Smoke from the fires in California seem to find their way into Bishop and the Eastern Sierra. We had one day where we traded heavy winds for clear skies. Day time temperatures have dropped offering a hint of fall. It will not be long until the trees turn colors and the fish feed heavy in preparation for winter. There are still lots of warm days wet wading and throwing dry flies in particular hoppers. Water temperatures seem to be holding at or below 67 degrees in most Eastern Sierra waters.
Wild brown, rainbow and brook trout will readily take a dry fly drifted without drag on Bishop Creek.
Lower Owens River Wild Trout Section:
Mid-day temperatures are cool enough to fish, but it will heat back up before it cools off for fall and winter. Early and late is still the best time to be on the lower Owens River fishing. Early morning caddis activity has a few fish coming to the surface in the mornings. Evenings sees the greatest caddis activity. Mornings are a good time to nymph with a euro nymphing rig or an indicator rig.
Afternoon clouds and wind is a break from the smoky days in the Owens Valley.
Hot Creek:
Interpretive Site:
The consistency of the trico hatch is making the interpretive site of Hot Creek one of the best fly fishing opportunities in the Eastern Sierra right now. Fly fishers need to be on the water early to get a good spot. The hatch starts by 9:00 A.M. each morning and is over by 10:00 A.M. Trico parachutes, and trico spinners are fooling wild brown trout and the occasional rainbow from eight to 14 inches. The caddis hatch takes place as the trico hatch wans. By noon all but the hardiest of fly fishers have called it a day. With nothing hatching mid-day there is no reason to be fly fishing here. Evening caddis activity is worth coming back to the creek to fly fish.
Noon and there is only one devoted fly fisher left on the creek, while everyone else left after the hatch ended.
Hot Creek Canyon Section:
Middle of the day and Hot Creek Canyon is devoid of fly fishers as there is no mid-day hatch to bring the fish to the surface. Even nymphing is limited mid-day. I’m tempted to call it dog days of summer, but the morning trico and caddis hatch and evening caddis activity is keeping fly fishers connected to fish taking their fly patterns. Trico spinners, trico parachutes, gray elk hair caddis, gray X-caddis and spent partridge caddis are all fooling trout at the right time of the morning or evening.
Upper Owens River:
Above Benton Crossing Bridge:
Smoke makes the views nonexistent and winds have made the fly casting tough. Pick your poison or more aptly stated deal with what the day gives you. Wind has messed up the morning trico hatch, but has helped with the mid-morning to afternoon hopper hatch. The trico hatch is the best thing going and is done by 10:00 A.M. A few trout can be enticed to take caddis after the trico hatch. The hopper hatch this year is very weak. I watched two hoppers get blown into the river and nothing ate them. I’m thinking that with so few hoppers landing on the water the trout don’t know to eat them. Fly fishers covering lots of water in the afternoons are getting a few trout to come to the surface and take a hopper patterns. Use parachute hoppers, foam hoppers, or Dave’s hopper in sizes 12 or 14.
Matthew Reed from Washington state releasing a brown trout that took a well-placed hopper pattern.
Bishop Creek Canal Behind the Ford Dealer:
There is a morning trico hatch that is over by 9:00 A.M. Mid-day, when day time temperatures are under 90, is a good time to throw hoppers. The key is to only make a couple of casts to each fish holding spot. If the trout do not come up to eat the hopper move on looking for a trout that wants the hopper. This section of the canal has both wild and stocked trout.
Middle of the day finds few anglers fishing even though this is a good time to present a hopper.
San Joaquin River:
The San Joaquin River is my favorite water to fish. Its abundance of trout and technical casting to every pocket holding trout water makes it a great spot for beginner to advanced fly fishers. The trout are taking dry flies. This is a spot to fish with your favorite dry fly as you will fish it with confidence. I like Adams parachutes, royal Wulff’s and elk hair caddis in sizes 14 to 16. This is a great water to fish the dry and dropper technique. I like to add three feet of 5X tippet to the bend of my dry fly with an improved cinch knot. I fish copper John’s, gold ribbed hare’s ears and pheasant tail nymphs under my dry fly.
Brook trout and golden trout are the two hardest fish to catch on the San Joaquin River to get a Sierra grand slam.