Tuesday 10/28 Damn phones anyway

I have suited up twice now to go hit the water and both times I've been called away to do something else.

     I decided to turn off my phone, before I hit the water from now on or at least the ringer!!!!
It started raining early this morning and hasn't let up much the Okanogan has risen from 1190 cfs to 1440. That's still fish-able for me but i'm sure that it will keep alot of others away, but that A-O-K with me. I'll call, Glen, Pat, Doc, Gary and maybe a few others tonite to see if they want to head out tomorrow at sunup. My guess the only taker I get will be Gary.

I did get out around noon. made it to my local hole just as the sun came out for a short while. Got my first keeper of the day shortly after I got there. and just a few cast later bang my next one was a keeper too. less than a hour.and i have to call it quites for the day. With a smile on my face and two for the freezer and lader for the smoker. Homeward bound.

  
   Maybe I was called away from the water for a reason.The good Lord only knows and the Fish Gods blessed me when I got there. Tomorrow is another day. I'll check the river flow at 7am. Just heard back from Gary and he's in if the river doesn't come up to much.
"TREAT OTHER ANGLERS AS YOU    WOULD LIKE TO BE TREATED"
     Tight lines Brothers & Sisters

Saturday 10/25 Awsome day

Saturday 10/25/14
         Okanogan River somewhere between Omak and Riverside, 45 degrees overcast @ 7:30 am- noon
With the cold front that pasted through last night, I didn't really think I'd get much action.  I started at the top of the run and it took me close to hour to make my way through with two wild Steelhead and one hatchery. At the bottom of the run I check out my fly and tried it again. Nothing. Changed out and headed back to the top. This time just before the bottom of the run I get a hard tug.  A heavy fish I mean a heavy fish, I could tell that it wasn’t Steel so I tried to bust it loose. But every time that I could get to where I think I could bust it off it would turn and come at me. That 8 pound Maxima is tough. So after 30-40 minutes of me fighting this big ugly Brut I drug it into shore. It was so worn and spawned out it wouldn't even swim away it just laid there.  I call it a day and headed home.                                                                                                           Count as of today 13 Steelhead and only four Hatchery. I wont count the Coho,  the Bull trout (Dolly- Vardden) or the Chinook.
                                                   Because It's Steelhead Season.
Tomorrow I'm taking the day off and tying some flies.         Maybe
         
                       
RESPECT PRIVATE PROPERTY, ASK FIRST,
      LEAVE GATES THE WAY YOU FOUND THEM

Friday 10/24/14

The water temp is still above 50 today its 54 so I’ll be skating and waking or swinging just below the surface.

   I sent Tom a text early 6am. Sunrise is at 7:29. That gives me time to twist up a couple more of my Morning Crush. 6:50 text from Tom:  Going to take a rookie to two of are fishin holes. I replied back I don’t want to crowd you two, so I’ll head north. So I sent a text off to Gary, just before leaving to see if he could come out and play today. Reply: Sorry!! He had things to do before he headed out of town.

  Hoping now that I could get to the upper holes, before the crowds and gear guys. When I arrived to my surprise the parking was wide open. I suited and rigged up, just as I started on the trail to the water  the first truck pulled in.

    I took the top of the run. I started working it, swinging my fly after 5 or 6 casts.  Here they come three packing a tackle box each they spread out and low hole me. The guy just below me is already rigged up. He cast right to where my fly is coming to the end of its swing. Rather than take my step down I stay and strip out another 10 to 15 feet of line and cast again.  This time he see my fly and yell up at me “This is my section of water.”  I stayed there of about fifteen minutes and he never moved. I reeled in and headed down below the three of them. Saying; Good morning to each as I pasted.  They stood their ground.

About twenty yards below the last guy, I step back out into the water, strip out some line and gave it a fling and less halfway thru the drift the smashing tug and fish on.  I landed that one bonked it, marked my card and after three more steps and cast I had another, both Hatchery fish but the second one was less than 20 inch and I let it go.  Had to be the smallest Steelhead I ever hooked on a river. Two more cast and into yet another. Much bigger, stronger, and a tail walker she was out of the water at least four times. I couldn't see if it had a fin clip or not until I was ready to land and put my hand around her tail. I let her go and retied my fly I stayed for another fifty yards or so without a bump, tickle, or tug.  I headed back up and all three of them had moved down to almost in each other’s pockets where I got my first fish below them. One came up to me and asked after saying. Wow you had a awesome day. What color are you using? I showed him, pick up my fish and headed back to the top of the run.

I put the fish down at the entrance to the trail out and headed to the top of the run. I made a few casts and was hooked up again, but as I was working my take I saw an eagle, hopping around my beached fish.  This was another Hatchery and I had to keep it.   When I got out and down to my first fish the eagle had dragged it up the beach a ways and tore a hole in the side. I let the eagle have it and didn't mark my card.

10:15am, 44 degrees, Headed somewhere between Riverside and Omak. ???????

I broke my rod down and headed for the truck to head down river with only my one Steelie. I got down to where I figured Tom had been thru and left by now, but he was still there. He was alone and ready to leave as I showed up. His rookie bailed on him, He had a nice Steelie that he had to bonk and take home, one he had to let go and one that got loose.  He had a good mourning too.

I sung flies till 1 without a tickle, the sun was hi and bright so I packed it in and headed home.

The last Three days

Well the last three days on the Okanogan have been good to me. I didn't work much this week but did get in some quality Steelheading in.
Tuesday, I put in a short day at work, I mean a real short day less than a hour. before I was called by the fishing Gods to come visit and wet a line. I put on my waders and headed just outside of Okanogan. With the RL Winston strung up just the right fly tyed to the end, I waded out into the current just about wast deep, striped out about sixty feet of line for the swing did a snap T to let it fly, the swing the tickle, the tug, rod lifted and bent. Time for 20 plus minutes of tug-a-war.
I'm so glad the the weather has changed from being all sunny and brite to gray  gloomie almost rainy days. First cast, first swing, of the day and a two salt full of fight big headed Wild Buck. I grabbed his tail keep him in the water my line went slack and the hook fell out of his mouth. that was almost to good to be true. But four or five cast later it happen again and then again. I less than two hours three.
Wednesday was a no fish day. Made to trip to the Doctors
Thursday another short day at work just a little over a hour then to the river. I worked the water the same way as I did on Tuesday but nothing. Headed up towards the house but had to stop at the park hole for awhile with just one little tickle and no tug. after an hour I packed it in and headed to another place across from Omak and above. Tom and I fish here from time to time. I took the trail down to the water it's changed quite a bit but maybe for the better.
Swapped out  flies, hiked up river stripped out line and gave it a fling My line hadded even straighten  out complety before the big tug and game on Ispent the better part of the afternoon there and pick up three Metalheads .      

The Met

Monday 5:30 am we head out. Gary and I, and its still dark thirty when we get to the river and there is nobody there before us.
    The met was Good for me, but not so good for others, Doc couldn't make it, and Gary never even got a tickle or tug. Our first stop I hooked up with a nice two salt hen that was a real fighter, she smacked it while I was trying to correct a bad cast to keep from drifting into some trash build up.
After working my way down through  that water I didn't get anything. Gary was below me and worked the water good through that run with no takes.
   We headed up river to our second stop Gary doesn't like this spot much even tho he has pick up some nice Metalheads in the past. This is the spot that last year while he and Doc were working he tore his Ahillies heel, and Doc just told him to stick his foot in the water and that he would check it out when he got done working the water and get him back to the car.
We drew straws and I got the lower section yo work first. I went out in the middle of the run and on my second cast I hooked up with a 27inch Bull Trout (Dolly Vardden). There was no fight in it until I put my hand around it's tail and my hook fell out it's mouth.
   By the time we worked that water it was getting late for us and decided to head towards home. We made one more stop on the Okanogan so I could show Gary some new water he hadn't ever fish before.
  I got a little tickel and that was all    

Fifteen hour between the three of us

Today three of us, Gary, Dave and myself spent more than fifteen hours on the Okanogan River with not even a bump or tug. I admit we were fishing pretty hi up the system, we saw lots of Chinook rolling headed up river and some floating dead down the river, one even hit me in the leg and almost scared the stuff out of me.  We worked three spots well known to many to produce fish. I did manage to hook a couple of nice bass, but I wasn't bass fishin. The three of us are going to hit the Methow on Monday maybe we'll have better luck.
    "WHEN FISHING CATCH & RELEASE USE TACKLE HEAVY ENOUGH TO LAND THE FISH WITHOUT A PROLONGED FIGHT, MASH THE BARB TO MAKE THE RELEASE EASIER ON THE FISH"

Okanogan Steelheading

     Wednesday I was on the water at daybreak and fished hard until 10:30. with only a short tug that wasn't much. I left the north end of the river and headed south and on the way I put a call in to Ton Mac to see if he was feeling up to going out for a while.
    Tom meet me at the house all dressed up for the kill. Waders, Boots and rod in hand within 20 minutes of the call . I had just enough time to fix and half eat a  Ham, Cheese, Turkey with grape jelly on a biscuit. A cup of cold strong coffee to wash it down.Then on the road again to hit a couple of spot on Tom's list of spots to hit.
   We hit two spots that I'm not going to tell out of concentration because Tom ask me not to tell. Both places we had the water to our self's and both looked to be great water to work.They just weren't working for us we hit until 3:30 and called it quits I had one fish on at the top of one of the runs for less than a minute, just a quick head shake then gone.

    Today Friday I went into work for a short while and did a couple of quick small jobs. Work on a Buddy's car for him. Then hit the river again. First by the Oak street bridge, below Salmon Creek, then went down a little farther. On what I said to myself would be my last set of cast and then out before it starting raining even harder. I got the tug,I set the hook and away it goes, the power the pull the bent rod about twenty minutes later I'm able to put my hand around her tail, a nice 10-12 pound wild hen. I slipped the hook out of the side of her mouth  and she swam away with a big tail slapping splash.
    I want to mention today was the first time that I talked to the Tribal creel checker. I've got about 20 hours into the season and have only seen  one on the Okanogan. He said "That he has checked a total of eight angler in the last week and a total of 9 wild and 2 hatchery Steelhead logged, but lots of Chinook".  
 "HELP A NEW ANGLER IF IT'S OBVIOUS THEY ARE      HAVING TROUBLE,  "SHARE A FLY OR TWO," "POINT OUT A BETTER SPOT TO CAST,"  &  "OFFER USEFUL TIPS"      

  

Cold windy day on Long Lake, Ferry County

I got to Gary's house early. The plan was to throw my stuff in his truck. But as everybody knows plans change. We put his stuff in my truck and headed to the lake. Opening day for deer season was on Saturday, we figured that the road into the lake would be lined up with pick-ups and  the camp ground would be full up with hunters and deer strung up in camp.
We saw two truck parked along side of the road. No body in or around the camp grounds, and we had the lake to our self's. It was cold the wind was blowin out of the southwest at a good clip before we could get everything ready to fish.

Water temp. was 41 while the air temp. was 38 and wind blowin.
 The lake was ours. with our back to the wind we started on the west side of the lake and headed south it wasn't long before we were both into fish.  Lots of Cutties in the 10-12 inch range, We knew we just had to get pass the smaller to get down to the larger ones. I switch out from my intermediate line to my deep 6 let it fall a good 30 count before stripping my #10 Punkinhead Leach and within three short strips it was fish on with a much bigger beautiful Cuttie.

   We really got into the fish on the far end of the lake and stayed out of the wind for awhile. both of us putting to net more than 20 fish. Around 1 o'clock we headed in for some lunch of Corn-beef on Rye and a cold hard cider. Hoping  the wind would die down a little so we could do some dry fly fishing. The wind never did die down, but we did find a place in the upper north end that was sheltered by the toolies and I was able to get one to come up and smack my Caddis.
We had a blast, it was well worth the drive, Gary and his wife Birdie had fresh fish for their dinner. and I even didn't put-m-all-bac I keep out just a few to give to a good old friend that can't make it out with us anymore.
FISH LONG, TAKE WHAT THE WEATHER GIVE YA, ENJOY LIFE AND FISH MORE OFTEN 

 

The Okanogan River

Just got off the OK a little over a hour ago.  I was casting at sun up north of Riverside. By 8am I had my first take but wasn't much just a white fish. The cast after words was the one that got my attention almost as soon as my fly hit the water I didn't have time to mend, my line started moving up stream I had to let it pass me up to take out the slack to set the hook. Chinook about 19 lbs was taking my line north. it was hanging in the far side don't ask me how. I wasn't going down river. It never had time to change directions. before my line was going up stream.
My fish count today 2 white fish, 2 Chinook, and 1 sucker, No Steelhead, but no big deal.

What a great day

I called my neighbor Bill last night and invited him to take the plunge. To get out and leave everything aside, for awhile and go fishing with me in the AM.
So I picked him up at six forty five this morning with his grandson. We headed up to one of my favorite honey holes. Both of them don't fly fish, their gear guys. and not the best at it even. But I invited them anyway.
     There is one thing I tell everybody I take fishing on moving water is make three to five cast to cover the water and move down at least five steps. Cast three to five times and move down. You'll  cover more water and have a better chance to fine fish. They both agreed to do so.
   I'm glad that I took the water below them with my Spey rod and started working the water first with my Scandi line and a Purple Pearl. I changed out about twenty five yards to a Barbie Special  since the Pearl wasn't working.  I had made it about 100 yards down river. I had looked up a few times to see if anything was going on up above. The only thing that was going on was that they both of them hadn't moved a inch from where they started other that to replaced the gear back on that they had lost. Corkies and hooks.
I could see the Chinook in the water, waking as they came up stream. Pods of as many as twenty five or more, at a time.
   I made it all the way thru the run and headed back up and changed out my shooting head and put on a mow tip. Started my retinue again and after my third set of steps down stream it was fish on a good strong pull you know the kind that almost pulled you over. My rod bent and shook I put all the extra line back on the reel, put on more pressure and reel was talking to me rod was shaking my heart was racing I'm picking up line slowly and bang nothing rod and line go limp. I retrieve my limp line to find that little curly cue  was on the end.  KNOT CAME UNDONE.
   I tyed on another and worked it to the tail out with nothing.When I got back up to the top of the run they were both ready to leave. Saying that there is nothing to catch here other than a few white fish and a mid size sucker.
  It was getting close to time to leave anyway, Because I needed to meet Mark and Jackie for lunch.
I meet up with Mark and Jackie at Rancho Chico Mexican Restaurant, they had just got back from their place down in Mexico, We did some catching up on each others lives and then spent the next hour or so talking about the fishing around here and down in old Mexico. Where I'd love to go this winter to spend some time fishing from shore, just outside of there place. Let see if that works out.
There is nothing better than family, good food and great friends all sitting around the table talking about the past and future fishing!!!  
  
     

Steelhead opens today

Yup. It's just after 4 am I'm up and getting ready to head out to the Methow, Tommy will be showing up soon. the weather girl calls for sunny and bright conditions. oh yea total eclipse pretty cool .
The parking lot was only half full or half empty which ever way you want to say it. We desided to work the water from the south side so that Tom had the room for his back cast, using his single hand rod,. while it really didn't matter to me.  
. We crossed the River down at the Miller hole, was glad that I had my Fallstaff to loan to him and to keep him up rite. We headed up river and I left Tom about 100 yards from where we crossed in the first good run, while I keep going up past the 2 other guys and headed for the top run above the pipes.
 I tyed on a Halo put a ripple hitch on it and while doing so watched one of the gear guy hook and loose a nice brite fish across the rive from me,. running the Halo over a big boulder on the third or fourth cast my line went tight and low and behold what do I have. Not a Metalhead but a fat Bull Trout this guy was greedy along with my fly stuck in his mouth there was also a two and a half inch wide tail and half the body down it's throut.  I got him off my line and moved down a few steps, checked my fly and gave it a fling, but the gear guy pulled in my line with his. He set my fly free and pitched it out in the water and said some hasty words to me but I couldn't understand them but I could tell by the finger suggestion he showed me. I just smiled and keep on fishing. and moving down.
After two more moves and him just missing catching my line I got the tug. set the hook and out shoots this nice brite beautiful Steelhead. We played tug a war for what seamed to be 10 - 15 minutes me taking a little and her taking a little less. I was finely was able to put my hand her tail. She was about 7 or 8 pounds pulled out the hook it slide out so eazy.  she gave me a splash and was gone.
The gear guy across the river yell at me smiled and gave me the two thumbs up, then moved up river.
I check my fly again and found some bad spots in my tippit and retyed on some new.Striped out some line and gave it a fling letting the water carry more line out as I strip it off the reel. when I had about 70 feet of line out I started my retrieve,  about half way in I got another tug. Bam! Fish On.!!!! Turn out to be another Bull, only this one was strong and full of fight. Bigger than the SH.

After that I worked the water down to the next guy that was Nymphing and not having very much luck he said. I pulled my stuff in and headed down to where I left Tom.he was just finishing off a snack and we decided to head up river to the next place.He told me that he saw a few fish that were caught but not many. while we drove up river.
I could tell that Tom was getting tired so after only fishing for about an hour.I asked him " You doing alrite or do you want to pac it in?  He told me to go ahead and fish that he would watch. Naw let head out its pretty slow. and we packed it up and headed home about 1:30. I had a great time today. The best thing was being able to get Tom out for the First day of the 2014-15 Steelhead Season.
                                My many thanks goes out to Tom
 
 

Aeneas Lake

I meet up with Gary as planned at 3pm to fish till dark. But he had to leave and be home by 6 but I don't think he made it in time, maybe 6:15. Had to take the wife out to dinner so that we can back down to the Methow on Wednesday.
  We were catching fish as we worked back towards the launch and we said are departings I headed over to work the eastside at least to the pipe But just as Gary was pulling out of the lot a got a heavy tug a bent rod and played tug a war for the next 15 minutes with the best fish of the day. It was even bigger that one of the Metalhead form yesterday an 19 or 20 inch Brown dog. sucked in my #12 Soft Hackle  and Peacock stuck to the back of his tongue buried deep. He was pissed I could stick my whole hand in his mouth and I did.  .   After catching that big boy I worked my way back to the launch picking up several more Bows the largest be 16.
By the time I got back to the launch it was getting dark. We had the lake to ourselves again, except for Jack that live on the lake that get out every now and then. The water was calm with zero wind.

I received some reports this morning

Well a few fellow fly guys sent me some reports of the lakes that I haven't wrote about lately.
The far north end
Beaver & Beth : Beaver is weedy just like always this time of year, but if you want some nice Brookies, and don't mind removing the salad  from your fly at least every other cast  I hear they are devilishly good .      Beth is fishin good the water temp has dropped concernedly in the past few weeks and the fish are frisky and fat with good catch rates of fish in the 14 to 18 inch range.
Blue Lake by Wannacut :   If you like to catch the  Lahontan cutthroat trout there are some that are starting to cruse the shore line but are real fin-a-key.
Chopaka Lake : If you can get up there the weather has been great cool mornings warm days and lots of fish can be had if you know how to fish it. I suggest work some hoppers and crickets in the weeds. ( I know it's late, but it works )
Methow Valley Stillwaters
Big Twin : All they could say was FUN FUN FUN
Davis Lake : Slow to start but as the day warmed up the catch rate also went up with a few Bows in the 18" to 20" range it was windy but not too bad both days they fished it.
 Since I fell asleep and missed fishing with Gary last week at Aeneas Lake, and spending all day yesterday on the Methow River
   Where I'll soon be spending just about all my free time in the weeks to come.  
                                            Hope to see you on the water  

Our Coho trip to the Methow

   We got a late start, but we made it Gary, Doctor Dave and myself. The plan was to check out some of the holes to see what kind of damage was done with the fire and flash flood, expecting to see nothing but silt on the lower river.
  We arrived down at the Miller hole only to find a half full parking lot. We drove pass it to see if what the water looked like and if anybody was hooked up. (there was)  So we got excited and hit the parking lot suited up and headed up river on the north side. The burn made for easy walking and to follow the trail.
     I had always crossed the river to fish the south side and go up about three quarters of a mile or more and work my way back down. today I followed. Dave stopped about 300 yards up river, just short of a gear guy that headed out just before us. He planted himself in that spot all day never moving, in one of the best spots in the middle of the run. Gary and  keep heading up and I and I stopped about another hundred  yards above the gear guy thinkin he would move. No chance. Gary put in above me fifty yards above me.
    We saw Dave get hooked up before to long. While Gary and I had a few tugs, Dave hooked up again. I finely got a fish on for about thirty seconds and then went slack.
   Gary and I traded places and I soon had bent rod only to pull in a nice small hatchery Metalhead, and almost as soon as I let mine go it was Gary's turn to play. Gary hooked into a very nice much bigger wild Metal-head that took him for a few short runs.
Dave came up and ate his lunch while we fished awhile longer. and I headed down to fish below the Gearguy,  Work my way down with only one pull and the creel checker came by we talked and when I asked what the reports have been his comment was "lot of Steelhead and no Coho, but there isn't alot of people on the water."
I work my way through the run and then head for the parking lot.
Gary and Dave where soon behind me, we decided too head up river to check it out. Our next stop.  !?!?!??
   I change out to my Scandi line to skate a bug over and around a couple of  boulders.  Within a few cast it was fish on we played tug a war for a few minutes and with a tail flash it to was gone. I pulled in my line and it looked as if I had a knot fail Tippit to Leader just a curly cue at the end of my line. I retired and tryed again but nothing.    Dave was in site and sitting on shore watching Gary I reeled in and headed up. it was getting late so we deiced to head home.
   If you were to ask me I'd say Not a bad day on the water. We all hooked and landed some fish. Couldn't ask for better folks to be with or better weather.
          FISH HARD,   INVITE A BUDDY,  ENJOY LIFE LAUGH  and FISH OFTEN
                                     Sorry to busy fishin to take pictures

COHO in the Methow starts Saturday 10-4

Yes they are opening the upper Columbia and the Methow for Coho so that's where I'll be Sat.report to follow. and pictures. Gary, Doc, and I are going to start out and take the tour from Pateros and see just how bad the river is after the fire and flash floods.

Have you ever had that feeling

I was up on Salmon Creek yesterday and got this weird feeling. I was close in to the bush just flipping my little dry, couldn't really cast. The wind was blowin in from the south at a pretty good clip.
   After catching a few fish in this spot my fly hung up in a bush across the creek and I broke it off. I backed out into a clearing to change out and as I went to dig out another Bug, I got that weird feeling again. I looked around good for something in the grass maybe a rattlesnake,  Didn't see any or hear any, but still had that feeling. the wind had calmed down a little and I knew that I should be able to do some casting just down from where I was, and that spot held some nice fish in the pass.
So rather than tye on a bug at that time I thought that I'll move there first. I slowly started moving out further out into the clearing  to cross the field when I saw something move slowly about 60-70 yards down wind of me at first I thought Bambi, But it just vanished, I was out in the clearing now almost into the field next to the fence. I stop at a solid post set my rod down and stepped up on the wire to take a closer look at what I saw and was headed towards, I'm now maybe still 50 plus yards away. It took me a little while to relocate the spot where I thought I saw Bambi. The grass was moving not by the wind but towards the tree line slightly to my left. I stood on the fence which seemed like forever. Just as I was ready to get down I saw it again make a larger move and this time I saw the tail. Cougar.
     At first I didn't know what I was doing to do, my truck was on the other side and the section of water I wanted to fish on the other side i really don't want to go back into the thicker brush, and don't want to stay where I was the rest of the day. It was still early only 3 o'clock. I yelled out, but nothing, I yelled again watched and waited., but still didn't see a movement. I stepped down and backed down to the next post. but it was flimsy, the next one flimsy. The fourth post was a railroad tye  and solid I climbed up on the second wire and looked hard didn't see anything. The road is only twenty five yards away now and there is a pretty solid looking branch laying on the ground near by. I've put some distance between us. I picked up the branch and headed toward the road slowly.
   I noticed the wind again, and keep looking back over my shoulder as I headed toward the road. When I finely got to the road after climbing up the steep bank. I took a good long look to see if I could spot it again. As I walked up the road to my truck I keep a close eye out, and thought to my self did I just scare the shit out of myself or did I really see this cougar.
  At the truck a unlocked and open the door, set my rod down on the canopy, pulled out its case, and as I was pulling it apart across the creek I saw it again heading up the far hill. A mother cougar and she had a cub with her. She looked to be just over hundred pounds and the cub maybe sixty. Were they stocking me now that I think about it. I don't thing so just are paths were about to cross.
The Fishin was good, I differently got my heart rate up for awhile, I came home safe with quite a story to tell the wife, and another memory of the GREAT OUTDOORS.