Howdy friends and Sierra Drifters. Best fishes to all for this Turkey Day 2006 fish report from the Eastern High Sierra.
Road Trip!!!
Sierra Drifters guide Tom Loe will be heading down to So-Cal on Saturday December 9th to visit his pals at the Fisherman's Spot in Van Nuys. http://www.fsflyfishing.com. Tom will do a presentation on fishing the Eastern Sierra around noon and hang around most of the afternoon to talk fly fishing (off the record stuff!) and discuss gear. Well known and respected Sage rep John Sherman will also be in attendance. This will be a hoot and we are looking forward to seeing all our friends in the area. There will be a raffle and some great gifts given out.
Homecoming! December 10th will have Tom Loe showing up at his home town fly shop Malibu Fish'n Tackle in Thousand Oaks through late afternoon. www.malibufishntackle.com. Several of the CVFF gang has assured us they will be there to keep Tom honest as he does a presentation on fly fishing tactics for trout from a boat. Lots of laughs, some inside scoop on Tom's favorite waters and door prizes for all in attendance.
Despair not my fellow fly fishers! Although the general trout season has ended in most of the quality waters in California there are still some great fly fishing opportunities to be had for those anglers unwilling to stow their gear for the winter. The Lower Owens River remains open year round (despite another Mammoth Lakes based fish report stating otherwise). The Lower Owens fishes without any question better in the fall, winter and early spring and it is during this time we offer guided drift boat trips along the more secluded and difficult to reach sections of the river. Our experienced river guides take you down the Owens in large, customized (& heated!!!), aluminum river dories made by Willie Boat Company. We have four full time guides and drift boats available this winter for guided drift boat trips. Skiing not so great yet? Need a holiday gift for the fly fisher in the family? Want to flog the water for some trophy rainbows and browns this winter? We are your huckleberry! Customized gift certificates are available upon request.
Lower Owens:
The flows remain very high (600cfs) at the time of this report; however we are enjoying some very good fly fishing from the drift boats during recent trips. There is a link to the current DWP flows at www.sierradrifters.com/fish.html. Streamers are the key to getting fish at these ridiculous releases. The fish have had ample time to adjust after the entire summer of high water and you must seek out the softest and quietest water along the current transition zones. The last couple of weeks our guides report finding the fish "podding" in larger than usual numbers. Not all the areas you would think are holding do and we are finding that if you get a grab or two there is a good chance you may be stopped for a while as the fish are holding in select water and not spread out over the river channel. Very heavy sink tips are a must and the "dip and strip" method is the superior technique to employ if you choose to tug streamers. Larger patterns that have a lot of crystal flash as an option are the choice of the trout and it is no surprise that our "Kelly Bundy" or blonde Spruce-a-Bu has been a foundation fly for us lately. Loebergs have also worked well at times and I suggest you choose the light head for the brighter days and light periods, the olive ones for the cloudy, lower light segments of the day.
We have also had some sporadic baetis and trico hatches around noon but with the high flows it has been difficult to position the boats in strategic locations to get solid presentations. The wild trout section is tough to fish at these flows and you will pretty much need a chunk of freakin battleship chain to get those bugs down. Please carefully examine your bank and water before attempting to wade at this flow. This river is very deep and channelized and you may find yourself in some trouble with breathable waders after a fall here. The banks integrity has been compromised and severely undermined this year and the prudent angler will take more than the usual amount of time before stepping out along the banks. We are having trouble finding dry, safe locations to take "pit stops" even on the boats at times. If you fish with your pets alongside (my dog Strider fishes with me here at times) you must also look out for their welfare as well. There have been some tragedies at these flows and even the strongest dogs will struggle to get out safely. Several of the roads along the banks are also suspect for driving so keep this in mind before navigating to your favorite bend in the WT section of the Owens.
If you can manage to find a safe and likely spot on the bank at the WT most mayfly and midge imitations will do the trick. There is also a fair amount of caddis still emerging at times in the afternoons; however I do not see the fish rising on them during our floats. The trico hatch is not for all as these tiny mayflies are in the #22-24 range so use a larger dry as an indicator to make it easier to see the tiny mayfly. The baetis are not the size of condors either, but the fish really trigger on this emergence and you should have some BWO patterns in the #18-20 range. Your nymphs should be heavily weighted and bead heads will get you down more efficiently. The browns are very "spawny" right now and redundant drifts will pay off over tailouts (if you can identify them). Our unique crystal tiger and zebra midges are sold as bead heads and have additional weight built into the tapers of the head to get you down to the fish.
The weather has been incredible this fall and it has been well above average with plenty of 70 degree days recently. It is thus far looking to be an opposite of last winter's record snowfalls and during these types of years we historically have our best fishing yet to come! The flows are forecast to come down after the holidays, but I would not hold much credence to what the LADWP tells us in advance as they have been known to "change their plans". My guess is if the snow does not fall by the first part of December we may see a decrease sooner than forecast, or let's hope they would consider holding some water back for next year at Crowley.
Veteran Sierra Drifter and expert "dip and stripper" Steve Newman from Oxnard, CA hosted fly fishing pal Gerald Caraig for his first drift with us recently and the two sticks combined to catch and release over forty rainbows and browns. Check out the double bendo by visiting our website at http://www.sierradrifters.com/fish.htm
The Reeder boys from Hacienda Heights, CA, Stu, Ted and Chris drifted their way to a bunch of quality trout, some great weather and a whole bunch of laughs a short time back. Our drift boats can easily accommodate three persons safely and comfortably making these trips ideal for family fly fishing outings. Check out the picture of Stu battling an Owens River slammer!
Another threesome that drifted with us experienced numerous double hook ups and near forty to the net. From Topanga, CA, Mike Powell, Stephen Morelock, and Andrew "Diz" Delaney spanked a bunch of fish. Hilarious laughter and action all day…what more could you ask for (and realistically get?) The drift ended way too soon guys, thanks! Check out Mikey's and Steve's dual rainbows on the web fish report.
And the following comments from "Fills" recent trip…
Hi Tom,
Just wanted to thank you for hooking us up with Phil on Monday The 13th.. We had a wonderful time with your great guide. I would have been able to catch more fish if I was not laughing so hard with Phil the "Iceberg". Phil was very gentle when scolding me the many times I snaked my son's water. We look forward to booking a trip on Crowley with Phil in the spring. Great job and many thanks.
Jim "the loop"
The Gorge: Good
This area is the only alternative to wade fishing this time of year and it is currently fishing well. The weather has been ideal down in the "pit" and the high flows on the Lower Owens do not influence this small tailwater section. Dry dropper bead head and emerger nymph rigs always get it done here and most dry flies in the #16-20 range will get looks. Moderate to strenuous hiking and rock hopping in the middle sections; bring in your own water or a filter. A 1-4wt rod is perfect down here. The fish are small but numerous with a few scattered tippet busters in the larger pools. Quiet, upstream approaches are a must to get you on the larger pods.
Pleasant Valley Reservoir: Good
PV is fishing well for planted rainbows right now around the launch ramp section and in the section of the lake where the flow from the inlet area slows to a crawl. The river is a torrent and is not fishable when power is being generated (which is all the time currently). There are some great wild browns in this narrow but lengthy body of water and this is the best time of year to fool one of these rascals near the inlet section. Our Punk Perch, blood suckingVanderleeches and Loebergs are very good streamers to use in conjunction with a full or heavy sinking tip line. With the mild weather the tubing has been pleasant and there has been light pressure thus far.
You can pick up our Authentic & Improved Sierra Drifters Guide Flies, Sungicators & Killer Kits (Great Holiday Gifts) only at the following stand out locations (don't be fooled by any of the imitations out there!): Kittredge Sports in Mammoth Lakes, 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, Buz's Fly Shop Too in Bakersfield and online at www.bigfishhappen.com. There are links to these locations at www.sierradrifters.com/resources.htm. We pride our Guide Service & Products on Innovation not Imitation!
Be the fly friends…Tom Loe
Sierra Drifters Guide Service
760-935-4250
Driftfish@qnet.com