It’s been a week of great fishing around the region, with exciting improvements on the local waters we are excited to share with you.

The Metolius is really revving up now, with more and more hatches, and hatches that will be here to stay for the Summer season! Green Drake action is spotty yet, but if you’re going below 99 in the late afternoon you have to be ready for it. 
PMD hatches are coming off well pretty much every afternoon between noon and 4, and they are still mixed with an afternoon emergence of Blue Wing Olives. 
Caddis continue to be important on the warmer days, but don’t expect much on the caddis on the cooler, wetter days. I guess caddis are like me, they like the warm days. 
Brad and Eric were down below 99 the other day and saw some big Salmonfly’s hatching, and fish were eating them. Yes please!

Mixed in, you’ll see some sporadic Goldenstone adults, but the Nymph is still way more important. Yellow Sally’s are a beautiful small bright yellow stonefly that can run from a size 12 to an 18. May is when they start, and they go all summer. I’d say May and July are the best times for Sally’s on the Metolius. 
We’ve been doing really well on the Euro Nymph game with Perdigons and Jigs. Indicator fishing in some areas is more recommended for the bigger pools you can’t wade, but in the little runs you can get to the fish by wading, the Euro method is FUEGO!

The Lower Deschutes is just beginning to explode on the Salmonfly and Golden Stone hatch. Still some March Brown sightings this week, plus PMD’s and Pale Evening Duns and some Caddis. From Warm Springs to Trout Creek, next weeks report (5/14) is going to be the one we discuss prime stonefly conditions is the best guess. But the bugs are all throughout the river now and from Trout Creek to South Jct to Maupin it is a darn good hatch already for the big bugs. We have a super good supply of big Foam Flies, Clarks Stones and Norm Woods Specials. We are ready….are you?

BTW, there are fish spawning now and will be for the next 5 or 6 weeks. Please don’t wade the redds. Familiarize yourself with a red and how to avoid it, and never wade through that area and avoid being a goober and don’t fish for spawning rainbows on the Lower D. 

Here is a cool YouTube video from Devin Olsen on the subject. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yVIol18qVM8

The Middle Deschutes is also seeing a great Stonefly Hatch from Steelhead Falls up toward Bend. Each day the hatch moves a bit upstream and it won’t be long before they are up to, and above Bend. 
Seems the March Browns are over until next spring. In their place are Pale Morning and Pale Evening Duns. PMD are #16 and range in color from Olive-Yellow to Suplhur Orange. They have 3 tails. Pale Evening Duns are usually a size 14, but can be as large as a 12 (easy) and have 2 tails and often have greyish blue eyes. The body color can range from Yellow to Tan. 
There are areas of the Middle River the Caddis hatch in the evening can be/will be outstanding. We usually prefer an X Caddis on this stretch, and run a Tan 14-16 and Olive 16. 
Purple Haze, Renegades, Stimulators and Float & Fools are excellent attractors. We love Middle River fish because they are so willing to eat an attractor. 

Tons of nymphing opportunities. But with that much dry fly action, you might not need to go down after them.

The Crooked River is fishing great. Nice flows, good access and great nymph action. Keep an eye open for Mother’s Day Caddis now. #14-16 Caddis pupa, emergers and adults. Brachycentrus Caddis are the family we call Mothers Day Caddis. They tend to trend towards a greyish-olive. But tan and sometimes black patterns are the better hatch matchers in different periods of the hatch. 
Scuds and Zebra Midges and Micro Mayflies are the hot nymphs for the moment. 
Blue Wing Olives are slowing down but can be important as a dry fly on any given day, but year round importance for the BWO/Baetis Nymphs #18-22. 

The Fall River has been recently replenished with a stocking of big rainbows. They seem to be hungry, but pretty much will only eat a nymph or will hunt down a streamer which is a blast. 
I am sure most people that read our reports are not the ones doing this, but the guys at the Fish Hatchery said they stopped stocking the area upstream of the tubes because of all the people ignoring the signs for the habitat restoration project. Look, it should a no brainer that if the streamside habitat is healthy, the stream will be too. What happens when a stream is healthy? It gives the fish a better place to live. Don’t trample places that are being restored. 
There are a lot of access points on the Fall River that will be sweet fishing without destroying some one’s hard work to make our river a better place. 
Keep an eye out this week for Flying Ants! PMD’s are here to stay until fall. BWO’s are important now. Caddis #14-16-18 (CDC and Henryville). Midges #20-24. Yellow Sally #14-16. 

Moving to the Lakes we have some great news to report. First, here is the Deschutes County Road Report for the Cascades Lakes Hwy and Paulina Lake Road:

Updated 05/03/2021 – The gate on the Cascade Lakes Hwy will be moved North of the entrance to Lava Lake on Friday, 5/7/2021.  Access is currently possible from the 40 Road south to the Klamath County line.  Paulina Lake Rd will be open on Friday 5/7/2021.  Deschutes County Road Department in conjunction with the Forest Service, Klamath County and other agencies try to have these roads open and available for recreation prior to Memorial Day.  We are currently in the process of clearing snow, but the icy roads and current work being done still represent hazardous conditions.  Please refer back to this page to get the most current information available regarding the opening of these roads.

So, we don’t yet know what access will be like for going to fish Paulina, but it looks like this weekend you’ll have a chance to get there. I would doubt East Lake will be accessible quite yet. 
Lava Lake looks like it will be open to fish today and this weekend. 
Let us know how you do at either Lava or Paulina. 

Crane Praire is finally picking up! This week the clouds of midges seems to be abating. Fishing was good on #14-16 Chironomids. Mostly Olive, but Black and Red too. 
Never leave to CP without Balanced Leeches and Leeches. 
Access to Quinn Boat Ramp is now open. Rock Creek was still locked this week so far, but should open any time. 

South Twin is fishing well. Same report as last week. Damsels and Leeches on the shallows, Balanced Leeches and Chironomids out in deeper water. 
North Twin access is now open too! Should be ok, but no reports so far. 

Wickiup is still slow from the reports I’ve heard. But did hear of some fish being caught on leeches around the Davis Arm. 

Have fun out there. See you on the water or in the shop.