Fishing Season is Heating Up!!!!!!!!!!!

Welcome to the 3D Fly Fishing Report

Well, it has been another fine week to be a flyfisherman here in the high sierra's. We have had a cold front move through our area this week which in turn made the fishing in the first part of the week pretty tough. When the weather cleared out we had some epic days of fishing on Crowley as well as the East Walker River. This next week looks to be a good one. With lots of sunshine and calm winds I expect this week to be a fantastic time to be on the water. Come on out and enjoy the high sierra's as these cool spring days are perfect for flyfishing.


East Walker River=97 c.f.s.
It has been another great week to be fishing on the East Walker. There has been good numbers of big fish coming to the net making for some great photo opportunities. The flows have been pretty consistent this week which has stabalized the feeding pattern for most of the fish in the river. In the mornings I have seen a good hatch of midges, followed by baetis, and some caddis popping throughout the afternoons. Also, there is a spinner fall around 9:00-9:30 a.m. so look for those little critters crawling up your waders. You will be very suprised at the number of spinners on the water. The flies that I would suggest throwing would be small midges in size 18-22. Zebra midges, wd-40's, stevie's wonder gray/black, and blood midges. For the baetis I would suggest throwing size 18-22. The flies that I would suggest would be hot wire mayflies, hogan's red headed step child, lightning bugs, and pheasant tails. Also, if you are in the need to pick up a few flies I would suggest stopping by Ken's Sporting Goods in Bridgeport and talk to Jim or Rick about the hot flies on the river. This is the finest fishing store in north county and these guys are the authority for this area. Also, if you have any questions about the Nevada side of the East Walker these guys are the guys to talk to.

Upper Owens-112 c.f.s.

The Upper O has been fishing very consistent again this week. The fish are spread out throughout the system so you will have to do a little hoofing in order to find the pods of fish. There are still a few spring spawners in the system so please fish this area with care. If you do hook one please keep these fish in the water as they are very vulnerable at this time. Also, please do not fish to these spawners that are honeymooning on the gravel beds. This is a very important time for these fish to reproduce naturally so please please be very careful with these fish. The flies that I would suggest throwing would be midges in the mornings, size#20-22. Zebra midges, Stevie's Panama Red, Disco midges, and black beauties. Also, I would throw caddis patterns in the sizes of 16-20. I would suggest using sparkle pupa's, olive soft hackle's, bird's nest, and fox's poopah. Also for the baetis I would suggest throwing size#18-22. The flies I would suggest would be pheasant tail's, surface emergers, barr's b.w.o. emerger, and copper johns. Also, the stripping has also been consistent for some of the larger models in the stream. I would suggest throwing clouser minnows, wool head sculpins, spruce flies, and matuka's to get into some of the larger fish in the stream. So come on out and enjoy the great fishing on the Upper Owens River.

Lower Owens River-202 c.f.s.

This is a great time to be fishing on the Lower Owens. The flows have been very consistent and the opening of all of the waters in the Sierra's has spread every one out and the river has seen very minimal pressure. This in turn makes for some epic days of flyfishing as the hatches on the river are phenomenal. The wild trout section has been fishing very well and there has been a lot of bug activity. In the mornings I have seen midges popping, followed by the baetis, then swithching over to caddis mid-day with a few p.m.d.'s starting to make their presence known on this river. The flies that I would suggest throwing are size#18-22 wd-40's, zebra midges, and disco midges. Also I would suggest throwing size#18-22 pheasant tails, surface emergers, barr's b.w.o. emerger, and copper johns. Now, for the caddis I would suggest throwing size#16-18 bird's nest, sparkle pupa's, fox's poopah, and double bead caddis. These flies should be able to get you into some nice numbers of fish this week. Come on out and give the Lower Owens a shot as this is one of the best times to fish this tailwater before those pesky mosquitoes make their prescence known.


Crowley Lake-Good-Excellent

This phenomenal stillwater has been producing some very nice fish for all you fly anglers out there. I would suggest that you call in to work and let them know that you have just came down with a cold and you will have to take off a few extra days this week! Wink! Wink! The areas that have been fishing well this week are Sandy Point in 10-14 feet of water, Mcgee Bay in 8-14 feet of water, and Big Hilton in 10-14 feet of water. The fish have been keying in on the larva in the mornings and then slowly moving up in the water column in order to take the pupa. The flies that I would suggest are larva patterns in black/red, gray/black, black/silver, gray/silver, black/copper. For pupa patterns I would suggest using grey/black, grey/copper, grey/silver, and red/silver. Now for all you guys out there that like to tow streamers. The streamer grab has been very good in the moments that the fish are not keying in on the midge. So when that indicator will not budge, I would suggest pulling out the ole Type 5-6 full sinking line and retrieve with a slow hand twist retrieve and you will definetely slam some of the larger models in the lake. For streamer patterns I would suggest using hale bopp leaches in the colors of black, brown, purple, olive and claret. I would also suggest trailing a hare's ear 20 inches behind your point fly in order to grab a few more fish. If you have any questions or comments please feel free to drop me a line and I will answer your question to the best of my ability.


Bridgeport Reservoir-Good

The reservoir has been fishing well considering the cold front we had blow through the Sierra's last week. The fishing has still been very consistent for the fly guys. I would suggest fishing the areas of Rainbow Point in 10-15 feet of water, Sandy Point in 8-14 feet of water, and also in Buckeye Bay off the drop in 10-15 feet of water. The fish have been keying in on the abundant midges and also blood worms throughout the lake. I would suggest fishing larva patterns in the mornings and then tying on a pupa pattern as my point fly in the afternoon. The larva patterns that I would suggest fishing are gray/black, gray/silver, brown/silver, black/red, and black/copper. For pupa patterns I would suggest fishing gray/copper, gray/silver, black/silver, and gray/black. As far as pulling streamers the areas that I would concentrate on are the dam, the bathtub, rainbow point, and the area just in front of the marina. The flies that I would suggest throwing are hornbergs, olive and black matuka's, hale bopp leaches, and Frank's krystal buggers have all been producing some nice fish. I would suggest using a Type 5 or type 6 full sinking line in order for you to get into some of the larger fish in the reservoir. A nice slow hand twist is the key to getting into some of these larger models in the lake. Nice n' slow is the way to go! Come on out and enjoy a day on the water with us!


Best Fishes,

Nicholas Lawton
nlawton@3dguideservices.com
www.3dguideservices.com