Trout Source

Wish You Lived In Oregon?
One day Charlie hooked into a chrome bright hen that took him literally about 500+ yards downstream over a double stair step water fall, and down through boulder strewn set of rapids, and into a long pool to have the fish take the whole fly line 3 more times (with the drag cranked down). When we were standing there getting ready to net (rubber net) the seemingly over 40" chromer with the leader cranked into the rod, the fish gave one last pull, and snap! She was back off to continue her run.....Luckily, we saw this awesome beast, and she was the largest fish I have seen in person (steelhead-wise), and she was in close and personal several times. [bigger than the one below]

Winter Wisdom (Au Sable, MI)
If there's one mistaken notion in our fly fishing, it's that trout "shut down" in the winter. 

Spring Approacheth (Au Sable, MI)
It's not spring, but it's getting closer.  The ten day shows an inconsistent but generally upward temperature trend.  We had some midges hatching the other day and even if the trout aren't eating them (at least off the surface!) it's certainly a sign of life.

…Revealing Itself With Filth (Yakima, WA)
Ahh, springtime on the Yakima, high and filthy, we have warm and windy weather again today so expect the River to be a mess for a week.

…Which Causes Joy (Yakima, WA)
This morning actually looking at the dirty river made us happy? This is the first sign that spring is here. We will see a few more high water events this spring, this first one helps get rid of all the low lying  snow. Remember after these events the river will change, especially in the upper river and farmlands. Please give us a call or stop by the shops before the next time you head out on the river.

Cabin Fever Day
Spring is nearing and with it the promise of more great trout days.  Cabin Fever Day has some traction.

Shad Kill Update (White River, AR)
this is the best shad kill we have had in a couple of years. …These are big bites and they can attract some large hungry trout. … The shad came through so heavily at Bull Shoals that they made their way as far down stream as Rim Shoals (twenty four miles).

Navigating Yellowstone In (a mild) Winter
Running around Yellowstone in a vintage Bombardier is a fabulous way to get a paycheck, and honestly, I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Water Supply Concerns (Colorado)
We haven't had any snow to speak of for a while now. The snow fields claim to have had 12" over the past week but I suspect one has to look under a rock to find it. Hard to believe.  …The big question now is what the water levels will be like this coming season. Actually it is too early to tell as most of the snowfall now tends to come over the next 2 months.

No Rain = Low Flows & Good Fishing (American, CA)
The release from Nimbus Dam to the American River was reduced again to the lowest in a very long time — to 1,450 cfs — and that was both good news and bad news.  The good news is that the river is very fishable for waders, and there has been an influx of fresh fish,  mostly small, but in great numbers. In the upper section of the river above Sunrise Blvd. to Nimbus Hatchery, there are lots of larger, dark steelhead spawning on redds. Unfortunately, they are quite vulnerable to outright snagging, as well as, the more subtle illegal method of lining or “flossing.”

…Piper To Be Paid In Spring/Summer? (Owens, CA)
It has been great for winter fly fishing in the region but the "piper" will be paid this summer and fall with low water in many rivers and creeks. The good news is the reservoirs in this area remain very full from last season’s torrential precipitation and we should have a very good spring and summer in these areas although you will see the levels decrease this year instead of rise as they did last season.

Latest Drought Forecast Map

…But “Insane” Dry Fly Fishing This Spring? (Truckee, CA)
Things are shaping up for a great Spring, much like the Spring of ’07, when the dry fly fishing was insane because lack of run-off.

Water Speculators Threaten McKenzie (OR)
[local paper has reported on] developer Greg Demers’ plans to siphon off our area’s most valuable resource, the McKenzie River, to sell to non-existent customers. He also wants to overturn ODFW’s low-water limit of 2,000 CFS in the summer months that protects our world class fisheries.

Turning Of The Lake (San Juan, NM)
The lake has turned again, probably for the last time, and the water is murky.

Promotional Material (Trinity, CA)
(Those are flies)

California Wolf Is A Killer?
Nash, a rancher from Wallowa County in northeast Oregon…said OR-7 killed two of his calves in May 2011, before the gray wolf left his pack and began his well-documented journey southwest through Oregon and eventually into eastern Shasta County.  …An investigation summary on the wildlife agency’s website concludes that it was possibly a wolf but it is unknown for sure.  “OR-7 certainly could have been involved in that, along with other wolves,” Stephenson said.  John Stephenson, a wolf coordinator for the agency, said Nash was reimbursed for the cost of a calf killed by a wolf that may have been OR-7.  There have been no confirmed cattle killed by OR-7 since he left his pack, Stephenson said.  It isn’t likely that the wolf, who turns 3 in April, will kill cattle while living alone. Most wolves kill in packs, he said. …There are 21 confirmed kills from the Imnaha wolf pack between spring 2010 until Thursday, Dennehy said.  OR-7 belonged to the Imnaha pack before he headed south in September. 

Rancher Disputes Tone of OR7 Wolf Video (Oregon)
“It’s far from what takes place here,” Nash said, referring to the video, which shows OR-7 trotting across a field.

February 23 – Still In Siskiyou County
OR7 has traveled southeast but remains in Siskiyou County.

Protected By State Of California
Any wolf that enters California is protected as endangered under the federal Endangered Species Act. …there will be an intentional delay in posting new map information to protect the current location of this wolf.

“The Skwala Nation” (Yuba, CA - Jon Baiocchi’s new home river)
Colors of the Skwala are different from watershed to watershed, but most will have a drab brown-olive to black body and head, with soot yellow markings on the abdomen, and a smokey dark wing.  The emergence can start in mid January in our valley rivers, and March or April in the mountains.

High Country Skwalas (Truckee, CA)
The Skwalla stones started emerging today just down-stream from the town of Truckee.  …This the first large bug of the year, on the surface feeders menu.

…and Oregon Brethren (Deschutes, OR)
We are also starting to see a few more Skwalla stones taking flight which is a good sign for the up coming weeks.

"Wide Open, Hatch-o-rama” (Owens, CA)

Pleasanton Fly Fishing Show
This weekend in Northern California

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