We had a blast!!
This was a combo trip with a land portion and a sea portion. We went with Holland America on a co-workers recommendation. We are very happy we did.
We spent a week on land and even got to see Denali in clear weather. Only 30% of the people that go to Denali National Park get to see more than the foot of the mountain. We saw lots of critters and, in general had a blast!!
Now, for the fishing part of the trip.
We fished a half day with Denali Fly Fishing Guides. It was a COLD, WINDY, RAINY day!! That is never good for grayling but we set out anyway. The first river we fished, the Jack river as we remember, was high and the fish were not biting. We fished with Denali Fly Fishing Guides and the guide, Terry, was GREAT! He set up the three of us with different setups so we could prospect a bit. He realized quickly that this was not going to work. So, we took off for another small creek called Fish Creek. It feeds the Jack so it was just up the road. It was not long before we all were into grayling. They were not big but it was a blast watching them attack a fly. Our guide was great.
The next "fishing stop" was Juno, AK. We did a flyout trip with Bear Creek Outfitters:
http://www.flyfishingjuneau.com/index.html
http://www.wardair.com/ provided the air "taxi".
We flew out with Ward Air in a DeHavilland Beaver. It was a water takeoff and landing. It was our first and it was UNREAL. Once again, it was overcast and raining but the ceiling was high enough that we could see the ground most of the trip. We fished Limestone creek. We caught Pink Salmon and Dolly Varden trout and it was a BLAST. Jen caught a pink on her FIRST cast and I was not far behind. We lost count of the fish (like we count anyway) and the eagles. It was one of the most beautiful places I have ever fished. There was not a sound anywhere except nature. A little further up the creek we hit the Dollys. We caught several and even got a couple of big ones and one in it's fall spawning colors.If you have never caught a Dolly, they are like hooking a small car. They don't make wild runs, at least these didn't, but they would run around the hole and refuse to come out.
So, there you have it.... Two weeks on land and sea... three fishing trips.... and some great times.
Monday, September 14, 2009
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
A Warning About a Guide Service in Fairbanks!!
Hi all,
Well, we are back from Alaska!!
First a word of warning.... If you ever hear the name "Wilderness Ent" or Joe Letarte, RUN AWAY!! Here is their website:
http://wildernessenterprises.com/
We arrived at their office/house to be greeted by a guide that was rigging up spinning rods for our trip. This was after we had talked THREE times about the fact that Jen and I only fly fish. The raft we used did not have any seats in it except for the guide. So, we are in a wilderness area in Alaska floating on a river with no seats in the boat. I had to sit on the rear of the raft with nothing to stop me from taking a swim.
We were told that we would have waders to use but that turned out not to be true. So we spent the day in very light clothes from the waist down and wading shoes with no socks. It was COLD!! I got hypothermia about an hour from the takeout and it was really uncomfortable for a while.
We had told Joe and Vickie THREE times that this was going to be a morning only float as we had to be back in Fairbanks by 2:00 pm so we HAD to be off the river no later than 1:00 pm. he never told the guide this and he was planing on having us back to our car around 3:00. He had to do a lot of rowing to get us back on time. He claimed that Joe and Vickie had not told him this little fact.
They also charged us $12.00 EACH for lunch!!! Lunch was a homemade sandwich and a bag of chips.
So, lets just say i was NOT a good day.
Well, we are back from Alaska!!
First a word of warning.... If you ever hear the name "Wilderness Ent" or Joe Letarte, RUN AWAY!! Here is their website:
http://wildernessenterprises.com/
We arrived at their office/house to be greeted by a guide that was rigging up spinning rods for our trip. This was after we had talked THREE times about the fact that Jen and I only fly fish. The raft we used did not have any seats in it except for the guide. So, we are in a wilderness area in Alaska floating on a river with no seats in the boat. I had to sit on the rear of the raft with nothing to stop me from taking a swim.
We were told that we would have waders to use but that turned out not to be true. So we spent the day in very light clothes from the waist down and wading shoes with no socks. It was COLD!! I got hypothermia about an hour from the takeout and it was really uncomfortable for a while.
We had told Joe and Vickie THREE times that this was going to be a morning only float as we had to be back in Fairbanks by 2:00 pm so we HAD to be off the river no later than 1:00 pm. he never told the guide this and he was planing on having us back to our car around 3:00. He had to do a lot of rowing to get us back on time. He claimed that Joe and Vickie had not told him this little fact.
They also charged us $12.00 EACH for lunch!!! Lunch was a homemade sandwich and a bag of chips.
So, lets just say i was NOT a good day.
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
BE CAREFUL OUT THERE!!!!
Hi all,
I just saw this and I wanted to put out a friendly reminder that Mother Nature can be a bitch from time to time.
Up in Sheep Canyon they had a little rain last week, July 25 to be exact. There are no measuring stations up there, but in Canon City they had over 2" of rain in less than 45 minutes. As you can see the water rose dramatically!!
If someone had been wading mid river when this hit it could have been bad.
So, BE CAREFUL and keep your eyes open!!
Monday, July 27, 2009
Morain Park, July 25, 2009
Saturday was a fun day for us. We attended a lunch and gathering of our favorite conservation organization, the Rocky Mountain Nature Association. If you have never heard of them, check them out at www.rmna.org. It's a great organization and does a lot of good work in the Rocky Mountain National Park and surrounding areas.
The conditions could not have been better. Temps were in the lower 70s. It was mostly cloudy and the winds were moderate. We got some sprinkles early and a BIG rain later in the afternoon. There was some lightening around but nothing close.
After the picnic we drove into the Park and fished the Big Thompson in the Morain Park area. It was a bit more crowded than I expected at 3:00 in the afternoon, but we were there and decided to fish a bit just to enjoy the area. We broke out the bamboos and rigged up with the standard dry fly rigs. We fished hoppers, crickets, Yellow Sallies and things like that. There were a few caddis in the air as well as some yellow mayflies and MILLIONS OF MOSQUITOES!! The biting bugs were limited to the shady areas so, for the most parts, we avoided those areas. The backs of my legs look like polka dots because I forgot to wear repellent. I won't do that again and neither should you!
We caught several fish ranging from a few inches (very few inches) up to about 12". I even had one small fish grab my Yellow Sally three or four times on the drift but he was not big enough to get it. Pretty typical for that area at this time of the year.
Things are great in the Park now, so get out and enjoy!!
The conditions could not have been better. Temps were in the lower 70s. It was mostly cloudy and the winds were moderate. We got some sprinkles early and a BIG rain later in the afternoon. There was some lightening around but nothing close.
After the picnic we drove into the Park and fished the Big Thompson in the Morain Park area. It was a bit more crowded than I expected at 3:00 in the afternoon, but we were there and decided to fish a bit just to enjoy the area. We broke out the bamboos and rigged up with the standard dry fly rigs. We fished hoppers, crickets, Yellow Sallies and things like that. There were a few caddis in the air as well as some yellow mayflies and MILLIONS OF MOSQUITOES!! The biting bugs were limited to the shady areas so, for the most parts, we avoided those areas. The backs of my legs look like polka dots because I forgot to wear repellent. I won't do that again and neither should you!
We caught several fish ranging from a few inches (very few inches) up to about 12". I even had one small fish grab my Yellow Sally three or four times on the drift but he was not big enough to get it. Pretty typical for that area at this time of the year.
Things are great in the Park now, so get out and enjoy!!
Monday, July 20, 2009
Arkansas River, July 19, 2009
Back on the Arkansas!!!
So, first, the facts. Water temps in upper 50s, air temps in the upper 80s. Flows were around 875 cfs. We got run off the river around 1:30 by thunderstorms and VERY heavy rain, so we just packed up and came home.
Other than that, see last weeks report.... Really.
We used the same flies at the same depths in the same places and caught, I would guess, some of the same fish.
The Arkansas is dropping daily and getting better as the days go by. The "rubber hatch" (slang for rafters) is out in full swing and, if you fish the lower section of the river, you have to contend with that. I kind of enjoy talking to the folks as they drift by and some of their reactions are priceless!!
So, get out and ENJOY!!
So, first, the facts. Water temps in upper 50s, air temps in the upper 80s. Flows were around 875 cfs. We got run off the river around 1:30 by thunderstorms and VERY heavy rain, so we just packed up and came home.
Other than that, see last weeks report.... Really.
We used the same flies at the same depths in the same places and caught, I would guess, some of the same fish.
The Arkansas is dropping daily and getting better as the days go by. The "rubber hatch" (slang for rafters) is out in full swing and, if you fish the lower section of the river, you have to contend with that. I kind of enjoy talking to the folks as they drift by and some of their reactions are priceless!!
So, get out and ENJOY!!
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Arkansas River, July 11, 2009
The 4:30 alarm sure was annoying.....
We got up in the dark and headed for the Arkansas and the usual spots. We spent most of the day around Spikebuck. It was all sunny in the morning and changed to partly cloudy later in the afternoon. Temps were HOT and winds were light. Water temps were in the high 50s. There were some PMDs and a few caddis around but the fish were not really looking up. The flows dropped from 1800 to 1500 during the day, so we expected things to be a bit slow.
We started off with a hopper-dropper setup with the dropper just a couple of feet below the hopper/stonefly. We picked up several fish but they were small. A little experimentation paid off and we started picking up bigger fish deeper. We had our big stonefly nymph about 4ft-5ft deep and the dropper a bit below that. The fish started getting bigger but a little less frequent.
We fished 3/4 of a mile of river all day long and never felt the need to move. I did make a run to the store for some cold water since the water we had brought with us got a bit hot in the car. The next time, we'll take a cooler with some ice to keep things cool. After 50+ years, you would think we would have learned that.
We got up in the dark and headed for the Arkansas and the usual spots. We spent most of the day around Spikebuck. It was all sunny in the morning and changed to partly cloudy later in the afternoon. Temps were HOT and winds were light. Water temps were in the high 50s. There were some PMDs and a few caddis around but the fish were not really looking up. The flows dropped from 1800 to 1500 during the day, so we expected things to be a bit slow.
We started off with a hopper-dropper setup with the dropper just a couple of feet below the hopper/stonefly. We picked up several fish but they were small. A little experimentation paid off and we started picking up bigger fish deeper. We had our big stonefly nymph about 4ft-5ft deep and the dropper a bit below that. The fish started getting bigger but a little less frequent.
We fished 3/4 of a mile of river all day long and never felt the need to move. I did make a run to the store for some cold water since the water we had brought with us got a bit hot in the car. The next time, we'll take a cooler with some ice to keep things cool. After 50+ years, you would think we would have learned that.
Monday, July 6, 2009
Friday July 3rd.. Big Thompson River.
What a beautiful morning!!!
First, the facts.... Temps were in the 50s and 60s early in the morning and climbed to the mid 70s. Skies were mostly clear with just a few puffy clouds floating around. That would change....
Fishing was sporadic below the dam... Well below the dam for us. We started out looking for a rock to stand on close to the dam. No luck there. We wound up WAY down river but finally found some solitude. It lasted for about an hour when several more folks showed up. We decided to hole-sit for a while since we were wedged in between some private property. Fishing was pretty slow for the most part. There were several PMDs hatching and most of them were size 16 or so. I fished a PMD with no luck and I noticed the fish were not feeding them actively. That was strange.
Then, mid morning, it got very cloudy and started to rain. Fish started rising and the BWOs started popping. They were really after BWO emergers!! So I tied on a favorite emerger and it was like a switch was flipped. We caught, and missed, a bunch of fish. Then, about an hour later, it stopped raining and sun came out and fish turned off. It was, once again, like someone flipped a switch.
All in all, it was pretty good for a holiday and we WERE on a river with our favorite bamboo rods. What more could we ask for?
First, the facts.... Temps were in the 50s and 60s early in the morning and climbed to the mid 70s. Skies were mostly clear with just a few puffy clouds floating around. That would change....
Fishing was sporadic below the dam... Well below the dam for us. We started out looking for a rock to stand on close to the dam. No luck there. We wound up WAY down river but finally found some solitude. It lasted for about an hour when several more folks showed up. We decided to hole-sit for a while since we were wedged in between some private property. Fishing was pretty slow for the most part. There were several PMDs hatching and most of them were size 16 or so. I fished a PMD with no luck and I noticed the fish were not feeding them actively. That was strange.
Then, mid morning, it got very cloudy and started to rain. Fish started rising and the BWOs started popping. They were really after BWO emergers!! So I tied on a favorite emerger and it was like a switch was flipped. We caught, and missed, a bunch of fish. Then, about an hour later, it stopped raining and sun came out and fish turned off. It was, once again, like someone flipped a switch.
All in all, it was pretty good for a holiday and we WERE on a river with our favorite bamboo rods. What more could we ask for?
Monday, June 29, 2009
A Mess on June 27.....
First, I want you to know that this is NOT a fishing report. It would have been a fishing report, but some things got in the way. Hence the rant that will follow......
Still here??
Due to the flows on the Arkansas, we decided to make a trip to the Big Thompson on Saturday morning. We got up early because we wanted to have breakfast at our favorite little spot in Estes Park. We got dressed, made coffee, fed the dogs and for some strange reason, I checked the flows again.
OOPS!!!
The water gods raised the flows by over 300 CFS OVERNIGHT!!!!
From 125 CFS to almost 500 CFS.... OVERNIGHT!!!
Well, just damn.....
So, we unpacked and sat down to drink our coffee and decided to get some housework done.
Just for reference, as of Monday morning, the flows were back to 125. How's that for interesting?
Still here??
Due to the flows on the Arkansas, we decided to make a trip to the Big Thompson on Saturday morning. We got up early because we wanted to have breakfast at our favorite little spot in Estes Park. We got dressed, made coffee, fed the dogs and for some strange reason, I checked the flows again.
OOPS!!!
The water gods raised the flows by over 300 CFS OVERNIGHT!!!!
From 125 CFS to almost 500 CFS.... OVERNIGHT!!!
Well, just damn.....
So, we unpacked and sat down to drink our coffee and decided to get some housework done.
Just for reference, as of Monday morning, the flows were back to 125. How's that for interesting?
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Arkansas River, June 13, 2009
So, first the facts.....
Temps were in the very upper 70s to mid 80s. Water temps were mid 50s. Light wind and BRIGHT, bluebird skies. Flows were 1650 to 1700. We fished from Spikebuck to Vallie Bridge.
Any idea where I'm going with this one?
Things were a bit slow to say the least. I had determined that I was going to fish a BIG dry adult stonefly all day, no matter what. I would fish something smaller, either dry or nymph, as a dropper. Most of the day was spent with a smaller stonefly or caddis on top.
Now, the frustrating part.... I COULD NOT STICK A FISH ALL DAY LONG!!!!
I missed several fish both on the big stonefly as well as the dropper. I even hooked one fish for jut a minute but never even came close to landing it.
The fish had moved off the banks a bit and out as far as the first seam. If you could find a big eddy behind a large rock next to the bank, it was almost guaranteed to have a fish or two in it.
So, we'll be back at it soon and more info will be posted. I'll try and do a little better with the reports, but you get what you pay for.
Now a final note.... BE CAREFUL OUT THERE!!! The water is high almost everywhere and it can be very treacherous. While I would, at times, like to see fewer fisher-folks on the water, I don't want anyone injured or killed.
Temps were in the very upper 70s to mid 80s. Water temps were mid 50s. Light wind and BRIGHT, bluebird skies. Flows were 1650 to 1700. We fished from Spikebuck to Vallie Bridge.
Any idea where I'm going with this one?
Things were a bit slow to say the least. I had determined that I was going to fish a BIG dry adult stonefly all day, no matter what. I would fish something smaller, either dry or nymph, as a dropper. Most of the day was spent with a smaller stonefly or caddis on top.
Now, the frustrating part.... I COULD NOT STICK A FISH ALL DAY LONG!!!!
I missed several fish both on the big stonefly as well as the dropper. I even hooked one fish for jut a minute but never even came close to landing it.
The fish had moved off the banks a bit and out as far as the first seam. If you could find a big eddy behind a large rock next to the bank, it was almost guaranteed to have a fish or two in it.
So, we'll be back at it soon and more info will be posted. I'll try and do a little better with the reports, but you get what you pay for.
Now a final note.... BE CAREFUL OUT THERE!!! The water is high almost everywhere and it can be very treacherous. While I would, at times, like to see fewer fisher-folks on the water, I don't want anyone injured or killed.
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Well, I am, at last, back!!!
A back injury (nothing major) has kept us off the rivers for a while but I'm back in the swing of things now.
So, let's catch up on this past weekend. We hit the Arkansas early Saturday morning. The stones were hatching on some parts of the river and, according to Bill Edrington at Royal Gorge Anglers, the fish were really looking for the big bugs and any wayward caddis that happened by. The flows were 2300 to 2500 cfs depending on where we were. The water was kind of silty but not to bad with a couple of feet visibility. The weather was mostly overcast with a little bit of sun here and there. Temp were in the 70s with water temp in the mid to upper 50s. It was WINDY!!
We started near Spikebuck and, to be honest, fishing was only fair but we were fishing in conditions we had never fished before. We were fishing with a stone dry and a general search pattern dropped a foot or so behind the dry. We caught several smaller fish but the larger fish were eluding us. At long last, we found the secret.... The larger fish were so close to the bank they were almost walking in place of usual swimming thing. Once we figured that out, the bigger fish started to show up little more frequently.
We then moved up to Wellsville but that turned out to be a mistake. We did not find any fish up there so we moved back down river to the Vallie Bridge area. By this time, the wind had laid down and we were under mostly cloudy skies. We had also figured out the patterns the fish were after and we were fishing a stonefly with a dry caddis as a dropper. We caught several fish including one of the biggest, by weight, fish I have ever caught on the Arkansas. It really was a pig and very fat compared to the "normal" brown.
All the fish we caught were browns. No 'bows.
As an after-note, we stopped by Coyote's Coffee House in Penrose because they had live music and BBQ for dinner. Don't waste your time.... The music was ok but the BBQ tasted like it was out of a can and the prices for that canned BBQ were a bit outrageous.
A back injury (nothing major) has kept us off the rivers for a while but I'm back in the swing of things now.
So, let's catch up on this past weekend. We hit the Arkansas early Saturday morning. The stones were hatching on some parts of the river and, according to Bill Edrington at Royal Gorge Anglers, the fish were really looking for the big bugs and any wayward caddis that happened by. The flows were 2300 to 2500 cfs depending on where we were. The water was kind of silty but not to bad with a couple of feet visibility. The weather was mostly overcast with a little bit of sun here and there. Temp were in the 70s with water temp in the mid to upper 50s. It was WINDY!!
We started near Spikebuck and, to be honest, fishing was only fair but we were fishing in conditions we had never fished before. We were fishing with a stone dry and a general search pattern dropped a foot or so behind the dry. We caught several smaller fish but the larger fish were eluding us. At long last, we found the secret.... The larger fish were so close to the bank they were almost walking in place of usual swimming thing. Once we figured that out, the bigger fish started to show up little more frequently.
We then moved up to Wellsville but that turned out to be a mistake. We did not find any fish up there so we moved back down river to the Vallie Bridge area. By this time, the wind had laid down and we were under mostly cloudy skies. We had also figured out the patterns the fish were after and we were fishing a stonefly with a dry caddis as a dropper. We caught several fish including one of the biggest, by weight, fish I have ever caught on the Arkansas. It really was a pig and very fat compared to the "normal" brown.
All the fish we caught were browns. No 'bows.
As an after-note, we stopped by Coyote's Coffee House in Penrose because they had live music and BBQ for dinner. Don't waste your time.... The music was ok but the BBQ tasted like it was out of a can and the prices for that canned BBQ were a bit outrageous.
Sunday, April 26, 2009
April 25, Arkansas River
Well, Saturday was a bit interesting..... The air temps were in the mid 40s and the water temps were near 50.
We got to the river around 9:45 a little below Cotopaxi. The weather was not what we expected. It was only partly cloudy and the WIND was BLOWING!!
We walked to the river before rigging up so we could look at the situation. There were no bugs on the water so we set up to nymph fish. CO Flygal went with a DEEP dropper rig and I started out with a dry-dropper. We both used caddis larvae and BWO nymphs of various patterns.
We caught a few fish but it was a crap shoot as to what fly the fish would take. Most of the fish were average Arkansas fish but I did catch one BIG rainbow. My guess is 15" - 16" but I didn't measure it.
Since it was pretty slow, we went all the way to Wellsville. We found the BWO hatch but very few fish were on top after them. We fished there a while and caught a few more fish, but it was nothing major.
So, we are are heading back to Salida this weekend to fish with the CWF group that Jen is a member of. It should be a fun weekend as the temps are warming up a bit. We are hoping for some caddis activity higher up in the river.
We got to the river around 9:45 a little below Cotopaxi. The weather was not what we expected. It was only partly cloudy and the WIND was BLOWING!!
We walked to the river before rigging up so we could look at the situation. There were no bugs on the water so we set up to nymph fish. CO Flygal went with a DEEP dropper rig and I started out with a dry-dropper. We both used caddis larvae and BWO nymphs of various patterns.
We caught a few fish but it was a crap shoot as to what fly the fish would take. Most of the fish were average Arkansas fish but I did catch one BIG rainbow. My guess is 15" - 16" but I didn't measure it.
Since it was pretty slow, we went all the way to Wellsville. We found the BWO hatch but very few fish were on top after them. We fished there a while and caught a few more fish, but it was nothing major.
So, we are are heading back to Salida this weekend to fish with the CWF group that Jen is a member of. It should be a fun weekend as the temps are warming up a bit. We are hoping for some caddis activity higher up in the river.
Monday, April 20, 2009
My First Blog....
Well, here we are. Or at least, here I am.
What you will see here are various fishing reports from our travel around Colorado and the Rocky Mountain west. Most of the reports will be from the Arkansas, Big Thompson, South Platte and, our favorite, Rocky Mountain National Park.
My blog may be a little different than what you are used to seeing. I will not "hotspot" a place where we have fished. You may see something like "the Arkansas river near Rincon" but you will never see something like "go upstream, past the Rincon access to the second pulloff on the right". The fly pattern discussions will also be general in terms. I'll leave the specific patterns to the local fly shops.
You will also see some blogs later this summer from our cruise tour to Alaska. This will mostly be a recreational trip with my wife's parents. We are celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary and out 5th anniversary. We will fish one full day on a fly out trip as well as a half day in Denali and a half day in Fairbanks. We really want to catch a few grayling since neither one of us have ever caught one.
More to come, so stay in touch!!
What you will see here are various fishing reports from our travel around Colorado and the Rocky Mountain west. Most of the reports will be from the Arkansas, Big Thompson, South Platte and, our favorite, Rocky Mountain National Park.
My blog may be a little different than what you are used to seeing. I will not "hotspot" a place where we have fished. You may see something like "the Arkansas river near Rincon" but you will never see something like "go upstream, past the Rincon access to the second pulloff on the right". The fly pattern discussions will also be general in terms. I'll leave the specific patterns to the local fly shops.
You will also see some blogs later this summer from our cruise tour to Alaska. This will mostly be a recreational trip with my wife's parents. We are celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary and out 5th anniversary. We will fish one full day on a fly out trip as well as a half day in Denali and a half day in Fairbanks. We really want to catch a few grayling since neither one of us have ever caught one.
More to come, so stay in touch!!
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