The Caddis Fly: Oregon Fly Fishing Blog

Crane Prairie Reservoir can fish well into October, so don’t shy away from the lakes even though the leaves have started to Fall!

I headed out to Crane Prairie earlier this week to get my late Summer lake fix and forgot how much fun fishing at Crane Prairie can be. While the fishing was by no means “red hot” as it can be during the heart of Summer, we still found some awesome “Cranebows” that were willing to eat the chironomid. We focused our efforts in the channels where the water is deeper than the rest of the lake. With the water as low as it is right now, it is important to fish the drop-offs and troughs where a majority of the fish hold.

We fished with juju chironomids , ice cream cones, and various callibaetis nymphs suspended under a strike-slip indicator about 1-2 feet off of the bottom of the lake. We caught fish on both the chironomid and the calli nymph, so be sure to have both if you head out there. The fishing got significantly better once the afternoon wind picked up and the lake got a bit choppy. I think this gets the bite going because it gives your flies a bit of movement as they sit suspended off of the bottom.

To ensure you are fishing your flies at the correct depth, tie on a fly to the end of your leader, then tightly attach your forceps to the fly and drop it to the bottom. This will give you an idea of the depth in the channel and you can rig accordingly. I also recommend fluorocarbon tippet in these low, clear water conditions.

Cranebows put up a fight!

Until the weather cools down significantly (in about a month or so), Crane Prairie remains an option. Be sure to head out there and get your last dose of Lake fishing in before it gets too late!

Now that we have entered the middle of September, its starting to feel a little more like Fall everyday. The days become shorter and shorter, and the nights cooler and cooler. This bodes very well for summer steelhead fishing across the state, especially on the Deschutes. Cooler weather and shorter days lead to cooler water temperatures, which creates better conditions for the fish to move and thrive in. It also leads to more consistent fishing from morning to night.

By now you have a good shot at a steelhead anywhere from the mouth to Maupin. The fishing at the mouth remains the best and most consistent because it is where a vast majority of the fish are; however, the stretch of river between Maupin and Macks Canyon has been really picking up, too. We just haven’t been seeing the same numbers up there as we have at the Mouth, which is typical for this time of year. Until we start to get some consistent, cooler weather, swinging the morning shade will be your best bet. Fishing with sink tips in the afternoon will get better once the water cools a bit.

Some patterns that have been doing well on the Deschutes for us this season are the: Pick’Yer Pocket, Miles Davis, Morejohn’s Tempest, and the Steelhead Muddler in Black and Purple.

Lower Deschutes
It’s starting to feel like Fall more and more over there, which is good. The nights are longer which bodes well for the water temperatures therefore fishing the mornings remains the most consistent for Steelhead. Anywhere from the town of Maupin down to the mouth has produced consistent, good fishing as long as the White River stays in shape. The last week or so it was pumping out “chocolate milk” colored water which clouds up the river downstream and really puts a damper on the fishing. As of yesterday it is clear and the river is back in shape. Keep an eye on it though because this next week has very hot weather in store which could cause it to act up again. Overall, there are good numbers of fish in the river and they are moving into the river daily, so now is the time to be down there.

Crooked River
The Crooked River continues to fish well with consistent hatches of Caddis and PMD’s, especially on Cloudy days. The 7 mile section of the Crooked below Bowman Dam is virtually all public and there is a lot of great water in there. Nymphing has also been productive using small zebra midges and caddis pupa.

Metolius River
Word has it the Green Drakes are back on at the Metolius! If the weather cooperates we will see these bugs out there into October. Throughout the day there have been tons of small Caddis and Mahogany Dun hatches which means you can fish dries all day. Drakes will be most active in the afternoon until about 4pm, and in the late evening (around 7pm) olive and mahogany dun spinner falls can be sweet. The parachute green drake has been a good one when the drakes are out, other than that fishing mahogany comparaduns has been the evening go-to. Subsurface fishing has been good, I recommend fishing jigged nymphs because of the no split-shot regulations on this river. The jigged flies sink quickly, which is import when no added weight is allowed.

Fall River
September-October is one of my favorite times of the year on the Fall. With longer nights bringing about cooler temperatures, you don’t get eaten alive by mosquitoes out there like you do in Late June through August, which is nice! Furthermore, from a fishing standpoint it can be awesome too. On warmer, windier days don’t hesitate to throw grasshopper patterns such as Morrish’s Hopper Other than that we have been still seeing caddis, PMDs, and a few mahogany duns and BWO’s as well. The latter two will increase in abundance as we get closer to Autumn.

East Lake
East has picked up again and the fishing has been very good. Strong, consistent callibaetis hatches have been coming off daily allowing anglers to fish dries all day long. The extended body callibaetis have been great but they don’t float too well after a few hookups so be sure to have your Dry Shake handy. Small, black ant patterns are good, too. If the hatch slows or the bugs aren’t out, cast and strip callibaetis nymphs with a clear, intermediate sinking line.

Crane Prairie Reservoir
Crane has also been fishing well primarily with chironomids fished under Strike Slip Indicators in the channels. Stripping damsel and calibaetis nymphs, as well as sparse leech patterns has been decent as well.

The moral of the story is: you have a lot of options in the Central Oregon area right now. While our local waters continue to fish great as well, if you find yourself on the other side of the Mountains, be sure to bring your fly rod along.