The Fly Fishing Shop - WHY STEELHEAD EAT FLIES

(continued from 07/24 The Fly Fishing Shop Insider)
WHY STEELHEAD EAT FLIES (motion & commotion)
Feeling the strike from a steelhead always gives the angler a shot of adrenalin. Seeing the strike is even more of a rush. Fishing surface flies for steelhead can be a highly visual experience. Some anglers are so addicted to surface takes that they have given up the sunk fly altogether and even though they know that only the most

aggressive fish will play their game, they feel that quality is more important than quantity. The great thing about fly fishing is that you can play the game any way you want to.

There is little doubt that the closer you present your fly to the end of the fish that eats, the more fish will eat it. It is a matter of convenience. This gives the sunk fly a distinct advantage most of the time. However, surface fishing for steelhead can be very productive during certain water conditions. These conditions happen on most rivers during the summer months when water temperatures and flows are moderate. Rivers, which contain a high percentage of wild steelhead from June through October, are the best bet. Wild steelhead seem more prone to rise to the surface than do hatchery fish. To Top

Surface flies for steelhead are usually presented down stream of the angler and allowed to drag across the surface of the flow. The fly is fished under tension from the line and leader. The fly leaves a wake like a small boat. For some reason this wake will induce some steelhead to strike. There could be several reasons for this. The wake is very visible from under water and serves to attract attention visually. Also steelhead like bass and many other game fish have a refined sense of hearing both with an inner ear and nerves along the lateral line. Like the bass popper, the waking fly makes a disturbance that is audible to the fish, but of course much more subtle. Waking flies usually work best where the surface of the water is smooth. This is because the fly is more visible under these conditions and because there is less background noise from turbulent water.

Like bass, steelhead are territorial and will grab a fly just to exert dominance. However, steelhead are much more timid than bass. Therefore steelhead flies are designed to create less disturbance than bass flies. I know of several steelhead that have been taken on small bass flies popped across the surface. In each case the strikes were amazingly vicious. Is there a new sport brewing; popper fishing for steelhead? Time will tell how successful it might be. The indications are that it is worth a try.
If you want to know more about waking flies and surface steelhead fishing: Click here.
(to be continued in 08/07 FFS Insider) To Top

Up-to-Date INFORMATION on Local Lakes at a glance.
Scroll this table for instant information. Click the links for more information.
Our Lakes Information Section is constantly evolving. Be sure to check often for up-dates.
Want some lake fly fishing instruction? Try a Guided Pontoon Boat Trip!
The water in most lakes is getting warm.
Be careful to fully revive your trout when you release them.

Badger Lake	Last stocked 6/19, fishing good, Callibaetis, ants, caddis
Barnes Butte Lake	Superb top water fishing for both trout and bass.
Chickahominy Reservoir	Last stocked 5/29, many small fish, few large fish.
Clear Lake	Last stocked 5/29, some big trout, water getting low, Hex hatch.
Crane Prairie Reservoir	Improving, fish scattered, damsels, Callibaetis, leeches etc.
Davis Lake	Great Callibaetis hatches, fishing good. Bass hit poppers.
East Lake	Last stocked 7/24, some large trout, many small trout, good.
Frog Lake	Last stocked 6/12, big brood trout, wooly buggers, ants, Callibaetis.
Grindstone Lakes	closed until the fall season
Harriet Lake	Last stocked 7/31, good hatches, can be crowed
Hosmer Lake	Last stocked 5/29, Caddis, Callibaetis & damsels, fishing good.
Laurence Lake	Road closed. 3 mile hike. To Top
Lost Lake	Last stocked 7/03, terrestrials, caddis, Callibaetis, Hex hatch.
Mann Lake	Midges & Callibaetis.
Olallie Lake	Last stocked 7/17
Pine Hollow Reservoir	Last stocked 5/08, fishing fair, water warm.
Rock Creek Reservoir	Last stocked 6/12, trout & bass fishing fair, water low & warm.
Roslyn Lake	Last stocked 7/31, fishing good. Hex hatch.
Timothy Lake	Last stocked 6/05, fishing good, terrestrials, Callibaetis, Hex hatch.
Trillium Lake	Last stocked 7/31, fishing very good.
Wickiup Reservoir	some big Brown Trout on streamers, getting better, still spotty.

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Sage offers 11 models of two hand fly rods. You can buy everyone on-line from us. The hot new rod for summer fishing is the 6126-3. It is a 12' 6" rod that balances well with a To Top Windcutter 6/7/8 fly line. It fishes floating and sinking tip lines equally well and may be the new standard for the Deschutes.

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Why We Love The Cascade Lakes (Mysterious Hex)

Are there more than one specie of giant burrowing may fly in our local lakes? I would seem so. We have found two distinctly different sizes and at least one color variation. Some of our local lakes can be fun at dark. If you want to know more about Hexagenia hatches click here. To Top

Through August, September and October the "Insider" might get smaller.
The editor is going to be rowing a boat a lot and living on the Deschutes. It's a guides life. If you would like to read a detailed Deschutes River Fishing Report, click here.

	Pre-1998 Ross Gunnison & Cimarron Reel Spools are still available! We have all in stock! We also carry a full inventory of all other Ross Reel Products.	Everything Ross On-Line
The Ross Reel Company has announced that it will continue to produce spools for its very popular pre-1998 series of durable reels for a while longer. Now is the time to buy!
* If you own a Ross Gunnison or Cimarron Fly Reel that does not change from left to right hand wind in the spool it is pre-1998 design. Ross is tops in warranty service. To Top

* Sandy River Fishery Information Bank Daily Fishing Report Watershed Over-view Sandy River Book Biology Etc. Watershed Council Web Site
Want to escape the "trout madness" crowds in Central Oregon? Try the "COOL" side of the mountain.

The days are warm and sunny. The evenings are soft and cool. Streams in the upper basin are approaching their summer low flows. The trout are growing fat on an endless procession of hatches. They are wary though and will make you earn them. Fish small dry flies, drag free. To Top