Stillwater Days

With the Lower Yuba's flows roaring this spring my friend Mike Williams said, "Clay, you need to spread your wings and get into stillwater fishing".

My experience with stillwater has been mainly fishing high alpine lakes in Montana for cutthroat and brook trout in the Montana back country. For years I would hike with my buddies in the Beartooth and Absorokee wilderness areas in the quest for trout. This was a minimalistic approach with mainly a floating and deep sink line and that was about it. The trout were either on top looking for dries or if not we'd just go deep and strip flies up from the depths. This is about as simply as it gets. The trout were usually willing and it was not technical fishing. As I'm finding out, fishing our Northern California Lakes are. Technical that is.

I used to have a nice float tube, it was a Buck's Bag one, but I never really got comfortable in it. This is going back 20 years or so. I always felt I was sitting too low in the water and if I fished a lake like Lake Davis when the weeds were thick it was a battle getting through them. This was back before the "Pike Wars". Back then I just said heck I'd rather fish the streams and rivers and that was about it. I've been doing that every since. As Mike said sort of one dimensional.

Back about 10 years ago I bought a used Water Skeeter pontoon boat, but I got it mainly to cross the Lower Yuba when the flows were high. I stripped off all the attachments, like the bags, stripping apron and used it for transportation. I never used it for fishing, just to get across the river so I could then hike up or downstream and then when done, used it to cross back. That was it for years.

Well, Mike Williams convinced me too rigg the pontoon boat back up for stillwater. Problem was that I had no idea what happened to all the attachments. I looked all over for the stripping apron, rear platform, storage bags and anchor and all be darned if I could find them. I guess they went away in one of my many yard sales over the years. I originally paid $275 for it so it didn't hurt so bad when rigging it back up.

As far as setting up rods, reels and lines I bought a "Scotty" rod holder to put at the right front position, an "Outcast" tubular rod holder for the left rear so I could rigg up two rods. Mike suggested that I set up a 6 weight with a full sink line and have an extra spool with a sink tip. He also suggested that I set up a 5 weight with an intermediate line and a midge tip on an extra spool. That's what I did, I bought some extra spools and updated my fly lines and got them spooled up. I'm using my Sage 99 6 weight and a Saint Croix 5 weight that is 10 ft. long. It's a pretty good combo.

I made a rope platform for the rear storage and strapped an old milk carton on it to stash a small cooler and other misc. gear. I purchased a couple of pulleys, some 1/4" diameter cord and a 7 pound mushroom anchor. I also bought a simple anchor cleat and attached it and I have a pretty smooth operating anchor system. The only thing that was missing was my storage bags (I found them both this weekend) and the stripping apron. (I haven't found it yet).

So with a little ingenuity and elbow grease its looking pretty good. Almost looks like I know what I'm doing. I made it out with Mike and my buddy Blake to fish and we had a decent day about a week and a half ago. It was a lot of fun, and relaxing in a beautiful environment. Looks like I'm a convert or I guess I should say I'm reconnected to stillwaters.

Clay

GCFF Lower Yuba Clinic

I had organized a Lower Yuba Techniques Clinic for members of the Gold Country Fly Fishers with the help of Frank Rinella and Mike Williams for this last Thursday. We had unsuccessfully attempted this two times earlier this year and either it was snowing or the river was raging. The river on Thursday really wasn't being very cooperative running at over 5,000 cfs but I was determined to do it anyway come hell or the proverbial high water. Sometimes you just want to get out and be on the river and you can teach many techniques on a table top with a nice view of the river in the background, better than doing it inside a building anyway.

I had put together a BBQ with hot links, polish dogs and brats, chips and salsa and the works for after the clinic. At least we would eat good amongst new and old friends. I think there's a lesson in that, for me anyway. There's just something about hanging around on the river whether you're fishing or camping, BBQing some dogs, having a few beers. Everyone just seems to let their hair down and the stories start flowing. It's this type of experience that counts, lest we forget.

We did some of the usual table top stuff like rigging, knots, checking out fly boxes, discussing patterns and such which is all good. I had a suggestion afterwards to provide some handouts for the knots we discussed. That's a good idea.

I also had a suggestion to take the time to let everyone introduce themselves properly at the beginning of the clinics. How did I miss that? Its really about the people anyway. I think next time I'll bring name tags. I know for me it takes me getting embarrassed two or three times not knowing someones name for them to sink in. This gets compounded when you have 15 to 20 people. I hope that this isn't just me.

So the biggest lesson from the clinic for me was not about teaching the knots, rigging and flies. Its more about getting to know everyone, do some teaching, and having fun out there. That's what's important!

Clay

FFT Techniques - Nymphing - Fishing a Drop-Off with an Upstream Presentation

When wading on the Lower Yuba and nymphing you will sometimes encounter drop offs at the base of the riffles with a run directly below it. This is another very effective presentation technique, when you have a riffle that transitions into a run right at the base of the riffle. This method also works well when the depth of the water you are standing in is deeper and it is hard to wade very deep. This is very effective when mayflies are coming off in the riffles.

Next time you’re out fishing try this nymphing method;

This is another very effective presentation technique for fishing the base of a riffle.

 Rigg with a standard Indicator Nymphing Set-up

 Start from a position ankle deep and work your way deeper after using the “Shotgun” technique of covering the water closest to you.

So this is how it works

(1) Place a quartering upstream cast so that it lands 6 to 8 feet above the drop off, it’s important not to mend at this point as the flies are getting deep in a controlled manner. If you throw a big mend popping the indicator upstream, the flies they will rocket down and get hung up in the rocks.

(2) After the flies hit raise the rod tip and (high Stick) the indicator with as much line off the water as possible without drawing the indicator back towards shore. They need to be able to continue a straight line path downstream.

(3) Lead the indicator downstream towards your position. If there is a take and the indicator dips, set downstream.

(4) Once the flies are slightly downstream of your position, place a big mend behind the indicator without stopping its downstream progression and follow with your rod tip, lowering it as the rigg moves downstream.

(5) Continue mending and feeding as far downstream as is practical and manageable.

(6) If the indicator, stops, moves upstream, or goes down set to the bank downstream, again not upstream over your head.

Try this method, you’ll like it!