The Lower Owens is fishing as well as my last report.  This river continues to keep guides and clients happy alike.  Flows are suspended to drop soon and the water will stay cool and healthy with the cooler nights we are experiencing here in Bishop.  The same nymph patterns hold and plump and healthy Brown Trout and Rainbows are being caught daily.  Late nights are always seeing dry fly action with a Caddis theme.  The entire river is starting to come alive and we will start to drift again this week.  Lots of Caddis,  and Mayfly and Midge emergers patterns are being eaten.  Most in sizes #16-20. With flows dropping and cooler temperatures occurring the Lower Owens should be a destination for any serious are beginner Fly angler alike this season. 

Crowley continues to dazzle experienced fisherman!  Big fish are being hooked and a few are even being landed!  Cutthroat,  Browns and Rainbows of large and small sizes are being landed daily.  All ends of the lake seem to be productive with all sizes of fish mixed in.  All sorts of Chironomids of different colours are taking fish depending on the colour you use for the time of day.  Chironomids in #12-16 fished near the bottom will provide the fly angler with various dunks of the indicator throughout the fishing day. 

Crowley Lake is fishing great with many many 3lb and up sized fish coming out recently.  Wind has been manageable and keeps the temperature on the lake nice.  Fish of all three flavors have been caught almost every day we are out; Cutthroat,  Rainbows and Browns are swimming hungry in Crowley Lake as we speak. From Green Banks to McGee fish have been caught in 7-12 feet of water.  The usual Crowley midges have been working in sizes 12-16.  The Crowley Buzzer and the Crowley  Patterns we tie at the shop have been stellar.  Find the bottom and pick the flies up a bit and don’t be afraid to move around until you find what you want. 

The Lower Owens continues to be the fish producer of the Eastern Sierra the premier tail water of the Eastern Sierra continues to show us it’s great fish with nymphs,  dries,  and streamers.  Flows are a healthy 300 cfs average which keeps the water clean and healthy with good oxygen content.  Wading is comfortable and water is a great temperature for wet wading making for a great day in the river. For Fly selection refer to my last post for exact patterns. Lots of Caddis Larvae,  Pupae,  and Adult patterns have been used recently.  Stalcups adult Caddis is a great Fly late evening.  Nymphing will continue to take fish all day long on the Lower Owens.  Sometimes in the summer we fish more in the faster and white riffle type water where the trout will move to an area of higher oxygen. 

We have been loving the unusually low flow summer flows of the Lower Owens right  here in Bishop!  Flowing at a perfect rate of 200-250cfs water remains cool and fish are active and lots of surface activity is taking place.  Forget the waders and enjoy wet wading as a great way to cool off and get a break from the summertime heat while extracting beautiful wild Brown Trout.  All sorts of attractor patterns are working both above and below the waters surface.  Princes,  PT’s and Copper Bob’s and Jons are just a few examples of nymphs we have been using.  On the surface Small –  medium RL Sticks,  various Yellow Sallie imitations and various Mayflies and Caddis have been making an appearance.  For those of you that have not been up to experience the river in these conditions..  It’s time! 

Hot Creek is low and still cool and nevertheless fishing very well.  There are weeds, yes,  there is also a ton of fish that are always there and are still there! Caddis and Tricos seem to be the ticket on the surface as dry fly action can be found in almost every bend and run throughout the day.  We hope for dry fly fishing when Hot Creek is this low and weedy.  It is also the time of year for large bugs to be blown into Hot Creek making fishing with large attractor patterns successful.  #12-14 Fat Alberts and Foam and parachute hopper patterns #10-14 are just  a few examples.  For the small bugs try something like Thorax Tricos and CDC Tricos in #20-22, Small Henrys Fork and Hot Creek caddis #18-20, Fertile Caddis #20. Trico emergers and midge emergers in #18-22 are a couple of patterns that will take fish under the water on a short nymph rig where you  find a weed free nymphing spot. 

The gem of the Eastern Sierra the Lower Owens River has been showing us some fine examples of wild Brown Trout! Flows are up a bit which is seasonal. Caddis are slowly showing themselves with some larger larvae on the move and good sized adult specimens coming out in the evening. We also have Yellow Sallies making an appearance under and above the surface of the water. This can lead to some great fishing during the day when the sun is out. Use the same patterns as suggested in my last report with lots of Caddis and Baetis. But also use some Yellow Sally nymphs ; oversized Copper Jons and Small light Stone nymphs in #12-14 are taking fish when fished as a top fly!