Gorge Fly Shop Fishing Reports January 26th

Gorge Fly Shop Weekly Fishing Report

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Columbia Gorge Fishing Report November 16th

Jeff caught a nice little hen. 

Fishing Report

This last week was good for most of the area anglers that ventured out.  Our favorite summer steelhead rivers were kicking out fish and in great shape for most of the week.  While this weekend’s rains are not doing much to help the clarity, levels are going up and there could be some good fishing this week.  The weather looks unsteady and possibly torrential, but there should be some good periods of fishing this week. 

Chinook Salmon are mostly dead now.  There are a few stragglers holding on, but the rivers are full of dead salmon everywhere.  It is very much like Alaska in the Gorge right now. 

Summer Steelhead have been on the bite this past week.  While nothing was red hot, there was steady and consistent fishing for many anglers last week.  Jeff and Sam are visiting from Montana and they managed to pull a few out of the Klickitatduring their visit.  The Klick went out of shape on Saturday night, but could easily come back early in the week before the predicted big rains come in around Wednesday or Thursday. 

The Deschutes gave up a fish or two a day to most of the anglers that went out.  The lower river is definitely colored up as of Sunday from the White River pouring mud, but the river above the confluence with the White is in great shape and should likely stay in great shape as the week unfolds. 

The Hood Riverwas actually looking pretty good on Sunday morning.  We had a spike of water and the river is dropping and looks great as of Sunday. While the other local rivers were rising, the Hood was dropping.  No reports of any winter fish caught in the gorge yet, but there are a few summers hanging around. 

Trout fishing is closed on several local lakes and streams now.  Please consult the regulations before fishing. 

Areas closed for trout include: East Fork Hood, Hood River (for trout), Eagle Creek, and the Deschutes upstream of the northern boundary of the Warm Springs Reservation.  The White Salmon above the county road bridge below the powerhouse (old dam).  LaurenceLake is also closed, as well as the Metolius Riverabove Allingham Bridge. 

Areas open for trout include:  Deschutes downstream of the Warm Springs Reservation (Maupin area and downstream are open), Lost Lake, Goose Lake(WA), The White Salmon from the mouth upstream 2 or so miles to the old county bridge and Yakima River.  November trout fishing can be really good, especially big fish eating big meaty streamers.  Get out your favorite streamer patterns and go!

Travis took out his Winston Micro Spey 10’ 6” 4wt out to the Deschutes and had a good couple of hours pulling streamers for Rainbow Trout on Thursday.  He caught a couple of nice fish with minimal effort.  This is going to be a great fishery during the winter, especially during the drier periods when steelhead are hard to come by.  Instead of a down and across swing as you would do for steelhead, cast more across or slightly upstream and let your line develop a downstream belly. Then you are ready to start stripping the fly.  Anything between a little twitch and a fast pull will work, but they will generally be more receptive to one type of retrieval.  It is just up to you to find out what type of retrieve they are looking for. 

Smallmouth Bass are getting no attention right now, but with water temps dropping in the big river, the bite should be pretty good.  You just have to find some current out there, and there isn’t much to find right now.  It should be easy to find the fish once you locate some moving water.      

As always, we are happy to talk fishing any time.  Give us a call if you have any specific questions on local rivers, gear, and tactics, or if you just want some encouragement to get out of the office.  

Andrew Perrault
Gorge Fly Shop | Product Specialist
541.386.6977

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Get Started in Fly Fishing Chapter Two Fly Rods

The look on your face when you get a new rod

The fun begins with your first purchase. Youre ready to buy a fly rod. Most will experience one of three possible scenarios.

1) You find yourself in a large outdoor chain store with plenty of things to buy but no help to see you through a good decision.

2) You find yourself in a upscale fly shop where the sales staff proceeds to make you feel inferior and unworthy of the sport.

3) You come across a yard sale or hand me down rod that is always the best ever according to the previous owner. Trust me. Its rare to find any worth $$$ in a yard sale. I know because I look for them.

I didnt intend to start off this article sounding cynical but I bet if many of you would comment with your stories many of them would match one of these three descriptions.

Too Many Choices

Too Many Choices

Lets start with import or USA built.We can discuss this subject from many different angles - heres the facts

USA Built 

Pros - The best fly rods are built in USA. All USA built fly rods are hand crafted. Most if not all USA built rods come with some kind of lifetime warranty. Most have good resale value.
Cons - Expensive! Cost of USA manufacturing, research and development, advanced materials technology that makes these rods the best come at a high price.
Summary - If you become passionate about fly fishing you will own USA built fly rods. What comes with these rods is a sense of pride. Hard to have that feeling for something imported from an overseas factory. I have had the pleasure of visiting many USA rod manufacturer facilities. I like knowing that the hands that built my rods also are as passionate about fishing as I am. Its a feeling you cannot put a price on.

Imported fly rods

Pros - Value per dollar. Good entry level options. Some have lifetime warranty (although you may end up with a different rod than what you started with). Also some very good quality rods for much less than USA built price.
Cons - Hard to tell good from bad. Here today and gone tomorrow.
Summary - There is some really good import rods on the market and they catch fish just like a USA built rods. But the import business tends to flood the market and makes it hard to sift through whats Great, Good, OK or just plain cheap rods. Resale value of imports is weak and often times you cant give them away. I also notice that many come with catchy names to help sell them but not a good description of what the action is, so often you find someone purchased a rod only to find out it is a poor fit for their casting ability or the fishing they are doing.

Premium Picks - 

Sage One

Winston BIIIx

G.Loomis NRX Lite Presentation

All of these rods are beautiful and powerful tools for fishing. Each has great power coupled with very intuitive feeling that will help any angler progress down the path of good casting. Excellent resale value and the industry leading warranty service also add to their value. I should note here that rods like these hold their place in history for years to come.

Mid Line Winners - 

G. Loomis Pro4x

Winston Nexus

Echo 3

Sage ACCEL

These models range in price from about $300 to $595. Winston, G. Loomis and Sage are built in USA. All have lifetime warranty. All of these rods offer excellent performance and value. They could go with you on a lifetime of fishing and you would enjoy them for years to come.

Entry Level Values - Imports

Redington Classic Trout

Echo Solo

Redington Crosswater

Classic Trout and Solo offer lifetime warranty. One year on the Crosswater. I am real fond of the Classic Trout. Its a moderate action easy to cast really good trout rod for the price. The Echo Solo is also a good choice and at $119 with lifetime warranty its hard to beat.

Outfit Options

An outfit is an easy way to get Rod, Reel and Line all in one purchase. 

Sage Approach Outfits

Redington Minnow 
Made for Kids-Loved by Adults

Redington Topo Outfit - Complete ready to fish

Echo Solo Outfit - Great Value

Two Hand (Spey) Rod Choices

No reason one has to start out with a single hand fly rod. If you live in steelhead country just go ahead and jump to a two hand. Ive seen too many beginners get a single hand 8wt only to come back in a month and say I want a two hand rod. I think two hand casting is harder to learn on your own but with a good instructor like Tom Larimer of Jeff Hickman you will soon be on your way to fishing success! Learning single hand casting first is not a prerequisite. The rods I choose are all pretty moderate action and not only do they fit beginners well they are also a great action for skagit style two hand casting.

Winston Boron III TH

G.Loomis Pro4x

Sage ACCEL Two Hand

Redington Dually

Echo Dec Hogan II

Sum it up

A popular quote around the fly shop is "if you dont want to buy a more expensive rod than dont cast a more expensive rod." Even a person just starting out with some basic casting skills can feel the difference from these different levels of rods. That doesnt mean they catch more fish, they just cast better and make you feel like a hero. I know plenty of anglers that catch plenty of fish on $89 Crosswater rods. This works on the premise that if you want to catch fish you will use what you got! Spending more on a rod doesnt guarantee you more fish. What I can almost certainly guarantee is if you embrace to sport of fly fishing you will own premium USA built fly rods. Its inevitable!

The way I weigh the options is in one of three choices - 

Buy Top Shelf- You work hard for your money and when you have time off you deserve to enjoy it. Great pride comes with the best rods and you find yourself taking great pride in your fishing. Long after your gone when your grand kids find your fly rod hidden among your treasures theyll know how much it meant to you by the way you took care of it.

Buy middle of the road knowing that youll get a great rod you can own a lifetime or maybe it will be the first and last rod you buy. I know anglers that only fish their home waters. They usually will fish a dry fly if fish are raising and if not they switch to a nymph rig. One rod can do both methods therefore they only need one rod. They only fish a few days a year and enjoy it as much as anyone. Some of todays mid line rods are a recent yesterdays premium rod.

Buy cheap now knowing that youll upgrade in the future - Its nice to have a cheapy around for yard casting or letting your buddy or kid have a swing...Hard to hand over your several hundred dollar investment and watch a novice thrash it.

Dont fret over making a wrong choice. There are no wrong choices just future choices and Gorge Fly Shop will be here to help you make that choice whether you buy one or a hundred rods. 

Greg Darling 

Gorge Fly Shop Internet Sales Manager | Product Specialist

"Fly Fish the World with Us"

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Forced to become a Warmwater Fisherman

"Freshwater Bones"

With this heat, low water and generally poor fishing conditions, an angler has to get creative. I traditionally fish for summer steelhead starting in July and go all the way through November, but 70+ degree water temps in the Deschutes have eliminated that river as an option. The Klickitat is hovering between 3 and 4 inches of visibility due to the glacial melt and the Hood is barely trickling. The few places that one could go swing for steelhead in the Northwest have become incredibly crowded and I do not wish to add to that crowd, at least as often as I actually want to swing for steel…

So I am forced to become a warmwater fisherman. It’s all fairly new to me. I caught largemouth bass, pike and carp a few times in Nevada, but it was more of a novelty, with little effort put into figuring anything out there. The trout fishing in Nevada is fabulous by the way, but more on that another day.

Booyah!

I have been smallmouth bass fishing a few times in my life. All of them have been this year. I have learned how to fish crankbaits and spinnebaits on a casting rod. It has been an interesting experience. I never really gave bass a passing thought before, but here we are. I have caught a few of them on flies recently, but casting big flies in a stiff breeze on a six weight is often more of a burden than it is worth for me. If they are really on the bite, then I don’t mind casting a fly rod, and occasionally the wind dies down on the Columbia enough for a couple hours of pleasantly calm fly-fishing conditions. I have an old Sage RPL+ 690 matched up with a Galvan Torque T-5 and a Rio Camolux WF6I intermediate line that I prefer for most of my bass fishing. I also fish a spare spool lined up with a Rio Smallmouth Bass Line WF6F for poppers and the magical “Float ‘n Fly” technique that is deadly effective at times when nothing else works.

I love my old Sage RPL+. It is a 2-piece rod, which shows how old it is… It was the first decent rod I ever bought and I have caught thousands of trout on it, but it is ancient technology and I have been looking to update my 6wt situation for a couple of years now. I am heavily leaning towards a Sage ONE 690-4, but the G. Loomis NRX would be equally great first choice.

Having one rod with a floating line and one with a sinking line would be ideal. If I were to get serious about bass fishing, I would most likely have both a 6wt and a 7wt so that I could throw some seriously heavy flies in the wind. Maybe I can get both the ONE and the NRX if Santa thinks that I have been nice enough this year.

I have also been carp fishing a few times now this summer. Talk about a finicky fish. When you are bass fishing, the carp are everywhere. When you decide to go carpin’, they are nowhere to be found. I have yet to land one this summer, but I have had some serious shots, a few hookups and a lot of refusals. Figuring them out is the fun part. They are smart, big and strong, and can often see you long before you see them. I feel confident when I trout fish that I can catch them, but not with carp. This last Sunday, we searched several big flats that should have had carp stacked up thick only to come out scratching our heads wondering where they were. We did not see a single one; not one. Often, there are hundreds of them working the flats in that spot.

Carp seem to like fairly drab colored, simple, weighted flies. Tans, browns and grey shrimp patterns, crayfish, and even beadhead nymphs work fine. It is all about the presentation with very little to do with the fly choice. The key is to get the fly down in front of them and hope they come across it. One little twitch as they are near usually invokes either a strike or a refusal. You fish for them like they are a permit while using a bonefish fly, and they fight like a redfish. You don’t often get two shots at a fish, and making more than one cast in their general direction is usually not going to happen without a fish bolting, which causes other carp in the area to do the same. Calm, feeding carp just became spooky with just one cast.

For my carp set-up, I have been using my Sage XP 8100-4, Lamson Litespeed 3.5 and a Rio Indicator II WF8F line. My old Sage XP was a great rod for steelhead nymphing, but for carp it is heavy and too long. A 10’0” rod is great for small water for steelhead, which is why I got it. Well, I don’t nymph for steelhead any more, so my rod is a little outdated. With a carp rod, a soft tip is crucial to getting a good presentation. A 9’0” 8wt is ideal for carpin’. I would look at the Winston BIII-X and the Sage Accel as both of them are soft enough for a perfect presentation, yet have the backbone to turn a big carp.

The Rio Indicator II WF8F line is also not the most ideal line for carp fishing; it is just what I have on my reel at the moment. A Rio Gold or Rio Perception both provide better presentations for spooky fish than the Indicator line, but we work with what we have sometimes. Matching the line to the rod and the situation is very important, and we will save that for another post.
So I have also been up to Mayfield Lake chasing Tiger Muskie this summer. Now a Tiger Muskie is unlike any fish that I have caught in years. They are truly and apex predator. They don’t care about you or your boat because they are in charge and that becomes apparent very quickly when you see how they operate.

Fishboy Gabe with Pike Minnow

It took a full day of fishing before I really figured out what I need to do next time, which is all anyone can expect to do the first time exploring a new fishery. Early on, I was just blindly casting a really big “perchy” baitfish pattern. Their primary food source consists of Northern Pike Minnows, which are a perchy yellow color. Casting an 8 inch weighted baitfish pattern gets really tiring really quickly. I only got one follow from three or four hours of blind casting. While it came out of nowhere and followed to the boat, it quickly swam back into the weedbed where it had appeared from and I realized I would need to change my approach or I would need shoulder surgery before the end of the summer.

So once the sun was up and we started spotting fish consistently, I changed my tactics. These Muskie sit in fairly shallow water and are pretty easy to spot if you are looking for them. First, I changed my fly to a smaller, white, unweighted deceiver. It sinks slowly and is easier to cast accurately and quickly. We slowly cruised around with the trolling motor, and when we spotted one, I made a cast and put my fly right in front of it; much easier on the shoulder….

I let the fly sink and gave it a little twitch when it was suspended in front of a fish. I had one fish let the fly fall onto its beak after every twitch. I could see how agitated he was, and when he finally opened his mouth to eat it, I set the hook prematurely, yanking my fly right out of its closing jaws. That was the best shot I had all day, although one other fish was very upset at us when we put a fly in his territory. That fish never ate it, but seemed to chase the fly to the boat every time we put a cast near the downed tree that it was sitting under. Over and over again, it chased my fly, slowly cruising the perimeter of our boat, it seemed like it was going to attack on nearly every cast. We left it there with plans to return later, but drunken party boaters (there are many of them on that lake) really put a damper on our efforts when we went back to that cove. I wanted to hide in the depths of that lake too when I heard the blaring country music and screeching drunk women that only got louder until we finally gave up and found another area to fish.

For my Muskie setup, I got out the old Redington CPX 1090-4, Lamson Litespeed 4 and a Scientific Angler’s Titan Taper WF10F. I really liked the line quite a bit early in the day. I like that I can pick it up and cast it with a varying amount of line out of the rod tip. The long back taper is great for that, and the short, blunt front taper turns over those gigantic flies with ease. My only problem was that it was so hot by mid-afternoon that the line was getting limp as freshwater lines do in 80+ degree water and 100 degree air temps. I have a Rio Tropical Outbound Short that I am going to use next time I go if it is anywhere near as hot as it was last time. I never imagined that I would need to use a tropical line in Washington State in June, but again, here we are.

A stout, stiff saltwater-worthy 10wt or 11wt is the perfect rod for this scenario. Sage makes a Pike Rod (10 wt) and a Muskie Rod (11 wt), both are 9’0”. Either of them would make a great new Muskie Chaser. Another intriguing rod is the G. Loomis Pro 4X ShortStix 10/11 wt. It is 7’6” and very stout. It should make throwing huge, weighted flies easier, although you will lose quite a bit of distance casting it vs. a 9’0” rod. I am also thinking that the prospect of hitting myself in the head with a 2 lb. fly on a windy day increases proportionally with the decrease in the length of the rod. I will stick with a stout 9’0” rod for now, and work on my figure-8 and hope for just one strike.
This is a relatively unknown fishery in Washington, but the potential for the eager fly fisherman is high, and as a steelheader, I am content with knowing that covering the water well is a sign of success. Catching a Muskie, or even hooking one had not really even crossed my mind as I have heard countless tales of fishermen going whole seasons without a strike (sounds like most of my steelheading experiences). I know that I have much to learn and many more hours of fishing before I will get another good shot at one of these beasts.

"Hey Andrew...Just threw this in here so you would know what a 20" smallie looks like...lol" #bassprogreg

Well, so far this summer, I haven’t caught a carp; I’ve only got a couple of Muskie follows, and I have not caught that elusive 20” smallmouth, but I’d say that my forced transition to warmwater fishing is going smoothly and with little resistance. I cannot bring myself to harass trout, steelhead or salmon with water far warmer and lower than is healthy in our local waters. Even if we come out of this heat wave, the rivers are still going to be low enough that fish will struggle to migrate; but the carp and bass are loving life right now and I am going to learn to love them even if it is not my first choice.

 



Andrew Perrault
Gorge Fly Shop | Product Specialist
541.386.6977
#andrewperrault

"Fly Fish the World with Us"

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Looking for Trout Behind the Velvet Curtain by Dale Mertens

(Buses, trains, taxis, trout... Getting there is half the fun...)

"English?" I asked the taxi driver.

Whitewater chute?!

"A little," she replied.
"Vltava River," I said. "By Rozmberk. Fishing." I held up 5 pieces of dissembled fly rod with reel attached.

She smiled. "No problem. We go one or two kilometers past Rozmberk."

The paved road wound through dense forest as it hugged the river. We passed campgrounds full of tents and saw lots of plastic rental canoes floating down the river. As taxi drivers are prone to do, mine turned the twisting road into her very own F1 track.

After about 25 minutes, I loosened the grip on my fly rod and my seat edge. We slowed as we passed through the small town of Rozmberk and underneath its castle. In another two minutes, I was standing with trout rising furiously in front of me. And I was wondering if - in the middle of the Czech Republic - I had chanced upon a taxi driver with both F1 caliber driving skills and a fly fishing guides knowledge of the Vltava River.

Vltava River

In 1989, when the former Czechoslovakia peacefully swapped communism for democracy, this non-violent shift came to be called the Velvet Revolution. Though no longer behind the iron curtain, the relatively young Czech Republic is not the first place that pops to mind when venturing to Europe and - despite the emergence of Czech nymphing - not the first place that pops to mind when fly fishing for trout. What brought me here actually happened in Spain about 20 years ago…
I was backpacking through Europe with a rail pass. Back then, I thought that truly visiting somewhere meant sampling the local fishery. (I still subscribe to that train of thought.) The internet was in its infancy and a parade of faxes had booked me a couple days at an Austrian pension, complete with a day ticket to fish the local stream. The only hitch was my rail pass wouldnt quite get me there; a rental car was needed for the last 50 miles.

Before reaching Austria, I was strolling down a fairly well touristed street in Madrid around 11 PM. The crowded squares were behind me but I was still surrounded by high end hotels. Then I noticed three young guys walking towards me and the closest was addressing me very loudly. Since my Spanish is non-existent, I offered the standard, "No gracias," and started to angle around the three hombres. At that instant, I noticed the talkative one had a knife - a big kitchen knife that could have come from his Moms kitchen. There was about six feet of space between me and Moms knife and it took me about one millisecond to toss my wallet towards it.

What was I thinking as I watched my wallet tumble through the air? "If these guys want my money belt, my whole trip is toast." What was I thinking as I watched them take off down the street with my wallet and I had a few seconds to think? "There goes my drivers license and my fly fishing..."

For the most part, my travel plans recovered quite nicely from that little incident. Within a half hour, courtesy of the travellers cheques in my money belt and an inebriated hotel clerks liberal interpretation of exchange rates, I actually made back the small amount of cash I lost. Courtesy of the nice folks at AMEX, I had another credit card the next day. My passport and more travellers cheques were still around my waist in my money belt. But, as I realized earlier, my European fly fishing itch was not going to be scratched.

And it remained completely unscratched until earlier this year, when my girlfriend and I starting planning a railway/backpack trip through Europe. After we picked out our major stops, I couldnt help myself and started Googling the fly fishing possibilities for each. The Vltava River turned out to be major trout fishery right in the backyard of Cessky Krumlov, a picturesque town on our itinerary.

Getting to Cessky Krumlov is a bit of an adventure itself. Because trains in the Czech Republic cant resist stopping at every little town, we took a bus to the Czech capital of Prague. We sat in the front row on the top level of a double decker bus with a floor to ceiling window in front of our nose. It was like a fish bowl going at 70 miles per hour. The view ranged from exhilarating to unnerving. It swung to the unnerving part of the spectrum when our driver snuggled in behind a dump truck before passing it and a large mass of steel filled our field of vision. Without the window, we could have laid out our coffees on the edge of the dump truck. 

Cessky Krumlov

From Prague, we threw ourselves at the mercy of the Czech rail system and squeezed ourselves on a train towards Cessky Krumlov. As the train pulled up, a crush of humanity emerged from a seemingly calm railway platform. (Pardon the obvious fly fishing metaphor…) We wedged ourselves on the train and somehow managed to find seats. Every bit of available floor space – aisles included – was occupied on that train.

After about an hour, we did the same thing in reverse because we had to transfer trains. But there was an added adrenaline rush because we only had about a minutes to make our connection; sprinting through crowded train stations with a backpack is definitely an athletic endeavor. Not finding a train that matches the one on your ticket and jumping on one - with seconds to spare - because some local says you should is definitely an act of faith. But that’s what we did and in half an hour, we rolled into Cessky Krumlov.

The town was beautiful – a maze of narrow streets and old buildings with a river flowing swiftly right in the middle. (To a fly fisherman, any town with a river automatically goes up 2 notches on the picturesque scale…) After about an hour of sightseeing, I decided I better go get my license for the evening fishing I had planned.

A Czech fishing license only comes in a stereo version. In other words, two licenses are needed instead of just one. A general license is valid anywhere in the country and it allows you to buy the required day ticket for a particular water. Through various emails, I learned that general licenses were available at city hall in the modern section of Cessky Krumlov, which was far removed from the scenic old town

Thus began the first of four cab rides that day. Our hotel set me up with all my cab rides and they did a bang-up job. That first driver played in an American blues band and spoke excellent English. When we got to the city hall, he offered to accompany me inside and act as a translator. A few queries led us to our target office deep in the bowels of the building. It was small and non-descript and stuffed with file folders. Buying a license was a transaction conducted entirely in Czech. The license clerk and the taxi driver worked it all out and I supplied info as needed. After about 15 minutes – and who knows how much on the taxi’s meter – we were back in the cab headed toward the hotel.

I tipped my cabbie like crazy and had a quick supper. Then it was off to tourist office just across the town square to pick up the day ticket. Luckily, the staff spoke excellent English.

At that point, I met up with the F1 driver/fishing guide. Like I said before, when she dropped me at the river, the trout were rising furiously. I picked through my miniscule box of flies and pulled out a small Irresistible. Usually, I carry tons of gear and flies with me but a small backpack for train travel had forced me to go minimalist. It had been painful but my entire tackle bag was reduced to a tiny chest pouch. I had no waders – only quick-quick drying nylon pants and a pair of wading shoes.

Brownie

It made no difference to the trout. My first cast to a rising fish was rewarded with a solid take. A very-spirited brown trout of about six inches came skittering toward me with the hook set. It was small but meaningful. I had never travelled such a long way for a fish. And so it went… Every third cast or so was eaten by an eager brownie just like the first. Some of them were incredibly stealthy and sucked the fly under without any surface disturbance whatsoever. It was like the fly had just decided to sink until I raised the rod to recast and felt the weight of a fish.

The fish were holding on a small, shallow flat with a very gentle current. Just beyond that, the main current – and a steady stream of plastic rental canoes – poured briskly past. The trout seemed impervious to the rental canoes. Every now and then – as if to give the trout a bit of a rest - a chub with remarkable orange fins would take my fly.

After a while, I headed off upstream, probing the main current where it grazed the shoreline boulders along a steep bank. The river was actually quite featureless. It was a like a continuous riffle of dark water surrounded by forest. I was hoping for bigger fish but the river kept enforcing a six inch size limit. At the end of that run, and with a little exploring, I found a fairly deep, calm pool and switched to a streamer. My muscles tensed with the expectation of a bruiser. However, the army of six inchers once again found my offering. 

Soon it was dusk and I met the F1 driver/fishing guide where she dropped me off. If someone had made a pilgrimage to a big name trout river in North America and caught nothing but six inchers they might be slightly annoyed. But I had thoroughly enjoyed myself. For the amount of money I spent on cabs, I almost could have hired a drift boat on the Madison or the Yellowstone. I probably only spent two hours fishing but catching a trout – even a six incher - in a far off land is a worthwhile experience as far as I am concerned.

After a while, I headed off upstream, probing the main current where it grazed the shoreline boulders along a steep bank. The river was actually quite featureless. It was a like a continuous riffle of dark water surrounded by forest. I was hoping for bigger fish but the river kept enforcing a six inch size limit. At the end of that run, and with a little exploring, I found a fairly deep, calm pool and switched to a streamer. My muscles tensed with the expectation of a bruiser. However, the army of six inchers once again found my offering. 

Soon it was dusk and I met the F1 driver/fishing guide where she dropped me off. If someone had made a pilgrimage to a big name trout river in North America and caught nothing but six inchers they might be slightly annoyed. But I had thoroughly enjoyed myself. For the amount of money I spent on cabs, I almost could have hired a drift boat on the Madison or the Yellowstone. I probably only spent two hours fishing but catching a trout – even a six incher - in a far off land is a worthwhile experience as far as I am concerned.

The next day, my girlfriend and I were back on the river as part of the plastic hatch. Bombing down the continuous riffles in the rental canoe was definitely fun. Narrow, man-made chutes diverted us around the odd control dam. These chutes were like tobogganing on water and are probably the highlight of the river for most people. (Take a look at the accompanying photo.) Nevertheless, I couldn’t stop thinking about the trout that might be in swirling water at the base of each chute.

Dale Martens

Dale,
Thank you for the very interesting article. Like you, I dont think I could pass up the opportunity to fish in Europe even if the catch is far from trophy. Im thankful for every fishing experience and your adventure certainly qualifies as an experience...lol
Many Thanks, Travis Duddles

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Adventure Steelhead 1 30 2015

Recently, John and I did some serious bushwhacking/exploration. We had been looking for a new way to get down to the river, and after a failed attempt or two, we found it. 

Steelhead!

 I should say that we found a place where you can park within a certain distance to a river, with public land from the road to the river. Unfortunately, there is no “trail” to speak of, just a poorly used game trail that meanders about 2000’ down a cliff side. It’s not a straight down type of cliff, but a definitely steep slope. I would surely ski it if it was covered in snow.

After an hour of scrambling down this slope, we managed to get to the river right where we thought we would end up (according to our calculations via Google). However, it quickly became apparent that we would not be able to leave the river in the same manner that we went down. Getting up the same way that we descended would not only have been extremely difficult, we would have spent hours climbing up the loose brush and rock. Climbing down had not been that bad, but the thought of going up was pretty much out of the question.

So we fished this run that I had been eyeing for a while. Unfortunately, it was much faster than and not as deep as we had hoped. Bummer dude… Luckily, I am Swiftwater Rescue Certified, and one of the things I learned how to do is cross a river that is moving fast by linking arms and walking in step with a partner while leaning on each other to keep steady. This was really the only way to get across the river as it is fast and forbidding. So we slowly crossed the river and walked downstream along the bank for a while until we found a decent looking piece of water.

So this is where the fish story comes in! 

 I started swinging this run and quickly got my fly into a really nice looking bucket. A fish grabbed my pink bunny leech in mid-swing. It then dropped the fly, and then hit it again even harder on the hang-down at the end of the swing. One head shake and it dropped the fly again. By this point, I was yelling and swearing at this fish. Jon had stopped and was watching the action.

After the second grab (and drop), I quickly stripped the fly twice as it was hanging down at the end of the swing. As if I was trout fishing, this steelhead boiled on my fly and slammed it as hard as possible. I saw all of this as the fly and the fish were in less than two feet of water and less than fifty feet from me. The fish then screamed about fifteen feet of line off my reel and popped off. That fish was hooked and lost. I had never had a steelhead take a fly three times like that in one swing, and never had a winter fish eat a fly on the strip.

So instead of standing there staring at the water in disbelief, I fired a cast ten feet off where that fish popped off towards the deeper side. I mended the line and stripped the fly once. Less that a second later, this fish took the fly again, even harder that the other three times, and proceeded to put me in my backing while going airborne several times.

When I finally landed him, the hook was up in the roof of his mouth, right where it should be. I thought that maybe, just maybe, there were two fish out there that were involved in this incident. When we took a closer look, we could see the fresh hole, still bleeding, in the corner of his mouth from where I had just put a hook in him on the previous cast.

I have been fishing for a long time, and I never had a steelhead ever act that aggressively towards my fly,

especially a winter steelhead. Winter fish are not exactly known for moving a long ways for a fly. Grabbing the fly four times total and getting pinned at least twice in two casts is unheard of. The adventure of getting to the river was totally worth the sweat and soreness, but the fish was a bonus that gave us both a glow and a smile for the rest of the day.

We ended up having to walk down the river for quite a while before climbing up the other bank. We then had to figure out how to get to our car on the other side of the river several miles upstream, but that is a completely different story.

Andrew Perrault | Product Specialist | Steelhead Adventurer 
Gorge Fly Shop
541.386.6977

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Columbia Gorge Fishing Report 1 17 16

Fishing Report

We had one week of low water conditions, and now our local rivers are on their way back up.  This is great news for winter steelhead junkies.  In an typical year, there is a lull in steelhead numbers during mid to late January, before the later spring fish start really coming through in mid-February.  Not that there are not a whole bunch of fish around; winter has been great so far and our rivers are full of steelhead.  So dont look at the Bonneville Dam counts and come to the conclusion that there arent any fish around.  It only takes one and there are plenty of nice steelhead in all of our rivers.  

As long as the Pacific Ocean keeps pumping rain and snow at us, we should continue to see great fishing throughout the region.  Pick your favorite river and get your swing on.  Just keep an eye on the levels and dont try to fish rivers when they are too high.  Some of them dirty up really quick and others can stay in great shape after heavy rains.  Some rivers get really high and are dangerous to wade or float, so please be aware of your surroundings and conditions  

Rainbow trout fishing has been great on the Deschutes.  It is now open for trout all the way to Pelton Dam. Midges and Blue Wing Olives are the most productive patterns right now, but streamers have been working well too.  

Andrew Perrault
Gorge Fly Shop | Product Specialist
541.386.6977

"Fly Fish the World with Us"

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Trout Spey Lines DEFINED by George Cook

Blazing New Trails On A Stream Near You

Trout Spey Lines : DEFINED….Conundrum SOLVED

Trout Spey….Micro Spey…”Small Ball” has indeed arrived! The Spey Angling enthusiast of today has limitless opportunity, be it Trout, Sea Run Cutthroat, Smallmouth Bass, even the various Shad species of both coast. Trout Spey tackle which spans from the 4 and 5 weight Switch Rod Theater down thru the 2 and 3 weight true Trout Spey rods set the stage for some mighty interesting angling adventures. In these pursuits like its bigger cousin Spey Rods, lines are aplenty and with it, a given (expected) level of confusion as to just what is “best”. The line “Conundrum” is our subject today , so take 5 and unspool the mystery as we DEFINE today’s Trout Spey Lines, their selection and use. 

Skagit Max Short

Skagit Lines: several choices here and completely dependent on just what the angler’s methodology “Objective” is. On one hand, the “Swinging Streamer” enthusiast will find himself at home with RIO’s Skagit Max Short Head. Here, the 200/225 and 250 Grain Heads sit at a very manageable 17’, while the 275 Grain Head comes in at 20’. Matched up with RIO’s “Light” MOW Family Tips makes for a great SWINGING set up. An Example here would be the 225 Grain 17’ Skagit Max Short teamed up on SAGE’s NEW 2109-4 ONE Trout Spey. The NEW 3110-4 SAGE ONE Trout
Spey is killer with the 275 Skagit Max Short , a combo I recently worked Ol’ Bow Bow out with on Alaska’s Middle Kenai River. Again, it is vital to note that the Skagit Max Short will BEST SERVE the Angler looking to ply his game via the SWUNG FLY with small to moderate sized streamers .
MOW Light and even MOW Medium tips can and will apply in this “Swinging” theater. I might also note that with the Skagit Max Short the “Transition” from normal Spey rod sizes (12 ½ to 14’) to Trout Spey lengths (10’6 to 12’) is less radical in terms of casting stroke format.

Trout Max Short

Skagit Trout Max: A NEW and very Specialized Skagit style head sets the stage for the Trout and Smallmouth Angler throughout the country who has set his sights on a STRIPPED STREAMER Approach. Most Lower 48 along with Chilean and Argentine Trout (Both Bow Bow and Brown Town) are largely caught by way of a STRIPPED Streamer Method (VS Say Alaska Rainbows, Dollies and Northwest Sea Run Cuts taken on the Swing). The Skagit Trout Max head employs a very fishy 11’ Head that maximizes one’s ability to really format a Stripping Streamer methodology. Here it can be expected that one shall cast either ¼ Upstream to 90 degrees (straight out) in order to gain a quick drop followed by the classic stripping motion made famous by the legendary Joe Brooks in the 1950’s. By formatting a short 11’ head the Skagit Trout Max ensures maximum “Strip Time-Length” before your attached head to running line gently “Clicks” into your guides queuing one to fire off another one to continue the hunt ! Again, the MOW Light Series as well as the Medium MOW members will employ nicely here. I would be remiss not to mention here that while the whole of Trout/Micro Spey involves a very conscious effort on the part of the caster to “Scale Down” both his overall stroke size and speed of operation (Get SMALL as I call it) the mere 11’ of the Skagit Trout Max dictates a further reduction here, get small, stay compact and ever so smoothly execute the Spey stroke, no big moves, no hurky, no jerky !

Scandi Short Heads

Scandi Short Heads: The elegant casting choice has Trout Spey in mind with Short Scandi heads from 180 (28’), 210 (28’) and 240 (29’) grains that play super well. Working with short RIO Versi- Leaders, all types Floating thru 7.0 ips (ips=Inches per second related sink rates ) in 6’ & 10’ styles or even a 9’-12’ RIO Trout Leader straight off the looped head these classic Scandi style
heads work beautifully with Soft Hackle and other related patterns. Un-weighted streamers , classics like the Light and Dark Spruce, Muddler Minnow, Black Dace along with a host of Northwest Sea Run Cutthroat Flies will fly fast and with ease utilizing these Scandi Short style heads. As with their bigger Spey Rod cousins the Scandi game always plays at a lower Grain Weight then the Skagit Weight for the given (Same) rod. An example here would be the New SAGE Trout Spey 2109-4 ONE, while the Skagit Max SHORT (Or Skagit Trout Max) choice sets up at 225 Grains the Scandi Short selection will roll in at 180 Grains.

RIO Switch Chucker

RIO Switch Chucker Lines: The vaunted Switch Chucker has a definite home in the Trout/Micro
Spey Theater ! Now available in a NEW size #2 and #3 Chucker’s these 25’ heads make Spey Casting Transition relatively easy coming down into Trout Spey/Micro Spey Rod sizes and overall expected angling methods. Versatile enough to cover the whole gamut of Trout Spey be it Soft Hackle Swinging (get crafty and use a 10’ Floating Versi leader here!), stripping streamers or swinging meatier choices for bigger grabs the Switch Chucker will prove a most versatile choice. Indicator game will have its day in court here as well. Can be utilized with MOW Light and even
Medium MOW selections as well as a host of Versi leaders in 6’ and 10’ feet. The Chucker should be dead on line size targeted, meaning put a 2 Weight on a 2 Rod, 3 on the 3 so on and so forth. To be sure, the RIO Switch Chucker is a great all around choice here.

InTouch Single Handed Spey

NEW RIO InTouch Single Handed Spey Line: Awe…this one falls into the “Didn’t know such could work but turns out to be a fabulous choice” category. While mega good on the single hand intended usage (Both Spey and shockingly good overhead) the NEW RIO Single Handed Spey Line is a “Sleeper Choice” on Trout/Micro Spey Rods. Based on a 34’ Taper the Single Hand Spey Line on a “3 Bump Rule” works simply wonderful on these small ball Spey rods. 3 Bump Rule will show that in order to hit an “Applicable” grain window one shall select this line 3 line sizes HIGHER than the given rod line size. EXAMPLES: again the NEW SAGE 2109-4 ONE Trout Spey is a 2 weight rod, simply bump 3 sizes up (hence the WF-5-F Single Handed Spey Line) and batta bing, batta boom you have a simply KILLER match up. Just so happens that WF-5-F weighs out at around 227 grains hitting the 2 Weight Spey Grain window perfectly giving it both max propulsion along with an fully integrated fly line to boot. 9’-12’ RIO Trout Leaders will fine tune this choice into a Trout Spey machine !

So as you can see RIO has you covered on your Trout Spey Game no matter what your needs are!

George Cook
Anglers Rendezvous
Northwest Representative
Sage, Rio, Redington

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Scientific Anglers Mastery Fly Lines 2016

Scientific Anglers fly lines underwent a really good makeover for 2016. Lots of upgrades to existing lines, many needed additions and some very interesting changes in categorizations. These changes should really help in the understanding of line uses as well as technologies. I hope to explain and make sense of these changes and along the way highlight some lines I think you should be aware of that may benefit your angling needs. 

Mastery Series

Mastery series lines have been around for many years and they are the original lines that really gave Scientific Anglers its name. Lines like GPX, Mastery Trout, Expert Distance and many of these great lines anglers are currently using today. S/A decided it was time for a complete makeover for the Mastery Series. Now before fear sets in that your favorite line is gone forever and you must buy up all remaining old lines while you can find them, STOP! Know this that your favorites are still there and have been tweaked to be better than ever. Let me dive in and highlight some changes you need to be aware of.

Mastery GPX is now MPX (Mastery Presentation Taper)

MPX replaces GPX

GPX could possibly be the most popular modern line of all time! With its half line size bump up in line weight it made an idea choice for modern fast action graphite rods. So why change a great thing? Over the past few years I think it is safe to say that fly line technology has probably lead the industry in the area of technological advancement. Everything from fly line cores to coatings, tapers to densities have seen many improvements in recent times. Here is a great breakout of exactly how this line has been shaped for the future.

Notice MPX is also offered in Wavelength. Wavelength is the Textured Series of fly lines. Well get more into Wavelength in a future article.

MPX Advantages
Tighter loop formation, with a slightly shorter head and more condensed mass, in addition to a larger proportion of mass at the front of the head. Redesigned with more mass toward the front of the head, the MPX provides the same benefits of the GPX, with an added emphasis on presentation. The power is still there, only with an added bit of finesse. The MPX makes casting for beginners easier and provides more performance for accomplished anglers. The slightly smaller tip diameter conserves the presentation of the line and prevents it from feeling over powered.

If GPX was your line of choice than you are really going to enjoy MPX. The new taper is a great improvement in the way of presentation and it is a very noticeable improvement!

Salmon / steelhead line

More Mastery Lines

Mastery Anadro
This is your Steelhead and Salmon line. Think Anadromous fish. Its made with a long head for easy roll casting and long distance mending. Formulated for cooler climates and utilizes a braided multifilament core for ultra low stretch performance.


Mastery Titan - The Smooth Titan!
Not to be confused with Wavelength Titan, The Mastery Titan is a smooth finish version of this very popular line.

The Titan line is a bumped up powerful casting line ideal for large flies and quick rod loading. Personally I would recommend buying this line in the textured Wavelength version but many anglers prefer the smooth traditional fly line feel offered in the Mastery Series. Either way it is a powerful line well suited for todays big fly anglers.

Mastery SBT (Short Belly Taper)
This interesting line actually came out new last year and flew under the radar. The taper is designed with a short head, (21.5 to 27.3). Note it is NOT line over-sized, (no weight bump).

Short Head but weight not bumped up!

This line really excels at short to medium range casting and allows for easy turn over of weighted nymphs and streamers. This line allows you to put some power in your trout rod without over-lining it. Its a really fun line to cast. I could really see anglers who fish small streamers for trout or panfish within reasonable casting distances really liking this line. It provides good turnover without feeling overpowered.


Mastery Grand Slam
The Grand Slam Taper is a proven powerful saltwater taper that has been refined over the years. This taper is also found in the Wavelength Series and Sharkwave Series. Its such a good powerful taper that many anglers have requested it in a Mastery smooth version. Scientific Anglers listened and delivered! The Grand Slam is a great choice for anglers pursuing Bonefish, Permit and Tarpon. This taper is such a great choice for many salt anglers due to its bumped up weight that will help you load your rod and launch quicker cast to moving targets.

Mastery Grand Slam Taper

Mastery Series Wrap up
Many other changes in this series but you will be able to recognize your favorites. Heres a short list.

• Trout - Revised taper for even more delicate delivery 
• Double Taper - No longer hiding under the Trout name 
• VPT- Versatile Presentation Taper is designed for delicate dry fly fishing. This line utilizes Sharkwave texturing on the tip for high flotation. 
• Expert Distance - No change and it still comes in a Competition casting version 
• Redfish - This line comes in both warm water and cold water versions 
• Bonefish - Updated into a two color format for easy head recognition 
• Saltwater - Taper improved for better presentation 
• Tarpon - Improved taper, two color format and braided core

Most of these lines saw subtle changes to improve their performance and continue to provide you with outstanding durability and most of all fishability!

Heritage Ultra Presentation

New for 2016 is a throwback to what some would say "better times." Back when lines were one color and not over-weighted. Lines made for a time when bamboo and fiberglass fly rods ruled the streams. Scientific Anglers went to the archives, dug up a retired taper, applied modern technology and bought it back to life. The Ultra Presentation taper is a line for those who have returned to embrace fiberglass and bamboo or todays ultra moderate graphite rods. A line to get back to a simpler time when one fly box contained everything you could need for a successful trout adventure. No sink tips, split shot, indicators or lure size streamers,  just you and a fly with your own passion and peace of mind. I could go on romancing the past. Sometimes its good to get back!

Heritage Ultra Presentation Profile

Species Chart Provided by Scientific Anglers

Note on the species charts: While these are good references I feel I must note that fly lines need to match the personality of the intended rod as well as water temp, fly size, wind conditions, type of water, technique of fishing and angler experience. 

New Packaging Explained

A lot of changes with Scientific Anglers for 2016 and while many changes also bring some confusion I can easily say after learning all the changes that todays S/A is much easier to understand and has much more to offer. S/A has always built high quality durable fly fishing lines and continues this tradition and commitment into the future.

Please dont hesitate to shoot us an email or give us a call with fly line questions. Remember this, the right fly line matched to your rod will bring out its best qualities! The wrong line on the best rod will make you question your ability as a fly angler.

Greg Darling 

Gorge Fly Shop Internet Sales Manager | Product Specialist

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