2014 Fall Steelhead Report

Incase you're wondering if I quit posting fishing reports, I have to tell you that I haven't quit... just felt too busy this fall to make a daily or even weekly report. My life seems too busy sometimes and I feel the need to purposely not do some things in order to keep myself sane. I'm sure you know the feeling.

Anyway, this fall has been interesting. The salmon run was pretty lame and they certainly didn't populate the whole river as in some years. They were plentiful in about a half dozen places so as long as I could squeeze in we had great fishing... although I could have used a change in scenery for the 3 weeks of salmon:)

Our Steelhead run started slow and as of now really hasn't picked up a ton. It seemed to be one to four hook ups a day were the norm this fall and quite a few days the fish were biting at the fly well but missing the hook. We lost a number of great fish while fighting them too... a good reminder to land them as soon as possible so the hook doesn't loosen up too much before getting the fish to the net.
All in all it seems like a tougher fall... which means next fall might be a bonanza!

Here are a few recent photo's.

Cory with his first swung fly SH! Wicked Leech.

Dick with a great SH that clobbered a Sculpin.

Drew with a fine SH.

and another....

and another....

I know, it looks like Drew had a banner day, but this was over a 3 day period:)

Great job Drew!

John with his first SH! Sculpin.

Karen with a trophy brown. Wicked leech.

Lou prooves that Pike like the Wicked Leech too.

My beloved 4Runner after a head on collision on my way to pick up clients. Truck totalled, boat damaged but she still floats.... needs a new paint job though. Me, still walking... and thanking God!

Neal with his first SH on a swung fly! Flux Capacitor.

Speydicator Leader Setup

I've had several people asking about the leader I use for Speydicator fishing recently so I figured I would share for all. This is a leader set-up I learned from someone else but but I have found it to be a great one. I typically use this on an 11 ft. 7 wt. switch rod with Speydicator line. Good Luck!

2014 Bassin' Bonanza

Recently some friends and I made our Second Annual 35 mile Bassin' Bonanza trip from Croton Dam all the way downstream to Maple Island. It was three days of bassin and two nights of camping. Lots of bass, quality time with friends and by the time we were done nobody wanted to fish again for a couple days. Nearly all of the larger bass were caught on poppers, but the quantity record goes to Matt Erny and his "Zelda" streamer. I think it took him less than two hours of fishing to land over 30 bass. They were only taking it stripped really fast and after 30 bass his arm was toast. Here are some photo from our trip.

This was my trophy for the trip... in the last 1/2 hour of the last day. Persistance paid off.

Rob Bonifas with a nice bass. He represented BYFG well.

and another.

So on the 3rd day, we packed all the food in the other boat and as of 6pm we still hadn't see them. Needless to say we were a little on the hungry side in my boat and Rob decided to go for the butter in my cooler. Yes, he really did eat it.

Even saw a gator.

Nice bass on my new streamer... this streamer was magic on day one but the farther downstream we went the dirtier the water got and the magic faded.

Matt Erny with a great bass on his "Zelda".

and another.

Rob holds a nice bass.

Our camp.

Matt Svoboda with a great popper bass.

Not pictured is friend John Ridderbos... I guess no one took a picture of you John? Sorry bud.

Looking forward to the 3rd Annual Bassin' Bonanza already!

9-4-14 Fishing Report

Last night I fished some water I've never fished previously. It was exciting to fish some new stuff and the payoff was big! Pike and bass both were biting like crazy, including this beastly bass. I will definitely be spending some more time in this place.

Em Jr.

This photo was from a trip last Friday. We had a particularly tough bite that day but still managed a handful of great bites, including this nice bass caught by Em Jr.

8-22-14 Fishing Report

Bass bite has improved greatly this week, with each day getting better. Pictured is Dick from earlier this week with a few nice bass.... and a pic of a snake I thought was cool.

8-14-14 Fishing Report

Well, I keep waiting for outstanding bass fishing this summer but I'm starting to fear it's not going to happen. River came up a little today and got a little dirty.... again. The water temp has dropped over the last couple days as well and is currently hovering around 70 degrees. I know the trout guys are loving it... lots of bugs and fish still eating on the surface.
The good news is there's a warm and dry trend over the next few days and by next week things should improve in the bass dept. We worked pretty hard today with poppers for a handful of bites. Pictures is Rich with a nice bass from this afternoon.

8-5-14 Fishing Report

Well, that's my second 7am to 5pm trip this week and the second really tough bite next to yesterday... I see a trend. Think I'll try to talk people into noon to dark trips with a little more emphasis. Pictured is Kyle with a fantastic bass from this afternoon.

New Fashion Trend?

Whose the latest fan of the Zudbubbler? Ryan loves it so much he tried to make it a permanant part of his face.... well maybe that's not exactly why:) This is why we wear glasses!

8-4-14 Fishing Report

Hmmm, kind of a tough bite today. Pictured is James with a great Bass from this morning.

8-2-14 Fishing Report

Bassin' is still typical for early to mid July even though we're now into August, but the popper bite continues to dominate. Last evening fellow FGS Guide Nick Garlock and I found a couple and lost a couple:)

8-1-14 Fishing Report

The popper bite continues to improve daily as warmer, dry weather stays around. Pictured are Steve and Todd with a few fish from yesterday.

7-30-14 Fishing Report

Poppers and streamers are both producing bass, although the bite would be much better if things would warm up a bit more and the water would clear... hopefully some dryer weather is still ahead. Pictured is Allen with a great bass from today!

7-28-14 Fishing Report

I can't believe it's almost August... summer goes way too fast. August is the best bassin' of the year though, so don't let it slide by without getting on the water.
Last night we had a better than normal bite until the cold front moved in, and as is typical with a front, it shut the bite right off for the rest of the evening. Pictured is Cory with a nice LMB.

7-24-2014 Fishing Report

Bass fishing is improving daily as the water temps finally reached the 70 degree mark! I know, the trout guys hate me for being excited about warm water... sorry, but I love smallmouth. Hoping for continued dry and hot weather to keep the bite strong. Here are a few photos from this week.

6-17-14

Wet fly fishing is very strong right now. Dry fly fishing is also very good although drake spinner falls seem to be best after dark, making things trickier. I've been doing some bass fishing on the pond as well and the popper bite is stellar! Call me if you're interested in some great smallie lake fishing. Pictured is David with a nice rainbow that ate a wet fly tonight.

6-11-14 Fishing Report

I got to spend a day on the water with one of my favorite Pastors yesterday. Wet fly action was pretty good and so was the drake action in the evening. Perfect day. This morning we are getting some much needed rain.

5-8-14 Fishing Report

Big trout on dry flies! Had a great time last night fishing with my good friend Ron and his son Ian. Drakes were abundant but not nearly as many fishing eating them as you would expect. We found a few though, including this dandy.

5-26-14 Fishing Report

Well, after taking the last 2 weeks off to finish moving into our new house and several other projects that needed attention I'm settled in enough to get back on the water. There are some steelhead still around but I'm looking forward to some trout fishing for the next couple months! Fellow guide Drew and I went out for a few hours today and did some streamer fishing with some success. Water level remains about 3,000 cfs and is stained. Water temp is hovering in the upper 50's. Wet fly fishing is decent but will get much better with lower water levels. Streamer bite is day to day, but was good enough today for Drew to coax this super fat brown to bite... although he chased it all the way to the boat before commiting.

5-9-14 Fishing Report

Well, my last Steelhead trip for this spring resulted in a good number of fish on the line, including this fantastic buck that Chip landed this afternoon! Looking forward to some streamer action in the next couple weeks. I have a few open dates if you're interested in trophy hunting for big browns on streamers... conditions are very good. -Z