Gett'n Schooled.

Most big fish don't get landed. That's been true for the last few days. Today Stephen from Sacramento on his third cast hooked a big brown that took him in the current and schooled him. You have to be in command of the big boys. The main thing is to put enough pressure on the fish to keep them out of the main current. The top photo is one of the big rainbows Stephen did land today. I guess my camera was off for the first bow that easily went 5 lbs, sorry Stephen, no photos of that guy. The bottom photo is of Willie from Reno that got schooled by a big boy right on that rock to the right in that photo. The fishing is still good my friends.

Dog Days of August?

Well, not really. So far August has been really good. Mild daytime temps are keeping water temps in the respectable range. When I talk about the river, I am referring to the river below Boca, above that it is bath water by now. Trout migrate, so should you. Most folks are hooking fish, while a big Truckee River fish is getting hooked just about daily. I'm talking fish in the 3-5lb range, no joke. This time of year hatches are starting to decrease and bugs are less plentiful than early Summer. Attractor nymphs and crayfish work really well this time of year. Steamers also work good, but only in low light hours. Trout need water and we have plenty of it this year. These are some photos from the last few days.

A Progression.

Fly fishing is a progression, there is always something new to learn about our sport. I learn more and more every year about Trout and how to catch them. Last year I taught John and Tina how to fly fish and since then they have progressed as fly fishers. Both Tina and John hooked and landed some nice fish on the Truckee River including this nice Rainbow in the photo. I'm back to wearing waders in the mornings as the water temps below Boca are great for this time of year and should remain good for the rest of the month. Fish are eating caddis pupa, crayfish, and rubber legged stones.

A Tailwater Somewhere.

I used to fish this place a lot when I was in high school. It's a cold tailwater that holds wild rainbows and browns somewhere in the Sierra. When in high school I worked at Little Cesar's one Spring so I could get gas money to drive up from Roseville to fish it. I remember casting into the pools and have big rainbows blast from the bottom and inhale my fly. Times have changed, but theirs still fish in there. I wouldn't say the fishing was red hot today, but we did manage to bring a nice brown up from the bottom. I never thought when I was a kid that someday I would be guideing at this place some twenty years later. I guess sometimes you come full circle in life.

Sett'n Up.

Not only is getting a good drift essential, but learning when and how to strike on a fish or "setting up" is important as well. I watch people everyday not strike on a fish hard enough, or not strike at all. A good hook set is important. When your nymph rig is going in a likely spot, or through the bucket be ready. I almost know when I'm going to get a strike it's instinctive for me. I try to tell people to be ready, have your finger on the trigger (your line under your finger) and be ready for that hit. You would also stick more fish if you set downstream with the current and not upstream ripping the hook right out of the trout's mouth. There has been a lot of fish missed the last few days on poor hook sett's, some big and some small, and some we will never know for sure. The water is a nice 63 degrees even at noon. The fishing is good.

Get'n a Good Drift.

A good drift is essential to catch fish on the Truckee River. If you have drag on your flies you're just not going to catch fish. Most beginners have a hard time with this. Mending line is essential. The rods and fly lines you use play into this. A good clean fly line is crucial, as well as at least a 9ft rod. Leave your East Coast stick at home. I like using Switch rods and the Sage 99 series rod for nymphing the Truckee River. The extra length helps you lift line off the water when nymphing. If you have a regular 9ft rod, up line it one size, it will help load your rod better. Your not fishing from a drift boat on the Truckee. Even if you are with a guide you are the one, not me, that has to present your flies to the fish. Sometimes that's hard on a river like the Truckee. Anthony from San Carlos talked about that with me today. How drift boat fishing and wade fishing are two separate creatures, with wade fishing being much harder. Anthony is a fine angler and we had some fine fishing today with Crayfish, and Caddis Pupa.

Catching Big Fish.

Some fly fishers can and some just can't. It's not about making long casts on a casting pond it's knowing how to get into position and make accurate presentations on moving water. It's also knowing how to read the water so if you are blindly fishing you are indeed fishing to places that hold fish. After a while you will be able to understand where prime holding lies are on the river and begin to pick up bigger fish. Your rigging and knots are also important. If you do see a big fish feeding, peel the line you need off your reel first. If you need thirty feet of line than peel it off and cast your rod somewhere else other then over the fish. Don't false cast over the fish to build up line speed. The biggest mistake is not being ready when you do hook a large fish. Sometimes people get there fly line raped around something, say there reel for instance, and the fish runs and breaks them off.
What I also see people do is when they hook a big fish they have no exit strategy. You need a place to land the big fish you just hooked especially if your in heavy water. A lot of big fish you need to chase down river to recover the line the fish just peeled off your reel and land him in a calm area. I sight fished to these fish today and they all took my Jesus was a Carpenter Ant on the FIRST drift. You don't get many second chances with big fish so make your first drift count.