#2153259 - 04/16/08 05:57 PM
First fish of the season!
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rob p
Campfire Ranger
Registered: 11/14/05
Posts: 1635
Loc: rhode island
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Saturday was opening day, and it rained and howled so I postponed. I got out on the Wood River today, and there were little gray, red, and black mayflies as well as big blue ones flying about and the trout were rising. Trout were coming right out of the water, so I figured emergers and threw 3 tail and hare's ear nymphs for two hours - nada. By 11:00, the dunns were riding down the river with their gray wings and the trout were smacking them. I anchored up next to a muskrat den in progress and had at least 3 fish laughing at every pass I made with a little gray thorax fly. I tried the ginger dunn from the flyswap, nothing. I tried the special Adams thorax, zilch.
I tried over and over to drift the fly past where the fish were rising. I got a hit and lost it, then I got a little 10" brown. I paddled a couple hundred yards up river and the air was full of bugs. The little gray mayflies were like big snowflakes coming down. There were stone flies with their whirly gig wings going, and a little white moth like caddis along with midges of a few varieties. I had trout rising on both sides of me and I got another brown before a half dozen kayakers came through. I paddled further up and had three trout in a row on a current seam working. I threw a fly to them at least fifty times before one hit. He spit it out and on the next cast, I hooked a completely different fish that broke my 7X tippet. I paddled back to the parking area and met my friend and fishing guru.
Rick picked a mayfly off the water and said: "That's what they're feeding on." He said it was a dunn, the wings were still opaque, and the fish were taking them. So a dark chocolate mayfly pattern out, and two hours of nada. Fish were hanging out in the tailwater of the river as it opened out into Wyoming Pond. We went out and saw the dunns floating by us by the dozen and the trout taking them. Rick got a nice brown and told me it was on a bluewing olive. I tied one on and threw it out. He said it wasn't floating high enough. It should look like a little sail coming down the river. I tied on the prettiest fly in my box and tossed it out. In ten minutes I had a fifteen inch brown on. I got him in the net, reached down to get the fly and he bit my thumb. One bleeding hole, and a few choice words and then I let him go. I tied on the second best looking fly in my box and a couple minutes later I got another nice brown. Rick got a rainbow and another little brown at the launch ramp.
Mayflies on opening week of trout season, and five fish my first time on the water, on drys no less. That and two sunburn hands. The sunblock I slathered on must have washed off. It did it's job everywhere else along with a big goofy hat I wear. Not that much hardship for a first shakedown trip. The fish are nice bit I let them go. They are stocked fish, but that's what we have to play with here and a lot of them survived opening weekend. The stocking truck's coming back next week to put in some more. I'll be pruning fruit trees and raking leaves, but maybe I'll get out again while the sun's shining.
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#2153305 - 04/16/08 06:23 PM
Re: First fish of the season!
[Re: rob p]
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castandblast
Campfire Ranger
Registered: 02/07/05
Posts: 1545
Loc: Central Oregon
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Good for you Rob!
Isn't it challenging to have feeding fish to work on but be unable to find the ticket that gets them taking the fly on every good presentation?
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#2153402 - 04/16/08 07:07 PM
Re: First fish of the season!
[Re: castandblast]
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rob p
Campfire Ranger
Registered: 11/14/05
Posts: 1635
Loc: rhode island
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I'm still trying to figure it out. A lot of trout were coming right out of the water, which made me think they were taking emergers. I couldn't get one to take an emerger pattern though. The #14 gray and olive thorax flys took five fish, and I lost three more. I casted to dozens of fish, and my friend couldn't believe the fish were so picky. He insisted the fly I use be new and with a perfect little wing sticking up like a sailboat. There were naturals on the water floating by, and for most of the day, we didn't see fish taking them. They put the trout in two weeks ago and they're that smart already.
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#2153468 - 04/16/08 07:42 PM
Re: First fish of the season!
[Re: rob p]
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castandblast
Campfire Ranger
Registered: 02/07/05
Posts: 1545
Loc: Central Oregon
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I used to go to great pains to match the hatch with mayfly imitations that looked, (to me) like they were the real thing. I learned from a more experienced friend that a Haystack in a color similar to the natural could spank my exact imitations every time, was quicker to tie and more durable. It is about all I fish on mayflies anymore when duns are getting slurped. Match the belly color of the naturals and give it a try!
Here's a link:
http://www.randrflyfishing.com/2008/02/0...in-trout-flies/
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#2155308 - 04/17/08 09:22 PM
Re: First fish of the season!
[Re: Sitka deer]
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rob p
Campfire Ranger
Registered: 11/14/05
Posts: 1635
Loc: rhode island
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I watched that a couple weeks ago over and over along with all the other things that came up with "feeding trout." The trout I was watching were making big splashes and you could see their heads come out of the water. I am going back soon and want to find out what they're doing. I'm going to tie some haystacks and toss them too. The little gray and olive thorax flys like the ones I put in the flyswap got me five fish and 3 unsuccessful hookups that still count as fooled fish. I slammed my knee today dropping limbs and have a nice purple goose egg to look at. I'm thinking I may need to fish tomorrow to get my mind off the pain. Saturday's so close though. I'm tempted to tough it out.
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#2159867 - 04/20/08 07:10 PM
Re: First fish of the season!
[Re: rob p]
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rob p
Campfire Ranger
Registered: 11/14/05
Posts: 1635
Loc: rhode island
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We're catching trout here. Seven yesterday, five the day before. My friend went without me and got seventeen today. He told me to make sure all the flys look like perfect little sailboats (mayflies). Where the river opens into the pond, the drift slows and the fish have all the time in the World to scrutinize the flys. I'm going back tomorrow. I broke a $550 Sage XP I bought last Summer lifting a twig out of the water to unhook. It's going back with $50 to coax them into honoring their warranty. I'm using an Orvis Small Stream Special now I've had 20 years that's a foot shorter. On the plus side, I got one of my flys back. I hooked a fish at the beginning of the week behind some lady's house that broke my line. I got him in the same hole yesterday and got my fly back out of his yap. Nice brown. He turned upside down and sunk to the bottom after I tried to revive him and I had to scoop him and give him to some other fishermen for dinner. We've got every bug imaginable from red and black quills, hendricksons and bluewing olives coming off . I'm told they're a couple weeks early. It's amazing after last year's experience on the river. I'm actually seeing spinner falls and feeding trout.
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#2159964 - 04/20/08 07:52 PM
Re: First fish of the season!
[Re: rob p]
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1minute
Campfire Guide
Registered: 01/28/01
Posts: 2681
Loc: Burns/Hines, Oregon, USA
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Getting my blood up here. We've been below freezing all weekend with wind and snow squalls about every 20 minutes.
Depressing as I spent nearly the whole weekend inside. Keep those reports coming. 1Minute
_________________________
1minute
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#2161620 - 04/21/08 05:34 PM
Re: First fish of the season!
[Re: 1minute]
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rob p
Campfire Ranger
Registered: 11/14/05
Posts: 1635
Loc: rhode island
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I got out today after my friend got 17 trout yesterday. I also called Sage and found that I had to send my rod back with $50 to get a new tip. I got this XP 5 weight for $325 at LL Bean on Sale. Now do I want to return it and get my money back (they said I could) or do I want to spring for S & H back to Washington and $50 for Sage. I'm up in the air.
I got six today. At 6 AM I got 1 on a #16 Hare's Ear in Bright Red. About three hours later, I got one on a brown one. An hour paddle up river and the mayflies were starting to rise. I didn't see a trout rise until 11:30. I got upstream of two and drifted a blue dunn thorax #12 heavily overdressed and nada. I switched to olive (which I didn't see flying) and I got them both. I got two more at the bridge where I launch in front of a couple of worm fishermen drinking beer. They were impressed. One had claw marks from the Osprey living on the River and they thought that was really cool. All fishes went free to be caught again, and probably eaten by worm fishermen.
Edited by rob p (04/21/08 05:39 PM)
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