The Caddis Fly: Oregon Fly Fishing Blog

The next subject in the Caddis Fly’s Hareline Dubbin Fly Tying Contest series is the steelhead dry fly or skater patterns.

Photo by Rick Gersbach

Send your bugs to the Caddis Fly Shop by August 31st to be eligible. Drop off or mail two finished flies at The Caddis Fly Shop, along with paperwork that includes the fly pattern name, material list, your name and address, and either email or phone number for contact. You will not get the flies back — one will go to Hareline and one will go to the shop. Bob Borden and the folks from Hareline Dubbin will be judge of the fly patterns.

Your flies will be featured on the blog.

PRIZES

FIRST: A full color run of the new Senyo’s Laser Dub (Interview with creator here)
SECOND: A Stonfo Elite Bobbin
THIRD: A selection of Lagartun Mini Flat Braid (see use here)

Our friends at Beaver Hill Productions sent us this gorgeous short film they made for Sage Fly Rod Company.

Check it out by clicking this link. Sage Video

I thought we could use a lighter note.–CD

Do you think our state forests offer any value to Oregonians other than timber revenue? Does clean water matter? Do fish, wildlife and recreation matter? Of course they do. That’s why Oregon’s Department of Forestry correctly identifies the “greatest permanent value” of our forests as: “healthy, productive and sustainable forest ecosystems that over time and across landscape provide a full range of social, economic and environmental benefits to the people of Oregon.”

As I type this post, timber industry insiders and a handful of powerful county commissioners are engaged in a effort to rip off Oregonians. They have convinced Oregon’s Board of Forestry (which is mostly made up of commercial foresters) to consider changing the legal definition of greatest permanent value to this: “timber revenue.” Catchy, huh? Show me the dead trees and the money!

You, your kids, and every other Oregonian are being screwed. The people forcing this effort are taking advantage of the political climate created by our severe recession to pave the way for another era of overharvest. These folks have already made it clear that environmental health always takes a way-back seat to harvest in their small minds. They are attempting to erase two decades of progress toward sustainable forestry in Oregon.

NOW is your chance to tell these people what you think!! Oregon’s Board of Forestry meets in Eugene this Friday at Lane Community College’s Center for Meeting and Learning, 4000 East 30th Avenue. The meeting starts at 8:00AM, and the Greatest Permanent Value discussion is scheduled to run from 9:15AM to 10:15AM.

Please swing by LCC and devote a couple of hours to tell the board what you think. I will bring my Intruder box and hand out flies to the first 10 people who show up.
-RR

Ever hear of a trout stream called the Henry’s Fork? It’s a trib of the Snake River that flows through our neighbor-state of Idaho. It’s one of the most challenging trout streams in the world–a large, often glassy spring creek, loaded with huge, highly educated rainbows. If you’ve read John Gierach, you know all about it and the tens of thousands of trouters who flock there every summer. And you’ve undoubtedly heard of a character named Rene’ Harrop, aka “The Trout Hunter.”

Rene’ is among the most innovative fly tyers in the history of American fly-fishing, picking up where Swisher and Richards left off in the 1990s. He was among the first to effectively apply CDC to the job of fooling tricky trout (CDC is the equivalent of using live bait). His incredible book “Trout Hunter” is now a collector’s item, and copies are nearly impossible to acquire.

So imagine our excitement when we saw a NEW book from Rene’ featuring updated wisdom and a big fat bunch of his sexy fly patterns! Learning from the Water, Harrop’s new masterpiece, just arrived in the shop this week. But wait…it gets better! We’ve got autographed copies for a limited time AND, Rene’ was kind enough to grant a short interview with the Oregon Flyfishing Blog.

So check out the interview that follows, and be sure to swing by for your copy of Learning from the Water!

OR FF Blog: In the first chapter, you explain your fundamental approach to fishing, as a “hunter” and as a devoted scholar. Did you always come to the water with that approach? Or was there a time/person/event that helped you start paying attention to the minute details of fishing?

Harrop: I came to fly fishing at age nine which is fifty one years ago. From the beginning, I wanted to catch big trout and the opportunity to find them near my home was abundant. Learning to catch them with a fly rod, however, was not a quick or easy process. A hunter’s mentality is instinctive to me, and the continuing desire to learn is my nature. My father served as an early example, but meeting and fishing with Doug Swisher and Carl Richards in the late 1960’s was pivotal in helping me to understand the specific connection between trout and their food sources. Mainly, however, my growth as an angler is a product of patient observation and thought.

OR FF Blog: In the second chapter you recognize that modern techno-nymphing is responsible for bringing new anglers into the fold of flyfishing. Can you relate any stories of anglers/friends/clients making the transition from bobbicator fishing to “trout hunting?”

Harrop: Most beginning fly fishers will not progress beyond casual interest if they are not able to catch at least a few fish right away. This applies especially to kids who are eager to try just about anything but will seldom sustain interest if their efforts do not bring a fairly quick result. Fishing one or more nymphs beneath a strike indicator allows early success without the requirement of advanced skill or knowledge. A good river guide is a real asset in bringing understanding to a beginner as to the way this technique works but also by demonstrating and explaining how it can serve as a stepping stone for advancement to techniques that require greater skill and experience. Indicator fishing belongs within the skill set of nearly every trout angler because there are times when it is the best way to gain success. However, it is wrong to condemn those who chose to limit their participation in the sport to this simple but effective method. I certainly acknowledge that my approach to fly fishing is not for everyone.

OR FF Blog: Why this book, and why now?

Harrop: After, TroutHunter, I had little ambition to write another book, and it took awhile for Jay Nichols to convince me that I had more to say. Jay and I became acquainted while he was an editor for Fly Fisherman Magazine before he moved to the business of publishing books. The concept of Learning from the Water evolved over several months of discussion with Jay and my wife Bonnie who provided most of the photographs. Judith Schnell and Amy Lerner of Stackpole played strongly into the decision to go forward with the project.

OR FF Blog: To someone considering which new fly-fishing book to buy themselves this summer, which book would you recommend first and why?

Harrop: While I am not completely familiar with every meaningful book that has been published in recent years, I would recommend titles that are authored by experienced writers who have spent their lives in pursuit of trout. Mike Lawson or Kelly Galloup match this description and I am still waiting for something from George Anderson. Sadly, it’s possible that the best books on the subject of fly fishing for trout will never be written. Death or advanced age have deprived us of the wisdom and knowledge of men like Andre’ Puyans or Al Troth. Selective Trout by Doug Swisher and Carl Richards has been recently revised, and I believe it is still in print. Regardless, I consider this book to be the most influential of anything written on the subject in modern times. Originally published in 1971, Selective Trout continues to be relevant despite the massive changes that have occurred since it first appeared. Tracking down a copy of this historical work will not be wasted effort.

One of Winston Rod Company’s most successful rod series of all time is being discontinued as four new rods are introduced. The BIIX has been one of our favorite rods available for 7 years now. We have put our remaining stock of BIIX on sale. For now this is all we have on hand, and sale prices apply to only BIIX models in stock only.

Below you will find a short video discussing the upcoming new models from Winston. New rod series include Passport at $199, VSL at $299, GVX at $495 and BIIIX in the $700 range depending upon model. The Caddis Fly will have these rods as soon as they are introduced and welcome you to come cast them or demo a rod anytime.

The Pelton Round Butte project on the Upper Deschutes is designed to aid fish passage to historic habitat upriver, but it’s also heating up the lower river — according to fisheries biologists, mimicking the historic temperatures our native anadromous fish evolved to handle. The results, according to the Oregonian, are temperatures 70-72 degrees at the mouth of the Deschutes.

PGE restores fish passage at Pelton Round Butte from Portland General Electric on Vimeo.

Some anglers are upset about the warmer temps, and potentially less fish in the lower river. There is an in-depth Q&A by H. Tom Davis and Bill Bakke of the Native Fish Society on how the project started and what is happening on the water.

Here is an excerpt:

If the “natural” temperatures are restored and strays, particularly hatchery strays, are discouraged from entering the Deschutes that would be a big step toward achieving natural runs of wild, native salmonids. In years past when the Columbia has been colder, like 2008, upriver fish did not stop in the Deschutes compared to years when the Deschutes is colder. In the future with the proposed releases, it may be less likely that we see upriver hatchery fish straying into the Deschutes. The increased steelhead, Chinook and reverted sockeye moving into and through the river because of reintroduction above PRB will likely make up for any losses, and probably add more fish to the lower Deschutes.

The hatchery component from upper Columbia River basin streams probably has exceeded 30,000 in some years. We may never have that increase in wild fish, but in the past hatchery strays sometimes comprised up to 65-70% of the spawning fish, affecting productivity and survival of wild fish. Reducing the stray component spawning with wild fish, especially out of basin strays, will benefit wild fish.

-MS

According to the Associated Press, the U.S. Forest Service wants to stop new gold mining claims on the Chetco River in southwestern Oregon while Congress considers legislation that would permanently raise the level of protection for wild salmon and steelhead habitat.

Photo by Rob Robinson

If the Bureau of Land Management approves a ban, a process likely to take two or three months, Congress would have two years to consider legislation filed by Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Ore., Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., making it permanent.

The proposed ban comes a year after California outlawed suction dredge gold mining, a practice in which mining hobbyists use vacuum machines to suck up the riverbed and spew it out into the water in hopes of capturing a few flecks of gold. The California ban is part of a plan to help reverse declining salmon runs on several rivers—but to a bunch of hobbyist gold miners, channeling Yosemite Sam, they’re hopping mad.

The recreational miners are vocal folks. In fact, several miners have commented on this blog that suction dredge mining is actually good for salmon and steelhead.

See this video for the explanation of why that is not true.

The biggest problem with the California ban is that is driving more miners to Oregon rivers. Be sure to thank the Congressional Reps behind the proposed ban, as well as the folks in Trout Unlimited’s Wild Rivers Coast Chapter out of Brookings and Crescent City.

-MS