I have been waiting for this guy to show up for the past three months so we could travel North to wet our lines in some Eastern Sierra water…
Michael…”Let’s go Dad !!!”…
From here to there…
Red Rock Canyon...
The cinder dome at Little Lake…
The Dino Hut…Olancha, CA…
Eastside Sports, Bishop, CA…
Mahogany Smoked Meats, Bishop, CA…
PT, takin’ a break in Lee Vining, CA…
Mono Lake…
The East Walker River…Fly Fishing here for the first time in four years…
Four years of drought have done the following…Silted the bottom in the “Miracle Mile” section and most of the river down to the pond, allowed the growth of weeds the likes of which I have never seen in the river since I started coming here, on a regular basis, in 1974 and turned the water to a dingy, chocolate color…
PT workin’ the milk shake…The water temp., at 4PM, was 62 degrees, I was picking up weeds on every cast using a #18 Frenchie jig…
Michael… experiencing the weeds…
Dam !!!…
Downriver MOO…
In the soup…
Where I once have taken some very large Brown Trout…
“Are we having fun, yet ???”…
More frustration…
In 3 1/2 hours, I took one 7″ Rainbow…Moo…ZIP…On the upside, because this river has not been receiving the usual foot traffic, the stream side vegetation has come back with a vengeance…that is a good thing !
The Dinner was excellent at The Bridgeport Inn…
DAY2……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Up to Lower Virginia Lake …
7:30 AM…
“Row me Dude !!!”…
“Yep, right about here”…
Moo’s first Rainbow on a #16 Peacock and Partridge Soft Hackle…
The fly on the right…
Looking good…
I tied on one of these…in #12…
PURPLE PEACOCK & PARTRIDGE SH …
HOOK: Daiichi 1560, #12 – #18
THREAD: Ultra 70 Denier, Purple
RIB: Lagartun Silver wire, Fine or X-Fine
ABDOMEN: Purple Iridescent Peacock Herl – Spirit River
HACKLE: Partridge
…and the hits by football sized ‘Bows, just kept on coming…
#1…
#2…
#3…
#4…
#5…
#6…
#7…
#8…
#9…
Michael switched over to one of these…
OWENS “OFFENDER” II, Brown / Black …
HOOK: TMC 5263 #4- #6, Daiichi 2220 #6 – #10
THREAD: Danville 6/0, Brown or Olive
WEIGHT: .015 Lead or Lead Sub.
TAIL: Black Marabou
TAIL FLASH: 2 strands each side, Flashabou Dyed Pearl, orange, 6967 / 2 strands each side, Black Krystal Flash
RIB: UTC Copper Wire, Med
HACKLE: Ewing Bugger Hackle, Brown Grizzly
BODY: J. Fair Seal Sub Dubbing, Dark Brown
CONE: Wapsi, Copper, SM
HOT SPOT: Datum Glo-Brite Floss, #5, Fl. Orange
…and took several more Rainbows…
All in all, it was a great day! We brought an uncountable number of Rainbows to hand using both patterns…
Sunset…
Down the mountain for dinner…
…at the usual location…
Tired MOO…
DAY # 3…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Back to Little Virginia Lake and up there…
A brief pause for cell service…
I’ll just look around…
…towards Nevada…
Moo’s first Rainbow…
Not bad…
We will be back for you !!!
Michael hits the trail while I play with different fly patterns…
Trail info…
More trail info…
Trail to the summit…
A lake along the way…
Looking back, down at Big Virginia Lake…
…another view…
Another lake on the way up…
Almost there…
At the top…
Meanwhile… a lot more Trout for Dad, including this Brookie…
Tired PT…
DAY #4 Rosaschi Ranch, Nevada………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
It’s here:
View from a bridge…
Michael takes a look…
Downriver…
Upriver…
We started here, about 1/4 mile down stream…through the “wait- a- minute” bush…
Michael ties up with a hopper and midge dropper…
The water temp. was 57 degrees, a lot less weeds and much clearer than on the CA side. There was evidence of flooding from rainfall and it was hot and humid…
Did I mention HOT & HUMID ???
Arctic Creel with Coke,Squirt and water…
Typical riffle water…
What Michael was using… Winston WT, 9′, 5wt. with a Tibor Tailwater…I uses a Winston Nexus 9′, 5wt. with a Hardy Lightweight…
This looked interesting…I said “looked”…
Michael hooked a 5″ Brown here…
Almost back to the bridge…
Let’s see…this old dude vaulted one 3″ Rainbow 15′ upstream…catch of the morning…
Upstream after lunch…
Michael switched to using the Nexus…
Working a long run…
Score…
A smallish Brown…
Nope… nothing for PT here…
But Michael gets another small Brown…Must be the rod !
Michael… working beneath the willows…
It certainly looks “fishy” in there…
PT TRUDGE…
This is a very pretty river…
Another likely spot that did not produce…
Old dude in the sage…by the river…
Back to the vehicle…
Late afternoon, looking downstream…
But WAIT !… Michael wants to give this spot, next to the bridge another try…because there has to be something big, behind the rock…
” Just ONE more cast, Dad!!!”…
Right here…
Michael’s GREAT CATCH – a Tui Chub…
There was more activity in the hornet’s nest on the side of the bridge…
Notice…
Back to Bridgeport and dinner at the Bridgeport Inn…
DAY 5, slowly back to L.A. ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
A quick trip up to Trumbull Lake…
Something from The Trout Fly in Mammoth Lakes…
Mmmm…Schat’s Bakery in Bishop, for lunch…
Up to North Lake for one last fly fling…
Aspens above the lake…
“Cast over there MOO !!”
Limit in a hour…all released…
Recon at The Homestead near Ridgecrest. It would appear that there is construction activity going on here. This was a favorite dining spot focus for many years …hope springs eternal !!!
NEXT:
- Complete the PMD’s
- Complete Waiting for the son
- Tie Baetis/BWO’s for me n’ Ally to use on the Lower Owens in October
PT/TB
PLANETTROUT: Fly Fishing, Fly Tying and LIFE
PlanetTrout 
