Sunday, February 20, 2011

All Kinds of Updates and Yak Report

Just a few updates of some of the events going on here at Creekside.

-Spey Lines with Rio and Sage rep George Cook on Wednesday, February 23rd. George is kind enough to make an appearance every spring to help sort out all of the confusion surrounding spey lines. Skagit, scandi, switch, running lines, tips, and all things spey will be explained. And even if you know it all, come on down for a night that is always entertaining and full of humor.

-Introduction to Fly Fishing Classes with Dan Lemaich. This class is always a huge hit, and Dan does it only twice a year at a private lake on Camano Island. It is a one day class on Sunday, March 20th from 9AM to 3PM. He starts from square one and goes through equipment, knots, flies, casting, and hopefully by the end of the day you will be catching fish. Cost is $125.

-Introduction to Fly Tying with Brett Wedeking. Upcoming dates are March 15, 16, 17 from 6:30PM to 8:30PM. All materials are supplied, and you will leave with a good understanding of all of the basic tools and techniques required to start tying flies. You will tie a wooly bugger, elk hair caddis, parachute adams, pheasant tail, and hares ear. Cost is $80. We have a couple spots left for this class, but will be scheduling some more dates for April.

-Isaak's Ranch Private Lakes. We have our dates for this spring at Isaak's, anad they're starting to fill up quick. April 15th and 16th are full, but the 17th is wide open and May 13th has 3 spots left. If you haven't been before, just ask someone who has. It is one of the best trophy trout destinations in the northwest with trout averaging 20-22" and ranging all the way up to 30". There are two lakes, and both have profound hatches. Early dates will see primarily chironomid hatches but stripping leeches and buggers is productive as well. The May date should see some calibaetis action, mostly subsurface, but the chance of catching them on dries is certainly a possibility. Scuds, damsels, dragonflies, and more round out the action. Below are a couple of photos from last spring, the left being an average 22" lower lake fish and to the right a nice 27". Give us a call if fish like these might interest you.





























Yakima Update 2-17: The fishing has remained strong with nymphs and streamers. The recent cold weather has cooled the water off a bit, ranging anywhere from 35-40 degrees on any given day. The fish are still in winter water, and seem to be pretty podded up on soft insides and slower walking speed water. When you find one, there are usually more. Look for a few warm nights to get the skwalas going. The nymphs are definately moving around a bit, but nothing much to speak of yet on the surface. Same bugs as the last report except bring some midges, especially on the upper river. Below is a nice upper river rainbow on a warm sunny day last week. 

We are offering our "March Madness" trips on the Yakima. Like the name suggests, these trips will run through the end of March. Included is a full day float for 1 or 2 anglers, flies, equipment, your guide, and all of his wisdom. You will bring your own lunch. Cost is $300. Split that between you and a buddy and you're talkin' $150 bucks a piece for a full day guided trip. Take advantage of great early spring fishing on the Yakima, it truly is the best time of the year to catch the larger fish of the river, and not to mention the Skwala dry fishing is right around the corner. Give us a call at the shop to book your trip!

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