Looks like it’s official.
Toasty today, the first three locals who saw me said,”I guess spring is here.”
The river is going slightly off-color in the PM.
Didn’t freeze last night……
With this warm spell, I’m hoping we don’t get a flash-melt.
Water temp was steady at 46. Now it will yoyo every day.
Warmest mid-morning to noon. Then flows will go up a bit, temps will go down, and color will go tan/clear.
No Ants flying yet, but it will happen soon…..
Tie them, buy them, but have’em ready…
Looking like a beautiful week.
I think the flows are about as nice as they will get.
Flows will be warmer on a low water year.
Fish early this year……
Right now the H2O temp is around 46 deg. clear/green.
Nights are still freezing (barely), this may be the week the melt starts.
We will see whether it is a quick melt, or delayed.
Bugs are the same, waiting for Ants.
The seines I’ve been doing are full of all sorts of bugs.
From very large Golden stone, to midge larva. (sz4 through sz24 respectively)
More food means happy feeding fish.
Bring your seine, and a box-o-flies.
Had a mink moment yesterday.
Keep your eyes peeled for these little locals.
When we are standing in a stream, they don’t seem to see our profile as well.
Got to watch for about five minutes, as it hunted on the opposite shore.
Then, when it was gone, I one-drifted a 16″ Brown trout..he passed on a cray, to eat a march brown nymph….
What a sweet way to end the day.
The menu is changing….
All winter it’s been little bugs.
Lately the Skwalla have been the big draw.
Now they are naturally winding down, and the rest of the “Bugs of Spring” are going to kick in……
Saw my first March brown Adult yesterday (Mayfly).
Found several Caddis shuck in the shallows.
And saw one large Tan Adult fluttering about.
And soon…the flying ant…
Have them ready….
Flows are a little low up near Truckee town.
Search for darker water.
Get that drift. Smaller flies 20-22 range working on selective fish.
Approach carefully.
Some action lower in the canyon as well.
Tim’s Crays might be worth a try, but the set better be fast.
Try swimming it, instead of drifting it.
A lighter tippet is a good call. The water is green/clear. 43-46
(At times 13ft 4-5x leaders, with mud for dries. 10-12ft 3-4x subsurface.)
More takes will be the reward.
Good luck keeping them on…..
One outcome of fishing pressure, year-round, is fish with game…..
I go out with all kinds of fish catchers.
Some that are very, very good….(to preserve friendships they will go unnamed.)
More than a few are in a fish l-a-n-d-i-n-g slump.
This river makes….all of us focus.
We study our bugs, study our drift, and shazam….there are fish in here!
But now that we have what we burn for, what to do….?
The best of these fish will amaze.
Last year I hooked a brown in the 8 lb+ class who went 7-8 tricks deep.
He did it in rapid order, with clear malice of forethought, in front of a client.
I was with him all the way, trick for trick…
Finally, he did a swim by, apparently just to give us a serious stink eye.
Because, he then made the jump to warp speed, to a spot just below a pour-over on a beaver dam, forty yards away.
There he surfaced and was swept over the top.
End of lesson…. for both me and my client.
I didn’t mind…..it was a new trick for my play book….and I already have a pretty good collection..
The client had new respect for his quarry too…..he suddenly got serious about it.
A while back, I hooked a huge Rainbow right at the brink of the biggest cascade on the T.
I knew better….
Yep….he went right over the top. I couldn’t pull him up, and couldn’t begin to follow.
Seemed like he clearly knew the outcome, and that maybe, that’s why he was there to begin with…..
The fish profile us, find weakness, and strive to get away.
I often wonder how many times they are hooked in a 6-7 year span on the Truckee.
Many I’m sure…..
Add wild trout attitude, fish exceeding ten pounds and well……
Their stats on hookups/escapes do them proud, and why landing a fatty here is special.
Even though I prep my clients beforehand (and myself), it still seems like a fire drill, when we hook up.
Hard-wired responses generally kick in.
So the best advice I can give, is to mentally rehearse possible responses, before the fish is on, and debrief after a hookup..
Unlearning old habits, is a good first step here.
Learn from mistakes, and don’t repeat them.
Then, raise concentration levels when fishing.
The next drift could be the one….
Since most folks don’t fish year-round, it is difficult to hone that inner fish ninja.
Preseason practicing helps of course. Getting that cast squared away is good.
But how does one get the most out of fishing time on the water, once the season has begun?
Of all the ways there are to get better at fishing, I think “gentlemen fishing” may be best.
An early version of this approach, was in Briton around three hundred years ago.
The lord of the manner would walk the beat with a guest.
Trading rods perhaps, as they walked to different fishy spots.
Several friends, guides, and a few clients, fish with me this way now.
Minimal heckling is involved actually.
OK, a little….. but not enough to ruin the fun.
We give a set number of tries on a hole.
3-5 drifts is a normal amount per turn.
The others watch carefully, because it’s their turn next.
Did he have a good drift?
Was he deep enough?
Did he use enough weight?
Were those the right flies?
We all need to know…..
Some rules have evolved too.
If you miss a fish three times, you are done.
If you break off a fly, you are done.
Catch a fish and someone else is up….
Much of the time, most of us fish a little sloppily.
We get the job done fairly frequently, but could do better.
Gentlemen/women fishing, is one way to steepen the learning curve.
Later, when fishing alone, you may recall the same concentration level.
Give yourself 3 drifts.
Process the info, and make it so……
You can increase the learning pressure further (and excitement), by spotting fish for each other first…..
Spotting for another, gives a help to the fisher on the water.
Which they will appreciate….perhaps by buying you a frosty beverage later…..
Glare often prevents the fisher from seeing the fish they’re after.
The spotter, in turn, gets the lesson.
Watching a fishes “body language” as a fly approaches them is educational.
The fish may show faint interest, make a small move and back, turn to take and refuse it.
And best of course, the slow acceptance, of the offering.
If you desire earnestly to improve your skill set.
Find a friend who burns to learn as well…..
Then go “gentlemen fishing”.
Perfection, is a rarely achieved state.
But my search for perfection is constant.
Fishing the Truckee requires raising the bar on our technique.
I say there is no secret to it.
Just do everything you normally do, just better.
I always say Walter will find your weakness too.
Here is sequence to try.
1. Don’t rig at the car.
How do know what’s going on?
By going to the water…..
Pick the wrong fly and no love…..
Watch the air, check rocks, do a seine.
2. Use a fresh leader.
If there is the slightest nick in it,
wave bye-bye……
Start out with a heavier dry fly leader (4x), then go lighter (5x) for more grabs.
I recommend mud for your leader at high noon.
3. Good knots!
I lost a fatty yesterday due to a bad knot.
Actually, the knot was good, but I had already caught a nice fish on it.
Always re-tie after catching a fish. Trout have teeth, and a nick on the knot is a possibility.
4. Try not walking on the fishing trail.
Fish know who walks there.
And don’t hop on top of a big rock either.
I don’t care if that’s how Brad does it……
Once you break the horizon line, they know it’s game on.
5. Don’t walk up to the water directly either.
Many fish hold near shore.
Most of us have “over-there syndrome”.
Looking at the other side first is easy.
Fishing close first is harder..
Been catching more fish since I started this policy.
6. Shorter casts are best.
The further away you cast/fish,
the less likely you are to perfect your cast.
Whenever you feel yourself straining, you are too far out.
As the old guy told me, “fish with your feet”.
Don’t false cast over them either.
Line shadows/ rod movement bothers them.
7. In my opinion “the drift”, is the most important part of this whole deal..
“A good drift with the wrong fly, will catch more fish than, a bad drift with the right fly.”
Fish have a hard time saying no to a good bug, AND a good drift.
The drift, is only as good as your mends.
No slashing sideways mends, lift and flip gently.
No auto-mends either, see what the line is doing on the water, and mend accordingly.
And a good “reach cast”, is worth two mends……
8. Set often, many fish are missed here, because folks wait for a memo, to feel it…
A small “check set” will let you know if they are there.
If not there, continue the drift.
Try deselecting the “rod set” mode. Swing with the current, downstream.
Lift the rod and often you will just pull the fly away from them.
Also, beware of the Auto-set…….
Not all fish are the same size here, so an appropriate set for each is a good idea….
9. When you do hook up,………run!
Don’t try to make them come to you.
If you have 5 lb tippet, and hook a five pound fish, the river will do the work for them.
Follow as closely as possible.
Then guide them into slow/shallow water.
Watch for “the big move” right at the net. (Bring a bigger net too. I like a 17-18″ long opening.)
These guys are good and big..
10. Keep them in the water to handle them.
Use a fish-kind net. Forget hand landing!
Tell them how beautiful they are.
Don’t let them go till they are fully recovered.
Don’t lay them on the shore for photos either………………………..
Better to not have a photo, than kill that prize.
If you do it right, he’ll be there next time (and smarter).
The Truckee is an awesome fishery.
Persistence, and perfection, are the keys to the kingdom.
They say 10% of the fishermen catch 90% of the fish.
These steps will help you join that club.
Remember, as you get into bigger fish, your responsibility increases.
Take care of your fishery, and it will take care of you…….
Gloooop!
The sound is enough to freeze me in my tracks.
Sure people bird by ear, but who fishes by ear?
I do!
When big bugs are on the water (like Skwalla), it behooves one to listen, instead of blindly fishing.
It’s closer to hunting than fishing. Slower, sneakier, and very exciting.
Find one, decide on your approach, and float the fly to him very carefully.
We find that if it misses the fly on the first pass, he may try again on the next.
After that, I would move on. They are too smart to try and worry one into a strike.
The best part of this style, is the first rises I’ve seen in five months.
Got to love that.
The challenge: use light enough leader to fool them, and heavy enough to land them.
I suggest a 10 ft 5x, and a very light touch. 4x with mud is a better call.
Air temps are were near 60deg. H2o is 48+ and rising.
Today it’s snowing lightly, with patchy blue skies.
Skwalla may not happen today…chilly again.
Should be very nice weekend.
Good luck out there…..
The best thing about being out on the water, is what we see on the way to, and from it.
Slight dustings of snow let all the critters sign in.
On the way to the water we followed some bobcat tracks left after the last storm.
He meandered to a tuft of grass sticking up through the snow, urinated on it, then he fell down rolled over, and started scratching and scenting. A bobcat snow angel……
A little further along, his tracks joined another bobcat’s.
Must be spring….
A cougar has been leaving tracks near a friend’s house, with smaller kitten tracks alongside them.
I think a rabbit under the porch is a lesson in hunting.
Geese are honking it up.. you can hear them at night, and dawn, flying south.
Many of the birds of summer, have returned. Hearing songs I haven’t heard in five months..
Watched a Stellar Jay male, feeding several Skwalla to his mate.
You would have though it was valentine’s day by their posturing. Chocolates my dear?
Redtail hawks are paired up and soaring circles.
My personal favorites for tracking the progress of spring, are American Dippers.
They stay the winter with us, a tough gig….
Lately they’ve stared acting amorous, chasing each other around like kids in elementary school.
They pursue both in the air, and under water. Then they will sit and sing joyful duets.
Although they mate for life, they still have to reinforce the pair-bonds every spring…..
Oh, and I saw my first mosquito this week……squished her.
Trying to get the season off to a good start…..
It is an early spring.
Not by my standards, but by the critters.
Heard my first Mountain blue bird yesterday.
A sure sign…..
The bugs are telling me too…..
Snow is melting fast, bears are waking up.
I don’t think there is any stopping it now.
Not that I’d want to…
Fishing has been really good.
Fish are feeling it as well.
They are moving about as the temps come slowly up.
Water has been bouncing between 40-44+.
Little dustings of snow melt right off.
Flows come up for a day, and are slightly off color.
The day after, the water clarity, is better.
A day after that, the flows start to come down.
Stability until the next storm.
The trick, is to catch the day before the storm.
We feel an increase in air temp just prior to a front’s passing.
This the best chance to hook up.
Warm before the storm……
All year I wait impatiently for this week.
Of course, I don’t know exactly which week it’s going to be..
Skwalla (a stone fly), are the first big bug of the year.
Sometime in March or April it happens.
Every fish in the river seems to look up when it does..
Imagine, eating popcorn all winter, and them being offered a double cheeseburger.
The female Skwalla, walk out from the bank, onto the water’s surface tension, to oviposite.
A relatively helpless, large insect, struggling in shallow water, trips the fishes feeding switch.
Fish rising, trips my Fly Fishing switch.
It won’t be this good again till next year…..
Turned several dozen fish in the last three days, on dry flies.
The timing is from about 12:00 PM till 4:00 pm.
You need an accurate, buoyant, but low-riding fly, and a perfect drift.
With the low, clear water, a lighter 5x leader is a good call.
For locals, I’d say fish from Glennshire up to Trout creek.
The Truckee river above Trout creek doesn’t open for a month,
so don’t get carried away chasing the bugs upstream…..
Snowed last night a trace. That will put the chill on their emergence today.
That’s OK, because my back is sore from all the fishin’.
Gives me a chance to tye some more flies, for the next warm day…….
