The Drakes are still on (and good) from 2 to 5. Unlikely they go 3 straight hours but will hatch in that time period.
PMD’s are on from noon to about 7 or 8 PM. Usually getting 2 hatches a day, one in the afternoon and one in the evening.
Good caddis hatches in the evening and then Rusty Spinners at dusk.

I would expect to see the 1st of the Golden Stones in the Upper River really soon. Maybe mid to late next week. With that expect very good nymphing on GS Nymphs! I’d run a red copper john or lightning bug dropper off the golden stone nymph too.

Bull Trout have been hitting streamers very early in the morning. It’s worth the effort to get there at dawn.

Green Drakes are on, some days better than others and keep in mind the early days of the hatch are often coming off about 5 PM, maybe as late as 6 or as early as 4. As the hatch progresses it will be more like 2 to 4, but don’t give up at 4 and go home. You don’t want to miss it!
Also, most drakes are in the Bridge 99 area. Not too many up to the Hatchery yet but they will come soon.

Besides Drakes, we have PMD’s now all summer. Typically they are out and hatching at least once a day in the mid afternoon, but on Saturday they were on a 2nd wave at 7 PM with fish looking up!
Some BWO’s on the water too so keep an eye out for them, especially around the hatchery in the late afternoon.
Caddis have been hatching well, and usually mostly in the later day, but so far this late May and early June time we’ve seen a lot of caddis emergence mid afternoon.

At dusk the Rusty Spinner #16 is a great fly.

Nymphing throughout the river is always productive. We’ve been having good results on Golden Stone nymphs (the hatch is about a month out still) and Frenchies.
We have a lot of great little mayfly nymphs and caddis pupa patterns to show you that we love.

Early morning Bull Trout streamer action is worth your time with the big kids looking for big meals at dawn.

This week has been more about PMD’s than Green Drakes. PMD’s have had their best hatching week yet of the 2018 season so that is great news. But, the Drakes are still not really going strong. That said, there have been enough drakes to get the fish looking up for them between 2 and 5 and we are catching trout on Drakes now…best of all it will only get better.

Caddis, BWO’s, PMD’s (as mentioned) Rusty Spinners, Ants and Beetles are all good for matching various hatches throughout the day now.

Nymph fishing is good to very good.

Still not too many Green Drakes out, and what has been out is mostly below Bridge 99 so far. Usually around Memorial Day they get a stronger foothold so we are getting closer and closer.
What has been good is PMD’s, small Brown Caddis and Ants.
Hatches have been good from about 1 to 4, and again in the evening with PMD’s, BWO’s early, then Caddis and finally Rusty Spinners at dusk.

As usual the nymph fishing is good to very good with Stonefly’s, Frenchies, Zebra Midges, Caddis Pupa, Stealth PT, CDC Hares Ear and Depth Charge CDC Lightning Bugs and PT’s (these are killer little flies with 2 tungsten beads in the thorax!).

Finally, today marks the opening of the upper river from the Headwaters to Allingham Bridge, so the entire Fly Fishing Only stretch is open.

It’s been a fun week on the Metolius with a lot of hatches and some consistent nymphing action.
There are salmonflies on the Met now. It’s not a ton, but some fish are looking up for them and you’ll find the majority from Canyon Creek to Candle Creek with a smattering of the big guys up to the Allingham boundary.

PMD’s have taken off, and if you are keeping a sharp eye out you’ll begin to see a Green Drake or 2 between 2 and 5 around Bridge 99. The “hatch” of Drakes is still 2 or 3 weeks out to be consistent but the early hatchers are coming off here and there.
BWO hatches seem to have shifted their time frame to later afternoon and evening.
Rusty Spinners at dusk are going better which is a great sign that summer is about here!
Caddis continue to be good with Pupa patterns fished as nymphs working the best, but we are starting to get some fish up on the surface to Iris, CDC, Parachute and X Caddis patterns.

Nymphing has been best most of the days, with stonefly nymphs and small mayfly or caddis pupas as droppers. Zebra Midges have continued to fish well all winter and spring. It’s funny we never really fished Zebra’s much until a year or two ago, and now it’s such a staple for us on the Metolius.

Bull Trout fishing is so-so to OK. Gotta find ’em and they are spread out but I have a friend who is getting some nice ones on streamers every week recently.

The warmth has brought some changes to the river the last couple of days. A lot of caddis but fewer mayflies at the moment. I’d expect this weekend with the clouds and cooler weather coming the 1st PMD’s of the season to really start popping.
I heard from 2 friends today that were on the water there was nothing coming to the surface, but fish were feeding on nymphs near the bottom.
A lot of times when the weather finally gets hot and bright in spring it takes the fish a few days to adjust. One way to conquer it is to fish the evening. I remember a few years ago this exact thing happening and us going to Allingham for the evening and finding awesome hatches and plenty of risers. PMD’s. It pays to be prepared for the hatch at odd times when you might not always expect it. Usually this time of year, the PMD hatch is mid day, but really be prepared for them to be late if there is a sudden change to hot weather. The fish may surprise you!

Stonefly nymphs, October Caddis Pupa, Serendipity, Lightning Bug, Rainbow Warrior, Hares Ear, Micro Mayfly and Frenchie’s are all great nymphs and that is your best bet at the moment.

Of course big streamers for Bull Trout are a good bet now too. So go get ’em tiger.

Still seeing a fair number of October Caddis on the river, mixed with Silver Stripe and Snow Sedges, Brachycentrus and Hydropsyche’s. That means plenty of caddis pupa patterns for your nymphing pleasure!

Afternoon BWO hatches have been strong. What hasn’t been that good is the spring hatch of cinygmula’s. I’d always be prepared for both on any given afternoon dry fly session.

Golden Stone Nymphs and McGee’s Girdle Bugs are awesome! We’ve been trailing Frenchie’s, Lightning Bugs and Halls CDC Hares Ear’s as a trailer.

Some Bull Trout action, a good friend got a huge one on a big streamer a few days ago.

It is Spring Break for kids and big kids all across our great state of Oregon. For those of you planning to do some fishing over the next week or two, we have good news for you.

Metolius is fishing well, with BWO and the first spring hatches of the beautiful yellow mayflies called cinygmula’s are out every afternoon between noon and 3. After the mayflies wrap it up in the late afternoon (and possibly also hatching in the late morning) you should see a lot of small brachycentrus caddis hatching. Usually the pupa is way more important than the adult, but an Olive X Caddis as a dry, and either an Olive Sparkle Pupa or Olive Stalcup’s Pupa.
The typical set up of a Golden Stone nymph with a Frenchie, Hares Ear, Micro Mayfly or Zebra Midge as a dropper has been productive all this week. Especially the Zebra.

Crooked River is excellent with very good BWO hatches and Midges. The water is low and there is pretty much no chance we’ll see any runoff issues from the dam this year.
Thread Midges and Zebra Midges in the morning, Frenchies, Skinny Nelson, Mighty Mite Baetis and Micro Mayflies. A Knock Down Dun, Klinkhammer, Film Critic and Parachute BWO are great when the fish are working the top.
Don’t forget your sighters, or your NZ Indicators for better nymphing success. And don’t forget your dry shake powder for keeping those dries floating between all the fish you’ll land.

Fall River is also quite good with tons of stocked rainbows in the system. There have been nice BWO hatches, with some midges mixed in on the top. We’ve been experiencing good fishing with French style leaders and Frenchie’s and Micro Mayflies when they aren’t rising.

Hearing good reports too from the Maupin area on the Lower Deschutes with good March Brown hatches bringing up fish most afternoons.
Besides the MB’s, Girdle Bugs, Lightning Bugs, PT’s, Euro Jigs and Sparkle Pupa’s are producing well in the riffles all day.

watching the weather, Sunday and Monday look cool, but by Wednesday and through next weekend it looks warm and nice. Go fish!

It’s my 3rd day back from vacation, and 2 days ago I felt more qualified to tell you the report for Lakes and Rivers in Tasmania than here at home, but I have been catching up fast, talking to my guides and my good fishing friends and have some good things to report.

Had some friends on the Fall River Sunday and Monday and there are good BWO hatches about 1 PM, with some Midges and Black Winter Stones mixed in before and after the BWO’s.
7x is quite helpful in getting the fish to take your dry fly with confidence.
Under the surface, Frenchie’s, 2 Bit Hookers and Zebra Midges have been best.

Metolius has a much better BWO hatch going on, with most of the emergence happening between 12:30 and 2:30. After that you should see some caddis hatching, although we’d recommend a pupa or soft hackle over a dry, but be prepared with a X Caddis Brown #16, or Siddac.
Golden Stone Nymphs are working well, with an Egg or small Hares Ear #18 as a dropper. Also Possie Buggers, Red Copper John, Lightning Bug, 3 Dollar Dip and Zebra Midges.
Bull Trout are taking Red Ice Cream Cones and Big White Streamers.

Crooked River is fishing really well. The river level is low, running about 50 cfs as they try to store water up in the reservoir before irrigation season begins in Mid-April. So the water is low but easy access.
In the morning and late afternoon the fish are on tiny black midges, and in the afternoon there is already a good BWO hatch going. I expect that to get better and better as we move to mid and late March!
Scuds, Cased Caddis, Zebra Midges, Thread Larva, Ray Charles, Frenchie, Skinny Nelson and Micro Mayfly.

Good fishing on the Lower Deschutes in the Maupin area too. Lightning Bugs, PT’s, 2 Bit Hookers, Sparkle Pupa, 3 Dollar Dip and Stonefly Nymphs are getting some nice redsides down river. Worth the trip.