fly fishing guide — Blog

Kankakee river smallmouth

With the crazy summer we’ve been having, a nice quiet float down the Kankakee river seems to be just what the doctor ordered. Fishing has been pretty consistent day in and day out. We are battling some extremely low water but the fish don’t seem to mind at all. Poppers in chartreuse as well as white have been getting it done. On really bright days the popper bite does die off mid day and switching to sub surface flies has been the ticket. Dark leeches, crayfish, and various bait fish patterns are productive. The nice thing about the low water is most of the fishing has been very visual. We haven’t had to bust out the sinking lines much or heavily weighted flies for that matter. I’ve been fairly busy running these float trips and will continue to do so until the water temps say otherwise. Make sure to get with me soon for your fall dates. Most days I am the only boat on the water.

Aaron from Wisconsin with a mid day popper eater

Trail Creek Steelhead Fishing report

I have not spent much time on the creeks at all this summer. Extremely warm water temps for someone who releases fish is not something I am interested in. Not to mention the amount of anglers this summer is something I have never seen before. Seven days a week there are anglers all over the public access sites. I’m glad that folks are out fishing but i’m hoping there is some river etiquette and that people are picking up their trash. From what I’ve been hearing, this hasn’t been the case. But enough bitching, there has been plenty of skamania in the creeks and in the harbor for the majority of the summer. The extended heat wave we had a few weeks backed pushed a lot of fish back out to the lake. Keep an eye on the lake temps, once they flip, they will come. I’m anticipating a solid run of fall fish. I’m uncertain what the king run will hold but only time will tell. The time is approaching. It’s been awhile since I’ve wrote a report so I will do my best to keep everyone informed. Tight lines.

25-55 mph winds with more rain leaves us with fantastic weather conditions today. Wind speeds up to 45 mph have been scientifically proven to tighten your loops while casting. So with gusts up to 55, you should be able to toss a 200 footer with no problem. We don’t always get perfect fly fishing conditions, but when we do, I usually don’t fish.

Steelhead should be crushing flies throughout the state today. The 40 degree temperature drop that will happen later today will jumpstart them into feed mode like you’ve never seen. Days like today they’ve been know to eat small children aimlessly wandering the riverbanks. That being said, flies in the 2-5 foot range are idea for these conditions. Ive thrown flies as large as 7 feet long. No big deal.

If you are going to throw beads make sure to go large as well. When I say large I mean like 40mm-65mm beads. I’ve also had success drilling a hole through a 16 lb bowling ball just slightly bigger than the diameter of my tippet. Run the bowling ball through your tippet, as you would with your bead. Peg the bowling ball, and tie on a size 12 gamagatzu bead hook. Size 12 is recommended for a more stealthy presentation. I’ve notice anything larger than a size 12 will spook fish and they will ignore the bowling ball. Also, make sure to paint your bowing ball with a bunch of different nail polishes to match the hatch. Steelhead really like chartreuse eggs with copper glitter and a hint of pink or even yellow.

That’s about all the information I feel comfortable giving out today. I can understand that most of my tips and pointers are probably wayyyy over your head as a novice. Me being a pro guide, I like to just give you bits and pieces of my genius. Till next time…..