Best Spey Reel, Rocky Ridge Ranch, Oregon

		Nautilus 12 Reels & Spools
The Nautilus 12 was designed to satisfy the needs of both saltwater fly fishermen and Spey casters. It has become the top selling Spey Reel at The Fly Fishing Shop in Welches, Oregon. The reasons are easy to comprehend. A Nautilus 12 is the right size and weight. It delivers total reliability in an environment that is notably hard on reels. That is because the frame and spool are constructed from high tensile strength aircraft aluminum, which is finished with the most corrosion resistant anodizing available. The drag system and bearings are enclosed in a
waterproof housing. Keeping water out of the drag discs enables the reel to deliver consistent tension on the out-going line. Steelhead fishing is hard on many brands of reels. Deep wading with a reel often submerged may be harder on a reel than fishing for big ocean fish, which is usually done from a boat where the reel stays dry. At any rate keeping water off the drag surfaces has to be a plus for smooth operation. Nautilus CCF are the top selling steelhead reels at our shop. Our relationship with Nautilus started this way: Kevin Thompson, the Nautilus rep, stopped by the shop one afternoon with a bag full of shiny new reels. He said, "These are the greatest fly fishing reels in the world, bar none." Well of course he said that. He's a rep. It's his job. I said, "I already have a house full of reels and I don't need more inventory to keep track of. The reels we have are selling fine." He said, "These Nautilus Reels have a completely sealed waterproof drag system." I said, "I have heard that song and dance before." He said, "What does it take to convince you?" I said, "Score me a big spey reel and then come back and see me next year." So he did. Here is the rest of the story: A year passed and the Nautilus #12 he gave me landed many steelhead without the slightest malfunction. Of course we became Nautilus dealers. Now the second, third and fourth years have passed: Clients are still using my original reel and it is still working perfectly. We have tested Nautilus reels on all manner of fresh water fish and found none of them were a challenge to any Nautilus.
12Model	Line	Backing	Weight		To Top
12-Reel	WF12	300 yd. #30	9.6 oz.	Choose winding hand.
Stock Number	Description			Price
CCF12R-B	Nautilus 12 Reel, Color Black			$525	-->SALE ENDED
CCF12S-B	Nautilus 12 Spool, Color Black			$195	-->SALE ENDED
CCF12R-S	Nautilus 12 Reel, Color Silver			$525	-->SALE ENDED
CCF12S-S	Nautilus 12 Spool, Color Silver			$195	-->SALE ENDED

Alec Jackson Steelhead Irons Alec Jackson, born an Englishman, is without doubt the best known American hook designer. His Standard Weight Spey hooks are very traditional looking. They are copies of hooks that had been popular, but become unobtainable in the British Isles. Alec took these proven designs to Japan where legendary steel has been made for 3,000 years. These new hooks called "Spey Hooks" became exceedingly popular with northwest steelheaders, but it became obvious that hooks made from heavier wire would help get flies deeper in the water and would be more durable. A line of heavier wire spey hooks were developed and also became very popular. Then local guides asked Alec for a shorter version of the heavy wire hook. The result is the "Steelhead Iron" series. This shorter, curved shank series of hooks feature incredible holding power for landing the strongest fish. The slightly dropped needle points are chemically sharpened.
		Alec's flies have a character all of their own. Intricately spun herl bodies combined with soft flowing seductive materials are a trade mark of his flies.
	Many of the most popular Pacific Northwest steelhead guides tie many of their "special" flies on Alec Jackson hooks. That tells us they are the best available to serve many purposes.

Fly Fishing: “SPEY” Casting / Beginning – Intermediate

Spey casting can be learned quite easily with the assistance of a professional instructor. This class starts with the most basic fundamentals so that you will have a solid foundation on which to build your "Spey Casting Skill Set". Our approach allows you to easily understand the scientific principles of how a rod and line work together to propel your fly to the target. This crash course starts in a nice warm class room where the necessity of acquiring good casting skills becomes apparent. Here rod and line theories are discussed in detail so that before you get to the water, you have an understanding of the principals you are going to use. Then you will ride to the river with your instructors. There your instructors will demonstrate the theories you have already explored. Then you will take a rod into your own hands and be able to practice what you have learned. You will be amazed at how easy it is. All the major Spey Casts will be explored. Both floating and sinking tip lines will be learned. This class is centered on developing casting skills that will make you a better fisherman. Time: 8 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. (Lunch is provided). Meet at: The Fly Fishing Shop - Instructors: Josh Linn and Cullen Wisenhunt Cost (8 hrs.): $150. You will need the following equipment: Waders, boots, rain coat, hat and polarized glasses. You may bring your own rod and reel if you want to. Properly balanced Spey Outfits will be provided. (6) Students total. First come, first served. Deposits are payments in full. Deposits are non-refundable unless water/weather conditions prohibit class. SEE CLASS POLICY
Item	Description	Price	To Top
SPEY-CL-082909	Spey Casting Class, Saturday, August 29, 2009	$150	-->SALE ENDED

Inland Steelhead ESUs 13) Middle Columbia River—This ESU occupies the Columbia River Basin from above the Wind River in Washington and the Hood River in Oregon upstream to include the Yakima River, Washington. Steelhead of the Snake River Basin are not included. This ESU includes the only populations of winter inland steelhead in the United States, in the Klickitat River and Fifteenmile Creek. Some uncertainty exists about the exact boundary between coastal and inland steelhead, and the western margin of this ESU reflects currently available genetic data. There is good genetic and meristic evidence to separate this ESU from steelhead of the Snake River Basin. The boundary upstream of the Yakima River is based on limited genetic information and environmental differences including physiographic regions, climate, topography, and vegetation. All BRT members felt special concern for the status of this ESU, particularly Yakima River and winter steelhead stocks. Total steelhead abundance in the ESU appears to have been increasing recently, but the majority of natural stocks for which we have data within this ESU have been declining, including those in the John Day River, which is the largest producer of wild, natural steelhead. There is widespread production of hatchery steelhead within this ESU, but it is largely based on within-basin stocks. Habitat degradation due to grazing and water diversions has been documented throughout the range of the ESU.

14) Upper Columbia River—This ESU occupies the Columbia River Basin

upstream from the Yakima River. All upper Columbia River steelhead are summer steelhead. The streams of this region that are utilized by steelhead primarily drain the northern Cascade Mountains of Washington State. Streamflow is supplied by snowmelt, groundwater, and glacial runoff, often resulting in extremely cold water temperatures that retard the growth and maturation of steelhead juveniles, causing some of the oldest smolt ages reported for steelhead and residualization of juvenile steelhead that fail to smolt. All anadromous fish in this region were affected by the Grand Coulee Fish Maintenance Project (1939 through 1943), wherein anadromous fish returning to spawn in the upper Columbia River were trapped at Rock Island Dam, downstream of the Wenatchee River. Some of these fish were then released to spawn in river basins above Rock Island Dam, while others were spawned in hatcheries and the offspring were released into various upper Columbia River tributaries; in both cases, no attempt was made to return these fish to their natal streams, resulting in an undetermined level of stock mixing within the upper Columbia River fish. While total abundance of populations within this ESU has been relatively stable or increasing, this appears to be true only because of major hatchery supplementation programs. Estimates of the proportion of hatchery fish in spawning escapement are 65% (Wenatchee River) and 81% (Methow and Okanogan Rivers). The major concern for this ESU is the clear failure of natural stocks to replace themselves. The BRT also had a strong concern about problems of genetic homogenization due to hatchery supplementation within the ESU. There was also concern about the apparent high harvest rates on steelhead smolts in rainbow trout fisheries and the degradation of freshwater habitats within the region, especially the effects of grazing, irrigation diversions, and hydroelectric dams.

15) Snake River Basin—This ESU occupies the Snake River Basin of southeast

Washington, northeast Oregon, and Idaho. This region is ecologically complex and supports a diversity of steelhead populations; however, genetic and meristic data suggest that these populations are more similar to each other than they are to steelhead populations occurring outside of the Snake River Basin. Snake River Basin steelhead spawning areas are well isolated from other populations and include the highest elevations for spawning (up to 2,000 m) as well as the longest migration distance from the ocean (up to 1,500 km). Snake River steelhead are often classified into two groups, A- and B-run, based on migration timing, ocean age, and adult size. While total (hatchery + natural) run size for Snake River steelhead has increased since the mid-1970s, the increase has resulted from increased production of hatchery fish, and there has been a severe recent decline in natural run size. The majority of natural stocks for which we have data within this ESU have been declining. Parr densities in natural production areas have been substantially below estimated capacity in recent years. Downward trends and low parr densities indicate a particularly severe problem for B-run steelhead, the loss of which would substantially reduce life history diversity within this ESU. The BRT had a strong concern about the pervasive opportunity for genetic introgression from hatchery stocks within the ESU. There was also concern about the degradation of freshwater habitats within the region, especially the effects of grazing, irrigation diversions, and hydroelectric dams.

Bob goes on to say, "Even NOAA doesn't have it completely correct, because they state A-Run are predominately 1-salt, and B-Run are predominately 2-salt. A-Run races have a significant 2-salt component on some years, and B-Runs have 3-salt components."
We are waiting for another more up-dated document to be put into a format that can be circulated on the internet. Hopefully when it arrives, we can get not only ourselves, and also NOAA brought up to-date.
We will keep you posted.

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Fly Tying Tools	Fly Patterns
Fly Tying Materials	Hooks
Fly Tying Kit

Alec Jackson in New Zealand with a couple of big rainbows that were originally California steelhead stock.	Brian Silvey shown here tying his magic steelhead flies in camp, uses many Steelhead Irons.
A Golden Demon fly tied on a gold finished Steelhead Iron tied by Josh Linn.	A collection of Steelhead Irons dressed by Brian Silvey & Mark Bachmann

Alec Jackson Steelhead Iron, Black This shorter shank, heavier wire design is gaining popularity amongst Pacific Northwest steelhead guides.
Item	Description	Size	Price	To Top
SI-3-25	Alec Jackson Steelhead Iron Hook, Black	3	25 for $15.30	-->SALE ENDED
SI-5-25	Alec Jackson Steelhead Iron Hook, Black	5	25 for $15.30	-->SALE ENDED
SI-7-25	Alec Jackson Steelhead Iron Hook, Black	7	25 for $15.30	-->SALE ENDED

NSI Alec Jackson Steelhead Iron, Nickel Steelhead Irons are very rigid and tend to "hang-onto" fish after they are hooked.
Item	Description	Size	Price	To Top
NSI-3-25	Alec Jackson Steelhead Iron Hook, Nickel	3	25 for $15.30	-->SALE ENDED
NSI-5-25	Alec Jackson Steelhead Iron Hook, Nickel	5	25 for $15.30	-->SALE ENDED
NSI-7-25	Alec Jackson Steelhead Iron Hook, Nickel	7	25 for $15.30	-->SALE ENDED

GSI Alec Jackson Steelhead Iron Hook, Gold Steelhead Irons come in a full range of sizes to tie summer flies and up to medium size winter flies.
Item	Description	Size	Price	To Top
GSI-3-25	Alec Jackson Steelhead Iron Hook, Gold	3	25 for $15.30	-->SALE ENDED
GSI-5-25	Alec Jackson Steelhead Iron Hook, Gold	5	25 for $15.30	-->SALE ENDED
GSI-7-25	Alec Jackson Steelhead Iron Hook, Gold	7	25 for $15.30	-->SALE ENDED

Rocky Ridge Ranch...still great fishing !!! Spent my 65th birthday at Rocky Ridge Ranch. We stayed at Pine Cabin and fished an evening and the next day. It was late by the time we got moved in and we only caught a couple of trout before it became too dark to see. Got up early the next morning and watched the sun come up over Wild Rose Lake from the front porch of the cabin. There were trout rising in the dark. It took a while to figure out that they were eating Damsel Fly nymphs. After that, fishing a Damsel Fly nymph with a floating line and long leader with a slow twitchy retrieve would get a strike nearly every cast for the next couple of hours. After lunch we switched to Mules Ear Lake where the trout were actively pursuing adult Damsel Flies. We spent the next three hours enjoying some great dry fly fishing. The water was warm enough, we didn't need waders in the afternoon. The fish were fat and healthy and appeared to recover quickly when released. They averaged 15" to 20".
Sunrise on Wild Rose Lake
Damsel nymphs were migrating and the trout were suckin' 'em up.
Trout with Damsel Nymph	Trout with Damsel Dry
Patty hooked up again...

Where Anglers Stay in Welches, Oregon
	Beat the heat and enjoy your stay in our community while learning the finer points of Spey Casting and Steelhead Fishing. For your convenience, The Fly Fishing Shop in Welches, Oregon can now integrate your lodging with your fly fishing school or guided trip fee. Late August brings warm days and cool nights. After your Spey Casting School you might want to relax with a massage before you check out the local restaurants. If given enough advance notice we can arrange for your massage and make
recommendations and reservations for your evening meal.

Single Occupancy or Couple (one queen size bed). Summer Rates until October 1. All rates listed include county and state lodging taxes of 7%. Please include your dates in the Comments section of the order form. Dates will be confirmed by email.
Item	Description	Nights	Price	To Top
CABINS-01S	Stay at The Cabins Creekside in Welches, Summer Rates	1	Base: $109 with tax: $116.63	-->SALE ENDED
CABINS-02S	Stay at The Cabins Creekside in Welches, Summer Rates	2	Base: $218 with tax: $233.26	-->SALE ENDED