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Archive for April, 2010
Owyhee River 4/30 (Dry Fly Fish Idaho)
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Forty feet away, tight against the cutbank, I saw his giant head appear at the surface. The wind was blowing hard down river, and I was below the fish, so I waited patiently for a lull in the breeze. It came, and I laid the #20 Emperor Caddis (black) in the kitchen of what looked like a giant fish. The fly settled, moved slightly to the left, and the whole side of a “Brownie” broadsided my fly. I set the hook and the fish immediately bolted out to deep water and without hesitation, streaked straight down river. My reel was screaming, the line was zinging, and in a matter of seconds, I could see the orange of the backing beginning to show. In emergency mode, I jumped up on the bank and headed down river, but the fish was swimming faster than me, and he was unfurling yards of my backing. There is always a queasy feeling when a fish is in your backing, but when he’s in your backing 40 yards and still swimming, that’s a crisis!
I finally caught up to the fish to the point my backing was all back on my reel, but the fish was sideways in the current way across the top end of a big slick, and he was using the girth of his body to make it impossible to move him toward the bank. I applied all the force I could; my rod was doubled over, and I was holding it high to gain leverage, but the fish would not budge. Occasionally, I was able to turn him and begin working him toward the bank, only to have him turn again and end up on the other side of the river. I was thinking I must have foul hooked the fish, but when I saw him at the surface, it looked like a mouth hook.
At this point, I’m at least a 100 yards down river from where the fish was hooked; he put me in my backing twice, he continued to be broadside in the current, and I couldn’t move him. I located a large boulder along the bank and jumped up on it to increase the leverage. Finally I began moving him toward the bank. After a few more setbacks, the fish finally slid into the net. WOW!! Twenty-two minutes to land one fish might be the longest fight I have ever experienced on the Owyhee River, but it was easy to understand why. The fish was a giant; only 23 inches long, but super heavy, thick, and broad. He probably weighed in at 6 lbs. I admired him a long time, then watched him slowly swim away and disappear into the milky water.
I dried the fly and walked back up river where I hooked the last fish and immediately I spotted another “Brownie” feeding. After serving the fish a couple of times without a take, I moved a little closer and casted again. Bingo!! The fish took the fly, I set the hook, and immediately the fish zings past me headed down river. After another foot race and a long, hard battle, I landed the fish in the exact same place I lanted the first one. And so the afternoon went. I only landed seven fish before the wind blew me off the river around 4:30. All the fish were big and four of the seven fish I had to chase down river before I could land them.
The leading edge of the caddis hatch is beginning. It’s time to stock up on black and green Emperor caddis size 20.
Flies that caught fish:
Emperor Caddis – Black #20
Emperor Series
Our #1 fishing fly for 2009 was the “Emperor” caddis series. We fished this series of flies at all elevations, from May through September and they are truly super flies. We featured the “Emperor” black caddis in a video we shot in the Idaho Wilderness called “Fishing the High Country,” and it took the place of our Black Flying Ant as the #1 fly for alpine lakes. Every place we fished, these flies it put on a show!!!!
$1.90
Owyhee River 4/8 (Dry Fly Fish Idaho)
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The wind was blowing stiff down river at a perpetual 20 to 25 mph; then gusting to over 30 mph. There were large white caps on the large slicks and wind shivers moving over the chutes of running water. The willows were dancing along the edges of the river and the squala were plopping down sporadically on the water. The conditions were right to catch a big “Brownie” if you could only cast a hook to them. By rightss, Jack Matunas and I should have been hanging out at the vehicle, drinking coffee and waiting for the wind to subside but nooooo….. there we were casting Slow Stone (dry fly fish Idaho) up river into the teeth of the wind.
Jack was fishing a stretch of moving water below me, there were two separate chutes of water that came together and in between them was a strip of calm water. Jack’s a fisherman and he recognized it was perfect holding water for a big fish. After fighting the wind to deliver the cast, he lands the Slow Stone (dry fly fish Idaho) perfectly in the soft spot of holding water. A giant black head rose up and took the fly, the hook was set and the battle was on. Down the river they went, Jack trying to hold him and the fish was determined to distance himself on a run. After 3 minutes the fish still wasn’t giving up so I came down to help land the fish. He was a big old male “Brownie” well over 20 inches, black and very powerful. As Jack lifted the fishes head to move him closer to the bank the fish turned and bolted down river again and those razor sharp teeth clipped the line. The fish went free. Jack and I were left to lick our wounds and talk about the one that got away.
As we discussed the potential size of the fish Jack lost, we both saw another fish rise above us. Instantly the loss of one fish disappeared into the anticipation of hooking another one. Jack tied on another Slow Stone (dry fly fish Idaho), snuck across the river and moved into position to serve the “Slow Stone” to the fish. He hits the fish perfectly and just like clock work the “Brownie” eats his fly. The battle raged for a few minutes until she slid reluctantly into the net. She was a gorgeous fish and we enjoyed her company, revived her well and watched as she disappeared in the riffle.
And so our day went hooking a few fish, fighting the wind that never let up, and moving only to find more wind and finally succumbing to the wind. There is a time when you tip your hat to Mother Nature and say you win, but little did she know that we had hot chocolate and peppermint schnapps in the rig to celebrate a great day on the river!!!!
Slow Stone
The Super Bowl Champion of all stoneflies--this bad boy can score on every play!! Fished tight against the edges, along willow banks and cut banks, it is pure hell on fish! Slow Stone is built with the total package, front and back antennae, egg bag, jointed legs, and a glittering moose wing. It is an absolute necessity that you own this fly.
