Justesen Ranch
I recently got to spend a day fishing one of the beautiful lakes on the Justesen Ranch. The short story is you want to get out there ASAP! We had a cold start with air temps in the high 30's, but that didn't seem to bother the fish too much. Leeches brought the first few to the net early on. I made one long initial pass with a team of chironomids under an indicator and missed a couple. Then I changed to a scud/chironomid combo on the same rig and started doing very well. We had collectively racked up quite a few fish leading into lunch, and by that time, there were a few adult chironomids starting to make an appearance. When we shoved off after lunch, there were notably more bugs on the water. Call it around noon. There was a nice combination of smaller flies in the ~sz. 18 range and much larger "buzzers" that were about a sz. 14.It didn't take long for the fish to start rising with good regularity. Unfortunately, due to a series of fronts that had howling wind with them, the surface fishing only lasted all of 15 minutes. Enough time to catch a few on top, but not much more than that. It eventually got so windy that holding position in my float tube was a real challenge. I pulled over to a gap in the cattails and grabbed my scud/chironomid indicator rig and started roll-casting it up wind. This allowed for a nice drift in the chop. In spite of the tumultuous weather, this led to some of the fastest fishing of the day. It was more or less a bite every other cast!
Overall, the fishing was excellent. I'd expect that to continue for the foreseeable future. The ranch typically shuts down the spring season sometime around the middle of June, so I'd recommend booking dates sooner than later. They have a variety of lakes that can accommodate groups of all sizes. Lodging is also available on site. Feel free to reach out to us at the shop with any questions or to book your dates.
Deschutes Trout
It's a great time to fish the Deschutes! The canyon is a lovely shade of green that is only present in the spring. Wildflowers are blooming and there are happy birds everywhere. For the most part, the fishing pressure is fairly sparse compared to what's coming in the next couple months. Nymph or streamer fishing tend to be the best approaches, but keep your eyes peeled for bugs on the surface. Expect to see a mixture of B.W.O.'s, caddis and midges. It can be tricky to hit, but there should also be some March Browns showing up sometime in the next few weeks.
Steelhead
It's hard to believe, but the window for winter steelhead is starting to close. We have a few more weeks of good fishing until it's a wrap. That said, as far as numbers of fish go, the tail end of the season is a great time to get out. The weather can be exceptional, and the pressure is fading as many anglers begin to look for Spring Chinook. Overall, this has been a great winter season all over the place. There just seems to be more fish this year. Hopefully this trend will continue with more summer fish.
"The Gorge"
Gorge Fly Shop Team - 541.386.6977
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