As usual we will begin the week on the famed Metolius River and poke around the eddies, runs and main currents of our favorite Pacific NW spring creek.
There has been a lot happening out here from dry fly fishing, to nymphing, to streamers both big and small for bulls and bows and anything else that wants to believe they are getting a hearty meal. Surprise.
This week the fall transition of 2 yellow mayflies has occurred. The cinygmula’s are back on the water and mixed/masked along with the pale morning duns that we have seen every day since mid-April. How does this matter to us as anglers? Only a little bit when it comes to fishing the emerger, and probably not at all when it comes to fishing the nymph, dun or spinner. Cinygmula’s often “hatch” (emerge from nymph to dun) on the bottom of the river and the dun swims to the surface making a yellow soft hackle or yellow dry-merger a great choice to match that stage. Cinygmula mayflies are in the clinger nymph family like march brown and pale evening duns and that is a characteristic of mayflies that are in this family. PMD’s on the other hand are like many other mayflies in the crawler or swimmer families and the nymphs ascend to the surface of the river and emerge through the film to the adult stage, creating a feeding opportunity that includes time and vulnerability to the process and the trout know all of this. Film Critics, Klinkhammers, Captive Duns, Sparkle Duns are all flies to mimic that vulnerability. Add the fact that many of these mayflies become cripples and tuck a few KD Duns and Half Down Duns (Bob Quigley was a master fly designer, he thought like a trout!) (PS, my favorite fly designers are Quigley, Rene Harropp, Craig Matthews, Bob Brooks, Mike Lawson and Al Caucci and Bob Nastasii. This winter when you are snowed in, research the fly patterns they have contributed to “us”. You’ll be blown away)
This past week there were still some Green Drakes hatching. Between now and next saturday I would highly recommend you still have a #10 and #14 emerger and dun in your kit for the river. They are waning, but as they say, “it ain’t over yet”.
Mahogany Duns are important all through the month of October. The Upright Rusty Spinner is my #1 fly to match that, and I also like a Quill Gordon and a Grey Comparadun.
Blue Wing Olives are a staple from here on out and a mix of sizes, especially #18 and #20 will be good. Fish the hatch cycle with nymphs, emergers, cripples, duns and spinners.
Speaking of spinners, I had dinner and watched some baseball with my good freind and fishing wizard Chester Allen the other night. I had just come from Hosmer and he had just come from the Met, and he fished a wonderful spinner fall of cinymulas on the upper river and the fish were dimpling the surface to eat what they knew were never going to get away from them. Spinners are a key component to the success of fishing the mayfly life cycle, and having a #10, 14, 18, 20 olive spinner, #16-18 rusty spinner, #14-16 yellow or cream spinner, and #16 grey spinner will cover you well on Oregon rivers and spring creeks.
Clarks Stones are still working really well. We just restocked 12 dozen #12 Clarks which is perfect for the end of the season Golden Stones and is a double duty hitter with fish that have October Caddis on their minds.
Still a whole bunch of smaller caddis hatches in the mix, mostly #16 tan and #14 grey caddis. The pupa fished deep or at the surface during emergence is the best. My new improved Fat Ass Caddis and the Original Fat Ass Caddis along with an Edible Emerger, Iris Caddis and Prairie Dog Pupa are good now and will be all winter.
Nymph fishing Euro style has been most productive, but certainly the indicator has game too. Eggs continue to be a #1 protein source for trout and whitefish as kokanee have been spawning prolifically.
Brown, Olive, Yellow and Purple perdigons and light or dark Walt’s Worms along with PT’s, Red Copper John, Rainbow Warrior, Caddis Pupa including October Caddis and Golden Stone Nymphs. Don’t forget the Golden Stones have a 3 year life cycle and they are not always big #8 and #10 flies. Fish the kid sizes too. We sell a fly called the Sloan’s Stone that is a juvenile delinquent to the trout. Add it to your box for the fall and winter season.
Bull Trout fishing is part of the fall season like playoff baseball and good college football. It is a great time to be on the river with an 8 weight and a big streamer. We custom tie a triple articulated pattern we have in all black and another in black/purple/blue that is my favorite. Dolly Llama and white Circus Peanut (or Black) and Articulated Sparkle Yummy are good too.