Time flies

I knew it had been a while since I last posted.  However, I didn't realize it was almost four months ago. 

This blog was initially created as a place to keep track of my fishing.  A journal of sorts, so that I could refer back to when needed.  It served its purpose pretty well, however, I've discovered that there are better ways to record this information.

I'm now using Google maps for my journal.  Hence the slowdown in posts here.  I have one map for each river, and I place markers at various runs to keep track of access and where I caught fish.  Each time I hook a fish, I record the water temp, clarity, fly type/size, tips used, etc, etc.  I now have a pretty good visual database to keep track of these things.

For instance, I went to the Sandy last week and decided to try a new access point that I had never been to.  I looked up notes from a couple of weeks ago in the surrounding areas and figured out what would be a reasonable setup.  On this day, I chose 12 feet of T14, an unweighted blue/black marabou trailer fly.  Fishing in about 8 feet of water on a soft shoulder, I hooked a fish that I estimated to be 11-14 lbs.  (It ended up breaking my leader about a rods length away from me.)

Previous notes don't always work as well.  I went to another (no names) river yesterday and took with me the same setup/fly I used on the Sandy.  The water was low and clear.  However, what worked on the Sandy was not working here.  Because the water temps were almost 50 degrees, I decided to scale down.  After putting on a size 4, I immediately got hits from smaller fish.  That led to a few bumps from bigger fish.  Then I got a really good pull that came out within a few seconds.  Several casts later, I either hooked that same fish, or another of equal size.

It took the fly softly, then after trying to reel him in, he went on a mad tear.  Jumping 2 or 3 feet out of the water two different times.  Did I say he was BRIGHT?  This fresh fish pulled some line out, then came towards me.  I couldn't reel in fast enough, so I stripped line.  Stripping, and more stripping, he now was upstream of me and pulled more line out.  That punk fish found the only boulder between me and him and went right underneath it.  Only being 5-8 feet away from me, I tried to move upstream to dislodge him.  No luck.  The knot broke (probably from rubbing on the rock) at the top of the leader!   This was a big, bright, and feisty fish.  I thought I had 'em.  Ended up being outsmarted in the end.

I'm going back today to the same river for a few hours. Because of the water temps and water clarity.  I'll probably switch over from my sinking skagit line to a Rage.  Summer fish are in and they are willing to move to a fly.  Let the fun begin!




 

Washougal: 8lb tippet is not enough for a salmon

In my 20 something years fly fishing, I have never, that I can recall anyway, devoted a single day to fishing for Salmon. Sure, I may of cast out hoping to catch one while I was mostly targeting steelhead, but I never spent a significant chunk of time at it.

That is no longer the case. I decided to give it a shot. Chinook and Coho are currently in the Washougal river. Or so they should be according to the averages. Figured it was about time I give it a try.

Arrived at one of my favorite steelhead spots to give it a swing. I had my intermediate Skagit line on with a 7.0ips polyleader in front. My first fly of the day was a green and orange intruder. I've never fished the Washougal this time of year, and boy, is the river low. This run was so shallow I could hardly recognize it. Swinging was practically useless. Instead, I had to cast out and strip back. There was at least one big fish in there. He poked his head out a few times, but I couldn't entice him. After growing tired of the cast and strip, I sought out better water.

Deep down, I knew that upstream would be no better. I decided to look anyway. Come to find out, as expected, my usual slots were super shallow and I gave up after only a short time. Decided to go back downstream to a deep hole that I would walk right past when looking for steelhead.

I spent some time casting out and letting the fly swing, then strip it back using varying speeds. I really had no idea what I was doing. Salmon were and still are a mystery to me.

I tried a few flies until I got to a red/orange stinger fly with dumbbell eyes. It was about 2" long and was made mostly of finn coon hairs. Combine the weight of the fly with the sinking skagit line and I was hitting bottom in water at least 10 feet deep. Because I was getting hung up so much, I decided to strip the fly back quicker. My thought was, if I don't give it a chance, it won't get buried in the rocks.

Access	Washougal
Air Temp	Low 48, High 54
Water Temp/Visibility	~57F / 7 feet
Weather	Cloudy
River Stage	~3.8 feet
Time in/out	6:30am / 11am
Leaders/Lines	Int Skagit
	Intermediate and 7ips	All day
	8 and 15lb
Flies	Various large/bright winter	-
Notes	Water low and clear. Cloudy morning

That stripping speed change made all the difference in the world. The first time I applied my speedy strip, I hooked a fish. My first reaction was to not get excited. I didn't know if it was a small fish or not, after all, the tug was relatively mild. But, after holding carefully on the line with my stripping hand, I felt a very deep tug, tug, pulllll. Oh boy- Fish on!!

My rod was bent waaaayyy over. I spent an eternity reeling in the extra line that lay at my feet. At this point, the fish started bucking. I started moving towards shallow water to get a better foothold. Then I saw it. The fish was probably only 15 feet away. By my standards, it was enormous. He took a short run upstream. I started reeling him in. But he wouldn't have it. I don't know how much he weighed, but I could see he was easily north of 35".

My mind started racing. "This could be the biggest fish I've ever landed. Holy cow, this rod is bent over." And then, with that thought, SNAP! The 8lb tippet broke at the end of the poly leader. The fight was over.

I took the long walk back to my car for 15lb mono. Spent another hour or two in the hole with no luck. That was my chance and I blew it. This happened once before back in California where I hooked and then broke off the biggest steelhead of my life. You would of thought I learned my lesson.

I'll be back salmon!

Deschutes: Slump Buster

I haven't been catching much lately.  Not counting the smaller trout, I've been getting skunked day after day. When this happens, there is only one cure.  Head to the Deschutes.  Once again, the river delivered.

Parked my car at the fish hatchery well before sunrise.  After suiting up, I walked down river to a spot that I caught a 12 or so pound wild fish last year.  The water looked equally inviting this time.  I walked my way out sporting my brand new 420 grain Rage line and a floating poly leader.  The fly was a generic size 4 summer fly.

Since this was my experience with the Rage, it took me a cast or two to get dialed in.  I wasn't blown away by it.  I think I could deliver the Compact Scandi further and cleaner.  I stuck with it, trying to see if it would simply be a matter of figuring out any subtle stroke changes I needed to make.

Access	Deschutes
Air Temp	Low 33, High 80
Water Temp/Visibility	?F / 15 feet
Weather	Sunny
River Stage	~? feet
Time in/out	4am / 9pm
Leaders/Lines	Rage and Int. Skagit
	Poly leaders and T-8	All day
	8lb Maxima
Flies	Summer flies morning/evening, Winter mid day.	-
Notes	Water was good flow and temp. Great clarity with light fishing pressure. Two decent sized wild fish.

After about 1/2 hour, I decided to move downstream.  I walked a good mile, stopping anywhere that looked decent.  Unfortunately, there wasn't a whole lot of good looking spots.  Argh.  I finally convinced myself to abandon hope and go back upstream.  The walk was a long and lonely one on the railroad tracks.  Stopped by that same run again with nothing to show for it.

I was ready to head to the car, but decided to stop at a decent looking spot.  It wasn't an ideal place, but there were a few lines worth fishing.  This time, I had a 7.0 ips sinking poly leader and a heavier fly with dumb bell eyes.  It was around noon.  Much warmer out and fishing deep seemed like my best option with full sun on the water.

The cast was only 20 or so feet from the rod tip, but that was all it took when my fly took a sudden turn downstream.  Fish on!  A few minutes later, I had a nice, albeit not very big, steelhead in my hand.  She was probably only 7 or 8 pounds, but put up a decent fight.

A trip back to the car to take off layers from the morning.  After all, I arrived to 35 degree temps that morning, but now it was well into the low 80s.  I also took this time to put on a Intermediate sinking Compact Skagit.  I've been ready to try a sinking line out for a while.  I finally bit the bullet and bought one from Airflo.

Boy oh boy.  Do I love this line.  I had a short 8 foot piece of T-8 on the end, but the thing was sinking like a  rock.  Love it!  I could get down really quick.  And since the fly line is sinking, it wasn't getting all belllied in the currents.  Mending was minimal to get a good swing.  I cannot wait until winter to put on a heavier piece of T material and sink a fly down to the depths.  I'm excited!

After I put on that Intermediate Skagit, I got in the car, drove through Maupin and started hitting water from Maupin up above Sherar falls.  Lots of good looking spots.  As the day wore on, I took off the T-8 and put on an intermediate poly leader.  Guess what?  That skagit line tossed it out there smoothly.  Nice.  Did I say I love this line?

It was getting late, I found a run to fish for the remainder of light.  I was having so much fun that I continued fishing a deep hole as there was barely any light to see.  As I was about to call it quits, I hooked up with another fish.  Once I got her close, I couldn't see in the water.  I needed to be able to step down from my grassy casting platform to get the hook out.  I took a chance and stepped in the water.  Lucky for me, it wasn't deep right there, I could of easily gone swimming.  The fish ended up being about the same size as the one I caught earlier.

Thanks Deshutes for the busting that skunk.

Klickitat

Made it out to the Klick a week ago. The river was clear and pressure was light. Weather was a chilly 40 degrees in the morning, warming up to the upper 80's in the afternoon. Not a cloud in the sky.

Got to my chosen spot before sunrise. Walked in a bit and started swinging. No action. Not even a peck. Continued to walk down river for probably more than a mile (was on the trail side of the river). Fished lots of good looking runs using a floating line on my compact scandi. I used un weighted flies and a couple of skaters. A bit further along in the morning I caught a few small trout. No action from any big fish.

Around noon, I decided to get in the car and drive. The plan was to go15 or so miles upstream. Unfortunately, I didn't write directions down and never found my destination. Good way to waste a couple of hours.

After getting back to where I started, I stopped at a run that looked good last time I was here. It was now in the upper 80's and rather hot. Kept my comp scandi on, but rigged up a 10ft section of T10. With a 3 inch bright orange/red rabbit strip fly sporting a large set of dumbell eyes, I started casting into a riffly run.

An hour in, I had a fish pull a few feet of line out. Unfortunately, I was daydreaming, digging around in my pocket, or something else I shouldn't have been doing. I missed the fish. Tried the same cast again and got hit a second time. Argh! I missed it this time too. Sent that same fly out again with nothing. Uh oh. Missed my chance. I backed up a few feet and switched to a small fly of the same color. Fished through. Nothing! Backed up again with a new fly. This went on for 5 flies and about 45 minutes.  I didn't feel bad for wasting so much time here.  No one was around, and after all, there probably weren't that many fish willing to hit a fly  when the sun was directly overhead.  Never got another bump. Bummer.

I moved to a new spot. This one was receiving shade from the canyon walls. The water was a little deeper than I like. So, I kept the sink tip, but changed up the fly to something smaller.  Three of four trout later, I decided to move on.

It was getting late, I tried a few spots down river, and then I found this section I had never been to before. It was great. Everything about it looked perfect. No fish, but I will certainly be back to try that run again.

The Klickitat is a great river. It has really grown on me. Hopefully, I'll get in a few more trips before the year ends.

North Umpqua

My trip to the NU happened a few weeks ago.  I'm just now getting around to talking about it.  Seems my blogging has taken a back seat to everything else in life.

Left the house on a late evening to arrive at the NU early in the morning.  Early as in, enough time to sleep for a few hours.  The NU is a 4 hour drive from the house in Washington.  While the NU isn't really that far, it is enough where I wanted to snooze.

Got up before the sun did.  Put the waders on and wandered down to Camp Water.  My first stop was Lower Boat.  I figured that was a safer bet than trying to negotiate through the water to Station before the sun was up.  Saw some fish jumping, but couldn't catch anything but smaller fish.  The river was empty except for one other guy.  I took his spot on Upper Boat while he moved to Station.  I later went down to Kitchen, then went back up to Station.  No fish anywhere.  Bummer.

Access	North Umpqua
Air Temp	Low 50, High 85
Water Temp/Visibility	?F / 8-10 feet
Weather	Sunny and windy
River Stage	? feet
Time in/out	5am / 10pm
Leaders/Lines	Scandi
	floaters	All day
	8lb Maxima
Flies

unweighted summer
Notes
Windy with good water level and visibility. Typical magical Summer day on the NU

I made the walk downriver to several spots that I hit on previous trips to the NU.  No go.  Again, I saw some fish, but couldn't get them to my fly.  I was fishing floating lines and un weighted flies.  Often skaters.  

Sometime in later morning I did what I do every trip to the NU.  I slipped into the water.  After a trip back to the car and a change of clothes, I was back again.  This time up river of the bridge.  Decided to walk further than I have before.  Came to realize, once you get around the bend, there isn't a whole lot to fish unless you want to walk for a long time.  Oh well, lesson learned.

Back to the car.  This time I decided to drive down to mile marker 30 something and parked at every pullout available.  Found some great spots that I marked on my map for future reference.  Ended up catching some 18-22" fish.  Nothing to write home about.  

The day was windy.  Casting that compact scandi wasn't easy.  I concentrated on what was right in front of me and found some good water at my feet.  Had a blast while being blasted by that wind.

I ended up day somewhere between mile marker 30 and Camp Water.  Scurried home and had another fantastic magical Umpqua river trip in the books.

Contrast of the Clackamas and Sandy

I arrived at Milo McIver park around 8am. Drove to the upper boat launch and pushed my way through the brush. The water was high. Much higher than I anticipated. I decided to go to this river based on the water level prediction of the river dropping to a good level. Needless to say, it was much higher than they predicted. (I actually believe the level rose. Must of released extra water through the dam.) Now, today, when I retrieve the data from yesterday, it seems to be non existent. I'm not sure what happened, but something went wonky. I'm guessing it was at 14.5 feet when I was there.

Access	Clackamas - Milo McIver
Air Temp	Low 40, High 60
Water Temp/Visibility	~40F / 2 feet
Weather	Sunny
River Stage	~14.5 feet
Time in/out	8am / 11am
Leaders/Lines	Skagit
	11 feet of T11	All day
	15lb Maxima
Flies	Various large winter flies	-
Notes	Water high with funny business going on with stage readings. Okay clarity. Access difficult. Not good fly fishing conditions.

It looked completely different from last time. Clarity wasn't bad, maybe 2 foot of visibility, but the water was so high up the bank, finding a place to cast from was difficult. Stepping down a run was nearly impossible in most spots.

A few hours were spent here. Did a lot of exploring for spots to revisit when the water is lower. However, I knew it was a lost cause doing any actual fishing, so I headed over to the Sandy river.

The Sandy was a much different story. Water level seemed perfect. Clarity was surprisingly clear. I could see 6-8 feet easily. The water looked fishy.

Access	Sandy - Near Oxbow
Air Temp	60's
Water Temp/Visibility	~40F / 6 feet
Weather	Sunny
River Stage	11.5ft
Time in/out	12pm / 5pm
Leaders/Lines	Skagit
	11 feet of T11	All day
	15lb Maxima
Flies	Various large winter flies	-
Notes	Water was at a great level. Dropping into shape after heavy rains. Clarity was very clear with slight tint. A great day for fishing.

Unfortunately, I didn't catch anything. Other than a strong wind, the weather was nice. Sunny and 60 something degrees. Not bad! Despite the nice weather and beautiful fishing conditions, I wasn't really into it for some reason and actually left before 5pm. Hopefully this isn't a trend and just a temporary loss of interest. My mind was elsewhere.

East Fork of the Lewis: A productive first trip.

Finding time to fish with a newborn and a four year old isn't easy.  Luckily, my wife is a good sport and let me go out for a day on the East Fork of the Lewis River.

I arrived a bit late as I took my older son to school first.  The drive was only a half hour or so from the house, so it wasn't a big deal.  I put on my waders at home, so I simply jumped out of my car at the river and started fishing.  This was nice as the rain was falling and I didn't get wet trying to get prepared.  Being the first decent rain in a while, the river was clear and at a good level.  Looked like good fishing conditions.

I had never been on this river, I made my choice of destinations by looking at Google satellite maps and reading a few things at the library (The local library is full of steelhead/fishing books.  Something I never experienced in California).  All of them said good things about this river.  It may not have the biggest runs of fish, but it does hold the Washington state record for a 30 something pound steelhead.

Access	Lower River
Air Temp	Low 40, High 45
Water Temp/Visibility	41 F / 8-12 feet
Weather	Rainy
Flow	low/clear
Time in/out	9:30am, 4:00pm
Leaders/Lines	Compact Skagit
	10ft of T11	All day
	5-6 ft of 12lb Maxima
Flies	dark, muted, 2-4 inch

My gear was setup with a compact skagit, 10 feet of T11, and about five or six feet of 12lb maxima.  I started the day with an intruder style fly, but the hackles were black marabou and nothing else.  It was basically a black leech with dumb bell eyes.  The thing was about 3 inches long and had a bit of flash around the shank between the marabou clumps.  I picked the fly because the water was super clear- easily 8 foot visibility and I wanted something that wasn't too obnoxious.

The run I picked in the morning looked good.  It was between two small rapids.  Large boulders under the surface looked like good holding spots.  I started at the top and lengthened my casts as I moved down.  As the water slowed, I had to make casts of about 80 foot.  Quite wide for this river, which is relatively small.

I was trying all sorts of casts to get the fly to sink.  Straight across to a bit upstream.  At the end of the swing, I was getting hung up quite a bit .  On one of those, I was flipping my line around trying to dislodge the fly from the rock.  Then, all of a sudden the rock moved!  The fish took the line for a few feet and then spit the hook!  Drat!

I kept at it.  Moved downstream until I was between two trees.  One off my left and one off my right shoulder.  I had a limited possibilities for casting direction.  So, I cast down and across.  About a 100 foot cast.  The fly went completely across the river and landed right under a tree on the other side.  The line straightened out in the air and landed flat.  Perfect!  As soon as the fly hit, I saw a faint commotion on the water surface.

Was that a fish?  I tightened up my grip and then all of a sudden, I  saw a splash and felt tension!  Oh yeah!  So much for Winter runs only taking flies on the bottom.  This girl came to the surface to attack.  There was no way that fly sunk that quickly.

She didn't fight all that hard.  In fact, I assumed it was a small fish.  However, when I got her close, I saw her and she was big!  Sweet.  My first official winter run fish in Washington.  I got her to hand.  It was a hatchery measuring about 34 inches.  Nice!!

My wife jokingly told me to bring home dinner before I left.  Thinking about that, the first thing I did was check to see if the fin was clipped.  It was!  I normally release all fish.  Including hatchery.  However, I'm starting to re examine this thought process.  As much as I appreciate every fish, wild or not, these hatchery fish are not doing the wild population any favors.  A decision was made, I was going to take this fish home.

I was holding her about a foot from the steep bank.  I set my rod down and climbed up the hill and she started going nuts.  The fish flopped out of my hands and back into the water.  She just sat there for a few seconds.  I jumped in and grabbed her tail.  However, she knew this was her shot.  She started kicking and I couldn't hold on.  The fish got away!  Sorry, no fish for dinner tonight.

I spent the rest of the day exploring.  Walking up and down the river, I found some great swinging water.  I also drove for a while and saw that access was limited because of private land owners.  That sucked.

I'll be going back to the East Fork.  What an incredibly beautiful river.  This place also has a great Summer run in June/July.  I'll be going back.  After all, if you land a big steelhead the first time at a new river, you have to go back sooner than later.

Cold day on the Klickitat

Made my first trip to the Klickitat.  Not far from the mouth of the Deschutes on the Washington side, this river is a beauty.

Got there at sunup on a cold morning.  Air temp was around 30 degrees.  After getting in the water, I thought to myself, "boy, this water feels cold".  A thermometer told me it was 40 degrees.  Wow.  Wasn't expecting that at all!

For three hours I battled frozen fingers and frozen guides.  My toes were numb as I was wearing my Fall socks, not my winter ones.  I failed to follow the Boy Scout creedo, "Always be prepared" (I could be completely wrong about that, it has been a few years).

I'm going to make this a quick report as I have somewhere to go in about 10 minutes.  The gist of it is, the river is beautiful, but more setup as nymphing/indicator water.  Can you believe I actually put on a bobber?  Blasphemy!  I gave it the old College try for about 1/2 hour.  Then went back to swinging.

Didn't matter what I did, I didn't catch a thing on this day.  I tried everything from small flies on a floating line and a 10foot section of T14 with a weighted intruder, to of course nymphing.  Found a sweet run or two, but for the most part, it wasn't an ideal river for what I like to do.  Or at least I didn't find an ideal run to swing on.  If I had done more walking on the other side of the river, I may of found something.  But today, was for scooting from point to point in my car.

If I can put my bike in the car, I may take a trail that goes along the river for several miles.  I can probably find some secluded spots that are far away from any roads.  This is definitely on my list for next time.  While the area I probed in my car was not ideal, it has potential.

Although this was a very cold, zero fish day, I had fun.  I'll be back with a bicycle sometime in the future.


p.s. The White Salmon river dam was blown on the same day I was on the Klickitat.  While I didn't hear it, a Washington Fish and Game guy was very excited and told me all the details.  In a few years, that river should be a great run for salmon and steelhead.

Knuckles Busted on the Deschutes

I've actually been to the Deschutes three times since my last post. I got a case of the lazies and didn't feel like posting anything at the time.  

First things first, let's go over the last trip a couple of weeks ago.  (I can't even remember what I did the time before that, so we'll have to forget about it.  Woops.)  I decided to head down and fish around Maupin, down to Sherar falls. This part of the river is so much prettier than the mouth. Not to mention it is less crowded and fewer gear fisherman. Sorry gear guys, most of you are really nice, but you sit too long at one spot and it drives me insane.

If I remember correctly, I started upriver from Maupin and just drove around looking for a spot. There were a few good ones, but in general, I didn't find many longer runs where I could step and swing. The river seems to be deeper and more narrow here. I'm sure I missed some good stuff, I just didn't find too many of them.

I spent probably 5 hours driving and fishing anything that looked decent. Eventually I went below towards Sherar, away from Maupin. Much better choices here. Found some super sweet runs to swing. Unfortunately, the fish completely ignored me except for a trout or two. In the evening, I scooted down river of Sherar. This is where a friend and I floated several weeks back. This time, I was stuck to the road side in my car. Found some cool spots. One of which looked really great, but the wind was so strong it was making life difficult. I could barely stand at times. Nasty!

Fast forward to last week. This time I decided to park at the fish hatchery above the White River. Walked up and down the railroad tracks. Found some great water. I was fishing all sorts of flies. Big, little, low water ties, and bulky flies. I got a small trout or two. But it was tough going. Near the end of the day, I managed to catch a 22" trout in the soft shoulder of a really heavy rapid that took up the whole width of the river. She put up a decent fight and made the day worth it.

After that, I went back to a run that I fished in the morning. From the railroad tracks far above, I mentally marked the deep slots in the river I wanted to swing. It looked super fishy from above. And from earlier in the morning, I know it felt fishy while in the water.

It was getting late and hard to see. I was ready to call it a day- satisfied that I caught a decent sized trout. I hucked out one last cast. I was literally casting as far as I could to hit the slot about 120 feet down and across the river (handled with a long cack handed cast and the feeding of line). The cast started across the river, and I let the fly sink at the end of my floating line. Feeding some line in to give it a bit more depth and distance.

Thump! I felt something. Oh boy. It's a fish. But how big is it? Splash! A steelhead took two quick leaps, cart wheeling across the surface more than 120 feet away. Oh boy. I started reeling in cautiously, cause there was slack in the line and I didn't want to lose it.

I reeled in quite a bit of line. The fish was now much closer. Probably 70 feet away. Must not be a big fish, cause there wasn't much fight. Then, all of a sudden the fish started running. ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzing my reel was going nuts. It happened so fast, I didn't get my hand out of the way and the reel handle busted my knuckles. The pain was intense, but I couldn't help but laugh. That doesn't happen often enough!! It was exciting.

My reel continued to scream as the fish pulled my running line out, then 30-50 feet of backing. Uh ohh! Am I going to be able to stop this fish? There was a sizable class III rapid below and if the fish got there, I would certainly lose it.

I palmed the reel and slowed the fish down, then started cranking. The fish was putting a massive bend in my rod. Sweet! I have a real steelhead on! This is awesome. Only a problem starting becoming apparent. This fish was hot and I'm standing in some reasonably fast water. I need to get closer to the bank.

Easier said than done. it was now pretty dark out. I couldn't see the river bottom. The fish was pulling hard enough to cause me to be off balance. This wasn't good. Lucky for me, I had my headlamp with me. Unlucky for me, it was in my pants pocket, inside my waders. What a stupid place for it! I tightened the reel drag, held the fish with one hand and started digging in my waders for the lamp with the other. I must of looked like a real idiot if anyone was watching. Somehow, I managed to get the lamp out, turn it on and put it on my head. All with one hand while my body was being pulled by both the current and the fish.

By this time, the fish was moving into softer water on its own. Doing a few jumps along the way. My rod was still bouncing all over from the head shakes. This was an honest to goodness fish. I reeled it in and when the fish was within 10 feet, I saw it rolling around. OMG, this fish is big. I started to get really excited. Don't screw this up! I've gotten stupid in the past and have lost fish when they are in close. Can't let it happen this time.

I was now near the bank and the fish was getting tired. I grabbed the leader with one hand and pulled her in and held her tail. I put her on her side and clearly saw she was a beautiful wild fish with just a bit of color. I laid my rod down next to her to get a mark that I could measure later on. It went past my rod's first thread wrap. That means she was over 32" long. She was healthy and thick. A very nice fish.

I took the size 6 fly out and held her for about 5 minutes. Concern was growing as she was showing no signs of trying to leave. I was on my knees in about 2 feet of water, just holding her waiting for her to get some strength. I was officially worried. I mean, this fish was nice enough to eat my fly, so I want her to be okay and go make wild fish babies.

Then out of no where, she bolted away with a surge.

That was an exciting moment. Just thinking that I lucked out on my very last cast of the night. Somethings are just meant to happen.

Deschutes: Off The Schnide

Met up with my friend Ted for two days of fishing on the Deschutes.  He came up from California and was nice enough to invite me along.  Thanks Ted!  I had an awesome time.

Ted brought his Watermaster Kodiak, and he rowed me around the river above Mack's Canyon while we stayed at one of the campgrounds.  I'm sure the raft was a little sluggish with me sitting on the back, but he did an awesome job of keeping us out of trouble and getting us to some good fishing spots.

On Day 1, we didn't see that many other boaters or fisherman for that matter.  Pretty surprising since we are entering prime time on the D.  We both started with floating lines and switched over to sink tips in the afternoon.  I put on my skagit line and went as big as 11ft of T10.  I think I caught a couple of small trout.  But no steelhead for either of us.  I don't recall seeing anyone else pulling fish out of the water.  However, I can't remember for sure.

I tried all kinds of flies, muted colors, bright, small, big, nothing seemed to be working.  Argh.  Whatever was up with the fish or whatever was up with us, I still had a great time.

Access	Above Macks Canyon / boat
Air Temp	Low 60, High 90s
Water Temp/Visibility	~60 F / 4 feet
Weather	Sunny
Flow	~? cfs
Time in/out	6am, 8:30pm
Leaders/Lines	Compact Scandi and Skagit
	Floaters	Morning
	Sink tip (T8 and T14)	Afternoon
	Floaters	Evening
	8lb Maxima
Flies	Size 4 lightly dressed hair wing	landed 2

On day two, we floated downstream from where we were at on the first.  The water was fishier in both of our opinions.  There were far more fisherman and several guide boats.  We were definitely not alone today.  Unfortunately, the day started out like the first.  No fish other than a few small ones and a pluck here or there.

I was doing some experimenting to take my mind off the fact that I wasn't getting any steelhead.  I decided to do all my floating line work with a skagit line and a 12 foot floating poly leader.  Other than it being a little clunky, it was a pretty good cast.  Even with small flies.  In the afternoon, I switched to 8ft of T14.  No fish from whatever combo of line/fly I put on.  While I got a few tugs on day #1, none on day 2, other than catching a small fish.

As it was getting late in the afternoon, we parked ourselves at a riffly run.  Ted went to the top, and I went to the bottom that was pouring into a pool.  I hooked a fish at what seemed to be about 5 feet of depth along the boulders near the end of the swing.  Because of the sink tip, I first thought I was hung up again (it was happening a lot).  However, my line moved just a little and I realized I had a fish.  Five or so minutes later, I had a nice 23 or so inch fish in my hand.  Yea!  Finally.  My first legit (albeit not all that big) Deshutes steelhead that I actually brought to my hand.

We got in Ted's boat and went downstream trying to find a run to spend the last of the daylight in.  We were not the only ones with the same game plan, as empty runs were hard to come by.  Eventually, we found one and I immediately caught a bright chrome ... 5 inch fish!   Ted had at least a tug or pull below me as he was skated a fly through the riffles.

It was getting late and I had worked my size 4 wet fly (on a dry line) through the riffle and was now working on the inside soft seam as the run was coming to an end.  I was basically high sticking this very small section that I thought fish may be holding in before heading through the riffles above.

On one of the swings, I saw a flash and my fly immediately went down along with my rod bending over.  While she didn't peel a ton of line off, this hatchery fish made up for it with several runs as I tried to get her to my hand.  She didn't give up easily.  The fight lasted a while and I finally brought her in.  She was about 24 or 25 inches long.  Not all that long, but she was solid with pretty good girth.  Ted thought she might be 6 lbs or so.  Which would put her as an average D steelhead.

What started off as a slow couple of days, the last two hours produced two fish.  Finally got a steelhead to hand up here.  And two of them at that.  Don't know when the next trip will be.  Hopefully this week.

Deschutes: Windy day @ Heritage Landing

Another day on the Deschutes last week. Like last time, arrived around 5:30 and on the river just as there was enough light to see. The place was surprisingly empty. I'm guessing because the weather called for some super strong winds. The forecasters were correct. Gusts ended up hitting 40+ mph during the day. Making casting extremely difficult. However, in the morning it wasn't too bad.

Again, I was starting at Heritage landing. First thing after getting to the water, I ran into an older gentlemen with a flyrod. He had just hooked a fish and was super excited. A bit later he hooked another fish. How do I know? Because every time it happened, he blew a whistle as loud as he could. I guess he wanted the whole river to know what happened. Seemed kind of weird and funny at the same time.

Anywhoo, I was in the water with a size 4 purple wet and an intermediate poly. Kept my casts rather short, maxing out around maybe 50-60 feet. On the seam between softer water and the main current, I felt one of the most subtle of takes I've ever felt. It was so light, yet at the same time, I knew it was a fish.

Access	Heritage Landing
Air Temp	Low 50, High 75
Water Temp/Visibility	~60+ F / 5 feet
Weather	WINDY
Flow	~? cfs
Time in/out	5:30am, 8:30pm
Leaders/Lines	Compact Scandi
	Intermediate Poly	Morning
	Floating	Afternoon
	Floating Poly	Evening
	8lb Maxima
Flies	Size 4 Purple wet	1 hookup

I raised my rod to set the hook as soon as I felt some weight. Then he took off. He didn't peel that much line off, but he didn't make it easy either. I knew it was a decent sized fish. The fight didn't last all that long. However, I was excited. This was my first Deschutes steelhead of significant size. In fact, it was my first Oregon steelhead of size since moving up here.

A few minutes had gone by and I got the fish up to me. I couldn't tell whether it was a hatchery or wild. Pulled him in closer and was starting to reach down in the water to grab his tail. Then, my brain stopped working and I released pressure on the line!!! The fish casually came unbuttoned. OH MAN! I was inches away from tailing that first official Deschutes steelhead. I finally had one within reach and I had a brain malfunction!!

On the bright side, I've had a lot of bumps and tugs, and a few hookups. So, my presentation seems to be working. Just need to keep at it. The rest of the day felt like I was sitting in the middle of a tornado. It was so windy, that I had trouble standing up at times. I almost was pushed into the water on more than one occasion.

Despite the awful wind and the fact that I couldn't cast very far with the swirling winds, I stuck in there all day. Sadly, no more action. Not even a bump. I did get a chance to explore the other side of the river. So, it wasn't a complete waste. However, I'm going to avoid the D in the future when the forecast is calling for such high winds.

Sandy River: Dodge Park

While this wasn't meant as a hard core day of fishing. It was more of a scouting mission and a chance to introduce my son to fly fishing. Since we moved up here, we've been floating down rivers and playing in the water. He is really into it on these HOT days. So, I thought it would be a good idea to put a rod in his hands.

After cutting off the hook point on one of my flies, I let him swing his tiny rod around and have some fun. He really enjoyed it. As he gets older, I hope to have a fishing partner!

The afternoon started at 1pm on the Sandy River at Dodge Park. This is about a 45-minute drive from home and easy access to the water from the parking spot. I couldn't really explore with my son/wife around. So, we stayed right under the bridge. There looked to be some good water up stream. I'll have to come back on my own to give it a shot.

I only fished for an hour or so, and most of that was spent holding my son's hand and walking him around the rocks/water. He is getting good at scrambling around the slippery boulders. Maybe more so than me! While I wasn't really focusing much on fishing, I did get a bump from a probable trout and saw another trout chasing my fly. I was tossing bright flies, some rather large on my single hand rod using a intermediate 10ft poly. There was a bit of glacial silt in the river, making it cloudy.

After a few hours of being there, we took off. A great day in the water with my family. I'll be heading off to the Deschutes on Wednesday. Stay tuned for another report.

Deschutes: Heritage Landing

Last week was my first trip to the Deschutes after the move. The drive time is a comfortable hour and a half. Not bad for such a great steelhead river. I can handle that. Nothing compared to what I've been used to.

Before sunrise, I was already geared up and walking down the trail. By the time I got to where I wanted to step in, there was enough light to do so. A gear fisherman was already in my spot. So, I asked if he was staying still or stepping down. After confirming he was to stay put, I asked if he minded if I went below him. No problem.

On this day, gear fisherman outnumbered fly fisherman by at least 2 to 1. And probably 3 to 1. I have no problem with them. Although, I wish they would step downstream. Most of them seem to sit in one spot for hours on end. I know that we are fishing different techniques, but it does rub me the wrong way. I guess I have to learn to deal with it. Although, when you see one guy in the same spot for 5 hours, it can be frustrating.

The river is super wide, however, I was casting only 30 or so feet out into the main riffle on this first run. Moving down a couple of feet after each cast. I saw this nice calm spot that looked fishy. It was only 10 feet from shore and about 20 feet down from me. I worked it over pretty well with a muted low water fly. After each swing, I let it sit. As I was pulling in for another cast, there was a humongous boil under the fly as I felt a jerk at the same instant. I don't know if he just had a hold of the tail, but the fly popped right out. He was sitting in about 14 inches of water. I spent about 20 minutes changing flies and stepping back through that same spot. Nothing ever happened again. Too bad. He made quite the commotion and was probably decently sized.

Access	Heritage Landing
Air Temp	Low 75, High 100
Water Temp/Visibility	~? F / 6 feet
Weather	Sunny
Flow	~? cfs
Time in/out	5:30am, 8:30pm
Leaders/Lines	Compact Scandi
	Intermediate Poly	Morning
	7ips Poly	Afternoon
	Intermediate Poly	Evening
	8lb Maxima
Flies	Various Low Water flies	3

I spent another couple of hours going through that run and another above. I witnessed a gear fisherman hook into a big fish. I didn't stick around to see him land it. Whatever the size of the fish, it bent his rod over pretty good. It may of been a salmon. The thing was locked to the bottom of the river and wasn't running at all. (I saw another gear guy land a steelhead as long as my leg later in the day!)

I walked upstream pretty far. Further than I had gone last time. It was probably about two miles. Some really great spots in that section. No action. Came back to stand on a basalt ledge in the middle of the river and spied a few really large steelhead lurking below. The wind was whipping at this point with gusts to 20+ mph. It was hard to get my fly in the sweet spot. I did put on that heavy squidro fly and it sunk right in there. But the fish ignored it.

Went back to the car to load up on food and water and change a shirt which was drenched with sweat. Did I mention it was hot? Had to be pushing 100 degrees. After a rest, I was back to the water. By this time, practically everyone had left. I had the river to myself. I wandered back upstream and got in the water in a place that looked like it might have fish. No bumps or tugs.

Witnessed a fly guy on the opposite shore land a big fish. A few minutes later, I was casting near a submerged boulder when about a foot and half of my loop was pulled through my fingers. I set the hook and... Nothing! He wasn't there. Again, I spent a long time swapping flies and stepping through several times to try and get him again. This fish did have the audacity to show his face to me! And he was H.U.G.E. I had a few choice words for him and then moved on. At least I was getting tugs and boils today. Just couldn't land anything over 18 inches.

Outside of the heat, it was a great day. Looking forward to another shot!

Clackamas: Epic Day in McIver park

While taking a break from house hunting a few weeks ago, I drove a few miles along the Clackamas River. It was a big/wide slow moving river filled with boats. Not very appealing to me. I made a mental note that I wasn't interested.

Fast forward to early last week. I read a few internet sites talking about how great the Clack is for swinging flies. Obviously I wasn't in the right place. The good water must of been further upstream. That turned out to be the case.

The Clack would be my first fishing trip as a resident of the Pacific NW. I wasn't sure how much time to give myself in the morning, so I left bright and early around 4am. Turns out, it only takes 45 minutes to get to McIver Park, my destination for the day. After being used to 3-5 hour drives to reach a decent steelhead river at the old house, this was a breath of fresh air. (Wait until the winter run when the nearest steelhead river is about 10 minutes from the house!!)

Access	McIver Park
Air Temp	Low 53, High 82
Water Temp/Visibility	? F / 6 feet
Weather	Sunny
Flow	?
Time in/out	7am, 8:30pm
Leaders/Lines	Compact Scandi
	11ft Float Poly	Morning
	10ft 7ips Poly	Afternoon
	12lb Maxima
	Various steelhead patterns	25+ trout

The sign at the entrance to McIver said "Day Use Area opened from 7am to 9pm". What??! It is five in the morning and it doesn't open till seven? Great. To make things worse, the day use fee machine was out of service. After freaking out, I decided to drive to another park - Bonnie Lure - to see if they had a ticket machine (day use pass is good at all state parks). After all, I had two hours to kill. I never did find the entrance to Bonnie Lure. So, then I tried Eagle Creek. That was a county park. Argh! Not a good beginning to the day.

Now that it was approaching 7am, I went back to McIver. I got out and stared at the electronic Out Of Service sign. I figured my laser beam eyes would make the machine start working. While focusing all my energy on it, a Park Ranger arrived. He gave me two pieces of good news. First, he could manually issue me a day use pass. Second, as a fisherman, I can get in the park anytime after 5am. Great information for future trips.

I quickly put on my waders and found the nearest path to the river. I had no clue where I was going. But, I could hear the water and knew I was somewhat in the right place. As I emerged from the brush, I was in the middle of a nice riffle. Stepped to the top and put on a fly. I picked something in a size 8 and muted earthy crunchy colors. My floating poly leader was down to 11 feet in length thanks to a snag while fishing on the Deschutes.

Since it was well after sunrise now, I tried to cheer myself up. After all, I missed one of the best parts of the day. Out loud, I said to myself, "I'm going to land a fish on my first cast." I knew that was silly, but it actually made me feel better. I pulled out the leader and about 7 feet of my short scandi. Tossed it out and at the end of the swing, I feel a bump, bump, bump. Son of a... I caught and landed a nice 18" fish on the first cast of the day. Just like I knew I would!

That catch set the tone of the day. As the title of this post says, this truly was an epic day of fishing. While I didn't pull in any adult steelhead, I caught somewhere between 20 and 30 fish! And I'm only counting fish that were over 12 inches and came to my hand. Total insanity. The number of bumps, plucks, under 12" fish, and lost fish had to number in the millions. The biggest fish was probably near 20". Nothing to write home about, but it was a really fun day.

I started the morning with muted colors and smaller sizes. However, as the heat of the day came on, I switched to a 7 ips poly leader and weighted flies. Some of these flies were 4 inches in length or longer. Practically everything caught fish. As a test, I put on some really bright colored flies. We are talking hot orange and hot pink. In fact, my biggest producing fly was a 3 inch hot orange/pink rabbit strip fly. That thing got a bump or catch on almost every cast. Until it got hung up on some rocks and was lost. I've already tied a few more of them.

I tried both low water flies and big bushy intruders. It didn't matter. These fish were aggressive all day long. The only flies that did NOT work were black or dark purple.

From the morning till about 3pm, I was staged at the upper boat launch. At one point, I walked a very difficult and slow walk down river to the lower parking area. The rocks were extremely slippery. I wish I had worn my studded soles. While I didn't end up in the water, I had some close calls. Luckily, the walk back to the car seemed to go faster. I filled up with water and food and then drove to the lower parking area. As the sun went down, fish were getting harder to catch. I tried various colors and sizes, but it was as if the trout just lost interest. My body was starting to ache, so I decided to stop as well. It was getting close to dark and I caught plenty of fish for one day

The Clackamas turned out to be a beautiful place. Completely different from my drive-by experience a few weeks earlier. I'll definitely be going back.

Went fishing!!

Can you believe it?! It has been months and months and.. Well, it has been too long. I'm happy to say I got a couple days of fishing in.

I was up in Washington/Oregon looking for a place to live. Now that we sold our place down here in California, we needed somewhere to put our junk. This was not a pleasant process. Let me tell you. Finding a rental was harder than selling our house. What was supposed to be a quick weekend getaway ended up being 12 days of living in hotels and even in the back of my car. Not much fun. Well, except for the fishing.

Somewhere in there, while waiting for our credit check to go through, I decided to head to the Deschutes and give her a try. While it isn't quite prime time for steelhead, I figured a day on the water would be good for me.

The Deschuttes is a couple/few hours from Portland. The drive was nothing compared to what I'm used to around here in California. Sputtering along the Columbia river, Hwy 84 takes you all the way to the Deschuttes Recreation Area. It was an easy drive through some truly beautiful scenery. What starts out as lush green forests, turns to desert conditions by the time you hit the D. Temps on the drive were comfortable 70's and 80's. However, while approaching my destination, the temp started rising well over 90 and close to 100. Quite a change in climates. What was green, was now brown and dry. A different kind of beauty.

I arrived late in the afternoon. After quickly putting on my gear and walking down a trail along the river, I jumped in at the head of a nice run. I wasn't more than a half mile of my car. Feeling a little tired, I didn't want to go very far this late in the day.

The area reminds me of the Yuba, but with more vegetation. The river itself is much wider and a little more impressive than the Yuba. Also missing is the occasional dynamite going off in a nearby quarry. Instead, a train would pass here and there. Blowing horns or clanking of metal wheels were the only noises besides the water and wind. No other fisherman were around. I saw no one. Other than the occasional jet boat going upriver, I had the place to myself. --People on water craft are not allowed to fish in the first two miles from the Columbia up stream.--

Soon after getting in the water, I noticed my foot getting cold. Arghh! I somehow developed a leak in my waders!! How is that even possible? I haven't fished in months. I tried to ignore it, but it was so bad, I had to take off my waders at one point and dump the water out. Thank goodness the air temp was high and the cold water actually felt good.

There were trout jumping around and if I dug out my smaller soft hackles, I probably could of caught some of them. But, I was here for steelhead. Whether they were around or not was the question. I was using a floating line and a 15 foot floating poly leader. My flies were mostly unweighted and I fished just below the surface.

Other than catching a couple of small trout, I didn't get any action on this first day. I know there were steelhead in the water. When entering at one location, a fish gently swam away from underneath where I was about to step. With the high water, the fish seemed to be hugging the banks. This one was pretty big and bright. Never saw him again. But, it did give me motivation to concentrate on my presentations.

The end of the day came quickly. I went back to the car and changed into something dry. Found a place to pullover and just slept in the back of the car. I was so tired that the morning came quickly.

The next day was much like the first. Wet feet and only trout on the end of my line. I did get one good tug. But the fish was off in less than 2 seconds and I never saw it. Felt like a good size one. Ahh well. Maybe next time. Like day one, I saw a few fish from shore. They looked to be in the mid 20's in length. They were positioned perfectly behind some trees that made casting to them difficult. I tried, but couldn't get any interest.

On the second day, I was a little more adventurous. Walking a couple of miles upriver to find more water that looked almost identical to what was near my car. Granted, there were a few more spots of pocket water that surely held some fish. If the river wasn't so high, these probably would have been even more inviting spots to pick from. For the most part, and from this experience, the river seems like one of those-- cast absolutely as far as you can and let it swing. Of course in lower flows, it could be totally different.

The wind really started whipping in the afternoon on day two. This isn't anything unusual from what I've heard. But, it still was difficult to cast into. It literally shifted on every cast and you had to constantly adjust which shoulder you used. Fingers crossed it didn't change just as you were about to launch the fly.

Although I didn't catch anything more than a 15" trout, it was a good time. I got to do some exploring and I know what to expect next time. I can hardly wait to get up there again. One more month and it will be a short drive away.

While in the area, I scouted several rivers. The Hood River, Lewis, Clackamas, Kalama, and the Washougal. More about those in another post.

Feather Report

Due to time constraints, you are about to get another lame fishing report.

Went to the Feather a few weeks ago. The weather was cloudy with comfortable temps. Lined my two hander with a compact scandi and an intermediate tip in the morning and a floating tip in the afternoon.

Stayed in the Low Flow section, and actually stayed in just two runs the whole day. Saw a ton of salmon. Also got a glimpse of a few large steelhead that jumped out of the water to take a look at me.

Caught several smaller half pounders under 20 inches. Got one big tug near the end of the day. I was picking up my fly for another cast and WHAM! I wasn't prepared and the fly came right out. Lousy timing. That would of surely been the biggest fish of the day.

Fished a multitude of flies of various sizes. The smaller steelhead patterns in 6-8 seemed to get the most attention. Even caught a couple of fish chugging some skaters in some dead spots in the middle of the river.

Things are going to be busy with me until Spring of next year. Maybe even longer. I don't know how much fishing I'll be able to do. Wish I had time for more.

With this slow spell comes some exciting fishing news. I'll share later on what that is.

North Umpqua: Day 3

Since the previous two days of fishing covered a wide stretch of water, I pretty much knew where I wanted to go on this third and final day. The morning started out at Station, which to my surprise was once again empty. I tried both chugging dries and swinging wets. One solid tug sent my heart racing. But, after many attempts to get that fish to grab again, it didn't happen. I like to pretend that the tug was enough. But, I really wanted to see what grabbed hold of that fly! It felt like a biggie.

Eventually, I moved off Station and worked the maze of rock downstream to Upper/Lower Boat. I caught several smaller fish in the mid teens (inches), but nothing more.

Before I forget, let's skip ahead to late afternoon. I hit the Boat runs (and Station) from the road side. It provided limited casting space, but also gave me a different angle at the water. It was probably the hottest part of the day and no fish showed any attention to my offerings. However, next time, I'll give the road side another chance. Especially on Boat. I felt like the swing and dangle were moving through some good spots.

Spent some time in Upper Kitchen with a grab or two, but couldn't get anything more. I'm not sure how big these fish were. It can be deceiving with the faster water here. I waded through some more tricky floor structure to Lower Kitchen. Or maybe it was "The Fighting Hole" or even "Upper Mott". As someone not quite familiar enough with the water, the runs aren't absolutely clear to me. Whatever, the case, it was some pretty tight water with some very narrow slots. The fish were super grabby here. I was chugging dries and getting attention on almost every grab. Mostly small fish I'm sure. Got a few to hand, they were no bigger than 12 inches.

As the sun was just hitting the water, I decided to take another stroll downstream- just as I had on day 1. This time, I knew where to stop. My first destination provided a tough casting angle, but I could get my fly out there for a short swing. I saw a few flashes, but after spending some time switching out flies and presentations, nothing ever grabbed on. Occasionally, a large steelhead would come completely out of the water not more than 30 feet from me. It was startling at times.

I promised pictures and video for this post. But I just haven't had time to digitize them into the computer. I'll be doing that before long and will probably put them in their own blog post.

A bit further down, I found this great slot outside of the main current that had more small fish. But the water was so nice looking, I couldn't resist seeing what was in there. To reach this one particular spot, I had to crawl up on a boulder, I was now about 10 or more feet above the water. Casting my dry and letting it skate almost directly below me. This was a cool vantage point. I could see deep into the water. Must of been 10 or more feet deep. It was neat to see the fly directly below me and the deep water backdrop. Imagine a glassy surface and this fly skating across the top with the dark green water below.

Smaller fish were slashing at the fly constantly. Yet, I didn't give up. I felt like something was down there. So, I kept at it and from out of no where, I see a flash. A fish came from down deep and grabbed the fly in his mouth and immediately turned back down. It surprised me so much that I immediately yanked my rod. Luckily, the hook stuck and I didn't pull it right out of his mouth. The fish went berserk.

He made a short run downstream, then back up. Took a direct route across to some more boulders. I couldn't do much about it. I was 10 feet up (and my rod tip was another 10 feet higher) trying to figure out how to get down to the water without losing this guy. It was challenging.

After a few minutes, I managed to climb down from my perch without losing the fish, I got to the water and put my hand underneath. He wasn't all that big. Maybe 20 or 21 inches. But, he was a good looker. After taking the hook out and giving him a moment to rest, he swam off into the deep.

For me, this was an unusual angle to see the fish come from the depths and get the fly. I won't forget it for a while.

After scooting along more boulders, I finally made it about 50 feet to the main river slot. It only took about 30 minutes. Argh! After walking about a half mile downstream, I sat for a lunch. I was now where I caught a decent sized fish on the first day.

After eating, I stood up while my foot was flat on the feature-less slanted rock. The cleats made an awful scraping sound and I went down hard on my knuckle and then on my side. Initially, I thought I broke something in my hand, but luckily I only had some bleeding and a sore hand. Even when you aren't in the water, the rocks are slick around here. All it takes is one second of not paying attention. Man, the NU has really beaten me up the last couple of days. But, all of the slips were just moments of not thinking clearly. You need to always watch your step.

After sitting for a few, making sure everything was okay (including my rod that banged the rock), I went further downstream and couldn't find any decent water. Ready to head back to Camp Water, I spent about 20 minutes trying to find a path up the thick brush to the trail that was somewhere up there. It wasn't easy, but eventually I made it.

Exhausted, I walked the mile or so back to my car for a 2 or 3 mile drive upstream. Found some great looking water. And one run in particular was filled with more aggressive fish. Unfortunately, they were small guys too. I moved on and back to the Mott parking lot.

Walking upstream above the bridge, I took this incredibly steep -what I thought was a- trail to the river. Turns out it wasn't a trail and I was now practically crawling down a very steep slope covered with slick leaves. Standing completely upright, I could hit the ground with my elbow, if that gives you any idea how steep it was. Grabbing onto anything I could grab onto, I made it down to the water without as much as a slip. For all that effort? More small fish! Argh.

There was no way I was going to climb back up where I came down. So, I waded my way downstream to an easier exit. Went back to Mott bridge and looked over the side to see a dozen or two really big steelhead relaxing in the current. I decided to give it a try. After getting to the water, I cast out my line, but it was nearly impossible to get down to where the fish were. Certainly not without a weighted fly. And I wasn't about to put on a sink tip. I left the fish alone and went back downstream towards Sawtooth.

Looking past Sawtooth and on down to Station, I could see Scott Howell again with his camera crew. As I wiggled my way through the runs down to the bend at Station, they seemed to be doing more casting for the camera than actual fishing. Shame. While I wasn't all that interested in going out there, others may of been. I moved past them and to Boat. A couple of large steelhead were now jumping, but I couldn't get any to take interest.

My final hours on the river took me through Lower Boat and to Kitchen. I caught some more fish, all under 18". But no adult steelhead. No worries. It was an incredible three days on an absolutely beautiful river. When I go again, I'll do some more exploring. There are miles of accessible runs to keep one busy.

Stay tuned for the video/picture posting, and Day 4, which isn't a fishing report, but sharing what I learned from Lee on Steamboat Creek.

North Umpqua: Day 2

The second day had a completely different feel than the first. More or less, I knew the layout of the area and where I wanted to start my day. The goal was to wade out to Station. This is one of, if not the prime steelhead runs on the NU. Or so I'm told. The fish sit here waiting for conditions to be right before heading up Steamboat Creek. The major spawning ground of the river. This spot is pretty popular, so I had no idea if I'd have a chance at it. Especially early in the morning.

I lucked out. No one was here yet. I had an opportunity to try it out. Getting to the rock in the middle of the river that will serve as your casting position is a little tricky. At least it was for me, and my first time out there early in the morning without being able to see into the water. Finding the right way to weave your way through takes a moment or two if no one is there to show you. Before long, I found myself standing in waist deep water that was flowing very fast. It was slightly sketchy with the slick floor beneath my feet. Luckily, it was only a seven or eight foot struggle to dry rock. I probably didn't pick the right line. Whether it was the best way out or not, I took mental note of where I came in so I could pick my way back when it comes time.

The run itself is pretty narrow. You don't need much line out to cover the water. I don't doubt the fish were in there, but after an hour or so of casting various flies, on several times through, nothing happened. Being the courteous fellow that I am, I looked over my shoulder often to see if someone else was eyeing the water. I would of given it up if anyone showed interest. I never saw a single person anywhere. That is how empty the river was. Even the most sought after piece of water didn't have any other interested parties.

After more time out on Station, I looked down river and saw someone I met the day before. A nice man from California. He shared some information with me the day before, and since we crossed paths a half dozen or more times, I waved him over. I went back to shore and let him have it to himself. It was still morning and he had plenty of time to give it a shot.

I went further downstream and fished Upper and Lower Boat, and then to Upper/Lower Kitchen. On Lower Kitchen, I started getting grabs and caught more fish in the 15-18 inch range. They were small, but feisty. At some point, I was mucking around. Going from a dry rock to a submerged-super-slippery-boulder. For the most part, my carbide studded boots were gripping well. However, on one step, I came down flat footed on an angled rock that was smooth as glass. By the time I recovered my footing, water had gone over the top of my wader. I cursed myself for being so stupid. The was the second dunking I've had in the last couple of months. I was mad at myself. I didn't bother sticking around to fish much longer. After I finished Kitchen, I went back to the car to change.

Since I pretty much covered Camp and the trail side of the river the day before, I decided that today would be the road side. Considering I was back at my car putting new clothes on, I decided now was the time. All in all, I drove 20 miles down river and a few miles above the bridge, stopping anywhere that looked fishy. There were some great spots. Some easy to get to, others required some aggressive climbing to from the road. The one pictured below was especially nice looking. I left my camera in the car, so I'm pilfering this one from Emerald Water Anglers.



While at the spot pictured above. It was windy. Well, actually, it was windy all three days. But this particular time, it was whipping. Had to be 30-40mph gusts. Casting across the river was all but impossible. I had to stick to whatever was near me. However, I have to say that it looked like an awesome place to fish if conditions allowed for it. Nothing here. Not even a tug.

The rest of the day was about the same. Fought the wind for nothing more than small fish less than 18". As it was getting late afternoon, I decided to head back to camp water and try my luck there.

I started upriver of the bridge and caught more fish. As the day wore on, big fish were jumping. But, they ignored my fly. Occasionally, a fish would leave the water and sound like a cannon ball as it re-entered. Quite impressive.

Fishing all the way down through Sawtooth to Sweetheart, I could see that Station was occupied. Upon further investigation, a little bit later, I could see it was guide Scott Howell. With him was a camera crew. They were no doubt shooting last minute footage for Skagit Master 2. I sat and watched for a bit as other fisherman walked by, mumbling this or that. While I wasn't really that interested in wading out to Station, I could see that others were bothered that he seemed to be standing out there casting, but not fishing. Taking up the prime water and barely getting the fly to swing. Several people mumbled under their breath and a couple of others weren't so quiet about it.

I didn't care so much. I was actually interested in watching to see if he would catch anything. If he'd ever started swinging a fly that is. Eventually he started chugging a dry for the camera. But, no fish. As soon as he left the rock, someone replaced him and didn't have any better luck, from what I could tell anyway.

I ended the evening in Lower Boat. As the sun set, I caught a fish that was in the low 20 inch range. She put on quite the aerial display. But, didn't pull any line of my reel. I carefully kneeled down, trying not to slip into the water -getting an evening bath, and scooped up the fish for a quick hook removal. She was promptly put back in the water and swam away.

I didn't wait until dark to get down from my perch. But, I did wait too long. Depth perception was hard to come by looking into the water. And the NU is the last place you should be feeling your way around while wading. Luckily, I stayed dry this time.

Day three coming soon. And yes, this one will have pictures and video.

North Umpqua: Day 1

This is Part 1 of Part 4 of my North Umpqua trip. Come back soon for the other entries. One from each day.

The drive to the North Umpqua takes around 10 hours from home. Leaving about 2pm on a Saturday, I arrived before midnight. Just enough time to pull into the Camp Water parking lot and take a snooze.

Sunday was originally to be a half day of scouting and checking out Steamboat Creek. However, at the last minute I changed my plans. I quickly packed my things and left earlier on Saturday to get there for a full day of fishing.

Who was I kidding? I wouldn't be able to just walk around scouting for even a half day. Seeing others fishing and knowing I was right there, with my gear would be too much pressure. I made the right decision to fish a full three days (the fourth day was spent with Lee on Steamboat Creek). Who needed a day of scouting when I could simply scout it out with rod in hand?

In the morning, I really had no idea where to go. I mean, I was in the Camp Water and I knew pretty much every section of water had potential. Other than that, I wasn't sure which run/pool to visit first. So, I just wandered down to the water as the sun was rising. As the path reached the river, I went out and got my feet wet.

Access	Camp Water and 15 miles surrounding
Air Temp	Low 48, High 90's
Water Temp/Visibility	~50 F / 15+ feet
Weather	Morning Clouds, Sunny otherwise
Flow	unknown
Time in/out	5:00am, 8pm
Leaders/Lines	Compact Scandi
	15ft floating leader	All day

If you take more than five minutes to read up on the NU, or ask anyone about it, one of the first things out of their mouth is in regards to the wading. It is known to be a really slick river. On top of that you can be wading in ankle deep water and the next step is a 20 foot drop off. While I won't argue the popular perceptions. It wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it would be. I felt no need for a wading staff, and as long as I was careful, I stayed upright. With that said, the wading is definitely more tricky and you must be more tactful in your moves than the average gravel bottom river.

Navigating a run was mostly an act of finding the best way to wade out to a point and start casting. Fan out your casts to cover as much water as possible. When your done, slowly step down off your perch and move to the next. You have to carefully move up and down the very uneven floor, finding your way through a maze of boulders, ledges, and long slender, almost featureless peaks and valleys of rock that may or may not lead you to a good casting station. The best advice I can give you is to always plan an exit route. You could easily wade out to a position and half a heck of a time getting back if your only way out is upstream, against the current on a slippery ledge. You'll most surely slip and dunk yourself in a situation like this.



After an hour or so, I decided to move down river from Sawtooth. Although I didn't know it at the time, I moved past Station, Upper and Lower Boat, Upper Kitchen, and finally to Lower Kitchen. Again, I wiggled my way out to mid river where the main current was. The water was deep here. Casting a size 4 generic hair wing, I wasn't getting anything. Not that I expected some monster to come out and hook itself within the first couple of hours of being here. Or even over the course of my three days. However, I do like to see signs of fish lurking about. Whether they jump or I catch a glimpse of them below. Neither of of those things had happened. Not yet anyway.

Even though I had my 12' 6" two hander. There was no need for it. This river is pretty big, but it is divided up into narrow slots that can easily accommodate a single hander. Next time, I'll take my 7wt 9foot rod. There is plenty of casting room for overhead. And the few places that wouldn't allow for it, you could simply perform a roll cast or single hand spey cast.

After some time in Lower Kitchen, I decided to get out of the water and go further downstream. I was interested in exploring. In fact, I walked more than 2 miles down the North Umpqua trail, which is on the opposite side of the river from the road. Stopping at various pools and runs, there were a lot of very cool stretches to cast into. The scenery was beautiful and the river was technically challenging. Getting your flies to the right spot was difficult at times. Especially when the (10-20 mph) winds kicked up. It kept things interesting.

As the sun came out, it started to warm. It actually got very hot during the day. I started to seek out the shade to better my chances at catching fish. However, this thought process turns out to be flawed. As I'll relate some things I learned from Lee up in Steamboat creek. Fishing in the sun for steelhead is not such a bad idea.

During this two mile hike downriver, I was catching smaller fish. Most of them were in the 15-18 inch range. Actually, I was catching a lot of fish. I lost count somewhere north of 20. It was starting to get annoying. The idea was to catch a larger steelhead, not these little guys. I started putting on bigger and bigger flies. And then at some point, in mid afternoon, I decided to put on a waking fly.

The NU fish are known to take waking or chugged flies. While I've never caught a decent fish with these methods, I figured this was the best place to try it. So, I put on a size 4 I tied a while back. It was big and pushed a lot of water. The presentation was easy. Cast it out and start disturbing the water to try and attract fish. After having the fly on for about 2 casts, I noticed that it was getting attention!

At first, I saw mostly smaller fish coming up from the depths (we are talking 10-20 foot depths in this particular pool) to check out the fly. They'd mostly turn at the last second. But, I'll tell you, this was exciting to see. The water was so clear, I could see them coming from pretty deep down. I caught myself laughing out loud a few times as these guys slashed at the fly.

I was slowly working out the line on each cast. With not more than 20 foot of line out, I cast again. As it swung downstream to the same ledge I was standing on, I saw this flash of silver. A jerk on my line, then it went limp. My arms were shaking. I couldn't tell how big the fish was, but my mind was racing.

I carefully tried to recreate that same exact cast, and here he comes again! This time he took the fly under. I clinched my teeth as I held my rod still, waited for some weight, then yanked back. I got him! He fought hard and when I landed him, he wasn't really that big. But it was my first decent sized fish on a waking/chugging fly. It was only appropriate that it happened on the NU, and my first decent sized fish of the three day trip. He measured approximately 23 inches. I quickly removed the hook and placed him in the water. Holding him until he powered off at an amazing speed back into the depths.

I was pretty shaky after that. I decided to just sit on a rock and chill out before heading back to shore. After all, I was perched out on a precarious ledge that I didn't really want to slip off of into the deep/fast water because my rubbery legs couldn't support my body.

I continued down river further. Fishing anything that looked like holding water. One thing I learned about the NU. The holding water here is not exactly the same type of holding water you may see on other steelhead rivers. The river structure is so unique, that the fish tend to be in very deep water. Not necessarily at the bottom, but against large boulders or against ledges. I can't tell you how many times I saw large fish holding a foot or two down, but in 20 foot deep water. And of course, on other occasions, I did see fish quite deep. Mostly likely stressed for one reason or another.

During my walk down stream, I often questioned exactly where I was. It wasn't until a day later, driving in the car on the opposite side of the water that I realized I was about two miles down stream from the Steamboat Inn. The walk back would take a while.



After finally getting back, I took more time to figure out what run in Camp was what. I asked a very nice local guy where Station was, and he pointed it out and a couple of other runs too. He and everyone else I had talked to were not having much luck. Over the course of three days, no one admitted to catching a fish over 20 inches. The amount of hookups and tugs were low too. However, I did witness one other person catch a good sized fish on the third day.

I started to question if there were that many big steelhead in the river. However, in the evening, large fish were jumping. And large fish could be seen from Mott bridge. And, as I'll comment more on in my day 4 entry, the steelhead return is an average count. These fish just seemed to have lock jaw.

After a trip to the car for some food and water, I wandered upstream of the bridge. There was some good water here too. I could actually see a few large fish clinging to the side of a ledge within casting reach. I first tried a few wet flies. Then a skating fly, then chugged it. The fish didn't seem to react at all. So I stepped down and caught a few more smaller fish off this same ledge. These guys were very active. I could see them come up from some really deep water to take a fly on or near the surface.

The sun was setting, and I ended my day in Upper Kitchen. Had a really big tug, and caught a few 15-18" fish. I was exhausted and went back to the car for some sleep.

Day two through four coming soon (with pictures and video)!

Yuba Report

These long Summer days can really take a toll. Beyond the time I spend on the water, from sun up to sun down, I have a pretty good commute to the water. We are talking almost 20+ hours from when I leave my driveway and when I get back. It can be a real drag.

Last week, I had -what lately is a rare opportunity- to go fishing. The Lower Yuba was my choice. The reports were for high water flow and lousy fishing. A perfect combination! One of the purposes of going was to dial in my rod/line combination for an upcoming North Umpqua trip. Actually catching fish would of been nice, but not my ultimate goal for the day.

The water was unusually cold. Despite the hot 100+ degree air temp, it wasn't bad at all. My setup was a floating line/leader with unweighted flies. Exactly what I'll be using up in Oregon. I'm not used to casting a 15+ foot leader, so this was a good chance to get myself re-acquainted.

Started the morning above the bridge with a size 4 generic steelhead fly. Managed a few hookups that didn't last very long. The fish were in there, but most of the ones that were willing to play, were small. Under 15 inches. I continued stepping downstream to try and find a player. Hopefully someone bigger.

Access	Hwy 20
Air Temp	Low 61, High 100+
Water Temp/Visibility	~49 F / 8-10 feet
Weather	Sunny
Flow	3,500+ cfs
Time in/out	5:30am, 8:30pm
Leaders/Lines	Compact Scandi
	15ft poly floater	Morning
	15ft mono leader	Afternoon on
	8lb Mono tippet
Flies	Various sz 4-8 steelhead	some tugs
	Sz12 red soft hackle	8+

I noticed early on that the rocks were super-slippery today. Even with my studded boots and fancy rubber soles, it was treacherous. Funny enough, the North Umpqua is known to be a very slippery place too. Perhaps someone was trying to get me prepared in more ways than one!

The rocks in this particular run were bowling ball sized and super smooth. Covered in some sort of goop, it wasn't a good idea to step on top of them if you could help it. The water was waist deep when I stumbled and planted my foot on the top of one. Exactly what I didn't want to do. Down I went! I floated only a few feet before I regained my foot hold and stood up. But it was too late. Water had gone over my wader tops and I was now feeling the 50 something degree water filtering down to my legs. Brrrrr! This is the first time ever I've taken a dunk and had water go over my wader top. I guess I should consider myself lucky to have lasted this long.

It was still early morning. And even though the day would soon top 100 degrees, it was now very cold. I pressed on for another hour or so trying to catch a huge fish that was surfacing right in front of my eyes. But, eventually, I had to go back to the car to change. Too much shivering.

After drying up, I went back to the water. But this time below the bridge. No fish. Not even a bite. The water is a little high here and the fish-able spots were a little tough to get to. After an hour or so, I decided to go back above the bridge. I walked much further upstream before getting back to it. This is when the fun began.

At some point, I put on a single size 12 soft hackle. I'll try to post a picture sometime. It is bright red body. I'm not sure I have ever used this fly before. But, it just looked like a good one. Literally on the first cast, I had a small 12 inch fish on. Finally, the first fish of the day. I caught a few of his friends further down the river too. This fly was hot!

The window of time where I was catching fish started to close. I took this opportunity to go back downstream to where I got my dunking. I wanted that big fish that I saw earlier. He must of been in the upper 20's. And he was fat! As I approached that section, two other fly fisherman stepped in below me. Argh! No respect. Typically BS I see around here.

Instead of causing a scene, I chose to go back to the car for water and food. It was now late afternoon/early evening. After filling my stomach, I didn't really want to huck it back upriver, so instead I went down.

I still had that small red soft hackle on and nothing else. No two or three fly rigs today. Keeping it simple. The leader was a hand tied 15 footer. Perfect size for my 12'6" two hander and compact scandi line. It was casting amazingly well. Normally I use poly leaders, but I had an itch to do it the old fashioned way. I was pleasantly surprised at how well it was casting big and small flies alike. I may be tossing my poly's aside for floating work.

I'll skip the details, but the rest of the evening went great. I caught two 20 something inch fish almost on back to back casts. They both fought hard and provided several minutes of entertainment. The one even took a run and peeled off some line. Before it got dark, I ended up getting a dozen hard tugs and a few more fish to hand. What a way to end the day.

What started off as a chance to dial in my rod, ended up being a great day of fishing. Good thing I didn't let those bad fishing reports and high flow complaints scare me off.