->
Left
Channel below State Boat Launch is blocked
->
From KOA to Irene above the weir, there is a blockage
->
From Irene to Ringer there is a complete blockage
->
The State Boat launch / East Cle Elum take out is a tough one! Not recommended
for those without advanced rowing skills.
1/31/12
The weather the last few days has been
a little more favorable, and the fishing has been rather reasonable
partly due to it. Nymphing has been ok, streamers have been the best
with Zonkers, scupzillas and small buggers leading the way. Stones,
worms, and various Princes have been fishing under the bobber. Days
are getting longer, and fishing should continue to slowly progress into
another productive season in 2012. We have been in the Flatlands and
the Farmlands recently the most, with a few of us in the canyon every
now and then. Thanks to those who came out and visited us at the recent
Puyallup Sportsman's Show.
The Hatch
___________________________________________________________________________________________
1/29/12
Good to great fishing....End of Story
/ Mostly Nymphing. Best bugs.....Guess? Pats Stones and San Juans;
Peace out,
The Hatch
__________________________________________________________________________________________
1/23/12
No ice flow throughout the system other
then down low in the Lower Canyon. Water temps are cold!!!!
__________________________________________________________________________________________
1/19/12
Currently, MEGA ICE Flow throughout
the system
__________________________________________________________________________________________
1/11/12
In
the
Lower Farmlands and Lower Canyon the fishing has been pretty good from
zone to zone and posting up. Have to drop the hook and work it. Definitely
podded up in the slower water, slow water with rock structure or deep
deep deep and slow has been the trick. Cold water temps today, hovered
around 34-35 degrees all day. Bugs were Brown or Olive/Brown Pats, sz.
8-10, and sz. 10 worms in various colors/shades. Streamer fishing under
the bobber has been avg at best and the streamer retrieving is slow.
The nymphing has been the ticket.
The Upper Farmlands have been Slow to
So So at most. No reports from the Upper Canyon and Upper Proper. The
Upper Flatlands have been avg with the fly on the swing.
Visibility
is great, throughout the system, We'd give it a 3 1/2 star day.
The
Hatch
________________________________________________________________________
1/6/12
Happy New Year! The nymphing recently
on the Yakima has been 'lights out' - If we quoted numbers from two
days ago, you would call BS. Regardless, the later half of the day seems
to be the better time frame (That's nothing new for this time of year).
Recent hot bugs include, #8-10 Pats Stones, #14-18 Brassies and Copper
Johns in red or blue, various egg patterns, #12 Lightning Bugs.
Water is in great condition.
the hatch
________________________________________________________________________
12/31/11
River is dropping fast!
________________________________________________________________________
12/29/11
The county has experienced a large amount
of precipitation over the last 24 hours and it looks as though we will
see the same over the next 24 hours. The river has come up substantially
and looks as though it will continue for the next day or so....we will
keep you posted.
________________________________________________________________________
12/28/11
With a little warmer weather the last
while, the Yakima continues to fish well if not a little better than
last week. Nymphing stones and worms and other small attractor nymphs
is producing and swinging or retrieving streamers such as the sculpzilla,
bow river bugger and woolhead sculpin has been good when nymphing is
not. Short floats and choosing the water you fish wisely is definitely
beneficial. Overall pretty solid trout fishing the last few days. We
have primarily been in the farmlands and the lower canyon, but the upper
flatlands were producing a few nice fish per outing swinging streamers
by foot. Go fish, don't let cabin fever get ya!
________________________________________________________________________
12/6/11
Fishing remains solid, winter rules apply.
Nymphing all your standard winter water with generic #18 and 20 midge
and all purpose attractor bugs is good along with small stones and swinging
the streamer (zonkers, baby natural and olive, small sculpzillas) has
proven worthy the last few days on the water. Swing it short, often
times they are right at your feet! River is lonely top to bottom, come
on out. We have been in the upper flatlands, the farmlands and the ditch
in the last week, and all are fishing quite well.
________________________________________________________________________
11/27/11
'Farmlands' report from today - Good
to great fishing with stone nymphs under indicators. Other honorable
mentions include #18 Purple Princes and #18 Red Brassies. The streamer
action has been a bit slow lately.
The Hatch
________________________________________________________________________
11/21/11
Assuming we don't get a major freeze,
watch for the first two weeks of December to be Yakima SPOT ON....Based
on 23 years Yakimaside,
The Hatch
__________________________________________________________________________
____________
11/10/11
The Yakima is currently fishing avg.
to good depending on the day's conditions and stretch of river fished.
Streamers are producing and nymphing is as well. Short days call for
short floats, and colder water temperatures call for thorough coverage
of each piece of water. Fall colors are amazing and the river is pretty
lonely! Come on out asap, father winter is going to be here before you
know it!
-Fish on
11/3
Warming up.....
11/1
The Yakima is fishing reasonable due
to the change over to colder night temps. KOA to Irene is open and passable,
Irene to Ringer still has some blockage but doable with good rowing
experience. Nymphing is the name of the game. Fishing deep holes with
plenty of structure, and deep inside seems have been worthy for large
bows. If your not snagging, your not fishing it deep or tight enough.
Don't be afraid to put some lead on and really get it down there. Some
top water dries, but nothing to write home about....
Bugs: Pats Stone, sz 8,10. Black and brown. Copper Johns sz 16, 18.
Black and Red.
10/20
We have been in the Farmlands and the
fishing has been worthy - October caddis, little tan sedges and Baetis
have been the ticket.
Yakima 10/11
The last couple days have been a bit
tough with the weather systems we have been experiencing. Not to predictable.
The fishing overall this Fall has been good. Watch for the best of the
Fall to be 'coming soon to a run' near you. Often the best dry fly hatches
of the Fall are after everyone goes home. Winter guide rates start Nov
1!
Yakima 10/6
Good to Great fishing ... End of Story
Yakima 9/20-9/27
Fishing here on the Yak had been pretty
consistent. We have been in the canyon most days, but ventured up river
and had the same results. Morning dry fly fishing has slowed way down,
but starting out fishing shallow with streamers and small beadhead nymphs
under the bobber has been the ticket. Evening dry fly fishing has been
spotty on the big dry. Good results fishing up river with the big dry/dropper
combo, catching most fish on the dropper. Fish are starting to move
into the deeper slower water around structure (ledges, secondary drops,
deep foam seams, deep pocket rock structure) , so when you find a fish,
stop and work the water consistently through. Still waiting on our mahogany
duns, cahills, and baetis. A few October Caddis in the late afternoon
and evening after colder nights, so keep those patterns ready to go.
Best bugs have been the Tan Zonker sz10, Gold Lightning Bug sz16/18,
Red or Blue Copper Johns sz16/18, and the Orange, Gold, or Red Chubby
Chernobyl. Dont be afraid to take that bobber off and strip the streamer
through likely water, the bigger fish have been eatin the meat!!
9/26 Guide report - Jack
Small Blue Wing Olive nymphs have been
the key especially in the Lower Canyon. The Farmland's key word is probably
the Adult Cranefly and October Caddis. The Upper Canyons' key factor
is both the October Caddis and Cranefly. The Upper Flatlands and the
Upper Proper key factors are Salmon Egg patterns, October Caddis and
Craneflies.
Small Blue Wings #18-22 PT's, PT Flashbacks,
Super Yuba BWO
October Caddis Pupa #8 Moorish's
Double Wing October #6 - 10
Egg patterns - The Peachy King Bead, or the Gobstopper!
Craneflies - Wics Cranefly #10
Fish-out and on,
Jack
9/18 Guide report - Dustin
Cooler nights and warm days are
helping with the October caddis hatch, some have been spotted in the
lower canyon the past few evenings. The tail end of big summer stones
have been producing some rises. Day time nymphing is the name of the
game until the top water action starts in early evening. Give it a week
and we will be watching Oct. Caddis being devoured, hope its on the
end of your line......
Bug list, Dries: Chubby Chernobyl Purple,Tan #8, Swish Chernobyl Black
#6, Romans Golden #6.
Nymphs: Black and Brown Pats Rubber Leg #10,8, Lightning Bug #16, Black
Gold Rib Hares Ear #16
9-15 Guide report - Johnny
Did a nice upper river afternoon
float the other day. Very low and clear, currently the salmon spawn
is in full swing. Lots of chinook and redds, particularly above cle
elum. Be careful of them if you are wade fishing the upper river. The
fish are certainly on that program, however October Caddis are going
as well. We saw tons of adults the last hour of the day. Also a few
Summer Stones around. Best bugs were Orange Chubbies on top, small Para
Hoppers. Subsurface, October Caddis Pupa and an Orange Pats took fish.
Certainly with all of the salmon, one could consider trying an egg pattern
of some sort as well....
9-14-11 ...
Cooling
down!
9-12-11 ...
Considering
this heatwave, the Yakima has fished reasonable this past week. However
the upcoming cooling trend is much needed. We have been guiding throughout
the system and have met with success with both the nymph and the dry.
Best dry fly yesterday was the a #16 Super Sally (Yellow Sally). The
best nymph yesterday was a #10 Orange Pat's Stone.
The
Flip Flop is almost complete and the Yakima is at it's Fall level. Water
temps have increased quite a bit based on lower flows combined with
the heat wave. Temps have been ranging from 61 - 65 degrees in the Lower
Canyon.
The Hatch
9-5-11 ...
The
water has dropped 2500cfs in the past 5 days....fishing remains worthy.
9-1-11 ... Guide report - CJ
The
fishing went from good to great the last two days. The minor cooling
trend seemed to really get fishing rockin.' Some great quality trout
being taken right now on big dries and nymphs, same patterns as the
last reports. Water down a few hundred cfs as well, maybe the start
of the drawdown? We'll see!
8-30-11 ... Guide report - Rory
Fishing
the last week has remained good the last week top to bottom. Mainly
a terrestrial game throughout the system, with fish still responding
to adult stone patterns in the evenings. Smaller profiled more realistic
hopper patterns have been turning more heads such as bullethead hoppers,
small black and tan C-Ants and spun deer hair hoppers. Sunk hoppers
and ants catching their share of trout as well. From around eight am
to two pm seems to be the best fishing, and again from say six pm to
dark around eight. Nymphing midday with generic attractor bugs like
copper johns, holo princes, and lightning bugs and of course salt and
pepper stones has still been worthy as well. The annual draw down of
water in the Yakima system is coming soon, but who knows with this water
year. All in all, great weather, hungry trout, and busy schedules. Tis
the season.
8-24-11 ... Guide report - Rory
Steve
Rupp and I started early on Wednesday and floated from Ringer to Mahres.
We were on the water by 6:30 a.m. and the dry fly fishing was off the
charts for the first 2 hours of the day. Conservatively we had 25+ fish
eat our dry between 6:30 and 9:00 a.m. Once the sun was high in the
sky though, things slowed down significantly. We tried numerous different
hopper patterns; big, small, foam, parachute, tan, yellow, peach, it
didn't seem to matter, the fish just weren't that interested. The only
fly we had any measurable success with was a small tan para-hopper.
We finally succumbed to the inevitable at about 12:30 and began nymphing
and it was automatic. Nymping a single stone or a Stone and Lightening
Bug equaled almost as many 10" - 12" trout as you wanted with
a few nicer fish mixed in. All in all it was a great day on the water
with good company, good conversation, and we even caught some fish.
Bugs used included: Chubby Chernobles, Hatch Glommers, #10 tan para-hopper,
#10 Tan Montana Fly Carnage Hopper, brown or brn/blk Pat's Stone, Silver
Lightening Bug, King Prince, and a #14 Super Duper.
Tip of the day: When fishing early morning or late evening, if the fish
are on the prod, don't be afraid to MOVE THAT FLY! Several of our fish
yesterday morning were triggered on an aggressively twitched or stripped
fly that resulted with a violent take and a great adrenaline rush.
8-15-11
Fishing has been good to great throughout
the system. Mornings were hot for awhile but then tapered off. It looks
like they will be back 'on game' here based on the last few days reports.
The afternoons have also been reasonable. The evening's in select zones
have been good, but best to camp on a spot or two. Best flies nymphing
were brown or brn/blk Pat's Stones, CDC Prince Nymphs, and Red Copper
Johns. Dries included Wester Pink Lady, Chubby Chernobles and Hatch's
Glommers.
8-8-11 - Guide Report - Rory
Floated from MM20 to Mahres two days
with two father son groups. We fished these great guys on the Klickitat
the day before and each of the kids caught their first steelhead! Fishing
throughout the day came in spurts with a few on dries and a few nymphing.
As the evening set in, the action became a little more consistent with
a few more fish rising but nymphing remained the ticket. All in all
it was kind of an odd day of fishing with no real consistency like you
expect from this time of year. Best flies nymphing were brown or brn/blk
Pat's Stones, CDC Prince Nymphs, and Red Copper Johns. Dries included
Chubby Chernobles, Hatch's Glommers, and Royal PMX's.
8-2-11
The fishing on the Yakima remains good.
The intensity has been a bit less this week then last week. The mornings
until about 2pm have been good throughout the system. From 2 until 7pm
the fishing has been avg. From 7pm until dark the fish have responded
well. Both nymphing and dry fly fishing have been worthy. We have been
from top to bottom and the entire river is comparable.
Best bugs....see below
7-26-11
Pretty kick ass sums up the last week
or so of fishing. Dry fly fishing took off a few days ago, was interrupted
by some weather and today especially started rolling again. Been top
to bottom recently, and catching is good in all sections. Nymphing losing
a little momentum, but still good, and big bugs on the surface in the
afternoon are very worthy. Pat's Stones, Mays, caddis pupa, especially
Silvey's pupa and CDC PT's have won the nymph show lately. The Carnage
Hopper, Chubby Chernobyls, for that matter, most Chernobyl style bugs
and Gypsy Kings have won the dry fly show. Some very nice fish lately
on both the nymph and the dry.
POW-The Hatch.
7-21-11 ... Guide Report - CJ
Nymphing lately in the lower canyon
has been good to great. Pat's stones, lightning bugs, king princes,
and caddis pupa patterns have made the show lately. Today caddis fishing
in select zones at dark was worthy. Nymph off the banks.....and then
some. Harder more oxygenated flow has some serious play right now. On
more fairweather days such as last night....big summer stone dry fishing
has been ok to good. Let it ride, it'll get eaten. Give this hatch another
week to build momentum and it is game on.
7/19/2011
Fishing remains solid on the Yak. Pheasant
tails, Princes and Lightning Bugs are still the mainstay for nymphing
under an indicator in the AM and early afternoon. The Summer Stone hatch
is starting to gain some momentum; a single stonefly nymph two feet
under an indicator is accounting for some chunky fish being caught in
the afternoon and evening time frames. Dry fly fishing has picked up
substantially in the upper river as of late, we will have boats on the
upper in the coming days and a report of the latest findings will follow.
Major hatches still include Caddis, PMD's, Summer Stones and a few Golden
left overs.
POW!! the Hatch
7/15/2011
Finally some consistent fishing in the
Lower Canyon - 57 degree water temp. The nymph fishing has been good
to great in the Lower Canyon lately; Best bugs recently include #14
- 18 Lightning Bugs, PMD's Trigger Nymphs, CDC Holo Pinces, Worms......
Summer Stones are just getting going.....Should kick into 3rd gear around
August 1. Overall the dry fly fishing in the Lower Canyon is OK.
Farmlands - has some blockages - Reasonable
fishing with nymphs, slow with dry flies.
Irene to Ringer is blocked- no boat passage
without a major portage
KOA to Irene- no boat passage without a major portage
Diversion to KOA- No blockages
Upper Canyon - Dry Fly fishiong was
good ther for awhile but has slowed quite a bit due to the Golden Stones
waning. Nymphing has been avg to good.
Upper Flatlands and Upper Proper - No
report
POW!
7/8/2011
The Lower Canyon has been fishing reasonable
to good during the daytime utilizing various Caddis nymphs including
#16 Prince nymphs and Blue Lightning bugs. The evening big dry fly fishing
in the Lower Canyon has been good. The Upper Canyons dry fly fishing
has slowed due to the Goldens waning, however the nymphing remains good
in that particular section. We have not spent anytime in the Farmlands
as of late. The Upper Flatlands are fishing average to good with nymphs/dries
and the Upper Proper, the same.
7/1/2011
Well, the previous week didn't give us
anything to complain about! Awesome flows and river conditions, great
dry fly fishing with eager post spawn fish, and beautiful weather. Just
a few days ago, the man tipped the bucket over again on Lake Cle Elum,
and the Cle Elum expelled some serious water for two days, but it is
now on the hard drop again, and good fishing should remain from tomorrow
on. Don't know how many more bucket tips we will have, hopefully not
anymore before we have stable summer flow! Fishing was just ok the last
two days downstream of the Cle Elum, a lot of that great dry fly water
putting out recently just got too fast, so finding the softer water
and relief was worthy yesterday and on Wednesday, despite the stiff
rise in flow, catching was ok. The last two days have also been a little
colder and breezier and hampered the bug activity. Dry flying was and
should be good again from 10AM 'ontil' about 'Three-ish'; some days
all day, and on some there has been an afternoon lull. Nymphing pre
hatch with small PMD Mayfly and Stone patterns should be worthy, but
as a whole lately the dry flying has won the bread upriver. Fish it
all too, those trout are settling in to all sorts of new homes. Bullet
head Goldens, Larimer's Golden, Never Sink Ants and Larimer's Yellow
Sally have been the bugs to throw on top! We haven't been in the Lower
Canyon much, but the pre hatch nymphing has been great from other reports.
The river's on a hard drop, the forecast looks great, and the fishing
should be great.
6/28/11
Fishing is on fire right now from Easton
all the way to Roza. We floated big dry flies all day today and caught
a ton of nicecutthroats and rainbows. Current hatches consist mostly
of yellow sallie stones,PMD's, black carpenter ants, caddis and giant
golden stones. Best bughas been a size 6 yellow/orange Chernobyl ant.
Prime time hours today were from noon to six. -The Hatch
6/27/11
Kinda spotty but reasonable fishing....Golden
Stones take the show over the last week. Best highlights are with adult
Stone patterns - Gold Chubby's & Hatch's Glomer are the number #1
dry flies for the week. Best nymph patterns... #6-8 Pat's, #14 Formerly
Known As, #14-16 Lightning Bugs. Lower Canyon remains a mystery. the
places to be are the Farmlands, The Upper Canyon and the Upper Flatlands.
The Hatch
6/19/11
Fishing has been overall fair to good
the last few days in the Farmlands and Upriver. Caddis have been spotty
as well as PMDs and Goldens, but on the right days, the bugs are definitely
there and fish are responding. Gold lightning bugs, Red Copper Johns,
PMD Soft Hackles, and CDC Princes have been the stand out bugs along
with Black/Brown and Tan Stones. Weather's been great except for some
breezy conditions here and there, but that should stabilize soon with
a more fairweather forecast statewide.
6/17/11
Man, our river looks, feels, and is currently
fishing great! Golden stone adult patterns are turning fish in the afternoons
on the right days, and nymphing select "summer like" zones
is accounting for some decent to great nymphing. Brown, tan, and black
Pat's are all fishing, as well as your standard June workhorse bugs
such as black, red, copper, and green Copper Johns as well as lightning
bugs, gold and pearl. PMD trigger nymphs and more realistic Golden Stone
nymph patterns are also fishing. Look for egg laying caddis and fish
on top eating them near dusk, and PMDs, our summer mayflies on more
humid, cloudy days. Fish the riffles, breaks, joinings, and banks before
they break over! Excuse our minor lapse in reports, we have a great
guide staff who are on the water for the better part of each week, not
at home or in the shop on the PC!
6/16/11
Fishing has finally gained some consistency
on the Yakima over the last couple of days. Golden stoneflies are emerging
daily and a #6 G Golden stone nymph has been producing some larger trout
as of late. The big dry fly action will start to come on soon based
on the riverdropping and clearing. The PMD hatch has been sporadic,
however these yellow mayfly's (#14) have beem showing up mid day with
a bit of consistency. Other notable hatches include #10/12 Black Carpenter
Ants, American Grannom Caddisflies (#14 tan/olive) and Green Drakes(#10)
on overcast days. With the extended forecast showing highs in the 70's
and lows in the 40's the remaining run off should come off slowly, creating
consistent reservoir outflow and in turn good summer dry fly fishing
on the Yakima sometime soon. We will keep you posted with the exact
details as they unfold. - The 'Hatch'
6/12/11
Fishing
has been worthy over the last two days. It is going to be an up and
down game until we have stabilization which will be somewhere in the
next 30 days, most likely. We are going to see some good fishing and
not so good fishing in that time frame. Still are a few Spring Mayflies
in the Upper River. Most of our fishing has been from just east of Cle
Elum and upstream!
The
Hatch
6/8/11
We
are not in great shape.....Big and lost clarity!
The
Hatch
6/4/11
We
are in great shape / big but great shape. Strong Caddis.
The
Hatch
5/31/11
We
ran some trips this past week and had boats out this Memorial weekend.
Great fishing and good catching were had on the upper river and in the
farmlands. As of today the river is at just over 3000 cfs in Cle Elum
and just about 5000 at Umtanum. The trout finally have some major relief
from the big flows, and while still higher than normal for this time,
our river is certainly very fishable! Great visibility, and definitely
some bugs. There were some serious caddis popping this week and weekend,
and the fish are eating. Not much dry flying, but this week looks promising
for that with more favorable flows. The all star flies as of lately
have been Holo Princes, Green Copper Johns, Lightning Bugs, Big Black
and Brown Stones, and the Hungarian Caddis Pupa, and of course the X-Caddis.
Currently, the main left channel below the East Cle Elum/state launch
is again blocked by a sweeper, and the hairy blockage above Irene Rinehart
Park remains. Say hello to our summer season, and an ample supply of
water in the West.
The
Hatch
5/29/11
The
river is dropping fast...see below; we are good to go.
5/28/11
The
river is big. Fishing above the Teanaway confluence over the last few
days has been decent!
Best bugs - Streamers of various sorts dead drifted,#12-16 Prince Nymphs,
Lightning Bugs, #4-8 Pats Stone. with the water as big as it is the
fish are going to be in isolated zones...look for relief zones. Be careful,
rivers are always deceiving in their power, and most definitely at these
volumes.
5/24/11
The
river is BIG. We are starting to guide the Yakima manana! Fishing above
the Teanaway confluence over the last few days has been decent! Best
bugs - Streamers of various sorts and San Juan worms under an indicator.
5/15/11
Take
a break from the Yakima - She is sideways - We will keep you updated.
5/14/11
Tough
fishing for most folks involved today throughout the system. Plenty
of boats upriver and in the upper canyon. Raining hard right now, and
more to come. Not sure if the river will hold out long.
5/13/11 - Guide Report - CJ
Just
ok catching today for us and other guides as well upriver above the
Teanaway, which is on the hard drop. Decent reports from the Upper canyon
today, not en fuego, but worthy. Farmlands should be good to go for
the weekend, with the canyon following suite soon after. Trout still
eating the big Pats with some consistency, and Holo Princes and other
likely Caddis Pupa patterns in #14 and 16 have also been effective.
PT's in 14s when there are March Browns hatching, which by the way are
waning. No action on the dry Salmon flies for my boat personally yet,
but looking more plausible daily!
5/12/11 - Guide Report
- CJ
The
Teanaway is currently putting some extra volume and a lot of color into
the system, however above the Teanaway, is good to go! Good solid fishing
and catching the last few days from Cle Elum down, Big black and orange
Pats have been great as well as Holo Princes and PT's. Salmonflies have
been out in an actual bit of abundance on warmer sunnier days. Fishing
the big bug on top could pay off very soon here if conditions prevail.
5/10/11
Caddis,
Caddis and Caddis - in the Lower River .... unfortunately the clarity
is a bit sideways in the lower portions.
5/9/11 Guides day off
- Rory
Fished
with my Dad and a buddy upriver and had a very fun day. Fishing was
not easy, we had to work for our fish, but were rewarded generously
when they were hooked. Of the 10 trout landed half of them were between
16" and 20" with one piggy breaking the 21" mark. The
March Brown hatch was off the charts, but not a single fish was seen
rising. A few fish were landed on March Brown emergers fished mid-water
during the hatch. All in all the best bugs were a #6 brown Pat's Stone
and a #12 Purple Halo Prince fished very deep.
5/9/11
- KOA to Ringer - Guide Report / Keven
Rockin
fishing ...... 40-50 fish hooked on nymphs -
Injection
- Best bugs were... wait for it... Pat's Stone and a San Juan worm!
It might be more romantic to say that the 'Superdupercalifragilistic
# 13.5' is the only fly to use.... however when it come to the nymphing
this spring.....the Stone / Worm combo has been 2 thumbs up and literally
on one of our rods 100% of the time.
5/8/11
- Guide Report - CJ Farmlands
Decent catching. With some upper county precip. the last 48 hours. The
river colored up to about 2.5-3 feet at Ringer when I got off yesterday.
LOTS o boats upriver. Fishing wasn't bad. A trout hooked here and there
the whole way through. A dozen or so were hooked total on size 6 and
4 black and Brown Stones and San Juan Worms. A few also came on a Lightning
Bug and prince. Pretty standard stuff. The Hungarian Caddis pupa has
also been worthy. Not much at all to speak of for bugs. Pretty windy
and had some serious hail for a while. Some Golden Stones have been
sighted on fairweather days and salmonfly nymphs have been crawling
around. March Browns have been ok at best, definitely not consistent
by any means and if it does happen, it's been anywhere from One to three
o' clock.
5/8/11
- Guide Report -Rory
Report:
Kevin and I fished Mike Jackson and his crew on Saturday from Bristol
to Greenbridge. The Upper Canyon varied from windy to REALLY WINDY at
times and made for very tough fishing conditions. Mike, Mike, Sam and
Matt were troopers though and fished through it and were rewarded with
a few very nice trout and several average trout. All in all between
4 anglers about 15 trout were landed with 4 of them being in the 17"
- 19" range. Best bugs were... wait for it... Pat's Stone and a
San Juan worm. Bigger stone nymphs seemed to work well on Saturday and
a majority of the fish were landed on them. The March Brown hatch was
next to non-existent.
5/5/11
- Fishing remains good - We have seen some bumps in water levels but
nothing out of the ordinary!
5/1/11
- Guide Report - Above Cle Elum
Pats
stones, bitterroot skwalas, Golden chubby chernobyls, split wing march
browns, royal wullfs. Those were the bugs. Mediocre on the go dry flying,
good to great nymphing, and decent hatch fishing. A few extra nice trout,
ok trout, and small trout to hand. Average spring day on the Yakima,
very fun, very beautiful!
Go get em'
-C.J.
4-30-11
- Guide Report
Took Kevin, his newly wed Wife Tory and father in law David out in the
farmlands on Saturday. Pretty brutal as far as conditions go; some big
W and "funny water levels" but all in all we stuck it out
and got er done. Catching good in the morning and afternoon and just
ok throughout the day. Pat's Stones in brown, black and orange fished
as well as the king prince and CDC PT. Until today, I had personally
never seen such an abundant hatch of March Browns in a tradionally great
piece of hatch water with not one trout eating the vulnerable mayflies.
Oh well, live and learn. Hey, that's fishing. Good company and worthy
nymphing made up for it.
Go get em'
-C.J.
4/30/11 -
Great
Fishing the past three days. Strong March Browns in isolated zones.
Good to great nymphing. Best bugs over the last 4 days
1
#12-14 CDC PT
2
#8-10 Pats Stone - Imagine that?
3
#10-12 San Juans
4
#12-14 March Brown Spider Soft Hackles
5
#12-14 Para March Browns
Most
of our fishing has been upstream of Ringer!
Over
the last 4 days the river has dropped and fished worthy. Nymphing has
been the tactic. At the risk of sounding like a broken record, San Juan
Worms and a Stonefly nymph have been the ticket - we would equate the
aformentioned fly choices as the 'Meat and Potatoes'. Look for relief
spots. Water has bumped up just a bit in the last 24 hours.
4-23-11 - Guide Report - Rory
Fished on Saturday with Allen Heir and his friend Scott from Irene to
Ringer. The river had fallen almost a foot from the previous day and
we had bluebird weather with NO WIND! The morning started out good and
we had consistent fishing throughout the entire day. Most likely spots
produced a fish or two and if you worked the good zones you were usually
rewarded with ample hook ups. At the end of the day Scott and Allen
hooked somewhere in the realm of 40-50 trout with about half of them
being landed. Best bugs were #8 Brown or Brown/orange Pats and a red
or pink SWJ. We also were able to hook a few fish mid day on CDC Pheasant
Tails, a first for the year down in the Farmlands. Plenty of bug activity
with quite a few March Browns on the water and a few BWO's. We also
saw some Skwala adults as well as small Caddis. All in all it was a
great day to be on the water with great guys and we even caught a few
fish and got a little sun burn!
4-22-11
Jackson Party
Four boats (CJ, Kevin, John Wise, Rory) fished from Irene to MM20. The
river was falling rapidly and had good clarity but was still very high.
The morning was very slow fishing with only a few fish here and there
being hooked. Around lunch time things started to pick up and from 2:00-4:30
fishing was great. Things seemed to slow down around 5:00 once the sun
began to drop off the water. All in all the boats averaged around 12-15
fish each with the best bugs being #6 and #8 brown Pat's Stones and
a red SJW. Very few bugs seen flying around today despite water temps
in the mid 40's.
4/21/11 - Update
Water
is up even more based on releases.
4/20/11 - Update
Water
is up based on releases. The most volume is coming from the Cle Elum
Reservoir. Overall clarity remains reasonable to good. Water temps dropped
a bit.
More info to come...
4/19/11 - Guide report - Jack
The
Yakima is fishing good. Don't let anyone tell you different. Nymphing
has been the mainstay with a bit of dry fly highlights here and there.
Mr. Weather looks favorable for the remainder of the week.
Fished
with Gorde and Matt yesterday (4/18) and ended up with ample, ample
hookups.
Hi
you two! Yesterday was one of the those experiences that my Mother called
"precious moments! She would say-In your life, there are a small
number of these moments so when they happen-celebrate and remember them
because these are the experiences you carry for along time. Jack you
were a "perfect guide" yesterday, you have a "magical
personality", and you are one of the best fly fishing guides on
the planet. You have such a wonderful way with people and nature-thanks!
Matt your were a "perfect new fishing buddy" with your thoughtful
personality and fantastic skills with the " single patch!"
I can see many wonderful fishing times ahead with you and I, which
I count that as an incredible blessing! Thanks for a wonderful time
in the car, boat and all the "little times" before the trip.
I think you will be an incredible influence on getting me into "Steelhead
Fever!"
It
would be just fitting if the "three amigo's" reappeared on
the Klickitat for another "storybook" day!
Thanks for this incredible day guys! It was a
precious day, full of incredible moments!
Gordy
Hey
Jack,
I
had a great time yesterday! Thanks so much for teaching me some nymphing
tricks, and for getting us on some great fish. I am having a bit of
a hard time back in the office today. Would much rather be on the water!
I
will most definitely let you know if we decide to come up for a steelhead
trip with you guys, or if I plan on being up that way to just check
out the Klickitat. I had to go and revisit the photo page on your website,
and my steelhead fever rose up a few notches! Beautiful fish, and gorgeous
water. Can't wait to get back out.
Thanks Again!
Matthew
Flies
of the day - #10 Black, #10 Red San Juan, #8 Sparkle Bugger - Those
are the only flies fished yesterday; no kidding! Fish the relief zones.
From 11AM - 3PM we picked up one to two per hole. From 3PM and on the
fishing stats increased!
Pow!
the hatch
4/18/11
- Testimonial from Ron Peimer
Jack, just wanted to tell you that I had a great trip on my floats on
the Yakima the 16th and 17th. My guide, Kevin was excellent. He seemed
to know every drop off, back eddy, and riffle in the river and was aggressive
in his rowing so that we were able to cover all potential areas for
fish. Even though I had somewhat trying conditions with strong wind
and high water I was able to take numerous fish including some on drys
and some of large size. I have had many guides in many locations across
the US and Kevin really is one of the best I have encountered.
I have already emailed my fly fishing "group" about your steelhead
opportunity in WA and hope that we can come out for that.
Again, thanks for the great trip.
4/17/11 - Guide report
- CJ
Fished
Ringer Road to Mile Marker Twenty on the 17th with a couple of 'new
to fly fishing buddies'. Pretty windy, pretty big water still, but overall
solid fishing and catching. Hooked a dozen + in a short afternoon. Some
great sized trout taken as well. Early in the afternoon the #16 Black
Copper John and a #12 PT hooked a few trout. The # 10 Twenty Incher
and a black and brown Pats Stone were also worthy. The single black
Pats Stone won the day in the evening. Also saw two random eats and
rose both fish to a #8 Bitteroot Skwala. Didn't see any Mayflies....?
Fish the joinings, and soft spots and creases where "it all evens
out" and have patience because lots of your favorite pieces will
seem a little roily boily. Water peaked at 41 to 42 degrees F only for
a short time, three feet of visibility at Ringer Road with rainwash
green color.
We
should start to see some consistent March Browns here anyday. We have
had some glimpses and highlights being in the right place at that right
time, but nothing consistent. On the other hand, we still have some
Skwala around, especially from the Upper Farmlands West...
Pow!
The Hatch
4/15/11
The
entire river is looking good. Clarity is ranging from 2-5 feet. It is
still a big river. The daily highlight are the March Browns. Make sure
to be in the right spot. When the river is this big, the ' Right Spots
' are less abundant.
Flies
of the week
#10-12
March Brown Soft Hackle
#4-10
Black, Black and Brown, Orange and Brown Pat's
#10-14
King Prince
#6-8
Sculpzillas
Pow!
The Hatch
4/13/11
We
are definitely on track in the Upper River - Teanaway and up - good
to go. The Farmlands and the Lower Canyon are looking better daily.
4/8/11 - Guide Report
- CJ
Upper
River - Still very very high, yet fishable. Stones and worms.......and
streamers too! Three feet of vis with rainwash green color. Teanaway
still defacating mega. Hopefully in a weeks time without any major pineapple
express type systems in the cascades and valley, we will be back out
in full force!
Be safe, get out, and enjoy spring.
4/6/11 - The Yakima continues
to be 'Outta Shape'
3/30/11 - The Yakima
IS GONZO for the time being - Out of shape - Muddy and ugly.
3/29/11
- Guide Report - Rory
After
the mud of the last few days, many boats have been forced to fish
upriver, mainly from South to State. While the fishing has not been
outstanding, it has been good with an average of about 10-15 fish
hooked each day. Bugs have varied with worms and small natural stone
nymphs leading the way. Fish were also caught on streamers and various
small bead head nymphs. Skwalas are definitely around and when the
conditions warrant, have produced some great dry fly action! The river
has cleared slightly in the last few days allowing the farmlands to
fish again. The ubiquitous Pats and a worm combo has been the go to
set up in the murky water lately.
On a side note we have been seeing the beginnings of the March Brown
and BWO hatch in small increments over the last week. Hopefully a
sign of things to come!
Tight Lines, Rory
OOPS
- When is Mother Nature going to quite inundating the dry side with
rain? River has increased in flow and decreased in clarity. The upper
river is holding out, somewhat.
3/23/11
- Guide Report - Rory Oconnor
Fished
Ringer to Ump. Hooked 15-20 fish nymphing. Best bugs were the Worm
and #10 Brown Pats. Switched to dries at about 4 and we were off and
running. Estimated 30-40 fish rose to the dry with a little over half
of those being hooked, and half of those hooked being landed. Best
dry, #10 Hatch Glommer. All in all a great day with an above average
number of above average fish (15"-18" fish).
Water clarity is awesome throughout the river.
Fishing
has been avg to gooooood. Every day and zone is different. If Mr Weather
would lighten up a bit it might be a bit more predictable.
Best
bugs lately...
#10
Pats Stone in various colors
#10-12
Super San Juan Worms
#10
'20 Inchers'
#8-12
Adult Skwala Patterns
-#10
Hatch Glomers
-#10 Unit Skwala
The
Hatch
3/15/11
Little
up and down the past 48 hours. Fishing was actually rather decent
today upriver. Watch for the entire river to be back in shape soon.
Mr Weather calls for way less precipitation and cooler temps.
#10
Pats Stone in various colors
#10-12
Super San Juan Worms
#8-12
Adult Skwala Patterns
-#10
Hatch Glomers
-#10 Unit Skwala
We
have definitely lost some clarity and the fishing isn't lights out,
but remains good utilizing a variety of techniques depending on time
of day and actual zone being fished. Fish the dry later in the day
in 'slower' water type zones. Fish the nymph anytime of the day; sometimes
shallow, sometimes deep...
#10
Pats Stone in various colors
#10-12
Super San Juan Worms
#8-12
Adult Skwala Patterns
-#10
Hatch Glomers
-#10 Unit Skwala
River
came up and lost some clarity, especially in the lower half. All seems
good right now and the river is dropping and clearing
Yesterday's
fishing was lights out dry fly fishing - Number one Dry Fly yesterday
- 'The Hatch Glomer'
The
Yakima continues to rock on. Super Worms and a variety of Stoneflies
have been the ticket. I know that sounds like a broken record...but
it is a fact. if your not catching them, then change it up. If indicator
nymphing is your technique, then vary your depth and weight based on
depth and flow. If you find one fish, you should find more in that area.
The fish are definitely eating, and there are some nice ones to be caught
and released.
Mid
February we actually saw a few adult Skwalas here and there. Since then
... Nada. However, it should be sooner then later now.
jack
3/2/11
The
Yakima River is fishing great, The pass is clear and the basin lakes
are open....
the end
2/26/11
Fishing is a bit tough
today based on cold water temps/ice flow. We actually have a die hard
guest from Canada that just couldn't help himself and wanted to go fishing
regardless. It looks as though our weather will be changing for the
better as the temps are supposed to warm up considerably....
2/21/11
Fishing continues to
be good! We however are going into a cold spell and it looks as though
our night time airtemps at the end of the week will be in the single
digits. Get your fishing in now!
2/17/11
Ditto Last Report
2/13/11
>Skwala
adults are starting to show here and there on the Yakima. On the right
day, picking a few up on a dry is possible, cause we have. By no means
is the Dry Fly Skwala fishing hot yet....but it is going to be. The
nymphing has been avg. to great depending on the day. Saturday's afternoon
wind was 'outa control'
Best Bugs Recently...#10
Power Worms, #10 Brown Pats, Peacock Double Bead Stone, Hatch's Glomer
2/10/11
Fishing
remains SOLID.
Lights
Out Nymphing!!! --- 10 Thumbs up!
_________________________________________________________________________
2/6/11 - Super Bowl Sunday Update
We have two boats on the river today and with
the water dropping and clearing the fishing is ROCKIN'
- Best flies today are
#10 Pink San Juan
#8 Black/Brown Pats
_________________________________________________________________________
2/6/11 - Current
Report - Super Bowl Sunday
The total river saw a major bumb in flows over the last 48 due to
an innordinate amount of rain in the upper county, but is on the drop
as we speak. Our guests were able to hook some fish during yesterday's
fishing, but it was certainly slower then it has been. As stated,
the river is on the drop and fishing should improve.
Best flies yesterday
#10 Pink San Juan
#8 Black/Brown Pats
_________________________________________________________________________
2/2/11
All clarity is good throughout the river...See chart above. Best bugs
lately,
San Juan Worms #8 and 10 Red
and Pink
Pats Stone #8 and 10 Brown/Black and Orange/Black
#6 natural Sculpzilla
There are plenty of wading
possibilities emerging (pardon the pun). Picking the right zone for
wading is the key/not all zones are conducive.
Our remodled shop opens soon
-
_________________________________________________________________________
1/30/11
We are loooooking gooood. The lower canyon, while it is still big
had just shy of 3 feet of visibility yesterday and we did quite well
nymphing San Juan worms. Wading possibilities are slightly limited.
The boat fishing, however, is two thumbs up!
_________________________________________________________________________
The river is BIG
below the Teanaway. The place to be is above the confluence.
_________________________________________________________________________
The river is coming
into shape above the Teanaway. Bring your Stonefly nymphs, San Juan
worms and streamers!
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
1/14/11 Irene Rinehart
to Ringer Road
The river fished
remarkable today in the Farmlands with Stoneflies (# 10 Pats, #10
Double Bead Peacock Stone, #10 20incher) 3-5 feet under the indicator
and streamers (# 4-6 Sculpzillas) on the retrieve. The river increased
in volume strongly today and looks as though it might continue. It
might very well be out manana but the clarity was good today. At the
end of the day, there was a strong rise to midges.....and some big
fish. We would suggest a #18 olive or black soft hackle swung to those
risers or a single #20 Paramidge dead drifted.
_________________________________________________________________________
1/12/11 Irene Rinehart
to Ringer Road - Guides Report - Keven
Fish rising to midges
periodically. Nymphing was slow, however fish were aggressively chasing
and eating streamers on the swing/strip. Forecast looks good for the
near future. Most of the shelf ice has melted. KOA boat launch is
closed due to snow/the road not being plowed. Best streamers today...
Sculpzilla and the Dalai lama.
_________________________________________________________________________
Back to normal -
Ice is gone for the most part. Great time to swing the fly
_________________________________________________________________________
I guess not, currently
the river is solid ICE.....
_________________________________________________________________________
Although we have
a wintry mix coming are way the water temps and air temp will be increasing
and should prove to be good fishing this next week. Recently it has
been a BIT cold. Check our specials out above.....lots of people liking
that one, get your name on a date while there still are some. Make
sure to check out our Yakima
Swing Clinic on Jan 22.
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