Winter Fishing Tips
Winter fishing is generally from November to March and usually involves: snow, numb fingers, frozen guides, finicky fish, quiet rivers and shitty grins. Bring hot coffee or tea!! With less hours of sunlight on the water, the window of time to hook up is minimized. Adhering to bankers' hours isn't a bad idea as 10:00-3:00 will be the most productive time period to rip lips in the winter season. Use wading belt!! With less insects hatching, nymphing and streaming are your most productive presentations.
Dress warmly!! A great idea is packing an extra bag of clothing; it can make the world of difference if you are wet and cold. Wading staffs are a smart idea. Get out there and catch some winter fish...
Fishing Reports
Fall River
Fly fishing only! Closed to fishing downstream of the falls! Target the big ones between the hatchery and the headwaters. Use 9ft leaders, and 6x or 7x flourocarbon tippets. 3-5wt rods are a good choice.
Wise flies are BWO's, midges, eggs, soft hackle pheasant tails, cased caddis, minnow buggers, slump busters.
Deschutes River
The Deschutes is closed to fishing upstream of Benham Falls!
The section between Benham Falls and Bend holds a lot of feisty rainbows and big browns.
Productive patterns are christmas princes, anato mays, san juan worms, sculpzillas, slump busters, BWO's.
The lower Deschutes is the place to be if you are chasing chrome. The steelhead are well spread out in the river and with the winter weather here, the crowds will be thinning. Try girdle bugs, rock worms, muddler minnows, fleshy eggs, egg sucking leeches, street walkers, freight trains.
Crooked River
The road construction is finished at Bowman Dam.
The Crooked is running at 155 cfs below the reservoir. The farther downstream the water moves from the dam, the more fluctuations in temp. so target the runs and pocket water closer to the reservoir.
Try scuds, sow bugs, eggs, zebras, surveyors, BWO's.
Tight lines!
Fish king Cliff at Grizzly Lake
Wednesday, November 16, 2011
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
August 16th, 2011
Fall River
This seductive spring creek is fishing awesome. Use PMD's, BWO's, yellow sallies & x-caddis for dry imitations. Mr. Peacocks, flame eggs, and micro mays for nymphs. Rust pine squirrels and slump busters for streamers.
Crooked River
Flowing at a consistent 310 cfs has the Crooked continuing to be a productive tailwater. Look for caddis and mayfly hatches throughout the day and in the evening, especially if there's some cloud cover. For nymphs use: anato may, tungsten surveyor, frenchies and amber princes. Trailing an emerger behind a nymph is a great way to go on this river.
Upper Deschutes River
Despite the summer "pressure" on the upper D., it's still fishing well. Streamers are still landing the big ones although nymphing the banks and log structure is productive as well.
East Lake
East is fishing excellent! It's hard to beat casting callibaetis dry patterns to rising fish all day, so get up there and enjoy the bite. Wind drifting roxy rainbows & AP emergers are hooking up all day as well. Stripping streamers in the shallows during low light can pay off big.
Crane Prarie Reservoir
With the reservoir being 66% full, more fish are cruising the channels & many lunkers are being hooked up. Use our blood rufus & leech rufus patterns. Use callibaetis sparkle emergers and hatch matcher dries, olive pine squirrel minnows & Thin Mints.
Diamond Lake
Fishing okay, but should pick up in the next couple of weeks...
This seductive spring creek is fishing awesome. Use PMD's, BWO's, yellow sallies & x-caddis for dry imitations. Mr. Peacocks, flame eggs, and micro mays for nymphs. Rust pine squirrels and slump busters for streamers.
Crooked River
Flowing at a consistent 310 cfs has the Crooked continuing to be a productive tailwater. Look for caddis and mayfly hatches throughout the day and in the evening, especially if there's some cloud cover. For nymphs use: anato may, tungsten surveyor, frenchies and amber princes. Trailing an emerger behind a nymph is a great way to go on this river.
Upper Deschutes River
Despite the summer "pressure" on the upper D., it's still fishing well. Streamers are still landing the big ones although nymphing the banks and log structure is productive as well.
East Lake
East is fishing excellent! It's hard to beat casting callibaetis dry patterns to rising fish all day, so get up there and enjoy the bite. Wind drifting roxy rainbows & AP emergers are hooking up all day as well. Stripping streamers in the shallows during low light can pay off big.
Crane Prarie Reservoir
With the reservoir being 66% full, more fish are cruising the channels & many lunkers are being hooked up. Use our blood rufus & leech rufus patterns. Use callibaetis sparkle emergers and hatch matcher dries, olive pine squirrel minnows & Thin Mints.
Diamond Lake
Fishing okay, but should pick up in the next couple of weeks...
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
July 26th, 2011
Crooked River:
The flows have been a consistent 315 cfs. and the fishing has been awesome. Plenty of beautiful mid-sized trout and a few large ones are being caught & released. Nymphing is still the most productive way to fish the Crooked, although caddis and mayfly emergers are slaying 'em. The hatches have been a bit sporadic with the blues skies overhead, but look for PMD's and caddis in the shady areas and early/late.
Fall River:
This charming spring creek continues to be super! Lots of large trout are scattered throughout; target them under the logs and in the deep pools.
Upper Deschutes:
Although there's a multitude of young brookies in the Upper D. that will bite the end of your line, there are some real big ones being hooked under the banks, and hiding under logs. A few cranebows are lurking in the river and have been caught on white pine squirrel streamers, and rust slump busters. The mo's are out, so bring your deet.
Hosmer Lake:
Fishing is good for Atlantic salmon and brook trout. Use Q's film critic, roxy rainbows and Bob's sparkle emergers for callibaetis. Stripping our white and yellow rufus streamers is very productive.
Crane Prairie
Reports are still slow for late July, but with the consistent warm weather and sunny days we've had lately, more fish should be cruising (and hooked) in the channels. Blood and leech rufus continue to be our favorite flies to fish on Crane. Stripping S.Twin specials and minnow buggers are a smart choice. Chironomids are working as well.
East Lake:
Fishing great! Wind drift or slow retrieve callibaetis emergers & cast dries when the hatch is on. Stripping Thin Mints and pine squirrels in the mornings and evenings can be good.
The flows have been a consistent 315 cfs. and the fishing has been awesome. Plenty of beautiful mid-sized trout and a few large ones are being caught & released. Nymphing is still the most productive way to fish the Crooked, although caddis and mayfly emergers are slaying 'em. The hatches have been a bit sporadic with the blues skies overhead, but look for PMD's and caddis in the shady areas and early/late.
Fall River:
This charming spring creek continues to be super! Lots of large trout are scattered throughout; target them under the logs and in the deep pools.
Upper Deschutes:
Although there's a multitude of young brookies in the Upper D. that will bite the end of your line, there are some real big ones being hooked under the banks, and hiding under logs. A few cranebows are lurking in the river and have been caught on white pine squirrel streamers, and rust slump busters. The mo's are out, so bring your deet.
Hosmer Lake:
Fishing is good for Atlantic salmon and brook trout. Use Q's film critic, roxy rainbows and Bob's sparkle emergers for callibaetis. Stripping our white and yellow rufus streamers is very productive.
Crane Prairie
Reports are still slow for late July, but with the consistent warm weather and sunny days we've had lately, more fish should be cruising (and hooked) in the channels. Blood and leech rufus continue to be our favorite flies to fish on Crane. Stripping S.Twin specials and minnow buggers are a smart choice. Chironomids are working as well.
East Lake:
Fishing great! Wind drift or slow retrieve callibaetis emergers & cast dries when the hatch is on. Stripping Thin Mints and pine squirrels in the mornings and evenings can be good.