The first week of November came in cold. The highest of peaks have a fresh layer of snow. Been wearing a jacket more than I want to admit. Insect activity has been most active middle of the day and nymphing has been the most successful method to fool the trout. Midges, mayflies and caddis continue to hatch. Pulling streamers is a great way to catch a trophy trout in the Fall.
This is the time of the year that storms start rolling into the Eastern Sierra and it will not be long before the area is blanketed in snow.
Lower Owens River
Wild Trout Section:
Flows are expected to lower starting the middle of November. For now flows in the 400 CFS range makes it unsafe to wade the river. Fly fishers fishing from the few bank accessible spots are catching a few trout on nymphs. Key to success is having enough weight on the leader to allow the nymphs to bounce on the substrate.
With high flows and limited bank access fly fishers are finding it tough to fly fish with nymphs or dries on the lower Owens River.
Hot Creek
Interpretive Site:
Colder weather has slowed down the hatches. Blue wing olive mayflies are hatching middle of the morning. Use a size 20 blue wing olive parachute, size 20 olive sparkle dun and size 18 and 20 Adams parachutes. If you have troubles seeing size 20 and smaller dry flies on the surface try fishing with a dry and dry rig. Use a bigger dry fly like a size 16 Adams parachute, size 14 stimulator or size 12 Chernobyl ant as an indicator. Attach three feet of 5X or 6X monofilament with a clinch knot to the bend of the dry fly. This allows the fly fisher to catch surface feeding trout on very small dry flies.
Mark Rafeh casting a dry and dropper rig in the slots in between the weed beds.
Hot Creek
Canyon Section:
This is a great time to be fly fishing with a dry and dropper rig. I like fishing with a size 16 Adams parachute for the dry and a size 18 olive quilldigon, size 18 bead head flash back pheasant tail nymph and size 18 zebra and tiger midges. Fishing this rig in the runs between the weed beds and in the deeper holes will produce wild brown and rainbow trout. If you see rising fish use a size 20 blue wing olive parachute, size 20 olive sparkle dun and size 20 Adams parachutes.
An afternoon on Whiskey Bay with no one around is a great time to be throwing streamers from shore.
Crowley Lake
Whiskey Bay:
I like pulling streamers from the banks of Whiskey bay when the marina closes the last Sunday of October. The lake closes to fishing on November 15th, 2024. I fish olive or black size 6 or 10 wooly buggers, slumpbusters and size 10 perch colored balanced leeches. I tie in a size 16 Prince nymph, size 14 bead head flash back gold ribbed hare’s ear and size 14 bead head callibaetis nymph about 20 inches above the streamer. Using an indicator with midges and balanced leeches will produce fish for fly fishers who do not want to pull streamers.
Storms are roiling through the Eastern Sierra and bringing lots of wind which is making it hard to fly fish.
Upper Owens River
Above Benton Crossing Bridge:
There is an increase in trophy trout in the upper Owens River, but they are still not in the river system in big concentration. I like to fish the deep holes, deep runs and cut banks where the trout are resting and feeding on their migration up river. My preferred method of fly fishing for the trophy trout is to Euro nymph with size 12 stoner nymphs, size 12 green/gold wire Prince nymphs and size 18 olive quilldigons. Throwing steamers is a great way to cover lots of water looking for those few trophy trout in the river. I fish streamers downstream and only make four to six casts through each water type before moving on to find the next place to pull my streamers through. Fish with olive or black size 6 or 10 wooly buggers and slumpbusters. Size 18 bead head flash back pheasant tail nymphs, size 16 bead head flash back gold ribbed hares ears, size 18 tiger, zebra and blood midges on the substrate and size 20 blue wing olive parachutes is producing non trophy trout from three to 12 inches.
Low flows are making the trout in Bishop Creek Canal spooky and hard to present a fly to.
Bishop Creek Canal
Behind Bishop Veterinary Hospital:
Low water levels and spooky trout await fly fishers casting flies into Bishop Creek Canal. To keep from spooking trout I’m fishing with a dry fly as the indicator because it does not spook the trout like a foam style indicator will. For the dry fly use a size 14 stimulator or a size 16 Adams parachute. For the nymphs use size 18 olive quilldigons, size 18 bead head flash back pheasant tail nymphs, size16 bead head flash back gold ribbed hare’s ear and size 18 blood, zebra and tiger midges.