Hood River

A little over a week ago, I had a chance to check out the Hood River. First impressions? Nice place. Easily accessible and you could walk up and down the river with ease. I'd say it is primarily a place to nymph, as it is a deep river in most spots. However, there are some nice runs to swing through.  However, on this day, the water was just a tad high and you were in the brush for some of the more fishier spots.

Access	Old Powerhouse
Air Temp	Low 40, High 60
Water Temp/Visibility	~40F / 12 feet
Weather	Sunny
River Stage	~5.6 feet and dropping
Time in/out	6am / 7pm
Leaders/Lines	Skagit
	11 feet of T11	All day
	15lb Maxima
Flies	Various large winter flies	-
Notes	Water on the drop. Clear water. Great day.

The water was clear, in fact, I could see 10-15 feet down in the deep pools. The river was on the drop and I was told previously to going that people were catching fish. I got one pull in the morning and that was it. I talked to a dozen others and no one had caught anything. The fish weren't biting for whatever reason.

Still, the day was a success. I found some good spots that I'll hit next time. Hope to be back again soon.

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.

A few thoughts between fishing trips

I know, I know. It's been quiet around here. I've been swamped with work and haven't had a chance to go fishing. Tying a few simple rabbit strip flies has been my only outlet.

Speaking of flies, I've decided to abandon tube flies. It was a short lived fascination. I still like them in theory, but they are simply too hard to rig when I'm standing in waist deep water. I'd rather not be fumbling around with tubes and hooks. Having just one thing to tie on is much easier.

Being up here in the Pacific Northwest for a full year of winter fishing, I've gotten pretty good at flinging heavy tips and heavily weighted flies. What used to be a clunky adventure is actually working out pretty well. Those 5inch rabbit strip flies with huge lead eyes are no longer so scary.  My confidence is up in response.  I'm not so hesitant to try and hit that fishy piece of water way on the other side of the river.

I'm between projects right now. The next one is supposed to start late next week. Unfortunately, it has been raining quite hard for a couple of days. The rivers are all swollen. My 4 year old's daycare is near the Washougal. So, I often pop by to take a look. Right now, it is a muddy mess overflowing the banks. I've got my fingers crossed that I can get out on Monday or Tuesday and the rivers will be dropping. (The Washougal is closed right now, so I'll hit something in Oregon)

That's about it. I'm anxious to get out there. Especially since I just dropped nearly $200 for Oregon and Washington licenses. Man, that was expensive.

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.

Not much posting, but lots of fishing.

You wouldn't know it by reading the blog, but I have been fishing.  I'm trying to get it out of my system before the new baby arrives. Went to the Sandy a handful of times.  Tried a few new-to-me spots around the hatchery, Dodge Park, and I also managed to hit Oxbow again.  All of my trips were before the rain and snow arrives.  The river was pretty low and clear.  That will be my excuse for only walking away with one good tug.

Also been to the Washougal a bunch.  This has turned into my home water.  I slip away for an hour here and an hour there.  Awesome to be so close.  Unfortunately, like the Sandy, it has been low and clear.  Fish have lock jaw and I haven't landed anything.

The good news is that the recent rains and now snow(!!) will change the water levels for the better.  The bad news is that I won't be fishing again for a while.  The baby is due to come this week and I'll be on diaper patrol.

By the way, I found my camera buried in a box.  I promise to take it out next time on the water and have something for you to look at next time.

First real tube fly attempt

Occasionally I get an email asking why I no longer post pictures of flies I've tied.  Well, the answer is simple.  I haven't been tying much of anything.  Sure, I've done some here and there.  But, for the most part, I have so many flies in my Summer and Winter boxes that I haven't had a need to tie any.

I saw some pictures on Spey Pages of tube flies that some of the members had posted.  I was inspired and decided that I'd like to tie one.  To me, the biggest advantage of a tube is that you could use any length you want, tie material on and stop at any moment it looked good.  Snip the tube, melt a lip on the end and you're done.  Added bonus, when I'm brushing feathers back with my hand, I don't get poked.

This is my first serious try at a tube.  Other than the humungo head, it came out pretty well.  If I were a fish, I'd eat it.  The copper colors look great in the water.  This thing is about 3.5 inches long and swims great. 

I'm still on the fence about the on-river functionality of tubes.  They are a huge pain in the butt to rig while standing in the water.

Washougal

While I haven't been posting, I have been fishing. Most of those trips were spent at the Washougal river. I can leave my house and be in the water in less than 15 minutes. So, it makes a great place to go for an hour or two here and there.

I've yet to catch a fish here. It is just now getting the winter steelhead run. Unfortunately, it has been a dry fall/winter and I don't think many fish have pushed in yet. As I type, it has been raining for the past two days. Things should change.

This is really a beautiful place to fish. With the moss covered trees, waterfalls pouring into the river, and lush growth, it is hard to believe it is so close to our house. There are plenty of riffles, pools, and runs to keep one occupied.  I've been doing a lot of exploring and finding what I believe will be good fish holding spots.

My wife and I are expecting our second child in only a few short weeks. Hopefully, I can get a few more days in before. Once the birth happens, I won't be fishing much.

I also made a trip to the Sandy river earlier this week. Stay tuned for a report.

Sandy River: Chocolate milk

Paid a visit to Oxbow Park for a day on the Sandy.  After a 40 minute drive, I arrived before sunup only a day or two beyond a pretty decent sized storm (SND03 - 5540cfs).  Leaves and branches everywhere.  It should of been a sign.

This was the first time fishing this section for me.  I did a lot of exploring since the water was extremely colored.  I could not see my boots if I stood in knee deep water, so catching fish was not likely.  On top of that, I was hooking leaves or other debris on every cast.  So even casting practice was a pain.

I stuck it out for a few hours before giving it up.  That was enough time to do some exploring so I know where or better yet, where not to go next time.

On the way home, I fished the Washougal.  This river is only a few minutes from home, so it is a nice little place that takes little effort.  More on this river, since I have fished it a few times since my visit to the Sandy.

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.

Bonneville Dam

I was hoping to go fishing today, but there is too much work to do. So, I opted to wait it out. The heat is on again here and next week is supposed to cool down a little. Probably better to wait anyway.

Last weekend, myself and the family went to Hood River to pick some apples.  On the way, we stopped at the Bonneville Dam to check out the fish through the viewing windows.  As I talked with the fish counter, we saw hordes of both steelhead and salmon come through.  Some were very big.  It made me want to fish real bad.  But, being with the family, it just wasn't going to happen.

The sign on the wall said that we are above the 10-year count for most species of fish.  Including steelhead.  Considering we still have a few months to go this year, that is a good sign.

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!