 |
Eastern Sierras
Capt. Tom Loe
April 24, 2005
Eastern Sierras - Freshwater Fishing Report
Trout Opener 2005 Preview
April 24, 2005
Howdy friends and Sierra Drifters. Best fishes to all for this “Trout opener preview” fish report from the Eastern High Sierra. Get comfortable, this is a long one.
The general trout season opener is just around the corner with “Fishmas Day” being April 30th this year. It is shaping up to be a slow starter due to the heavy and prolonged winter with a string of late spring storms that continue to dump snow on the Sierra. In general you will find substantial snow and ice in the fisheries above 8000 feet. The snowline is currently at the 7500 elevation. The extended weather forecast is not calling for a significant warming trend for next week and in fact we have a chance of snow and rain with very cool temperatures starting this weekend continuing into late next week.
The DFG and Alpers trucks had a difficult time planting the usual locations this season and many areas will not be planted until mid to late May it appears. The state hatchery program remains intact at current levels for this season with next year’s budget situation a mystery. Click these links for DFG news and how to help out the Hot Creek Hatchery Foundation.
http://www.sierradrifters.com
http://www.dfg.ca.gov/
www.FriendsofCaliforniaHatcheries.org
Some marinas and resorts are making the effort to subsidize their own fisheries by raising trout themselves. It is expensive and time consuming and they will need financial assistance by the angling public. Please contribute what you can to these organizations. Eric Gehrung from Paradise Shores RV Park and Skip Baker from Big Meadow Lodge are both working hard to raise trout for the Bridgeport area. Click these links for information.
http://www.bigmeadowlodge.com
http://www.calparadise.com/troutproject.html
Numerous marinas and alpine lakes are questionable unless they get an ice breaker like the USCG’s Polar Star for the opener as many of the alpine lakes are around or above the 8000 foot elevation and currently have solid ice sheets on the surface. Tioga and Sonora Passes are closed and are unlikely to open prior to Memorial Day and realistically June. The road into Reds Meadow and the San Joaquin River will be late in opening also this year, maybe by the July 4th holiday? Expect very high water down here this summer until late August/Sept for sure.
Intake Two in the Bishop Creek drainage will be your best bet in this area if you can find a spot to fish--- that area will be plugged with DFG and Alpers trout after a lengthy maintenance period by the Edison people. Click here http://bishopcreekresort.com
There is a very bright side to this slow start as we will have a season that will only get better as it progresses for a change, with the late summer and fall conditions looking to be as good as it gets for this area. If you are an angler who prefers moving waters you will find some challenging conditions in this area as soon as the snow begins melting. The tailwater fisheries are already well above normal in release rates and some of the freestone creeks are beginning to swell on the warmer days. Stick to the lower elevation lakes and reservoirs during the early season and plan to work up slope as the summer peaks.
Stock up on Mosquito repellant! You may consider bringing along a couple pints or so of your blood type and an old tennis racket for backup this season, it is going to be ugly in the flooded meadows this summer.
The spring spawning migration of rainbows in many areas will be very good this year with ice out coming 3-5 weeks later than in previous seasons. Please examine the streambed before you wade across a gravel bed for spawning redds and leave actively spawning fish to their honeymooning!
We have been scouting all the key locations recently and have numerous current pictures you may wish to view on our website at www.sierradrifters.com
Crowley Lake:
The lake has been ice free for over 2 weeks now and the water temperature is 42-45 degrees. I have been on the lake several times last week looking for concentrations of fish and most of the rascals are in deeper water and off the flats. There are solid numbers of mature rainbows staging to migrate up the creeks that feed the lake. The chironomid hatches are not happening at this time, but that will change as soon as the weather warms and the barometer starts to rise for a change. Traditionally the Mothers Day hatch can be epic for the school sized rainbows that move onto the flats and begin foraging on the chironomid pupa that emerge in huge numbers around Mom’s day each year. If you plan on fly fishing Crowley early in the season stick to the drop-offs and areas that border deeper water. Six Bays, Alligator Point, North landing, Sandy Point and Hilton Bay. You will find similar conditions during late fall here. Streamers, leech patterns and chironomid larva imitations are your best bet during the infant stages of the season. Drifter’s Crystal Tiger and Zebra Midge’s #16-18 are excellent early season patterns for stillwater nymphing. Loebergs #10 and our Crystal Leeches in #12-14 can be dynamite for streamer tuggers early on. The water is off colored for this time of year and although there is no algae present I suggest you use patterns that have some flash built in them as they will draw more attention. Look for the trout to be holding deeper in the water column, 10-20 feet is where I observed several decent sized pods of school fish holding last week. Full sink type 4’s or heavy 200 grain 20 foot sinking tips will get you down best. Work the ledges and edges!
The lake level was very high a couple of weeks ago but the LADWP has pulled the plug and it is draining quickly. Depending on what they need for water and power this year we could see a nice water level for a change during July. You might even see a weed bed or two in September with any luck.
We are pleased to welcome back manager Lane Garrett and most of last years crew to the Fish Camp again this season. Lane has added 4 additional pontoon boats and 10 new aluminum flat bottom fly fishing rigs this season. The landing has never looked better, come on by and pick up supplies, tackle and flies from the crew at the camp. Click on www.crowleylakefishcamp.com for more information.
Expect the crowds to be extremely large even for a Crowley opener as it is about the only game in town. Ten thousand people on opening weekend from what I hear. An excellent alternative to fishing with the hordes is to drive an extra hour up the road and hit Bridgeport Reservoir. Go to www.bridgeportcalifornia.com or www.bigmeadowlodge.com for info. The Bridge is full and has had ice off for a month. I observed a strong chironomid hatch at the end of last week and the lake looks to be in great shape. This place has been a sleeping giant for several seasons recently due to the low water levels. It has the potential to be at the top of the list for all anglers and always kicks out the largest numbers of big browns each season.
The lake has been stocked with some hog Alpers recently and the weed beds are down all the way to the inlet by the East Walker River channel. I have found larger streamer patterns to work better here and I have had great early season luck with our Spruce-a-bu #8 and Crystal Leeches #10. Look for channels in the weed lines around the airport and EW inlet, or at the far end of the lake near the dam and fishing access area. Concentrate around the drop offs if you plan on stillwater nymph fishing. The inlets of Robinson and Buckeye are good areas also and you may find some staged rainbows here. Look towards Rainbow Point if you fail in this area. This lake has water temps approaching the fifty degree mark on the sunny afternoons and should fish better than Crowley early on for sure.
The marinas and public launch ramp are all in great shape this season. I suggest you get up here and poke the sleeping giant with your fly rod for sure!
Lower Owens River: YUK!
A very disappointing April for sure. We cancelled almost all of our drift trips due to the horrid conditions and poor “catching” this month. Flows made it up to 630cfs about a week ago (this is flooding in many bends); they are currently at 450cfs and are expected to go back up after some repair work is done on the aqueduct. Hopefully they will stay down or lower further until after the opener. This is tough water to wade in, be careful near the banks. You will need to break out the battleship chain to get those nymphs down near the bottom. Drifts must be short and precise and you need to mend like you have the dry heaves to keep enough slack in the line to prevent drag. Water temps are lower than they should be due to the constant influx of cold water from Crowley turning the hydroelectric generators. #18-20 midge patterns and flashback hares ear imitations can get you grabs in the softer water.
I am sorry to report that once again several fires “suspicious in origin” along the river have devastated some extremely fertile riparian habitat that has not burned for decades. If you witness anyone camping or making a fire other than at the campground at Pleasant Valley please contact the authorities immediately as it could save your life or those of others in the event of a wildfire on a windy day. Pay attention to vehicles you pass or happen across while on the river and make a mental note. Camping on the river is prohibited and well posted. I strongly encourage you to write the LADWP once again asking them to restrict vehicle traffic in the burn areas so it may recover its natural state and to patrol the river to prevent further fires from destroying a beautiful river and its associated wildlife. This is eco terrorism and the DWP gets federal homeland security money that could subsidize this. Call the LADWP at 760-387-2400 to report violations or the Inyo FD 760-873-5485 and Inyo Sheriff’s 760-873-7887. Click on the contacts button for the LADWP here…http://wsoweb.ladwp.com/Aqueduct/default.htm
Pleasant Valley Reservoir has been getting most of the planted fish and if you are tubing and the weather looks iffy this is a good choice early on. I suggest the inlet section where the transition to the slower water begins during power generation. Forget the river all together during the period when the “thing” is on. Otherwise look for the most consistent fishing by the dam and concentrate by the buoy lines and along the shaded water in the afternoon opposite the service road side. You can park at the base of the dam and it is a short hike to the launch area near the dam. Get those streamers down at least 10 feet and hang a dropper like our Crystal Pupa #18 or # 14-16 Punk Perch or Crystal Leeches to fool a nice brown hanging in the shadows of the cliffs.
The Gorge has been getting more than average attention recently but remains a good spot to escape big crowds. You will not find “Troutzilla” here but there are plenty of scrappy wild browns that will smack most surface imitations in the #16-20 size. Dry dropper bead head combos are killer here and an olive zebra midge #18-20 will spank em in the deeper runs and pools. The evil stinging nettle is beginning to rear its ugly head down in the hole so watch where you put your hands or legs if wet wading. A quiet approach is paramount to success. Presentations mean “jack” if you spook the rascals. Start at the back of the pools and cast upstream for best results. Bring water or a purifier for sure.
The East Walker River will have water flows conducive to making this a blue ribbon river once again gouging out holes and removing accumulations of silt. Hard to say what the flows will be like in the near future, but you can bank on them being size large by summer. Hit this area early on and then dream about the epic days we will have here this fall after the flows begin to recede. They have already been above 300cfs recently but have lowered to 190 currently. I scouted the California section of the river observing a strong hatch of midges and baetis mayflies #18 coming off a few days ago around noon. I always have good results using a Drifters Crystal Tiger Midge #16-18 as the upper nymph on a tandem rig with the dropper being a #20-22 olive zebra. If the flows are jamming-stick a moderate sink tip on that 5 or 6 wt and show those big browns and cutts the “dip and strip” method with a Loeberg #10 tied on to 3X tippet. There have been some mixed sizes of golden and dark stone flies during the warmer days in the Nevada section. Check with Kens Sporting Goods in Bridgeport for current information and licenses and be sure you have some Stimulators #12-16 in the quill. http://www.kenssport.com
The West Walker is in great shape and is currently flowing sweet. This freestone River can surge quickly if it gets warm so whack it early on as it will be blown out this summer for sure. The gate to Sonora Pass is closed so Leavitt Meadows is out, but you can hoof it into the upper canyon with some effort and enjoy what I expect to be some good catching here. The lower campgrounds and sections are snow free and planted.
Upper Twin Lake, Bridgeport should be fishable by the opener but currently has some rotten ice on it. Lower Twin is ready to rock and is a strong candidate for the big brown this season. Both lakes are very full and I suspect it will not be long before Robinson Creek is a torrent as I have not seen the snow pack by the Sawtooths this heavy in a long time. Light colored larger streamers fished deep with a full sinking type 4-5 in the Twins are a solid choice. Our blonde Spruce-a-bu or “Kelley Bundy” #8 is a must here.
This would also be an excellent alternative to doing battle on Crowley this opener or early on. It may be cold and windy according to the forecast so be prepared for the worst and hope for the best!
Virginia Lakes and Green Creek are ice and snow bound right now. Memorial Day maybe? Lundy Lake will have shore fishing and some rotten ice.
Check out the pics of June Lake taken on Friday of last week. You make the call. Will it be ice free? Me thinks not. First time in many moons this lake has been frozen this late in the year. Global warming my caboose! The rest of the loop is iced up with Grant having an outside chance of open water if it blows like a banshee. The north road into the loop opened 4/23/05. Rush creek is flowing nice right now and will also be a good option although with all the ice on the loop lakes it may be a bit friendly along the banks. I like a dry/dropper bead head combo here with the always reliable crystal tiger being the assassin fly.
Hot Creek is still at winter flow rates and looks great. Get here first and enjoy the stellar “catching”. There is a baetis hatch mid-day and the always effective midges in the #20 range will score. Got a shot of the interpretative site and a NZMS sign we all need to observe. It is customary for many of you to hit several fisheries during the opening of the season. Please plan your trip to fish snail negative waters first and if you must wade hit the NZMS positive waters last making sure you sanitize or preferably deep freeze that wading gear after each use.
The Upper Owens River (NZMS positive), and the other tributaries McGee, Convict, Hilton, Crooked (NZMS negative thus far), feeding Crowley are going to be on fire this opener. http://www.flyline.com The late ice out has herds of spring migrating rainbows fighting for position on the gravel beds. Big things can come in little packages is my advice to you if you are not opposed to fishing for spawning trout. Remember these creeks are currently under special regulations and need some TLC if you choose to fish them. The Upper Owens remains closed from the Benton Crossing Bridge downstream to the Monument again this year. A recent sortie on the Upper “O” revealed solid numbers of 14-20 inch rainbows that are definitely podding up. If you do not hit fish, keep moving until you find a jag of them. The weeds are going to be a factor unfortunately and the water levels are currently low. If you can “dip and strip” here in the deeper sections without too much hassle from the weed, you will nail some fine fish on streamers. The monument to the lake would be my choice for this method for sure. This is open water with Crowley regs in effect. Loebergs #10 rock this area and we have had some memorable openers over the years fishing streamers and “guerilla warfare” type casting with a hit and move game plan covering as much water as possible. 2-3 casts will tell the tale, don’t spend a lot of time working streamers here- either they will or they won’t is the bottom line. The meadows are not soggy right now and excessive wading is not necessary at current flows.
Convict Lake will be fishable from shore. There will be plenty of snow present and it could be a hot toddy kind of day. Rock Creek Lake and the upper sections of the creek will be a while in opening but the lower creek will be planted and is in fine shape.
http://www.convictlake.com
http://www.rockcreeklake.com/fishing/current.htm
http://www.tomsplaceresort.com
South, North, and Sabrina Lakes have not been planted and some will be iced over for a while as will the Mammoth Lakes Basin (the road is currently closed above Twin) until after Memorial Day it appears. We have not come up with a method of ice fly-fishing yet. Don’t know if I want to, to be quite honest with you. Bishop Creek will be fine at the lower elevations and well planted with DFG and Alpers fish. The Alpers stocking schedule can be found at http://www.visitmammoth.com
The back country desperately needed a winter like this to fill those upper lakes and keep a snow pack into next winter. It will make the upper wilderness areas out of the question unless you choose to snow shoe your way in well into June and July above 9500 feet for sure.
I hope you have read this entire report because I have saved the best for last. Big Springs is jugged with rainbows and although it is small water if you can secure a section you will get into some incredible 17-20 inch fish. This is the headwaters to the Upper Owens and is also protected by special regulations during the spring and fall so read those regs! Check out the pics of these pods of fish here, it made me and our guide pup Strider nuts!
In summation my advice is to stick to the larger stillwaters like Crowley, Bridgeport and Lower Twin outside of Bridgeport early on and into the summer run-off period. Exceptions will be to hit the spring rainbow migrations that may last into late May. We can guide you on these fine fisheries with our fleet of large custom flats boats. Look for receding water in the tailwaters and freestone creeks to begin in the early to mid fall. The alpine lakes will be excellent at this time also. Late summer and fall should be awesome this season as there will be plenty of food and high oxygen content to provide growth for the holdover and wild fish. Let us guide you to the 10% of the water that 90% of the fish hold in this season.
You can pick up our guide flies at the following stand out locations: The Crowley Lake Fish Camp and the Crowley Lake General Store and Deli in Crowley, The Troutfitter/Trout Fly in Mammoth Lakes, Malibu Fish’N Tackle in Thousand Oaks, The San Diego Fly Shop and Stroud’s Tackle in San Diego. There are links to these locations at www.sierradrifters.com forward to fishing with you soon.
Be the fly…Tom Loe
Sierra Drifters Guide Service
www.sierradrifters.com
[email protected]
760-935-4250
If you visit these links be sure to tell them Sierra Drifters sent you…
Mammoth Lakes Real Estate: http://www.mammothrealestateonline.com
Mammoth Lakes Lodging: http://www.mammothlakes.com/ml2/Lodgingx.html
More Fishing Reports:
|
|
|
|
