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As
we Trouties get geared up for the long hard summer of beating the
waters of hither and nigh, expectations are high for every outing.
Regardless of your experience, your mental and emotional state at
the outset of your next angling journey will weigh heavily on your
post-trip-back-to-work-stress-disorder. Fortunately, we aren't subjected
to the brutal sunshine and flowery warming temps responsible for
most cases of Spring Fever, usually. So welcome to Spring. Get ready
for the rain to stop and to put the top down and slay fish.
The Yakima has been suffering from spring fever over the
past 36+ hours- visibility is just a couple feet in the upper river
and increasingly bleak as you make your way down. The flow at Umtanum,
which is in the lower canyon, looks like it peaked yesterday (5/21)
at about 3900 cfs. and is working it's way down. The peak is actually
about in line with the historical average, but the problem is that
3 days ago the flow was around 2800 cfs , so along with the extra
water is a good deal of mud, silt and sedement from the banks. It's
the smaller tributaries who are most guilty of torching the water
clarity- Wilson ck, the Teannaway...so the far upper reaches will
be better. Wouldn't cha know it, though...just when it was getting
really good. The Mother's Day Caddis Hatch was right on time and
made for some great dry fly fishing for a spell. PMD's were getting
going in the lower river as well, giving you a greater chance of
choosing the wrong fly. Hopefully things will settle down before
too long, and the salmon flies will likely be popping, as well as
various sundry other little stones...goldens, maybe some yellow
sallies...plus the caddis will linger, and the PMD's will pick up
speed- the future is bright.
Eastern WA Lakes continue to get rave reviews, despite less
regular callibaetis emergences, the chironomid show is always on.
Damsels and dragons are becoming bigger players, too, and will be
drying their wings before too long. Lenice, Nunnally, Lenore, Dry
Falls- the usual suspects, or at least the one's we hear the most
about- have all been fishing well. Chopaka's been crowded- but also
picking up momentum. Chironomid show, predominately- some mayflies
hatching.
Suggested patterns for all lakes this time of year include the life
cycle of the chironomid- larva, pupa, emergers & adults in sizes
12-20. Callibaetis nymphs, emergers, cripples and adults #14-16,
and having some attractors along, like parachute adams etc. may
prove useful, as one angler mentioned an apparent gray drake hatch
on Nunnally- or at least there were giant gray mayflies over an
inch long that fish were eating when given the opportunity...Hare's
ear nymphs with legs and flash and stuff work well as a general
critter trout like to eat in the lakes, #10-12...for that matter,
they'll eat lightning bugs, flash gun's, prince nymphs, pheasant
tails, bloody mary's....and many other little nymph-esque food items
you may want to offer. The point is that a little open-mindedness
never killed anyone (fishing). Streamers and buggers are as good
a bet when the chironomid emergence isn't super obvious or strong.
Woolly buggers, carey buggers, krystal buggers, mohair leeches,
maggiebuggers- you name it. Which brings us to the lakes on the
Western side:
Local Lakes have been turning on quite nicely. There may
not be any size 10 chironomids popping off the surface, but there
are smaller bugs of similar lineage fish like to eat that you can
easily mimic with a little help from your local fly shop. Buggers
& leeches & careys, too, will draw strikes. You'll be best
off with a full sinking line. Really. Get a full sinking line if
you don't have one and like fishing lakes. Fishing the lakes around
here with only a floating line is like going to safeco and watching
the game on the TV above the beer concessions the whole time (not
that there's anything wrong with that). Trout feed a vast majority
of the time beneath the surface of the water, so, while it's nice
to have the commentary, sometimes you need to move into a different
section to really be on top of the game. Thanks Beeve. Rattlesnake,
Alice, Pine, Beaver, Pass, Fish...to name a couple that I can name,
have all been housing willing participants/enablers in our silly
little fishing game/addiction. Bug and fish activity is likely to
be better later in the days as the water temps warm from a whole
night without sun....but then again, the fish are pretty shy when
the sun is on the water, so fish the evening. and the morning. Fish
all the time.
Puget Sound is not for anglers who like fishing in the company
of porpoise, heron, eagles, osprey, sealions, harbor seals and gulls.
Fishing in the saltwater is also definately not for those who like
the golden-rose colred light that filters in from the horizon at
dawn. And if you like to catch cutthroat and salmon the sound is
just not for you. For the rest of you however, Puget Sound is a
paradise.
Try and find a beach that has good public access; so that you can
roam a little. There is nothing worse than setting off for a pod
of coho you see leaping in the distance and having a "NO TRESPASSING"
sign intercept your mission. Lincoln Park in west Seattle has about
a mile of beach to comb. Start with a few casts along the shore
from you shallow wading position, make a cast angling out from beach,
and make a cast straight out into deeper water before moving on.
Covering water is important, because there may not be any fish in
just that spot. Occasionaly repeating the casting cycle before moving
along may give a cruising fish the opportunity to locate your fly
- you just have experiment.
Distance is not all that important, but making consistant casts
is. That's why I like to overload my rod for the sound by a line
weight; so that twenty feet of line will load the rod for a forty
or fifty foot cast. False casting is minimized, fishing time is
maximized and productivity goes up.
All purpose baitfish patterns will produce for you, as a variety
of bait are available to the fish. Juvenile salmon, herring and
sand eels are all present. Recent reports have been encouraging
to say the least, and all that I can think about is my next opportunity
to get out there and soak in the whole magnificent experience that
is fishing in saltwater. Maybe the next time I visit that beach
those blackmouth will still be busting bait within casting range,
and maybe they'll fall for my fly - either way, it's the best. ~Seth
Taylor
Snoqualmie Forks are up a bit in the wake of the recent rainfall,
runoff, etc...but have retained some clarity- i.e. the south and
middle forks, at least, are fishable. We've heard some good reports
recently from up North Bend way. Fish attractor nymphs and dries-
caddisflies, parachute adams, royal wulff, hare's ear, pheasant
tail nymphs, and the like. You may see some march browns, and ought
to see some early yellow sallies or little yellow somethingorothers
up there soon. Check with us for water levels and clarity- we're
always happy to suggest a beat.
Rocky Ford hasn't been getting too much attention around
here with the lakes and rivers fishing so well, but now that the
Yakima is in transition mode, Rocky Ford may well be your best moving
water option. The fish are huge and spooky, but the upside is that
they eat alot. Chironomids, callibaetis, damsels and dragonflies,
buggers, and various tiny nymph patterns will likely entice a strike
if you're dainty. Big white woolly buggers definitely stir interest,
but be ready for a hard strike. Evening and nighttime can be fun
with big streamers and even a mouse pattern. If you've never been,
it's probably time to go.
Hugh Pastoriza &
Creekside Angling Company Staff
1180 N.W. Gilman Blvd.
Issaquah, WA 98027
p.425.392.3800
f.425.557.8928
www.creeksideangling.com
© 2002
Creekside Angling Company All Rights Reserved
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here in the Northwest, Please call or e-mail us:
Creekside Angling Company
1180 N.W. Gilman Blvd.
Issaquah, WA 98027
425-557-8928 (fax)
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