Great river conditions lately…The clarity will most likely be marginalized by the current heat wave. We will keep you updated.  Recent fishing has be GREAT.  Recent CATCHING has been average for us. Definitely need to work for the fish.  No dry fly action for us since the opener.

Wahooo!

Kristian with a hatchery buck:))

The fishing recently on the Yakima has been spotty.  this is a relative statement as what is spotty for us might be great for some.  Bugsde jour include #16-18 PMD’s, #14-16 Yellow Sallies, #12 Green Drakes, #14-18 Caddis and a few #6-8 Golden Stones.

Little Yellow Sally Stone

Pardon the major delay in reporting…

The Yakima is rockin’ currently with a myriad of hatches including Caddis, Golden Stones, PMD’s and Flying Ants.  Everyday is different as it is fishing. The dry fly fishing over the last few days has been GREAT.

When all else fails with the dry fly currently, use a #12 Ant pattern; Trout candy.  Honestly, the nymphing has been ‘ok’,  but the dry fly fishing is in first place at the present.

Definitely delinquent in all reports lately.  The Upper Columbia has kicked into gear and it is in the middle of full on Caddis with yellow Mayflies just around the corner.  There are some reasonable wading opportunities currently as the river is lower than normal.  

#14 UC Soft Hackle,  #8 Catch All,  #16 Tent Wing Caddis

Mother’s Day Caddis has bloomed and depending where you are on the system will dictate your day.  Every day and zone has been different, as Caddis tend to be a more complex hatch.  We have seen zones where there were literally thousands and thousands of egg layers and spent Caddis with very few risers, and we have seen some incredible ‘rise fests’ as well.

Watch for shady zones to be key and if you can’t find risers, keep moving till you do. Fish eating Spent Caddis, Emergers and Egg layers can be sporadic in their pattern; at times they can by rhythmic as well.

The river bumped up in flows and lost some clarity a couple days back but everything has stabilized recently and we are good to go.

The below image shows an intense ovipositing flight. Photo image by CJ Emerson.

It has been awhile since our last report on the UC. The river is in unbelievable condition with some healthy trout to be had.  Bugs inlcude. Baetis, Caddis, Ants and more.  PMD’s are just around the corner. Nymphing has been solid, with some isolated dry fly action here and there.

Hatches of the week;
Salmon Flies – Waning
March Browns – Waning
Blue Wings – Waning

Brown Drakes – #10 to 12
Caddis –  #14 to #18’s
PMD’s – #16’s

Water Clarity Chart;
Upper Proper – 5 Ft
Upper Flatlands – 7 ft
Upper Canyon – 6 ft
Farmlands – 6 to 5 feet
Lower Canyon – 4 feet

Remarkable clarity with low flows.  Fishing has been avg to great depending on the day or zone.  With 70 miles of river, the catching can be variable depending on the zone.  We fish the entire system.  On a 1-10 scale, I would say the river fished on avg a 7 this past week :))

Pretty remarkable fishing lately utilizing multiple tactics including the dry fly to rising fish, prospecting with the the dry, prospecting with nymphs and streamers…..Pretty much the mixed bag.  Cooler temps lately slowed the Caddis down a bit, but with the projected weather of next week, our guess is that Mother’s Day Caddis will come early in 2015, meaning next week.  Stay Tuned!

Recent Salmon Fly from the Yakima River – Photo by Rusty

Tougher fishing recently….Lots of bugs;  Water temps averaging around 49 degrees. Close to the Mothers Day Caddis hatch which is ‘prolly’ making things a little difficult as the trout have AMPLE food choices.

BUGS OF THE WEEK…

The river is in GREAT shape and should be good to great fishing on the opener…. We’ll be there!

JUNE STEELHEAD ON THE KLICKITAT