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| The 4th of July weekend looks to be great weather and ditto for the fishing. |
Lodging Deals for Fishermen (Mention the Trout Fly) Here's a deal for all you hardcores that don't fish on the weekend and show up for the weekdays . . . . Motel 6 has a special deal for Sunday through Thursday nights for only $49.99 plus tax running into the summer. Hell, you can't get that good a price at the Motel 6 next to the docks in San Pedro! (760) 934-6660 |
| Weather Focus |
I think a lot of angler's are not tuned into the real story on the weather in the Mammoth area and consequently are relying on the forecast for Mammoth Lakes which can be very misleading if you are fishing out in Long Valley (Upper Owens River, Hot Creek, and Crowley Lake). Mammoth Mountain at over 11,000 feet essentially creates its own weather and the forecast for Mammoth Lakes is very accurate if you are planning to fish the Lakes Basin above town but falls short once you move 5-10 miles out into the valley. In fact the whole idea of the Crowley Cam was to be able to see what was really going on at the lake since many days the wind is howling in town and dead still at the lake and vice versa. Long Valley and Mammoth Mountain are two separate and very different entities as far as weather goes. We have had thundershowers predicted for Mammoth Lakes every day so far in June and indeed there have been showers off and on in town and up in the Lakes Basin many days one place or the other, but move only a few miles down to the Airport on 395, basically right next to Hot Creek, and the story is much different. In the first 11 days of June there has been zero precipitation on 8 days and on the other 3 days it "rained" 0.01", 0.03", and 0.05" translated a chunk of clouds broke off from over Mammoth Mountain and passed over the airport, got the runway wet and were gone 15 minutes later. (My over simplification, but you get the idea) Now, what about wind? There are no predictions for anywhere except Mammoth Lakes and Bishop but an average with more of an emphasis on Bishop isn't bad for what you can expect for Long Valley, at least combined with the understanding that afternoon winds blowing in from the south is a local condition like the wind off the ocean everyday at the beach and that effects Crowley Lake in particular, but not so much Hot Creek and the Upper Owens. So, let's take a look at this weekend as an example of what we can predict. Using the links below and then clicking on the hourly predictions, the forecast for Mammoth Lakes on Saturday is for winds from the south and west starting at 2 mph at 8 am and increasing to 11 mph by 5 pm. For Sunday it is 1 mph going to 7 mph for the same timeframe. Bishop is 6 mph all day on Saturday, and 5 mph all day on Sunday again from the south and west. You can do the math but I'd say for Saturday, Hot Creek and the Upper Owens will have minimal winds until about 3 pm then up to 8 mph in the late afternoon and Crowley will be fishable until at least noon. On Sunday slightly lower winds for Hot Creek and the Upper Owens and Crowley will be good until 1 pm. As to getting wet, you will have to be pretty unlucky to see any precipitation anywhere in Long Valley. Lastly, for the East Walker you can use the Bridgeport forecast directly and for the Lower Owens you can use the Bishop forecast directly and both should be pretty accurate. All the guys at the shop watch the forecasts and can give you an overall impression of the next few days for any of the areas we fish. Give us a call if you are trying to make a decision on coming up and we'll do our best to give you our local forecast for where you want to fish. |
Kent's Picks |
Each week or so I'll show you something new or novel that I think you should check out that you may not have seen while in the shop. |
NEW MODEL - SMALLER AND NO MAGNET!
This little item probably looks more at home stuck to the side of a barn than it does on your boat or float tube but it can be a huge asset when looking for fish on the lake. It is a min/max thermometer and it is the least expensive way to accurately and quickly measure the temperature of the water on the bottom (where the fish are). |
Trout like 56°F –57°F water and if you find that
temperature you will almost always find a good concentration of
fish. That
impressive digital readout on your pricey fish finder only tells
you the surface temperature, which correlates poorly with the bottom
temperature due to the fact there are always currents on the lake
so it is almost useless in estimating the temperature on the bottom.
The way it works is that floating on top of the two mercury columns of the thermometer are little steel pins (yes, floats - mercury is almost twice as dense as steel) and when the mercury goes up and down as far as it can, the pins stay behind to read the highest and lowest temperatures since the last time the thermometer was reset. With the new model, you simply push the red button to slide the pins down to the mercury and reset for next reading. To take a temperature reading, pitch it overboard on a string, wait about 5 seconds, pull it back up and read the minimum temperature – that is the temperature on the bottom. These sell for a little over $20, one third the price of the electronic equivalent and are five times faster than the cheapo ones enclosed in a chamber which take forever to read and are not nearly as accurate. If you happened to have purchased the underwater video, “Crowley, an Underwater Perspective” note the temperature readings when a fish is coming by the camera every ten seconds. You’ll be a believer in bottom water temperature like I am! Available at the shop for $24 plus tax. Free shipping if you order by phone (800) 637-6912 -k |
Deep Water Indicator
By popular demand, here is the indicator I designed and have been using with clients for deep water nymphing - the Slide-a-cator™. The way it works is the leader passes through the center hole alongside UV resistant rubber, which is built into this "corky" like indicator. It can be adjusted by simply sliding it up and down, but when you cast it, the rubber acts like a "Chinese finger trap" and grips the leader so no slipage, even for you power casters. For deepwater nymphing, you reel it in until the Slide-a-cator™ comes up to the tip top on the rod, then you either just keep cranking or I prefer to reach up and pull a long strip (like 4 feet) of leader through the indicator and then let it back so you can then reel in another four feet. Repeat this a second time and you are ready to net the fish. Float tubers may have to do it a third time. |
I use Rio Extreme tippet with the Slide-a-cator™ for this application as it has almost zero stretcth making those deep-water sets more positive. You can see the complete set-up with Rio FluoroPlus, tippet ring, and split shot. Oh yeah, don't forget the flies! Now, for the "fine print". . . (Since I am always politically correct and thinking of my stillwater breathren) Yes, since the leader passes through the indicator you must remember to attach it before you rig everything to your fly line and secondly, never pull the leader completely out of the indicator as there is no way to get it back in. (They do make nice, lightweight marbles for your kids if you forget.) But, don't fret, the Slide-a-cator™ comes with complete instructions which cover how to install it on a new leader so you can use the indicator over and over. Lastly, you must remember where your indicator was before you caught the last fish so you can reposition it to get the same height off the bottom each time. I believe the extra steps necessary are far outweighed by the one big positive . . . being able to fish at depths up to 25 feet opens up at least twice the fishable area on the lake. 'No more crowding into the "hot-spot" with six guide boats, five other midgers, nine float tubes, and twelve bait-dunkers. Use your fish finder to spot a couple of big ones in the middle of nowhere and anchors away. The Slide-a-cator™ is made in the USA by highly trained fly-fishing addicts and is available at the shop for a mere $2.49 plus tax or three for $5.95 plus tax. We are also now carrying Mickey Barron's Sungicators for you yarn aficionados when not going deep. -k |
Recent Photos of our Clients and Customers
Send us your photos to be included on this page
Click here for archived pics from previous reports.
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Clyde Ikeda with East Walker powerhouse and Eric the "O" Hein with the hold.
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Mark put John Bartolomew on this East Walker Brown. |
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Spencer Lee sent nice kudos for Josh, who fished him on East Walker with this as one result. |
Scott got this East Walker Rainbow on his day off. |
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Nice 21 inch McGee bay special for Kent on his day off. Fish finally in the shallows again! |
Underwater release by Alex . . . note fly in front of his nose! |
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Martin Bryne and his buddies got some of the big ones showing up in McGee. |
Rob Stuart got this chunky Brown. |
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Don Scales with his fat one. |
Martin again with another fat Rainbow. |
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Devan Hart with one of the many he bagged with Mark and on Hot Creek - second time fly fishing.
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The Fish Report - June 30, 2009
Click here to get a copy of the fish report e-mailed to you each Thursday
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Note that the flow shown for Hot Creek is the flow into Hot Creek from Mammoth Creek, which is in addition to the
normal flow from the springs that feed this primarily spring creek.
*For Crowley Lake and Upper Owens, take average of Mammoth and Bishop temperatures.
We only report first-hand info from our sixteen guides on the water daily.
If you read it here, it is the "right stuff"!
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| HOT CREEK Update by Jon Carlton 6-26-09 | |||
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| Guides Hint: The sun is shining and the weather is sweet... hire a guide and you'll be in for a treat! |
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Guides Hint: A six DVD set of last summer's 8-hour Crowley University is now available for those who could not attend. This is a reference library you need to add to your arsenal if you fish the lake. It is a de facto download of everything I've learned in more than 2000 days fishing and guiding the lake. It is being distributed to various shops around the state and available at Trout Fly. Free shipping if you order by phone (800) 637-6912. This year's Stillwater Classic will be on Saturday, August 8th this year, so circle your calendar and don't miss it or a chance to help the lake! Note: the Double Haul has been pretty much shelved at least for another year. |
| UPPER OWENS Update by Tom Jones 6-26-09 | |||
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Guide's Hint: |
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| OWENS RIVER GORGE Updated by Mark Spieler 6-30-09 | |||
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Guides Hint: Lite Tippet with 3wt rods and a wading staff is great for trekking around in the gorge. |
| LOWER OWENS RIVER Update by Pat Jaeger 6-26-09 | |||
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Guides Hint: |
| LEE VINNING CREEK Update by Josh Hevron No change since 6/26 | |||
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Guides Hint: Concentrate on slowest slicks possible. With cold temps fish are not moving too far out of their lanes. So make several drifts to land these finicky fish. |
RUSH CREEK Update by Nate Wray 6-30-09 |
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Guides Hint: : Try a short line indictor nymph system with an indicator no so you can support small amounts of weight to get flies down into some of the deeper pockets and you might be blessed with a great catch. Also, dont forget bug spray. |
| EAST WALKER RIVER Update by Tom Jones 6-21-09 | |||
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Guides Hint: The E Walker can be a tricky river. Now that the fishing pressure has caught up to it, catching a lot of bigger fish will not be a “gimme”. This is one river where hiring a knowledgeable, local, experienced guide can pay off big time. |
| BRIDGEPORT RESERVOIR Update by Eric "Otis" Hein 6-26-09 Bridgeport Reservoir Marina Info | |||
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Guides Hint: Keep moving until you find fish. Look for fish rising, bottom structure, insect activity or other anglers hooking up. If you are on Fish but not hooking up, adjust your depth before changing your fly. Fish /Strip slowly near weeds or structure and/or close to the bottom , sometimes bouncing your fly into the mud. |
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