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Eastern Sierras
Capt. Tom Loe
January 30, 2006
Eastern Sierras - Freshwater Fishing Report
Trouthog February 2006 Fish Report
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. 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!
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.
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.
Check out the digital pics of these lucky anglers and others by visiting our website at http://www.sierradrifters.com
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. Looking forward to fishing with you.
You can pick up our guide flies this time of year at the following stand out locations: 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 and the Fishermen’s Spot in Van Nuys. There are links to these locations at www.sierradrifters.com
Be the fly my friends,
Tom Loe
Sierra Drifters Guide Service
760-935-4250
[email protected]
www.sierradrifters.com
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