Yakima River Fly Fishing Report

10/1/08 - Yakima River - Ryan and I went up river for a little Research and Development today. We were able to boat a 21" (taped) bow that rolled and chased our crane fly down-stream before coming up and sipping it. We tryed fishing in differnt types of water to see where the fish are holding and feeding. Todays research found that back eddies, undercut banks, troughs on the outside bends, quicker moving boulder pockets, and the inside seams of the bends are the best places to focus on right now. So, we just reinforced what we already knew and tried out a few bugs. The flies that produced where the foam October Caddis #10-12, Royal Stimi #8-12, #16 Mayflies, and the Crane Fly #12. The big boy came out just before dark, I'd say around 5:30. Now is the time to be on the Yak tossing dries, it doesn't get much better.

9/27/08 - Yakima River - Mike, Cindy, and I floated above Cle Elum today. There were many fish to be had and massive hatches throughout the day. We saw may flies, crane flies, october caddis, and stone flies. So, we stuck to dries all day. We had a lot of rises to the crane flies and october caddis from the begining and some big fish rolled to the big stone. Great fall fishing. There are numerous bugs hatching, so it is prime time for dries right now. Don't underestimate the big dry in the faster moving water over boulder pockets.

9/21/08 - Yakima River - Rob and I floated the upper canyon today. This was Rob's first time fly fishing and the wind did not work to our advantage. We were able to fight the wind and get our nymphs in the feeding lanes. The #8 brown pat's stone fly was working really well at the heads of the buckets and along the cut banks that had good structure. A #16 copper john was our dropper of choice, but pheasant tails and prince nymphs were working too. There are quite a few fish stacked in some of the deeper holes, so I like lengthening the leader on the nymphs or swinging a streamer through. With the weather cooling some and that small storm that moved through fall fishing should kick into high gear. Fall bugs have started hatching and the fish are finally getting situated in the low fall water flows.

9/17/08 - Yakima River - Floated the Farmlands today with Barb. She owns and operates a charter boat business and this was her first experience fly fishing. After I got her into fly casting instead of gear casting we were getting our flies into the feeding lanes. We had fish rising to the #10 stone dry all day. She didn't want to change the bug, so I dropped may flies and caddis off the back, but the fish, 99% of the time, took the big bug. The average size today was 12" with one 16"er and Barb had a few opportunities at 18"+ trout. I'd say fishing is excellent right now. Big dries all day for nice wild trout with the opportunity to hook a big fish.

9/15/08 - Yakima River - We fished the upper river today. Chris and Jim were able to get their casts right on the seams and near the structure and we had fish rising to our bugs all day. There were stone flies and october caddis hatching, so medium sized orange dries were working, but big foam and hairy was the ticket all day. We stuck with the big bug on top and only went down and dirty when we spotted some big fish in the deeper holes. A #6-8 brown pat's stones with a #14 copper john dropper was able to get them to hit. This low water is nice for doing shorter drifts and really working the holes and runs that are holding fish. The big fish that came up to the dries were right on the deep cut banks with the faster current and in the larger boulder pockets.

9/10/08 - Yakima River - We floated south to state again today, this time with Ryan and Rich. They were getting there casts in the zone and had constant action on dries throughout the day. We were somewhat rushed with low water levels and a half-day float, but we were able to land one nice 13" cuttie and a lot of smaller bows. We lost some huge fish right before dark. The fish are still keying in on big hairy bugs with rubber legs. I have ben going with a #10 brown stone fly patern as my fly of choice, I've found if the fly is too big you don't get as many looks. #10's have been the ticket on the upper river. Were have been running nymph or dry droppers to start off the day, but end up with a single big bug because that is what they are keying on.

9/7/08 - Yakima River - In the upper river once again, but South to State. Big hairy bugs with rubber legs for movement have been working. Hoppers, stones, stimis, C-ants. It is mostly about getting your flies into the zone. Hit the seams and the foam lines and plop it in behind rocks and stumps the fish are there. #16 mayflies were working as a trailer in olive, yellow, and dun. Lots of fish landed, with two large cutthroat.

9/6/08 - Yakima River - We floated State to Green Bridge. This is a long float with the water levels dropping. We landed many fish between 3" and 7", but the trick is to get the flies past the small ones and infront of the hog. We landed one large bow and one large cuttie. Be patient and keep your flies in on the cut banks and behind the structure and the big one will come up. Flies that worked today were #10 brown and tan C-Ants with redish brown hackle up the body and also a soft hackle hare's ear.

8/27/08- Yakima River- Trout fishing has been good. We have been getting fish to look up and big dries all week. Chernobyls, Stone Flies, Hoppers, and PMX's have been producing durring the day. Brown, tan, olive, green, orange, and red have been working, which is a very large variety and in sizes 6-12 with rubber legs. So, I think it is more about getting your flies tight to the bank. 95% of out fish were caught within 6" of the bank (the closer the better) and the other 5% are in the seams where two channels are coming together. If you swing a streamer in that seamline you may be suprised. Pat's Stones, Copper Johns, and San Juan Worms have been working for nymphs, but why go down and dirty when you can get them on top? Double digit numbers are the norm right now. The only tough thing right now is getting past the small fish so a hog can take it. Caddis has been producing well in the evenings.

7/17/08 - Alaska - We are heading to the Agulapak River in the Bristol Bay area of Alaska for a mid-summer trip. I hope to post reports if possible. Pictures of big rainbows to come.

7/12/08 - The river was in excellent shape. We were able to bring a few big fish to the surface with big drys first thing in the morning. Then fishing slowed down as the sun got higher and the air temps rose. We pulled off the river for lunch then went back at it for an evening float. We were able to raise quite a few fish. They were taking big dries over the caddis patterns as the sun went down. For big dries use #8-12 orange, yellow, and red. That was the ticket today. Foam and rubber legs are key for long drifts and movement. For smaller bugs an orange caddis, yellow humpy, and orange stimi worked. Early morning and late evening seem to be the best times to fish. That will change any day though; once more hoppers and stones find there way to the water the fish should be constantly looking up.

7/7/08 - Fishing was good today. A few fish were rising for mayflies around 1:00 but nothing consistent. We landed a couple of fish between 1:00 and 2:00 on a PMX in Royal or Orange. Nymphs that were produced for us were the Copper John, Prince, Psycho Prince, and PT. We nymphed until 5:00 then started tossing dries. The best period was between 6:30 and 7:30. There were a lot of fish looking up. Jim was able to capitalize on an 18” rainbow with a #10 Stimulator. An olive X-caddis was also working well during the late afternoon hatch. Most the fish were in the 10-12” range with Jim’s Hog being the exception. We hooked another big fish on top, but he spit the hook. Overall good fishing.  

7/3/08 - The river dropped back into shape. Fish have been keying in to the caddis hatches in the evening. PMDs are still hatching around mid-day. A good combo to throw when the hatch is not happening is a big stonefly dry with a #14-16 Flashback PT trailing it 2.5 feet. For nymphs; pat's stones, hare's ear, FB PTs, copper johns, and prince nymphs have been working. For surface activity, PMDs in white or light yellow, stoneflies, and stimulators would be the best bet during the day. X-caddis and other caddis variations tossed in the foam lines and seams are the ticket in the evening.

7/1/08 - The Yakima jumped up to over 5,000 CFS to start the summer flows. The visibility is low at the moment, but the river should be fishable within the next few days. So, we have been heading over to Rocky Ford, which has been producing. Randy, from MA, landed 5 yesterday and hooked 8 total, all between 19"-24". We have been seeing hoppers around. It is about time to start tossing summer stones and terrestrials once the riiver clears up. If you are planning on fishing in the next few days, I recommend San Jaun Worms, Flashback PT's #14-16, Red Copper John's #14-16, and Stone Flies #6-10 black and brown.

 

Olympic Peninsula Fly Fishing Report

8/30/08 - Calawah River- The summer run steelhead are in thick. We spent a few hours wading down by the mouth and hooked up over ten times and landed two. One was 6 lbs. and the other about 10. The slow swing through the slow pools was the key. I was using an intermediate tip on my spey rod and for flies, sparse black and purple, pink and orange, and orange and red spey flies were the ticket. I was using 2x Floro because the water was clear and slow.

8/17/08 - Wynoochee River- The weather was weird, we got sun, rain, lightning, then blue sky before more rain. But, it still didn't keep the floaters away. We spotted a 15+ lb steelhead in a deep slot. We lengthened our leaders and were about ready to cast when eight tubers came drifting over the fish. There are fish in, but spread throughout the system. This rain should bring more fresh fish in and get the holding fish moving.