Love to hear a report

KHB · Veteran Member

Love to hear a report

Patrick · Member

I was out just below the island around noon yesterday for a few hours. The water level was really low (55 cfs) so I didn't expect much. I noticed a small caddis hatch going off, so I setup with an elk hair caddis with a PHtail dropper in hopes of luring a big one to surface. No such luck. The surface activity was non-existant. So I switched to nymphing with hares ears and PHtails and midges. Slow, slow, slow. After a few hours, I packed up and waved my hand to the fish gods who once again beat me. It was a beautiful day however, but a little breezy.

lightfoot · Senior Member

55 cfs....and with this weather the creek otta be smokin. Like KHB medical issues have kept me off the water. It would be nice to see a little it more water in the creek though. I should be mobile in a week or so then I can take my son out. I don't like bringing him along when the water is up.

Otter · Senior Member

The fishing has been great!! Fished a few hours on Fri and Sat. The fish have been hitting size 20 and 22 BWO nymphs, and size 22 black midges in pools down deep or in faster pocket water. There are also quite a few caddis in the creek right now. They are about size 18 to 20 in a light tan color. The fish will grab hard if you swing a small soft hackle in tailouts. I landed 10 to 12 fish each day in a couple of hours. The largest went to about 18 or 19". Most of the fish were from 10 to 14".

Patrick · Member

Perhaps you could show me the ropes one day Otter. You sound like a fishing machine.

bono · Master Fly Fishing Guide

Mr Otter knows his Putah creek,as I'm reading his post I'm thinking"thats what I was gonna say!"Prior to the drop in the flows to 55cfs I had a few good days with a couple of really nice fish,but after the drop the fish in many places have moved and it forced me to find them again.The last few clients I have taken out since the low flows have done mediocre.We've had a few big fish lost on dries but mostly smaller fish on nymphs,assorted midge and bwo patterns have been best with a dry fly for an indicator,small corkie indicator or no indicator at all.I've seen some real nice surface action in the late morning and again in the late afternoon but these fish are very wary and pickey,only a real polished angler with just the right fly will fool them.A perfect example was Holloween afternoon I had a rare opportunity to fish by myself for a couple of hours, so I went to the upper end of the creek by the resort for some dry fly fun.Well I immediately found the rising fish and thought "this is gonna be too easy" NOT.....The following 2 hours proved to be very frustrating with only about a handfull of swipes or refusals and no landed fish.So I lowered my standards and went with swinging a small black leach subsurface.That provided only 3 grabs but still no landed fish,but the fish were still rising like crazy so I put on another dry fly,about a size 16 cocoa brown standard tie with tan mallard flank upright wings.Never used this fly on Putah in my life and saw no insects on the water that looked anything like it but within the next 30 mins I landed about 7 or 8 fish between 12 to 16 inches and lost a handfull of others.Obviously not a trophey fish outing but very satisfying nontheless.So after figuring out the finikey fish puzzle I could finally go home and scare trick-or-treaters with a clear concious.