Sage 6129-4 VXP, Steelhead PhD, Fall Hatches On Lakes, Fall Lake Trout Flies |
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Sage 6129-4 VXP |
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 Simon Gawesworth teaching how to cast with your back against the weeds at Summer Steelhead PhD. His rod of choice: Sage 6129-4 VXP |
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| Sage 6129-4 VXP | Length: 12' 9" Line: #6 Pieces: 4 | |||||
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This rod has that fast crisp action that will appeal to
really good casters and beginners too. It loads easy and kicks hard
resulting in a soft easy casting stroke and blinding fly line speed. To
us, this is the best six-weight two-hand rod Sage has ever produced,
which means it is arguably the best in its class...period. The 6129-4
will capture the hearts of summer steelhead anglers and winter steelhead
anglers alike, as well as Alaska and TDF trout fishers. It will also
prove to be a great grilse rod. |
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| Item | Series | Line Wt. | Action | Handle | Price | To Top |
| 6129-4 | VXP | 380-440 | Fast | T | $595 | |
| Summer Steelhead PhD School Report |
| The last ten day camp-out session started with reliable fishing for my first group, and they racked up some good numbers of steelhead landed. By the time the second group arrived the weather had turned wet and the river began to rise and turn of-color. Last Friday and Saturday nights found us camped in real frog strangler rain storms. White River turned loose a torrent of muddy water and the Deschutes River turned white. Most PhD students caught fish and Simon Gawesworth demonstrated that he could catch steelhead during nearly every session, which goes to prove that you have to have your fly in the water and fly presentation does matter a lot. |
 Summer Steelhead PhD camp from across the river. Most of the tents are in the trees. |
 Josh Linn and Ron Walp taking a break while sorting through the goodies provided by Rio. |
 John MacDiarmid lands a steelhead as Simon Gawesworth takes pictures. |
 Kevin Sheehan hoists his first Deschutes steelhead. |
 Paul Wagner with his first swung-fly steelhead. |
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Falling for Lakes! By: Rick Hafele |
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| Most lakes go through several major transitions in activity over the course of the year. Spring produces a flurry of bug activity with midges, mayflies, damselflies, and caddisflies coming off in profusion. Through the summer, lakes see a decline of bug activity and fish often head for deep areas for cooler water. This means less surface activity, except for short periods right before dark, and often means fishing patterns deep with sinking lines. Thankfully when the weather – and water – begins to cool again in the fall, fish begin to return to shallower water, which often coincides with an increase in insect activity as well. Exactly what you’ll find will depend on the lake you are fishing but in general here’s a rundown on what you can expect to see and some fly patterns you will want to have ready. |
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Mayflies:
Mayfly hatches in the fall can be spotty, but there’s a good chance you
run into a decent hatch of
Callibaetis or speckle-winged quills again. This is the same mayfly you saw in the spring, but the fall hatch
will be a consistent one or two sizes smaller, meaning your patterns
will need to be 16’s or even 18’s to match them.
Nymph patterns fished around vegetation can prove productive in
the pre-hatch period, typically between 9:00 or 10:00 in the morning and
1:00 or so in the afternoon.
Once you see duns on the water you can switch to an emerger or dun
pattern. If you’re not sure
which, try fishing both, putting the emerger on a dropper below the dry
fly. Finally, keep your eyes open
for good spinner falls in the mid to late afternoon. Generally cloudy calm days will produce the best hatches and
spinner falls.
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Damselflies:
Damselflies don’t
hatch in the fall and most of the surface activity with adult damsel
patterns will be over. However,
by the time you get into October many of the eggs laid by damselflies in
the summer have hatched and the young nymphs are active in the shallows.
This can be a great time to use small damselfly nymph patterns
sometimes called micro damsels.
These are often tied on size 16 hooks with a small bead head up front
and a short tail of marabou out back.
I like to fish them with a dry line and moderately long leader of
10 or 12 feet. Let the fly
settle near the bottom and then fish with a slow retrieve with
occasional twitches and pauses.
Takes will often be light so give it your full attention.
Fishing small damsel nymphs is often overlooked in the fall, but
they can sometimes turn a quiet day into great one.
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Chironomids:
Well, lake fishing
wouldn’t be lake fishing without chironomids, right?
The reality is that chironomids hatch just about every week of
the year, so the fall is no different.
Like many insects those that hatch in the fall are smaller than
their springtime counterparts.
Pupa patterns will still be your top choice, but instead of size 12’s or
even 10’s, you will more likely be using 16’s or 18’s.
Because there are so many different chironomids, however, the
only sure way to know what size and color of pattern you should use is
to actually collect some of the pupa emerging.
If there’s a wind up go to the down-wind end of the lake and
start looking in shoreline foam or debris for pupa shucks or pupa still
trying to emerge. Then, just
like in the spring, you need to fish your pupa pattern at the proper
depth, which often means close to the bottom.
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Leeches:
I don’t think there is
ever a time I go to fish lakes without having some good leech patterns,
and the fall is no different.
Leeches provide a year round food for trout in lakes and even when
leeches are scarce leech patterns seem to make good attractor patterns.
There is a wide variety of leech patterns to choose from, like
wooly buggers, rabbit hair leeches, strip leeches, etc.
Olive, brown, black, and purple are all good colors.
Fish your leech patterns where the fish are!
That could be shallow to deep water depending on time of day,
type of weather, and water temp.
As the days get shorter and the water gets cooler fish will be in
shallower water.
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Water boatmen/Backswimmers:
Water boatmen and
backswimmers can be the real sleepers of the fall season.
Both these insects are in the order Hemiptera and look and behave
rather similar, though water boatmen belong to the family Corixidae,
while backswimmers are in the family Notonectidae.
Water boatmen tend to be the most numerous.
They also tend to be darker in color (dark olive) and a little
smaller than backswimmers (size 14’s or 16’s vs. 12’s or 14’s).
Both insects get quite active in the fall, and though they might
not look like it they are very good flyers.
In the fall adults take off in search of new waters to populate
and end up swimming and diving around where fish see them, sometimes in
great numbers. Brash, heavy
swirls in the lakes surface, without any noticeable bugs on the water,
may indicate fish are eating water boatmen or backswimmers.
Patterns should be fished just below the surface or hanging in
the surface film. A good
technique is to use a slow sinking line, nine or ten foot leader, and a
fly pattern with a foam back to help it float.
Cast it out and let it sit in the surface film until your line
has sunk a few feet, then start a twitch retrieve with long pauses.
Because your line sinks and your fly floats each twitch will pull
your fly down and each pause lets the fly float back up towards the
surface. This is a great match
to the naturals behavior and can drive fish crazy.
You can also use a floating line and slightly weighted fly
pattern. Let the fly sink
several feet deep then twitch it back up towards the surface.
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| Observation is always a key to successful fishing, so keep your eyes open when you’re on the water. While one or more of the above insects can be a good choice in the fall, you’ll need to decide what looks like the best bet on any particular day. |
| Top Lake Fly Suggestions for Fall Fishing | ||
| Flashback | Gulper Special | CDC Midge |
| Paranymph | Paradamsel | Bead Head Leeches |
| Loop Wing Parachute | Griffith's Gnat | Water Boatmen |
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| Pheasant
Tail Nymph, Flashback This is a very popular pattern that looks like a Callibaetis Mayfly Nymph that is about ready to hatch. |
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| Item | Description | Size | Price | To Top |
| 12262-12 | Pheasant Tail Nymph, Flashback | 12 | 3 for $5.95 | |
| 12262-14 | Pheasant Tail Nymph, Flashback | 14 | 3 for $5.95 | |
| 12262-16 | Pheasant Tail Nymph, Flashback | 16 | 3 for $5.95 | |
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Callibaetis Paranymph Some Callibaetis have a distinct olive coloration. This is a good pattern for those hatches. |
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| Item | Description | Size | Price | To Top |
| Q302-14 | Callibaetis Paranymph | 14 | 3 for $5.95 | |
| Q302-16 | Callibaetis Paranymph | 16 | 3 for $5.95 | |
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Callibaetis, Loop Wing Parachute This may be the best Callibaetis dry fly for selective trout. Buy several because the wings are somewhat fragile and can get torn up after a few fish. |
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| Item | Description | Size | Price | To Top |
| Q206-14 | Callibaetis, Loop Wing Parachute | 14 | 3 for $5.95 | |
| Q206-16 | Callibaetis, Loop Wing Parachute | 16 | 3 for $5.95 | |
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Parachute Gulper Special This is one of the best late season Callibaetis patterns for local mountain lakes. It has also proven itself as a mayfly spinner pattern for many streams and lakes. |
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| Item | Description | Size | Price | To Top |
| 1042-14 | Parachute Gulper Special | 14 | 3 for $5.85 | |
| 1042-16 | Parachute Gulper Special | 16 | 3 for $5.85 | |
| 1042-18 | Parachute Gulper Special | 18 | 3 for $5.85 | |
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Foam Body Paradamsel Fly This fly is designed to float. The body is made from soft pliable sealed cell foam polymer. As such it is lighter than water. The large parachute hackle simulates wings and adds to the flies floatation. Fish this fly along weed beds and shore lines when game fish are targeting damsels on the surface. |
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| Item | Description | Size | Price | To Top |
| 06293-12 | Foam Body Paradamsel Fly | 12 | 3 for $5.85 | |
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Griffith's Gnat This is probably the most popular midge dry fly. It imitates clusters of mating midges or individual midges. |
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| Item | Description | Size | Price | To Top |
| 1085-14 | Griffith's Gnat | 14 | 3 for $5.85 | |
| 1085-16 | Griffith's Gnat | 16 | 3 for $5.85 | |
| 1085-18 | Griffith's Gnat | 18 | 3 for $5.85 | |
| 1085-20 | Griffith's Gnat | 20 | 3 for $5.85 | |
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Midge, CDC This is a midge emerger or imitates a stillborn midge. |
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| Item | Description | Size | Price | To Top |
| 99319-18 | Midge, CDC | 18 | 3 for $5.85 | |
| Bachmann's Bead Head Leeches | |
| Bead Head Leech, Black | Bead Head Leech, Maroon |
| Bead Head Leech, Brown | Bead Head Leech, Olive |
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| There are many "wormy" looking creatures that live in aquatic environments. Most lakes and weedy streams have dense populations of leeches and aquatic worms. During much of the time they are buried in the substrate or bottom vegetation. However, during low light conditions they often forage about where they are exposed to patrolling game fish. Trout and bass seek out these tender morsels and eat them like candy. This is especially true early in the spring before weeds start to grow. Leeches are your most important early season lake flies. If the water temperature is cold, they are most effective when fished slowly along the bottom with a sinking fly line. Swimming leaches are flat and elongated. They swim with an undulating, almost ribbon-like motion. Bachmann's Marabou Leech is designed to mimic this action. It's flat and has a black bead head that gives it a distinct swimming-leach action. Don't head to your lake without some. |
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Head Leech, Black If you only had one size and color for your earliest season fishing, make it a black size six. This fly catches fish. It is worthwhile having the Black Bead Head Leech in all of the sizes. Sometimes trout display a preference for a certain size. Like everything else, leeches start out small and grow bigger. |
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| Item | Description | Size | Price | To Top |
| 9041-06 | Bead Head Leech, Black | 6 | 3 for $5.85 | |
| 9041-08 | Bead Head Leech, Black | 8 | 3 for $5.85 | |
| 9041-10 | Bead Head Leech, Black | 10 | 3 for $5.85 | |
| Bead
Head Leech, Brown This is a have to have fly when fishing any mud bottom lake. There are brown and reddish brown leeches in many lakes. |
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| Item | Description | Size | Price | To Top |
| 9044-06 | Bead Head Leech, Brown | 6 | 3 for $5.85 | |
| 9044-08 | Bead Head Leech, Brown | 8 | 3 for $5.85 | |
| 9044-10 | Bead Head Leech, Brown | 10 | 3 for $5.85 | |
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Head Leech, Maroon Commonly referred to as a blood leech, patterns that are maroon in color are very effective in many lakes. |
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| Item | Description | Size | Price | To Top |
| 9042-06 | Bead Head Leech, Maroon | 6 | 3 for $5.85 | |
| 9042-10 | Bead Head Leech, Maroon | 10 | 3 for $5.85 | |
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Head Leech, Olive Some leeches are olive colored, this probably helps them blend in with aquatic vegetation. It is well known that a wiggly fly that is an inch long and green is a high percentage searching fly in most desert lakes early in the spring. |
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| Item | Description | Size | Price | To Top |
| 9043-06 | Bead Head Leech, Olive | 6 | 3 for $5.85 | |
| 9043-08 | Bead Head Leech, Olive | 8 | 3 for $5.85 | |
| 9043-10 | Bead Head Leech, Olive | 10 | 3 for $5.85 | |
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Water boatmen have the hind two pairs of legs fitted with hairs and the outer joints of the hind legs are oar-shaped which allows them to paddle and swim. Adults range in length from 3/16 to 3/8 inch long and are usually dull colored brown or olive. Water boatmen often swim in open water where they are easy prey for trout. They are comfortable in cold water and often a good choice for an early season trout fly in lakes. |
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Water Boatman, Brown Water boatmen are reported to occur in fresh water throughout most of the world. In certain local ponds lakes and reservoirs they occur in dense populations. In the edge water of many local rivers with habitats as diverse as the spring fed Deschutes to the glacial fed Sandy water boatmen populations can be very prolific. When other aquatic insects are still dormant from the cold of winter, water boatmen can be very active. |
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| Item | Description | Size | Price | To Top |
| 00531-12 | Water Boatman, Brown | 12 | 3 for $5.85 | |
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Water Boatman, Olive Approximately 130 species of water boatmen have been cataloged in North America. Like all aquatic "true bugs" water boatmen lack gills and must come to the surface of the water to breathe. They frequently carry an shiny air bubble attached to their rear abdomen so they can breathe from it. Try dressing your fly with a powdered dry fly dressing so it will gather air bubbles. Then fish your fly with a slow sinking line and a jerky retrieve. |
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| Item | Description | Size | Price | To Top |
| 00532-12 | Water Boatman, Olive | 12 | 3 for $5.85 | |
The Fly Fishing Shop, Welches, OR
1(800)
266-3971
Fish long & prosper,
Mark & Patty