Eva's

Woke up to a Seattle looking morning with a cool breeze, clouds, and fog.  Hatch didn't start until after things cleared a little and "warmed" after noon.  Two hours of semi-fantasy-fishing from 1-3 as I had the run mostly to myself.  Then thunder and hail, then another window for an hour or so in the waning hatch before the rain and wind resumed.  Short and sweet.  Fish were eating duns a lot once it got going.  Kinda weird.  Never found one they really liked though. Back to that again.  I mean, who worries about duns?  Fish don't eat those do they?  Right. The 'ole Depuy's Hanger/ cdc Buzzer in an 18 mopped up early in the hatch though.  It's still 2019, so more rain tomorrow.

Good baetis morning.  PMD's--not so much.

It still has it.

Just another summer day in 2019

Upper Creek

Nice to swing the 3 wt. for a change.  Really nice.  Yesterday's hatch was good.  Today's was late and lighter.  Both days had afternoon storms, more and earlier today.  So a good day and a fair-at-best one.  Again though, I think there's too many rods allowed on this creek.  The two NYC loudmouths below me both days (Sounded like a Zyppah commercial), guides with clients in the riffle where its easy, and me stuck in the middle.  Not really going upstream unless its early.  All these clowns think 50-60 feet is enough room. I know this going in, bit I still don't have to like it.  Yesterday I stood my ground, and fished where I liked to.  Today I started high, went downstream and never saw or heard anyone until I came back, and then the wind came up about 1:00 ahead of the hail.  Evening bite?  Spinnerfall?  Ya, right.  Further downstream tomorrow, new creek, new assholes. (Travis and company)  I have four days, which really means about two with the weather this year.  Will probably fish some in the middle sections if there's bugs.

Patch is getting pretty full.  They've all been ate.

Fish rising in morning shadows on the bank.

The early morning fly

Sometimes can get a decent shot if the damn sun would come out.

Those three in the distance came down to casting distance from me

Best during the hatch

Lovely white glare all day today

Solitude

One-eyed ones don't see the micro-drag as good, but what about the fly?

Even got a few eats on this yesterday

1:00 pm today.  It never left.  

First and Last

First evening without rain, snow, hail, lightning, or wind since I began this trip two weeks ago.  Last evening on the MO until September . . . or when I'm done with the creeks next week . . .

Evening light and the last fish

Never get tired of this sunset view, and now there's caddis flying, pmd's floating, and fish rising near the bank.  

Kinda not quite . . .

MO'd out.  Getting there.  Not quite.  Never quite.  But enough for now.  Today was the first sunny hot day.  Fishing and hatches not quite as good as the past couple cloudy days, but it was nice to get some dreaded UV!

Just when I thought I knew something, or at least had a clue, I discovered the stage of bug the fish really want.  Not an adult, not a cripple, not a spinner, not the floating nymph, no, not even an emerger.  How about "jacked-up?"  Or "knocked down?"  Yep, cut off a wing, bend the hook sideways, and clip the hackle so the mutilated fly rides on its side with the hook curled sideways.  BAM!  They were turning to get it!  Had I only have known, or actually taken the knowledge I already had and  tried it.  Kelly wrote about it and made a tying video a while back.  I'd seen it more than once.  Its called a Galloup's Cripple, but it ain't nothin' like a Harrop or Quigley style.  Need to try more new shit!  Caught all my fish on a couple today. On to the Creeks.  Wonder what the Armstrong trout will say?

Eating the MO caddis, for a cadis or a pmd?

Definitely some bugs

Kelly's Cripple

Lt Cahill bent, neutered, and clipped!

Happening Now

An eventful day worth a post.  Fish were up.  PMD's were up.  Water stayed down. Went to the hot hatch run.  Fish up all day.  They were persnickety though.  Not much love on duns.  Didn't do much with emergers.  It was spinners they were eating, but I couldn't see the good one in that damn white glare.  Had to finally resort to more visible flies that weren't quite as effective, but still worked.  Some year there will be a blue sunny day, but probably not in 2019.  The bugs liked the clouds though, and so did the fish.  Need to tie some black hackled spinners, at least dark dun or brown.  The bright white posted ones worked ok.

Not sure how much longer I can do this.  The back pain starts about 3 hours in.  By hour 4 and 5, its hard to enjoy.  Agonizing.  I had to stop at 3 today, with risers podded up and eating big time.  I could hardly make a cast.  Tomorrow I'm trying the back brace, the Advil/Tylenol cocktail, and my nighttime drugs in the morning.  We'll see.  If they find me rolling down river, swirling in the eddy at Lone Tree, somebody will know why.  I've got to do something. On the Fork, I first thought it was because I hadn't fly fished all winter or spring.  But now I should be warmed up and have my game.  I don't.  I have a week on the creeks coming up.  At least that's shorter casts and with a 3 wt, but it's more intense than this is.

It was a good morning though, and fishing was just getting better and better as the day went on.

Heads up on both sides and above and below the magic island.  Easily waded to at 5400!

Now this is more like it!

Brought out an oldie, "allstage" spinner.

Left a whole pod here mid-afternoon.

Forecast called for severe thunderstorms with lightning and hail.

No Shit Sherlock!  Two inches of Hail in 20 minutes.  

Mable size, but no damage

Aftermath.  No evening bite . . . again.