Winter Flows
As many of you have noticed the flows have changed as of November 8th. The BOR has implemented a double peak flow upon request of WAPA. During these flows there are some studies going on to try and determine the effect flow change has on the fish. I am happy to say that these studies are happening do to a combined effort between the guide association, WAPA, and Utah DWR. So far I have not seen a significant change in the fishing do to these flow changes. It may have a greater effect when the winter hatches begin and the spawn is over. Please let us know any feedback you have through email or at a local flyshop.
ESPNoutdoors Flycast America
I had the chance to host Gabby and Scott from Flycast America. This is a great fishing show that is shown on ESPN in South America. Several folks have asked to see it. Fortunately Gabby posted it on YouTube. So here it is. Most of it is in Spanish.
The Best Flyfishing Rods for the Green River
I get asked this question a lot. Personally I like Sage fly rods and in a 5wt for the Green. This year the Sage ZXL is my fly rod of choice. It has the ability to make long casts with big dry flies. The Z-axis is another popular choice from Sage. It has more of a tip flex which is great for quick relocation of flies and also great for mending. Most any 5wt rod will do depending on your style or preference. Most every company makes a great fly rod, it's a matter of which rod fits you. Take the time to test out different rods and find the right rod for you. Most any fly shop will have demo rods to try out. Good times and dancing lines!!!
Yellow Sallies (isoperla)
If you float the B or C section in late June or first half of July you will most likely run into a bunch of yellow sallies. Sallies are a small yellow stone fly with a tan underbody. Most of the nymphs are tan or light yellow. The isoperla is one of the few stone flies that emerge in open water. Most stone flies swim to the shore before emerging. Generally, I will see the emerges around mid morning and females laying eggs until one or two in the afternoon. When the female lays her eggs she will repeatedly fly 15-20 feet in the air, then nose dive down, hitting the water to lay her eggs. This can be the easier time to catch fish on dries. Even if you are not catching fish on sallies it will get the fish looking up. It's easy to recognize a sally eat by the splashy, aggressive takes by the fish. Often on the C section the fish like the sally skiddered. This can create some spectacular takes.
Thoughts on Flow Meeting from June 11
Before I get into my thoughts, Let me share some positives as it relates to fishermen. We were able to get stable water temps by the moving of the selective withdrawl gates. This had an immediate and noticable impact on the fishing for the better. Secondly, the timing of the fluctuations were changed so that there would be a longer period of consistent fishing during the day time. As of today, there should be consistent fish from 7:00 am to 5:30 pm if you are floating or wade fishing Little Hole. The times would be two hours earlier around the Dam.
As I observed and participated in what I would call a passionate meeting regarding the flows on our beloved river, I noticed that my views of the people involved, evolved. I greatly appreciated all the time and effort to make this meeting happen. I gained some confidence in the Bureau of Reclamation, while losing any confidence I had in the power company (western area power administration). While the Bureau has a difficult task of trying to balance the many entities using this unique resource, I got the feeling they where trying to do their best to try to satisfy everyone. I think part of my animosity towards WAPA was the fact that their representative rubbed me the wrong way. Constantly over generalizing, being disrespectful towards others, and sort of telling the truth doesn't gain my trust. He also made it very clear that WAPA's customers were more important than the guides customers or forest service customers. This was particulary worrisome as he continued to refer to fishermen as the "trout people". In my view he had objectized the fishermen to the point that he didn't view them as human beings with thoughts and feelings in order to justify his economic choices. In the end it was clear that WAPA would willing to make some timing adjustments on the flows as long as they didn't have to give up any money in the end. WAPA made it very clear their financial well being is more important than the local economy surrounding the dam. I hope we can continue to find common ground in the future.