Steelheading Has Been Consistant and Steady

Angler With Nice Willamette Valley Summer Steelhead

This is only going to be a brief quick report, and I will have to put a more detailed report up in a couple of days when I have a break from guiding and working at the Orvis Shop. Recently, I have been out guiding a lot, and the fishing has been very steady for summer steelhead. We have been getting fish just about every time out now, and some days are multiple hookup days, and other days are good for one fish. Some of the days, I have been out guiding for both trout and steelhead, and on those days the trout action has been pretty good. Lots of fish are being caught (troutwise), and the average is on the smaller side, but by days end typically there have been several nice trout landed, and the smaller fish are making the catch numbers higher. I will be out on the river, and when I get a break, I will be posting some videos, and I will put up a much more detailed report of the last week's fishing.
Tight Lines!!!!

Trout and Steelhead Action: Satisfying Day Off Playing

My friend and I fished in the upper Willamette Valley yesterday for trout and steelhead. I managed to hook up with a steelhead on a long cast with my brand new switch rod while swinging a long purple and pink marabou string leech. The fish totally crushed my daylights leaping a 3 plus foot air, and then tail walked for 30 feet, and then sprinting into the backing on one solid sturdy run. Then it came towards me full throttle, and it became unpinned while I was frantically stripping it back in; in attempts to keep up with it. Bummer!

The trout fishing was stellar, and we got into cutthroats and some rainbows while fishing a Chubby Chernobyl Norm with a size 14 possie bugger dropped off of it. A super fast sinking poly leader off of the 6wt with a muddler caught a lot of fish while short stripping it back on a broadside swing. Softhackles swinging on a downstream 45 degree down and across were the ticket in a few spots also. The dry and dropper took the most fish, and the muddler was the second best producer, and the swung wets were only good here and there. Sometimes it can be the exact opposite, but that is what makes it interesting. We caught many fish, and most were on the smaller side on this day, but we did catch several fish that were looking fat and had some shoulders on them. The nice thing was that the trout were everywhere they should have been, and they were taking the presentations that we showed to them. You cannot control whether it'll be a big fish day or a small fish day, but it still is nice to see the target species responding to what you are giving them.

Steelhead Report - Almost a Banner Day of Catching...

This is just a quick short report from the fishing on 6-17-2011 for summer steelhead. I took out a woman who was a very good caster, and she swung many casts through probable lies. Unfortunately, the steelhead were behaving like the mythological 1000 cast fish, and they were not chasing down wet fly patterns. They were probably put down from the heat and sunshine that was on the particular river, but they were around in good numbers. We hit a pool that has been holding lots of steelhead, and they were in there again. The spot requires a dead drifted presentation, and so we rigged up with a stone and egg pattern dropped off. She hooked three fish, and they were all on the single pinkish egg pattern. One fish torched her, and lit up the water like a stick of dynamite going off. It blasted out of the pool and peeled line into the next pool down before straightening the hook. The other two were quicker battles before unlatching themselves. They were all chrome bright beauties, but some days they do not want to get landed.

Summer Steelhead Time! It's Game On!

With good numbers of summer steelhead passing over Willamette Falls, the only issue we have been facing has been the water levels. Recently the water levels have been stabilizing and dropping, and the rivers have been much more approachable for fly fishing for summer steelhead. Recently, on a day off, and a good friend and I decided to pursue some chrome. Luckily for us, we were rewarded with a fresh sea run turbo charged steelhead that my buddy landed, and I lost another one too. Even one of my swings went through, and there were three solid tugs before the fish decided it was not going to commit to my offerings, and it was gone. Close one though, and the one fish day could have easily been a three fish day if the planets lines up slightly differently.

McKenzie River Summer Steelhead

With the higher levels, the fish hold in different spots then they do in the lower summer level conditions, and knowing where to look is the biggest part in achieving success out there. Think like a steelhead, and know that they love water that is walking pace and from approximately 18"-5' deep, and that variable can clear out a lot of water that may seem fishy. If your normal go to spot is faster and deeper than when you slammed the fish last summer, then you may want to fish another spot. Many of my high water spots will not even hold a fish in low water; yet there may be a half of a dozen chromers sitting there waiting for you to show them something. Knowing where the fish hold in the current conditions will create your success. Fishing your standard low water spots will only make you feel bleaked out when you have thrown 1000 casts without even a tug or a sniff.

Stoked Angler with a Fresh Willamette Valley Summer Steelhead

When you are out there and fishing, think about the water levels again. You can get a fish to come up through the depths to check out your classic wet fly patterns or you can sink down to their level and you can grab their attention with a nice and bold large profiled pattern. On the flip side, don't forget that these fish can see some small things, and they will take a subtle fly pattern when the masses are bombarding them with all sorts of hardware. The other thing to think about is how the fish may respond to a dead drifted offering. When I was out with my friend, I hooked a fish on a swung fly presentation with a type II 15' sinking tip that was attached to a Skagit Head with a long "moal leech like" marabou pattern with the color combo being black, purple, and blue in the back. My friend followed me through the spot and his swings went undetected. After rowing the boat out into the pool, and with the sun behind us; we could see several steelhead holding. We tried to sight swing to the fish, but they did not move an inch.  

Super Bright McKenzie River Summer Steelhead

My friend Brian threw a few casts to a fish that I saw, and I coached him into each drift; since he could not see the fish from his vantage point. He threw a cast in, and as soon as it hit the water, I said, "that's the one....". It dead drifted down to the holding lie, and I told him "NOW!" right when the Thingamabobber probed over the sighted fish. Suddenly the Thingamabobber subtly dunked under only about 8" underwater. Brian struck hard, and the result was a surge of chrome that looked like a shiny car bumper in a river. FISH ON!!. We pulled the boat over to the bank, and Brian jumped out to enjoy the battle from the shore. After a sturdy long fight, the fish yielded to the net. We were stoked! Steelhead fly fishing takes persistence and will, but the rewards are huge. A successful day out on the water for summer steelhead makes you feel like you are on top of the world. Get out there so you can enjoy that feeling!

If you are interested in booking a guided trip for steelhead, call me at (541)-232-6360 or email me at fish@mckenzieangler.com .

Saturday Carp Flat Fishing Report

After having to cancel a guided trip for summer steelhead due to high water conditions, I had the day free, and decided to take advantage of the nice weather. What better fishing is there than carp fishing when it is sunny, bright, and the air is filled with high pressure? Smallmouth bass has been  plagued with high cold water, steelhead fishing has been high water right now, and trout could be good at a few locations, but I just got spoiled at the Deschutes during my stonefly hatch trip. I also wanted to test the power of a carp compared to a Deschutes rainbow trout. It turns out that a carp is way stronger than a rainbow trout. My friend and I discussed it, and I stated to him that a carp and trout of equal size and weight tied tail to tail together would result in a dead trout. I think a carp would drag a trout around until it would die. They are harder bodied and sturdier feeling than a trout. That being said, I would prefer to fish for them both, and it would be all about when to fish for what for me. If there is a hatch, it is overcast, and the water levels are good, then I am out trout fishing. If it is sunny, bright, hot, and high pressure, then you may find me carp fishing, or even bluegill fishing. Point is that I enjoy fly fishing ,and I like to target the species that would be the "most happening" for the given conditions of the day. 





Yesterday seemed like a perfect for carp flats fishing, but the reality was that it was tough out there. We were fishing to hundreds of fish, but they seemed more interested in other ventures. There were fish chasing each other around in spawning freakouts, and there were some cruising fish in search of what offerings may be abound. The problem is that they were ultra spooky, and it was simply not an easy day out there. You never know until you try though....

Deschutes River Fly Fishing Report - May 28th through May 31st

Golden Stoneflies

The stonefly hatch was full throttle from the get go at Trout Creek boat landing, and you can see the salmonflies and golden stones thick in the bushes. The boat launch was not too bad considering it was Saturday of Memorial Day weekend. There were very few people and  most of them were just running the river and rafting down. It was looking good for fishing and the weather was steady enough to not be thinking we were going to get rained off the river.

Salmonflies

It turns out that the weather went sour on Saturday for most of the day, but it really enticed the flies to hatch out hard. There were green drakes coming off with fish explosively detonating on them. Pale Morning Duns were hatching and between the swallows and the trout; it is amazing that any of them make it to have another generation. The stoneflies were not too active, but the shear numbers created an ample food source in the fish's feeding lies due to the wind and rain. Fishing was simply awesome out there, and there were fish rising everywhere, and it seemed like you could catch rainbows everywhere you threw your fly. Fishing was on Chubby Norms, even though there were all sorts of flies hatching, it did not matter, and a dead drifted surface stone was all you needed. They were greedy and 3X tippet made it easy to wrench them in fast; only to cast out and yard in another one. At days end, the high pressure overpowered the low pressure system that sulked into the canyon. The sun was out and it was cozy and warm enough to try and goof off from the bank at camp without waders to take a few more fish on the surface.

Nikki on tight with the best rainbow of the trip.

Sunday was a nicer day from the start weather-wise. The fishing was alright off the bat, but not quite as fast and furious as Saturday's fishing. After a little while, some cloud cover rolled in and the winds came also, and I assumed there was going to be that same mayfly hatch from the day before. It never got going though, and the wind never seemed to get the stoneflies falling into the drink in significant numbers either. The sun and clouds battled, but the sun never radiated enough to warm up the stoneflies to stimulate them to fly around and create the scenarios where they start egg laying. Fishing was darn good by day's end, but it was all blind fishing more or less, with a few spots being the exception. We caught plenty of nice trout, and they were all on the surface using Chernobyl Chubby Norm and Clark's Stones.

One of the many rainbows that fell to the surface stonefly presentation

Monday ended up being a really awesome day for fishing again, and many spots offered several fish at a rapid pace before having to make several casts without any attention given to the dry fly. Fish were ready to see a drifted surface stonefly, and when you offered it; they were ready to explode on it. We fished casually taking turns from spot to spot, and some of the spots would yield from 3-7 fish; while other spots offered from 1-3 fish, and once in a while you would be surprised to not have anything look up at your fly. We assumed those spots may have been fished already; since they looked so nice and had to have fish in them. Once again, we fished the same Chubby Norm dry fly that was on for the first two days. At camp we dinked around once in a while from the beach without waders when a really nice rise would occur. We had another fine day of Deschutes trout fishing!

Fish on! - Deschutes River

Tuesday was the final day of our trip, and it was a nice day after a crazy downpour hammered on our tent while we were trying to get sleep. Also we were freaked out;  after having to remove way too many ticks to count from my dog and us. Luckily they were trying to get embedded into us, and none had succeeded. A few latched onto Filbert (the dog), but they were so superficial; to the point where you could just pull on them and they would pluck off. Nasty!! Ticks on the lower Deschutes are really bad right now! Be aware of the fact that certain areas have ticks really thick right now. As we got lower down, it seemed like there were more of them. 

Plenty of wildflowers around....

The fishing on Tuesday was the slowest day, but we still caught a fair number of fish. We also fished with the least effort after being so satisfied already from the first three days out there. Fishing was still good on the surface, but you can tell that the hatch is waning down there towards Maupin. There are still literally a lot of stoneflies around the Maupin area, but compared to higher up; you get the impression that the hatch is past peak down there. The fish will still be all over the large dry flies for a few more weeks, but there were barely any salmonflies down in Maupin and the Golden Stones were not even so thick compared to higher up river. Most other anglers we saw were nymphing, and I was not too interested in that method, after catching lots of trout on dry flies for three days. We managed to still catch a good number of fish on Chubby Norms, and after a while we decided to call it a day and wrap everything up to head back to Portland again. 

Gorgeous views all over along the Deschutes canyon.....

As usual, it was a great time over on the Deschutes. The river was very low in the fishing pressure category, and I am pretty sure that the wild and scenic section has very little permits sold for this coming weekend too. It is awesome out there; so get yourself out before this wonderful fishing opportunity ends. If you have not fished the Deschutes during the stonefly hatch, then you need to experience it. 

Chubby Norm pinned in the grill.....

Also, if you are interested in a Deschutes multi-day guided trip, then call or email me so I can set you up with one of the Deschutes BLM Permitted Outfitters. I do not hold a BLM permit, but I can set you up with one of the finest outfitters on the Deschutes. He is pretty much booked up, but there are still a few slots possibly open for the next several weeks.

Orvis Shop - Bridgeport Village - Here I come!!!

Being a fly fishing guide in the Portland, Oregon area can be a challenge to survive comfortably at times without any other form of work to back up certain times. You have many variables from the weather to the economy to contend with; along with the ever so rising fuel prices. Recently, I was fortunate enough to have Adam McNamara, Fly Fishing Manager of Orvis at Bridgeport Village, call me up to come by and check out the shop. He was super kind to me, and wanted to see if I was interested in a position at the shop after we met and spoke for a while. After an interview with store manager Heidi Adcock, I was super stoked to have her offer me a position. I will be starting employment there on Wednesday June 1st, and I will be doing customer service on the floor retail, teaching classes, and whatever else it takes to make a fly shop work to the highest potential possible. So now you can find Brian Marz either out on the river guiding or fishing for fun, or at the Orvis shop in Bridgeport Village.

Bridgeport Orvis Shop - 7495 SW Bridgeport Road, Tigard, OR 97224

The Address and Phone Number is:
Orvis
Bridgeport Village
7495 SW Bridgeport Road
Tigard, OR 97224
Phone: 503-598-7680


Store Hours:
Monday thru Friday
10:00 AM - 7:00 PM
Saturday
10:00 AM - 8:00 PM
Sunday
12:00 PM - 5:00 PM

I hope to see all of the "regulars" who used to frequent Kaufmann's. I also look forward to meeting a ton of new anglers/fly fishers who I never saw come into Kaufmann's. If you come by, you will see a wonderful shop with tons of potential to be the best in the Portland Metro Area (still new! Opened November 18th) with a wonderful stock of awesome products. I know I was totally impressed by the Helios Fly Rods and the Orvis Switch Lines. The BEST SWITCH FLY LINE MADE ON THE MARKET NOW!

Come by and say hello! I would be totally stoked to see you at Orvis at Bridgeport Village!

Deschutes Fly Patterns for Salmonfy - Stonefly Hatch - Tying the Clark's Stone

One of my favorite fly patterns to fish during the Deschutes stonefly hatch is the Clark's Stone. It is more or less a golden stonefly impersonator, and it does an awesome job of fooling large rainbows. It cast very easily, and it floats well, even though there is not much to the fly. The body is not even really on the hook, and it is a yarn underwing that mimics the stonefly's body; while the hook is coated with gold mylar to catch the attention of the fish. Only then will it have to make a full on collision coarse to the offering; since it is too irresistible for a rainbow to deal with. On top of that, if you tie it correctly, it is super durable, and you can fish it fish lots of brutal fights. I have had trips where I have used the same Clark's Stone for about 2 days to then have the collar hackle break and then I would put on a different pattern for fun. 

Recipe For Clark's Stone:
HOOK - Spear It cs200 Size #8
THREAD - Flymaster 140 Denier Plus - Yellow or Fl. Orange
BODY - Mylar - Gold - Medium
UNDERWING - Poly-Bear - Orange & Yellow
WING - Yearling Elk Hair
DUBBING - Fine & Dry Dubbing - Stonefly Orange (for collar only)
HACKLE - Whiting 100's Hackle - Brown

McKenzie River Trout Fishing Was Thumbs Up!

FISHING REPORT 

 McKENZIE RIVER - GUIDED FLY FISHING TROUT TRIP 

5/22/2011

It was one of those days where the vibes were chill and the fishing was fun. Good consistent trout fishing is a blast, and yesterday was one of those afternoons when the fishing was the way it is supposed to be. The only factor we lacked was a day of catching trophy rainbow trout after trophy rainbow, but you can't ask for everything. The day was calm and stable more or less; with a consistent cloud cover that wouldn't yield. When fly fishing for trout on the McKenzie river, I prefer cloud cover, and even a spritz or two throughout the day. When it is sunny with high pressure the confidence factor as a guide drops; due to statistical evidence that shows the lesser weather days shine out there.

Yesterday, I took a regular client and she brought an awesome fishing partner named Clark along. Clark was "new" to fly fishing, but did it years ago; so refreshing his casting and "what to do" was what he needed. He picked it up really quickly, and was into fish before too long. It is really awesome to see when your clients shine, as Gail torched fish after fish at a certain point in the day. Once the "bite" got going, the fish were being taken on every few casts in certain spots, and as a guide I was able to "call" the fish. I love when you can say, "you are going to get one.......now!" and then a fish pounces the flies. It was like that on swung wet flies from about 2-5pm with the fishing being moderate before that time, but there was no major hatch of any kind, and the nymph fishing was slow. Not that I mind when the trout are coming up to the surface and yanking on swung wet flies in the surface film.

A really great aspect of the trip was how quick Clark picked up the techniques for McKenzie River trout. He claimed he was new to fly fishing, and did it years ago. Well it seemed like he did not miss a day, but he was also an awesome learner and listener. Lots of fish resulted, and it was a pleasure to have met him. Gail really fly fished like an accomplished angler. Over the time of taking her out, I have seen her angling skills soar, and now she fished the McKenzie like a veteran fly fisher. When you take someone out for the first time on a river, you can see them learning the little nuances of the techniques that get the job done, and how they are different from destinations that they already have experience from. It is really a great feeling when you see the someone get better and better, and to have a greater understanding of where the fish are, and what it takes to get them. Over the years, I have seen a lot of my clients really improve their fly fishing skills, and the trips typically get better and better as a result of this.

Flies that worked well yesterday were the Red Butted softhackle in size 12, yellow softhackle in size 12, Royal Coachman Wet in size 12, a green caddis wet in size 10, and no fish are dry flies, and nothing nymphing. We did not nymph too much; since the wet fly grab was on, and it was too much fun to put those rods down to have to throw a Thingamabobber out there. The bite shut down about 5pm, and then we headed towards the takeout. After reeling in the boat, I visited a good friend in Eugene for a bite to eat, and then I was headed back to Portland after a wonderful day of guiding fly fishing.

McKenzie Trout Fly Fishing - There is actually a trout double going on....

Carp Flats Fishing Was Happening!

Yesterday afternoon, I decided to go flats fishing for Carp, and I scored it while it was happening. The water looked really good, and the fish were rooting around and cruising around the shallows. The opportunity was looking like a promising one, and after a short while I was tight into a nice golden treasure of a carp.

Common Carp Taken on Carrot Fly

After admiring that hard bodied carp, I let it swim off, and was ready for another one. Too bad some guys speaking foreign tongues wanted in on my action too. They literally came up to me blabbing about my carp. They asked what kind of bait I was using, and when I explained a fly; they gave me a dumbfounded look. When I showed them what I was throwing, they got all excited, and literally parked too close to me to fish also. After a little bit of loosing my patience, I bailed in search of more flats and fish.

The "Carrot Fly" Stuck in the Carp's Mouth

Before I knew it, I was back into a hot pack of fish, and they were looking promising to catch. I threw a nice shot at a fish that was cruising toward me, and it inhaled the offering and was off to the races. The fish was hooked at about 15', and it sprinted off and cleaned my clock all the way into the backing. What a bee lined run that was! I managed the wrangle that fish from the grass, and it submitted itself onto the shallow grassy ledge where I admired it.

Carp landed after a serious sprint into the backing....

I popped the "carrot fly" out of the fish's mouth and then I let it swim off, and I was one stoked fisherman. When the fish were given the right presentation, they would slam the fly, and you would see it. It was a really great way to spend a few hours in the afternoon. Obviously, I am going to have to try that again today; so we'll see how it goes again. Should be even better today.....

Fly choice is a funny one with carp, and it seems like the confidence in your fly is the most important thing. I know some people who love the San Juan Worm, and others like crawdad imitations. Buggy nymphs also are used a lot, and then hybrids of all of the above seem to work too. The more I fish for the carp, the more I realize it is about the presentation, and the fly has to be in the ball park of what they want. Every fly in this pic will work, and it seems that finding fish that are willing, and fishing in shallower water will help you get into carp on the fly.

Some of the Carp Flie I have been tying and using

Summer Steelhead Numbers Looking Good - Willamette River System

The last few days have had nice summer steelhead passage through the Willamette Falls Fish Counter. ODFW reports nice numbers of fish returning; so keep yourself posted to the Willamette Falls Fish Counts. My personal opinion is when the numbers breach 3,000 summer steelhead, it is good enough to have high probability of roping into some chrome bright fish. The numbers hit that 3,000+ mark from May 6th to May 7th, and then almost jumped another thousand fish since then to the 12th which is the last day of counted fish reported by ODFW.

Clackamas River Summer Steelhead

Daily	Cum	Date
201	2,972	5/6
186	3,158	5/6
193	3,351	5/7
96	3,449	5/8
137	3,586	5/9
172	3,758	5/10
87	3,845	5/11
142	3,987	5/12

When the numbers are coming in; the counts will fall behind several days due to the spring chinook and steelhead literally having to be hand counted with pictures taken from a camera as they pass through the fish ladder. That is a good sign too, and that basically means that it is time to get out to the tributaries that come into the main stem Willamette River like the Clackamas, Santiams, McKenzie, and Middle Fork Willamette Rivers. The early fish are full of serious vigor, and if you have not hooked one, I strongly recommend trying getting out to experience one.

If you are interested in booking a guided trip for steelhead, call me at (541)-232-6360 or email me at fish@mckenzieangler.com .

Summer Steelhead Time is Here!

Steelhead numbers have recently been increasing for the Willamette Valley rivers like the Middle Fork of the Willamette, McKenzie, North Santiam, and the South Santiam. Also the Clackamas River should be kicking into high gear with the arrival of fresh summer run steelhead. The early summer steelhead can really make your fly reel scream as your fly line empties out into fly line backing many times when you hookup.

Clackamas River Steelhead with Dry Fly

The early summer steelhead are super vigorous, as they arrive into the rivers very sexually immature. The omega three fatty acids convert into egg mass and sperm sack mass in both the males and the females as they mature while being in fresh water. Due to this, these steelhead are very aggressive and somewhat predictable in their habits. Also they are in the fresh water rivers for about 9 months versus winter steelhead which enter fresh water on a mission to spawn and return to saltwater as soon as possible.

A Chrome Bright Willamette River Hatchery Summer Steelhead

These summer steelhead will move far for a fly, and sometimes they will literally swim 10 feet to destroy your swung wet fly. After they are hooked, many aerials will happen, and your fly line will scream out of your fly reel so fast; that you will have to clear your knuckles in order to prevent bruising them or breaking the fish off. Fly Fishing for summer steelhead is a total addiction, and it can be done with a spey rod, a single handed rod, swinging flies, nymphing flies, etc.

Willamette River Steelhead Caught in the "Town Run"

Fly Fishing for summer steelhead in the Willamette Valley can be everything from a traditional style wet fly swing on a floating line to spey fishing with Skagit Heads and large intruder like patterns. The moal leeches in black/blue or purple/pink are two of my go to colors, and also a fly called a motion prawn in purple with a pink butt is a wonderful out there. A Silver Hilton is a great traditional pattern that works very well on the Willamette River steelhead. The McKenzie River and the North Santiam tend to have colder temperatures; so the fish tend to be more oriented with sinking tips and larger weighted flies. Nymph fishing also works very well on the McKenzie steelhead, and the fishing tends to be a more swing oriented style on the Willamette and Clackamas Rivers.

High Water McKenzie Steelhead

Fly fishing the Clackamas River for steelhead is the trip for you; if you are looking to book a guided trip while visiting Portland, Oregon! If you would like to try the McKenzie River for steelhead while swinging flies, nymphing, or sight fishing, then contact me to get a date booked before they fill up. If swinging a spey rod is what you love, then the Middle Fork of the Willamette is what you are looking for; so get a hold of me to book a guided fly fishing trip for summer steelhead.

Tight Lines!!

Carp Time! Fly Fishing the Carp Flats

Carp fly fishing is something that I did not pay much attention to when I had lived down in Eugene, but when I moved up to Portland things changed. I knew there were plenty of areas where these weary fish lurk around, and I also knew that it is a relatively underground fishery. One of my favorite things is to tap into a underexploited fishery; so I can see what potentials there are, and sometimes you get "hooked" on something new. It turns out that I am totally into carping out in the flats, and it is probably one of the most technical fisheries that exists.

When I have been going out, the fish have been cruising along the shallows, and they are rooting out looking for bugs & crayfish. They are super weary, and you basically are spooking them when you are standing 40 feet back from the water; so you have to more or less walk are slug speed. That is one of the main things to success, and also realizing you have to have ultimate patience while waiting for them to start feeding around you.

When you get into position finally, you then have to cast accurately and gently too. When you get the good cast into where you want it to be, then you have to present the fly, and that is determined by the pattern you are using. Some flies have to escape prey; while others need to sit dead as a doornail on the bottom. If you are fishing a crayfish, it'll swim away when a predator moves into the area. When you are fishing an aquatic worm pattern; you must have it sit on the bottom perfectly; without any movement. The rewards are awesome! The fish fight a relentless strong and sturdy battle. They are rather larger, and seem to average at least 3-4 pounds and can get to be 20 pounds and larger. They challenge the best of anglers, and you are fishing a similar style to something like Louisiana redfish marshes; except you have not even left the state. It is a great avenue for the fly fisher looking for something very different.

Welcome to my Website!!

Welcome to my new website!! I am really excited to get this blog rolling, and I am hoping I will get a lot of people bookmarking this site.

Lower Deschutes Rainbow Trout

South Coast Fall Chinook

There will be plenty of fishing reports to check out, because I try and document where I am fishing at and what was going on for the day. Typically I will post up photos and video content of the day's fishing events. I will also put up informational entries like fly tying videos, topics like product reviews, and equipment/fishing technique discussions. 

Smallie taken on "Mr Wiggles"

My typical fly fishing would be going for trout or steelhead, but I really love fly fishing for just about any species that is willing to take a fly. Many times of the year rivers for trout or steelhead can be too high, too low, too cold, too warm, or it's too bright out, and conditions can make it not the best option out there to choose to fly fish for one of the two species. Many anglers simply give up and say, "It's too low and warm out there; so I'm not going fishing." In the meantime, you can be out there catching one of these......

Summertime Doldrums Bluegill

Steelhead are the species I have the most passion for, and I enjoy nothing more than putting a person who has never caught one on a fly rod into their first fish. Nothing feels better than to see the look on someone's face when they see their first successfully landed steelhead. It is super rewarding being a part of the whole experience and I really enjoy guiding people for steelhead

First Steelhead Caught - McKenzie River

Obviously I like to catch steelhead on my free time too....

Filbert and I admiring a winter chromer

Traveling to the tropics is what I have the least experience in, and I would really love to build my saltwater resume up with fish like bonefish, GT's, a permit or several, snook, redfish, roosterfish, and a whole lot more. What I have done so far was a blast, and that is simply the reason to want to pursue more tropical saltwater fly fishing. Even the smaller fish feel like they are huge, and make a reel scream like you are hooked on a car.

Bluefin Trevally

Basically, I love fly fishing, and really enjoyed being involved in it any way that I can. Whether I am out fishing for fun, guiding someone into their first steelhead ever, or witnessing a blanket caddis hatch with clients while we are trying to figure out what the trout will be taking; I am totally stoked on this wonderful sport we have. Time to go hit the Clackamas river for some fly fishing!

TIGHT LINES!!!