Large Brown trout held up taken by a fly fisherman on the Upper Owens River near Mammoth Lakes California

Big and beautiful trophy trout are reason ambitious anglers travel across the globe. We are fortunate enough to have this opportunity right here in the Eastern Sierra while Fly Fishing on the Upper Owens River! Each missed strike could be a lost opportunity to latch onto the trout of a lifetime. The moment you hook into one of these bruisers they instantly demonstrate the weight and power they possess sending your senses crazy and a feeling overwhelms you that you cannot forget and you want more! The Upper Owens River is flowing at a clear and steady rate of 111 cfs below the confluence of Hot Creek. Above Hot Creek the Fly Angler can expect to find gin-clear flows around 100cfs give or take a few. The Mountains around the Upper Owens have been dusted by a touch of snow last night showing us Winter is on her way. For those of us that know we have been anxiously awaiting this time of year to see what this years infamous run of jumbo sized trout consists of. So far it has not let us down! For patterns to offer to these large trophies one can fish Streamers, SJ worm variations, Jig Flies, PT variations, and other attractor patterns can be successful. Smaller yet great fish are rising to small mayflies in the warmer parts of the day. These rising fish are up to 15″. We have seen, on rare occasions, the larger trout rise to dry flies.

Upper Owens River Rainbow near Mammoth Lakes CA held up by a happy Fly Angler
Hard Work pays off on the Upper Owens with a great reward of an unforgettable Rainbow Trout