Deschutes Steelhead
We've been pretty darn lucky with the late fall weather. It could be flat out cold by now and it's not. We've had some rain but it hasn't been enough to do anything crazy to the Lower Deschutes. Conditions for the tail end of the season couldn't be much better. Flows have been fairly steady and water temps have held up well. Pretty ideal situation to round out the season!
The fishing has changed a bit in the last couple weeks. It seems like a lot of the strays that were piled up down low have dropped out. There are certainly plenty of fish around down there, but noticeably fewer than there were a few weeks ago. It's a great time to spend a day higher up in the system.
As for the fishing, think about getting down a bit. You could definitely still get one on a floating line if you push the issue, but their willingness to move up in the water column and chase has definitely gone way down. Sink tip fishing will be the most effective method from here on out with smaller tip flies being the most productive. Best of luck to everyone out there trying for another fish, or two!
Deschutes Trout
For those of us that have put in a long season chasing steelhead, it's been pretty hard not to notice the increase in trout activity as of late! Things are pretty much perfect for that. All the dark and warmish weather has been kicking mid-day BWO activity into high gear. If you try for trout out there, be fully prepared to represent all stages of that bug. Nymph fishing will be effective right out of the gate in the morning. Be sure to have something imitating a BWO nymph going. A great two-fly combo is a stonefly or bigger Hare's Ear with a size 18-20 Pheasant Tail trailed behind. The bugs have been actively hatching sometime between noon and 2:00 spurring some good surface activity.
The streamer bite cannot be ignored, either. Dark weather is very conducive and the trout love bigger meals in the fall. It's not a particularly common practice on the Deschutes, but don't be afraid to mix in a bigger streamer if the standard smaller sculpins and leeches aren't working. You may not move as many fish, but you will see some real bruisers if you commit to if for a while.
"The Gorge"
Gorge Fly Shop Team - 541.386.6977
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