Fly Fishing Insider Newsletter featuring Winston Day 2002

Winston Day 2002
Saturday July 20, 9:00am - 4:00pm
Jon Covich
Representing:   R.L.Winston Rod Co. makers of fine fly rods
Cast a Winston Rod for a chance to
win a Winston Fly Rod worth $645
FREE CASTING LESSONS (given by professionals)!!!
FREE BARBEQUE (noon-on, on the new back deck) !!!
FREE PRIZES (every hour, float tube, fly lines, tying material) !!!
Two Rods Given Away This Year !!!

For Guys and Gals:
Win a LTX 9' #5 Winston Rod Worth $645.
To be eligible you must cast a Winston Rod during Winston Day, July 20 and have entered the drawing.
You do not have to be present to win.

For The Ladies Only!
Win a Very Rare Unused IM-6 Joan Wulff Favorite Winston Rod Worth $595.
A special drawing will be held July 20 for women only. Must be present to win.

LT Rod Drawing at 4:00pm, Joan Wulff Rod Drawing at 5:00pm.

Treg Owings with the first days catch of dorado.

A Fly Fishing Trip to Loreto, Mexico
By Treg Owings
June 21, 2002 started early in Portland by getting to the airport at 5 AM. Plane left for LAX at 7 and then on to Aero California to Loreto. Only one flight per day so you better not miss this one. We all met in LAX for the flight in.
Ground transfer to the hotel was included in the package. This might be a good time to talk about the fishing package we chose. The trip was arranged through Angler's Passport . The cost was $1180, double occupancy. This included 3 meals a day and a room for 7 nights at the Hotel Oasis. We

fished 6 days in Pangas. This is also included. With this package we received all ground transfers. You also have someone who makes all arrangements and makes sure everything goes smoothly. Extra costs include TIPS. We tipped our guide between $20 and $30 a day. Twenty is standard. We bought sardinas for $10. We tipped a buck at lunch and dinner. We tipped the maids and we tipped the kids who carried our coolers. More on that later.

OK, back to the trip. We arrived in Loreto and went through customs and picked up our luggage and off to the hotel. Two of us were missing coolers. One cooler was empty. Mine had 73 pounds of 16 ounce water bottles. Luckily they both showed up the next day. I suggest coolers with wheels if you want to bring home fish.

My fishing partner was Jerry Kustich who builds bamboo rods for Winston. After we were checked in, Jerry and I headed for the beach to do a little surf fishing. We caught some
trumpet fish which are a cross between an eel and a fish. Some were up to 30 inches long. Their mouths are about the size of a quarter. They twist and are slimy and hard to hold. Not a fish of choice. The beech area in front of the hotel is fairly shallow. Folks swim in it and do some snorkeling. That evening we had chicken for dinner in a beautiful outdoor setting, but sometimes you have to fight off the sparrows for your chips. To prepare for the next mornings fishing we give Raul, the busboy our drink order for the cooler provided in our boat. Because my waters did not make the trip yet, we chose 2 waters (they were 1/2 gallon containers) and 3 cervezas.

Morning #1 started w/ a knock on our door at 5 am. We got up and went to the breakfast buffet. This included pancakes and French toast, scrambled eggs w/ sausage, ham, or omelet stuff, toast, refried beans, pastries, and fruit. After this we met our guide, Tacho, around 6 AM and climbed in the Panga (22 foot fiberglass boat). We then went to get sardinas. Tacho netted our bait so we got it free. The next day we did the same but the Policia stopped that. If the pangaros

did not have a bait license they could not net. After that we paid $10 a day for sardinas. We then headed out. Friday (our first day) was pretty rough. We went North of Isla Carmen. We found some Sargasso Weed but patches were few and far between. Because it was so rough this day we mostly trolled. I used my 12 wt w/ a large blue and white fly w/ stinger hooks. I ended up boating 4 dorado. During one of my hook-ups a VERY large bull was lit up near the boat. Jerry cast to it a couple times. I think this fish may have been around 40 pounds. Jerry had one take but the fish came right at him and he did not get a good hook set. I think that was the biggest fish we had a shot at for the trip. Well, except for one I lost but more on that later.

We headed back around 12. When we landed we were surrounded by kids (muchachos) that wanted to carry ALL our gear to the room. We made the mistake of letting them do this (except for our rods). After the first day we had 1 muchacho carry our cooler to the room. If anything was left in the cooler it usually ended up in their pocket. We tipped them about a

Dorado like to hide under patches of Sargasso Weed.

buck and gave them some bottled water. The fish was given to the "wheelbarrow man" who took it to the cleaning station. Poncho would then fillet the fish. I took my vacuum packer to bag fish and then into the hotel freezer. I tipped the fish cleaner a couple bucks and the wheelbarrow man. I finally would make it to lunch around 2. Lunches varied. All meals included soup and chips and salsa. If you drank anything other than water or tea it went on your bill. I drank a lot of water.
After lunch we went to the pool with our rods. Al, an experienced Loreto angler from Tacoma, taught me what to do next. You went to the deep end and tossed your rods in! After a few minutes you dove in and took them out and let them dry. This became a daily ritual. Next came a siesta or a walk into town. It was hot in Loreto. The town is small.

July is the month for Dorado at Loreto, Mexico.

However, they do have a lot of nice shops. Also there is a place to get on the internet. That cost about $1 for 10 minutes. This is where Sue and I were able to chat each evening. Evening meals were usually around 7 or 8. Meals were decent. Some better than others. In the evening we tied leaders and discussed flies and strategy for the next day. I'll send more reports soon.
To be continued in: 07/14/02 "Insider".

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Does one brand actually cast differently than another?
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Clackamas River

Water conditions are good. Still fair numbers of fairly bright summer steelhead. Most of the Spring Chinooks are starting to turn color and many are beyond their prime. However some very bright Chinooks are still available. Fishing has been good for skilled anglers. Expect a very large run of Coho Salmon September/October.

Deschutes River

Steelhead are just starting to enter the river now. Fish are scattered in the lower ten miles. Seasonal water conditions should be favorable. White River glacial run-off is always the wild card. Steelhead run is expected to exceed last ten year average.

Hood River River

There are still good numbers of fairly bright steelhead stacked up in the mile below Power Dale Dam. The rest of the river from from the dam to the mouth has sparser numbers of fish. The problem is water color from glacial silt. Only on the coolest days is the river fishable. Best period for fly fishing May & June.

Klickitat River

There are fair numbers of very bright steelhead. The run will continue to build through July and August. The problem is the Klick is in and out with glacial turbidity. When it's clear it can be great. Most predictable period for fly fishing is October.

North Umpqua River

A few very bright fish are scattered in the fly-only water now. This run will build throughout the summer. Seasonal water conditions should be favorable. Steelhead run is expected to exceed last ten year average. Best fishing period is August through October.

Rogue River

A few half-pounders in the lower river now. This run will build throughout the summer. Adult steelhead run will start in August. Seasonal water conditions should be favorable. Steelhead run is expected to exceed last ten year average. Best fishing period is August through October.

Sandy River

There are still good numbers of fairly bright steelhead stacked up below Marmot Dam. The rest of the river from from the dam to the mouth has sparser numbers of fish. The problem is water color from glacial silt. The Sandy went out early this year and is expected to be out much of the summer. Only on the coolest days is the river fishable. Best period for fly fishing April, May & October. Expect a very large run of Coho Salmon September/October.

The Fly Fishing Shop has one of the most divers and extensive collections
of steelhead flies to be found anywhere!

Item	Description	Size	Price	To Top
BAJASET	Cutting Edge Baja Fly Set (8) flies total	Assorted	Set for $29.95

Green But Skunk	Fly DeJour	Street Walker	Prizm
Green Muddler	Purple Muddler	Black Egg Sucking Leech	Purple Egg Sucking Leech
Purple Flash-A-Bugger	Big Black	Red Rocket	Bulkley Mouse

Item	Description	Size	Price	To Top
SUMSTSET	Deadliest dozen summer steelhead fly set. 24 flies in all, includes shipping in USA.	Assorted	Set for $45.95


Summer Steelhead Fishing is a key part of the activity around The Fly Fishing Shop. Fishing forays are made weekly to keep us up-to-date with first hand proprietary information. The best part is that Patty and I have to collect much of this information in person. Well that's just the way it is. It's dirty dangerous work, but someone has to do it.