dry attractor patterns like Trudes, parawolfes and stimulators
#12-16. Caddis or Adams patterns will also work as a trail fly or the
point bug #14-16. Remember the special regs about driving down to this
area...you can check with the Mammoth Lakes Visitors Bureau
www.visitmammoth.com
West Walker River:
The T-storms have a negative impact on this
fishery but overall conditions have improved a bunch since our last
update. There is still a bunch of current in the canyon section and
wading is tricky to suicidal in some spots but the prudent fly fisher can
hike to some slower water and find some co-operative trout eager to hit
both dries and moderately weighted nymph rigs. Our crystal tigers rock
em’ #16-18. I enjoy the seclusion of the canyon sections here, avoid the
drive up locations. There is a link to the river flows above.
Alpine Lakes: Excellent!
The hatchery trucks have apparently been keeping
up with the pressure cause’ we ain’t hearing no complaints from anyone
fishing the Mammoth Lakes Basin, June Lake Loop, Rock Creek and Convict
Lakes, South Lake and Sabrina region. Streamers with a full or heavy
sinking tip line will get you into fish. Find the tree stumps, drop-offs
and inlets, you will find those larger Alpers. Spruce-a-bu’s #8 whack
these opportunistic trout.
Upper Owens River:
Stick to the section above the confluence of Hot
Creek for the best water conditions at this time. Blanket caddis on the
calm afternoons will get those wild fish looking to “pop” that dark bodied
#18 with exuberance. Flashback pt’s, crystal olive zebras and wd-40’s are
a good choice for indicator nymph fishers. Bring along insect repellant
by the gallon here, trust me!
Rush Creek:
Want a challenge? Like to sight fish? Can you
cast at least 50 feet with a 4wt. and turn over an eleven foot leader?
This is your huckleberry! Venture immediately below Grant Lake into the
slower canal section of this tailwater and you will find some incredible
fish lurking in the soft gin clear water here. They are not easy to fool,
be forewarned. If you have a buddy with good eyes trade off and take
turns spotting for each other from atop the levy. Forget the mid-day
here, stick to the last couple hours of light. Go small on the top- #20
or less, the fly is not nearly as crucial as the presentation. 3 feet of
6X is a must at the tip.
Rock Creek
She’s still a tad high but clarity is excellent on
the dry days and the fishing has been very good all over. Dry dropper
combos in the softer meadow sections work well, as do caddis dries #16-18
in the afternoons.
East Walker and Lower
Owens Rivers:
Both are running very high and are difficult to
wade. There is a link to the river flows above. The Lower O pretty much
sucks and it is way too hot down in the valley right now for my liking.
The EW is your best bet if you enjoy extreme nymphing and are a very
strong wader. The rewards can be great if you get lucky and manage to
swing that potential jumbo brown into some soft water for a proper
release. No less than 3X here if you want to take a quick picture baby!
If you are new to the sport of fly fishing or need
a jump start as to some of the hot patterns that work in this area, stop
by and visit our good friends at the following great fly shops and
locations and ask for our “Killer kits” These kits are composed of our
most popular and deadly streamer and midge patterns and have been arranged
in a good quality ripple foam box for your convenience. They make
great starter boxes and perfect gifts for the fly fisher.
You can pick up our Authentic & Improved Sierra
Drifters Guide Flies, Sungicators & Killer Kits only at the
following stand out locations (don't be fooled by any of the imitations
out there!): Crowley Lake Fish Camp & Crowley Lake General Store/Deli
in Crowley, Kittredge Sports in Mammoth Lakes, Bridgeport Reservoir Marina
in Bridgeport, Malibu Fish’n Tackle in Thousand Oaks, The San Diego Fly
Shop and Stroud’s Tackle in San Diego, The Fishermen’s Spot in Van Nuys,
Bob Marriott’s in Fullerton and Buz's Fly Shop Too in Bakersfield. There
are links to these locations above...click on the resources tab. We pride
our Guide Service & Products on Innovation not Imitation!
