The fishin' thread (NWexplorers)

[dreamr]

Well I am back after hanging out in the mountains off the Mount Loop Hiway for about a week. The kid hung in there great though I think her mom was getting sick of living in the wilderness after 8 days

The first day we just explored several areas looking for the right spot to camp. Well I guess it wasn't really exploring, I already knew of all the good spots, but I had to give Shiloh a look before I just moved us into one. We picked a spot beside Perry creek, which gave my RC truck some great rockcrawling opportunities which just happened to occupy all of the first Saturday

Sunday found us headed up to Independence Lake for a bit of fishing. I had hoped to con the ladies into following me the extra couple miles over the ridgelines to North Lake, but neither would. The result of that decision was that after 4 hours of fishing Independence I had got one bite and lost one lure to the snags :fire: On the upside it is a beautiful lake. You may remember this pic from earlier in the thread.

Monday found us Headed in to the Boardman Lake at Zaira's insistence. She loves this lake due to the high amphibian population. She only caught one Salamander and one frog this time though.

Usually I never catch a fish here, but I actually caught three in the first hour and no more for the next few hours. All brookies of course.

And of course a pic of the Boardman Lake

Tuesday we headed in to the Ice caves which are pretty much non existent this year, and Wednesday I headed up Mt Dickerman in the rain while the girls stayed at camp. I left the camera with them and traveled light due to the heavy elevation gain and wet wet conditions. In short no pics.

Thursday dawned as a beautiful day, and we headed in to the Kelcema Lake for a bit of fishing. I caught nothing but beautiful views of the mountains from this Alpine Lake as usual. This one is also probably seen earlier in the thread, but is my best picture of the lake.

Friday found us wandering in to the Bear and Pinnacle Lakes. The girls weren't up to the extra mile and a half up up up to Pinnacle, so I left them with all the gear, camera, and a radio at Bear Lake and headed in to Pinnacle to fish. I ended up pulling out 6 brookies and one rainbow in an hour and a half then dropped down to eat with the girls at the lower lake.

Saturday we packed it in and headed home. All in all a good week. There was a considerable amount of rescue activity in the area though due to a couple foolish folkes getting lost on Vesper peak during Tuesdays thunderstorm. Given it is rugged country, and confusing in the mist (yes I have hiked it before) but the fools forgot their maps and had little gear to speak of. Fortunately they were found on Thursday evening unhurt and just a bit frozen and hungry.

Vesper actually has a trail all the way to the top which is easily handled with moderrate scrambling skills. The Search and Rescue Folks make it sound like a climb, but it's pretty easy though the trail is a very faint line of cairns as you cross the rock piles. In short in the heavy cloud cover of tuesday it would be easy to lose your way if you were not familiar with the rock crossings. Me I would have headed down as soon as I saw the black clouds building to the west rather than pushing on to a 6'000 foot peak.

 

[dreamr]

Oh Albino.........................

Dreamr gots a new toy

When are we going to go try it out??????

'Tis not a fancy one, but as we all know I have little cash for misc. toys with my other projects going on. My dad also hooked me up with his box of flys as he hasn't fly fished in close to 6 years. I have no clue what all these little buggers are called, want to enlighten me? The big bugs he calls his Teton River specials Doubt I'll ever have the need, but they look neat.

Also advise me of what to con my brother into tying up for me.........

 

[rookieshooter]

That first pic of the Brookie is that a Mepps or a Roostertail I see? When I used to hunt in Paxton Maine I used to fly fish the beaver ponds for Brookies befor the afternoon bow hunting for bear. Very difficult to fly fish on shore due to the foilage. you had to watch your backcast. Did a lot of roll casting if you know what I mean. Just noticed. is that a Muddler Minnow the 2nd row from rt of the close up of your fly box. Allthough I dont see that band of deer hair up front, then again its hard to see in the photo

 

[dreamr]

That first pic of the Brookie is that a Mepps or a Roostertail I see? When I used to hunt in Paxton Maine I used to fly fish the beaver ponds for Brookies befor the afternoon bow hunting for bear. Very difficult to fly fish on shore due to the foilage. you had to watch your backcast. Did a lot of roll casting if you know what I mean. Just noticed. is that a Muddler Minnow the 2nd row from rt of the close up of your fly box. Allthough I dont see that band of deer hair up front, then again its hard to see in the photo

I tend to do a lot of spin casting on high mountain lakes. Over the years I have found 2 types of lures to work best for me. Obviously in a wide variety of colors. I really like the Kastmasters for my "wobblers". For spinners I have become very fond of Blue Fox Vibrax lures. This year it seems many of the lakes have been hitting on that bright orange lure you see in the pic. Due to our extra warm and dry winter there is a very significant population of red bellied salamanders above 2500-3500 feet, which may account for the colors effectiveness. In the lowlands they tend to be liking the darker blue and blacks though it varies form lake to lake down low (water coditions, bugs, other food sources etc.) Typically I spend a fair amount of time finding the right lure set at any given lake. This year when up in the Cascades I just grab the orange Vibrax and here come the fish

As to the flys, I have no clue what any of them are called I just figured I wanted to explore all those river pockets, and ya can't due that too well with the ol spinner rod. Hopefully Albino will pop in and clue me in........and of course take me out on the streams so I can continue to re-learn my fly casting from a decade ago.

 

[Albino 94LTD]

OK, the big ones in the second box are Wolly Buggers. I was throwing them In Montana and they weighed about a pound

The red butt ones are Blood Sucker Wolly Buggers, kind of a leach imitation. I can't see the rest due to picture quality

The first box has quite a range of wet flies and nymphs. I see several Caddis nymphs in the middle left rows.

There are several that are unraveling, hopefully from use not poor construction.

What do you need??
#14 and #16 Elk Hair Caddis, tan, olive, yellow and dark orange (you can NEVER have enough Caddis flies)
#10 and #12 Yellow and Orange Stimulators (that's what we were using at Gallagher Head Lake)
Hoppers, #8 and #10
Ants, #10 and #12
#12 and #14 Royal Coachman (I see one that looks close (red band) but it's missing it's hackle)

What size is that rod? These are 5wt moving water flies. A good start worth about $100 at least.

Now I gotta find that raft rental place so we can get on the Yakima

 

[agzaretzka]

...

Now I gotta find that raft rental place so we can get on the Yakima

That would be Red's Fly Shop

 

[Albino 94LTD]

That would be Red's Fly Shop

OH BABY! you can't beat that!

When are we going????

 

[dreamr]

There are several that are unraveling, hopefully from use not poor construction.

They look to be pretty well used based on the pieces of leader still attached

What do you need??
#14 and #16 Elk Hair Caddis, tan, olive, yellow and dark orange (you can NEVER have enough Caddis flies)
#10 and #12 Yellow and Orange Stimulators (that's what we were using at Gallagher Head Lake)
Hoppers, #8 and #10
Ants, #10 and #12
#12 and #14 Royal Coachman (I see one that looks close (red band) but it's missing it's hackle)

Sounds like my brother is going to be a busy kid this fall, I'll likely have to buy a few for our fishing needs this year, but I can guess at my christmas present

What size is that rod? These are 5wt moving water flies. A good start worth about $100 at least.

Now I gotta find that raft rental place so we can get on the Yakima

8'
5-6 pound

Worth a hundred? Should I tell you how cheap I got off thanks to a sell????

OH BABY! you can't beat that!

When are we going????

You tell me and I'll try to make arrangements

 

[Albino 94LTD]

They look to be pretty well used based on the pieces of leader still attached

Bring them with you this weekend when you come to help with the BL and I'll fix 'em for ya.

 

[dreamr]

Bring them with you this weekend when you come to help with the BL and I'll fix 'em for ya.

Why is it that you keep picking the weekends I will be out of town?

 

[Albino 94LTD]

That would be Red's Fly Shop

We're trying to put a float trip together for the last week in August. Maybe 2 days, Tue-Wed or Wed-Thur then we'll stop at Evans Creek near Mt Rainier to run with jrgaylor.

Are you up for the float trip??

Probably ahve to get a boat reserved soon, if it's not too late already.

 

[Premier]

Great thread/pics.

 

[dreamr]

Hmm guess it is about time I updated this thread. I have been a bit lazy this season and not hitting the trails and lakes as often as I usually do. Dang summer is just trying to get too busy. I am used to having no commitments on the weekends so I can just wander off pretty much every Saturday. This year people keep trying to demand my attention and trap me in the hated concrete and steel corruption.

We try to still get under the pines as much as possible though.
2 1/2 weeks ago Phil (Albino 94LTD) and myself headed into Gallagher Head Lake by the Fortune Creek Trail #4WD301. Pretty painless wheeling and a beautiful location. There are a few pics in the linked thread if you are interested, the new ones toward the bottom. http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=136138
Of course this is the fishing thread so here is Phil catching the only fish in the damn lake (twice)

This past weekend I headed up into Verlot. I stayed close to home and out of the deep mountais as the truck has been acting odd to say the least. I took my new Fly Rod as well as my Spinner rod. Every morning and evening found me working the Stilliquamish river. There were tons of little rises, but none of the little buggers ever took my fly. I in the end got one rise from a 12-15" trout of some kind, I thought he was taking it, but he seemed to hit it with his nose and when it bounced out of the water he let it go :fire:
My second good hit actually took the fly when it was a couple inches above the surface of the water and I did get a good set on the kook. It was a large fish and he hit the fast part of the current heading straight down. I crossed my fingers letting him run a bit of line before I started the fight back in , but he was just too big and snapped my leader a couple inches above the fly. In talking with a local I discovered that that river has some Huge steelhead hiding out in it. I was using a 6lb tapered leader, so basically it tapers to like 2. I told him and he lauged and told me to forget the store boughten leader and just tie a few feet of 8 lb test fishing line on there next time.

I was sick of the lack of fish in the low country so I had to drag my ladies up to a favorite fishing hole on Pinnacle Lake along with my spinner pole and box of lures (though it seems only one color has caught fish this year at every lake ). In the 3 hours they let me fish I caught 5 brookies, my daughter caught 2 brookie and a small rianbow (2 on my pole 1 on her own), My GF caught the same sunken tree twice and a big rock

Here's a couple pictures one for each Zaira and I. After All ya don't want 9 pictures of individual fish do you?

And one last picture to showcase my poor little girls mosquito bite I am not sure how she could see to hike the 2 miles up to Pinnacle with only one eye able to open, but she never complained and in fact got very pissed when I suggested staying in camp for the day. Kids............

 

[dreamr]

So Sunday dawned a clear day and I had spent the day saturday working on my truck so what was I to do??????

Well grab a rod and hit the hills of course!!
My folks are in town and I figured that I owed them a bit of my time off so I drug them with me. Sadly having the whole family in tow kept me off the trails and out of the backcountry. However I knew of a lake at about 3200 feet and just outside of the Boulder River Wilderness area that I could get to in the X, so I loaded them up and tossed some picnic supplies in the back with the rods.

Coal Lake is a pretty little lake that has a high population of trout. However I never catch a damn thing in these waters. Today proved to be a bit different.......

I started out fishing with my dad and my daughter. My dad and I both caught a pair of itty bitty rainbows which were released, and Zaira caught a tree or 2 I wandered around the south shore of the lake and caught 3 mid size Brooke trout before wandering back to picnic with the family. Zaira was really really angry that I let them go as she had wanted to eat them. Typically she gets mad if I keep one, but not today

So I ended up wandering the north shore and the inlet catching 5 more of various size and species as pictured below. Nothing very big, but fun enough. I also had 2 get away :fire: The cool part is that there is a Hybrid Cutthroat, Brooke, and Rainbow all floating in that sink waiting to lose their heads and tails. I like variety

 

[Albino 94LTD]

back from hibernation

A fishing report for the first week of June. Man do I need to stand in the middle of the Yak!!!!!!



The Yakima River: Is in a Prom dress right now and with American Idol over for a little while you can fight off the post-Idol depression with an adrenaline injection courtesy a Yakima trout. The water is back in shape, the bugs are moving and hatching and mating and the fish are wrangling them. PMD's, Caddisflies and some stoneflies are the predominant critters that should be tied to the end of your leader. More specifically, PMD Sparkle Duns, Cripples, X-Caddis, Egg Laying Caddis, Sparkle Pupae, Foamulators, Bullethead Stones, Crystal Stimulators, and the list goes on. Come in, we can help. The upper river is more wadable and clearer but what else is new? You can still find plenty of good wading water in the Canyon- you just have to be a little more creative. Wading during the evening caddis hatch or during a midday PMD hatch may even be preferable to being stuck in a boat. It seems that a lot of large fish are eating caddis on the surface in the evenings too. Not that we're complaining, just be a little sneakier, if that's a word, and tag a fish over 20". The annual opening of the flood gates will be coming soon too as the farmers call for more water downstream. With the high snowpack this year the river should be running close to 4000cfs in the canyon, if we judge from past years, so just be prepared to move your lawn chair up the beach a few feet. The fish usually take a few days to readjust to the high water and get a little scared.

Cedar River: The Cedar is open, but high water flows have made getting down to the fish difficult. This fishery will likely turn on more in the next week or so, but for the time being, go big & go deep. Big woolly buggers, baitfish streamers, stonefly nymphs with rubber legs....give 'em a big target. The river is fishable, but wading is challenging in the upper sections. We did hear one report that more of the bigger fish are still in the lower river chasing smolts, but have thusfar been unable to substantiate that rumor. You be the judge, and stay tuned!

Local Lakes: If you are still among those who don't have a car that converts water to gasoline (or money), then Rattlesnake and Alice and Beaver Lakes continue to dominate the local scene, with the occasional strong report from the likes of Lone and Pass trickling in. Olive seems to be the local favorite, and with damselflies and dragonflies running the table, this is likely what the fish are expecting to get when they chomp on your fly. Get your licks in soon because the lakes will become too warm during the day here in another few weeks. The good fishing will go a little longer however, if the rain keeps up. Don't despair though, most of these lakes will turn into great bass fisheries after the trout fishing turns off

Eastern WA Lakes: In a word, warm... but not over yet. Lenice/Nunnally have slowed down a little but we've heard some great reports of jumbos hooked on chironomids. Damsels and dragons usually take the spotlight this time of year. On a sad note Chopaka, which should've benefitted from the wet winter has died. We've had multiple reports of tons of bugs with no fish as well as dead fish floating around. We don't know what's going on just that if your plans are taking you there, just keep on going over the border and find something new. Dusty, on the other hand has been hot recently but we're hearing some complaints from the regulars of lack of big fish. But for Dusty big is 20+ so if you aren't too bummed out with 14-18 inch fish then Dusty might be the place for you. Yeah, we know, 18 inches is still big. They're waiting for you.

 

[dreamr]

Damn I forgot about this thread almost. Seems like I never really kept up on it after the first year.

So when we going fishing?

 

[agzaretzka]

Eastern Washington

A fishing report for the first week of June. Man do I need to stand in the middle of the Yak!!!!!!

Me too!!!

Opening day drove up and inspected the Walla Walla; still quite high and muddy. Then spent some time fishing Mill Creek. Being so far out of practice, I had very few hook ups, tho many bites! And I even located one big one that actually broke my fly off!!! (I know, I know: in reality it was probably a poorly tied knot). Spooked a couple of lovely deer as well.

On the way home looked at the Touchet, and it was running strong tho fairly clear.

 

[Albino 94LTD]

Me too!!!

Opening day drove up and inspected the Walla Walla; still quite high and muddy. Then spent some time fishing Mill Creek. Being so far out of practice, I had very few hook ups, tho many bites! And I even located one big one that actually broke my fly off!!! (I know, I know: in reality it was probably a poorly tied knot). Spooked a couple of lovely deer as well.

On the way home looked at the Touchet, and it was running strong tho fairly clear.

Man those names take me back to my youth spending summers on my uncle's farm in Touchet, moving sprinkler pipes and bucking bales of Alphalfa, then driving into College Place for picnic's with Grandma.

We drove the Yak Canyon last week and the water did look like it was clearing. Still a little high for wading though. The upper Yak looked great but that's cause it is controlled and they haven't started releasing water for the farmers yet.

 

[Albino 94LTD]

The Yakima River: If riverflow management were a sport, Yakima valley farmers would be Brazil and everyone else would be, well, everyone else. When the farmers call for water they get it and consequently the Yak is blowing out of the dams like a bicycle kick in the face. At last check the flow at Umtanum was 4500cfs and going up, or is it down, or... well, just check before you go. Usually when "the man" decides to release water for the summer the river hovers somewhere between 3000cfs and 4000cfs but this year with all the snow it could be a little higher. The trout aren't too happy when this happens and it usually takes them the better part of a week to re-adjust and find some cover. We haven't heard much in the last day or so but if you go next week you should be fine. The high flows also turn most of the river into a boat show. Contrary to popular belief though wading opportunities are not eliminated, you just have to be a little more creative. The bugs are still around too so when you go pick up some PMD's, cahills, caddis, stoneflies/big uglies and an assortment of nymphs. The short-winged or tan, summer stone will make an appearance soon too and they are sometimes best fished skated rather than dead drifted. This bodes well for those of us that can't see so hot to figure out whether we're getting a dead drift or not. Swinging a soft hackle behind your stone can be deadly too.

Cedar River: Another dams controlled river and guess what? Another high water situation. The good news is that the flows have dropped considerably and the river is much more fishable. PMD's and caddis have been popping along with the occasional stonefly. We have yet to hear the rave reports of 24+ inch jumbos but the water is just now getting to prime level. If you want to just go catch some fish and have a good time go in the evening armed with some smallish Stimulators or Elk hair caddis and find a nice slick and watch them chomp on the surface. You may hook a big fish this way but to target the choker rainbows you have to get down and dirty. World Cup matches happen rain or shine and so does the fishing. Spool up a sink tip and grab a few 3-5 inch streamers and swing'em through the deep pools and runs. You won't hook a lot of fish this way but you'll genreally only hook big fish. And in the cedar big means Alaska or New Zealand size fish. We wouldn't lie about this kind of thing.

Lakes East & West:While all the rivers are just getting good the lakes are kind are the Pele of fishing right now. That is, they were the best thing around but now retiring. You still may get some great action on the Eastside in the morning and evening on damsels, leeches and chironomid pupa under and indicator. The same thing applies to the Westside lakes with a heavy emphasis on small olive leeches. BASS however, are just getting cranked up and we're not talking crack. Both East and West bass are eating all manner of leeches and baitfish patterns and starting to get up on poppers. If you've never fished bass on the fly this is the time to do it. It's tons of fun and they fight harder than soccer fans. If you're struggling for ideas try any of the following. Beaver Lake, Green Lake, Lake Alice, Lake Sammamish, Potholes Reservior, Seep Lakes, Silver Lake, Columbia River, Lower Yakima River... you get the idea. If you want your very own prviate bass lake give us a call, we have a stellar World Cup quality bass lakes in Eastern Washington with Smallmouth, Largemouth, Carp and Walleye on the fly.

 

[dreamr]

Are you hinting at something Phil

I've yet to wet a fly-line this season.