Each year we try to at least make one trip to Southern Oregon to hit up the Owyhee river. There's a 11 mile stretch of hungry Brown Trout infested water. The Browns in this section are the most picky fish I have ever fished for. But they are all large and they like to eat. So once you figure it out you're in for a good time. We really enjoy fishing this river because you sight fish. We wait and watch for fish and cast dry flies to them. It's challenging because these fish know whats up. So you tippet down and change flies often to find the one that a particular fish will eat. The challenge is worth it when you pull in a 18" brown caught with a size 22 midge using 6X tippet. This area does get a fair amount of pressure from fisherman so when fishing expect to see plenty of other fisherman. Be respectable and wait your turn. The fish aren't going anywhere and they seem to come back very quick. We don't cover a lot of water we change-up more and keep catching fish out of the same holes. Here's a few pics from our adventure. Fish On!
Deschutes River Fishing Report
Mouse, JP and I hit up the Deschutes River last week while at MT Hood for a work conference. We were hoping the big bugs were out and the fish were keying in on them. When we showed up to Maupin we couldn't be more pleased to hear from the guys at the Deschutes Anglers Fly Shop that the bugs are everywhere and the fish are looking up. We talked a little shop and picked up a few flies in exchange for some local knowledge then went on our way down stream. The day started off well seeing fish jumping during the time we were setting up our gear. We were excited and scurried down the path to the river to give it a go. With in a few minuets JP had a strike and a miss. Then a few minutes later I hooked in to my first bow of the day. I fished that same run for about an hour and picked up a handful of fish. It was so much fun. Even a 14" fish is a fight and will give you a run for your money. I then headed up-stream to catch up with JP and Mouse to hear they both had similar success. At that point I was stoked and knew the day was going to be epic. We fished until the sun went down. We caught a fair amount of fish and missed a handful too. In all it was well worth the trip and each one of us couldn't have asked a better adventure. Enjoy the pics.
Oregon Fly Fishing Owyhee River
Day 2 of my solo fly fishing adventure landed me at the Owyhee river below the Owyhee Reservoir. This river is unique! I have heard good things about huge brown trout in this river. At first sight of the river I am disappointed. The water is green! I figured I'm pretty low in the canyon and it must clear up around the dam. I keep driving and the water color stays the same. I'm thinking to my self I wasted a few hours last night driving here. I get all the way to the Owyhee Reservoir and the lake is green too. I'm bummed! Thinking there's no way I'm going to catch any fish in this dingy water. I was a good 7 hours from home and paid the money for a daily fishing license so I figured I would at least give it a try. I found a good zone and tied on some nymphs. I fish my way up through the run and no luck. When reaching the top of the run I figure I was almost done. I then decided to fish my way back to the truck and head out. I tied on my sink tip leader and a Platte River Spider (baby brown trout streamer). I make a few casts and then slam fish on. I'm suppressed! I strip back a 12" brown trout. I let him go and take a few steps down river and make a couple more cats. Slam again another fish. This guy was a beast. This is why I made the trip. He owned me and ended up getting away. I was blown away. I was about to quit. I repeat the process for the next couple hours. Catching fish all the way down the river. I was having a blast. Never have I had such success swinging a streamer. Around 1:30 I start to see fish slurping. There was some kind of hatch going on but I couldn't be bothered. I had a working set up and decided to stick to it. While walking down stream catching fish and watching fish go wild on the top of the water mad me a firm believer that this is truly a world class river. I fished until around 6:30 starting to get hungry and knowing I had a long drive ahead I decided to pack it up. I would recommend that everyone makes a trip here some day. River access is easy and also there's a lot of campsites next to the water. I think it would be a fun weekend trip.
Oregon Fly Fishing Deschutes River
While driving home from a work conference in Mt Hood Oregon I went on a solo fly fishing adventure. I knew the Salmon Fly hatch was moving up the Deschutes so I headed South to Warm Springs. I arrived to find plenty of bugs but also plenty of fly fisherman too. I wasn't the only one looking to get some big bug action. I didn't let the crowds get me down. I booted up and tied on a tan Chernobyl Ant and figured I would see if I could find me a fish. Right off the bat I got a few misses. This bummed me out. Then while swapping flies I saw a fish rise in less than a foot of water. While not expecting much I casted that way and within seconds fish on. It was a 20" or so Red Side. It was a beast, he ran down stream almost to my backing. I did the best I could to not over play him but he was to much of a match for me and got away. Thinking this may be my only chance at a good fish all weekend I was upset. This meant beer time. While drinking a beer and going over how I blew it I decided to walk even further down stream and look for a new zone. I found a good looking run that I could wade out to and get a good back cast. I didn't see any surface action but figured I would go to work. After a few casts fish on. It was a little guy but still got the stink off me. I was back in the game. I fished this zone and ended up hooking 4 reds out of the one hole. The best fish was a 18" football. Each one of those fish were little firecrackers. They had some much power for their size. I had a lot of fun. I was getting hungry so I decided to head back to the truck for a snack. While walking back to the truck I notice all kinds of trucks showing up to camp and fish. I didn't want to leave but figured Saturday was going to be a junk show. I decided I would do some exploring. I headed South East towards the Owyhee River. To be continued...
