Upper Owens River Fish Report

Owens River - Section 3 - Upper (above Crowley) - Eastern Sierra, CA (Mono County)

Steve Leiphardt nailed this awesome rooster while guiding himself! Nice job buddy.
Photo Credit: Sierra Drifters

by Tom Loe
2-1-2018
Website

The bite has slowed down here. There are still decent numbers of quality migratory rainbows we call Crowley Steelhead; however they are fully engaged in spawning activity, and not concentrated. You will need to cover a lot of water to find a few. High water flows are also making it tough to get those nymph, and streamer rigs down to the stationary bigs. Don’t hesitate to add a couple more feet of leader, & some additional weight to get those nymph rigs down. The difference between a good day, & a mediocre one can be as simple as one split shot, and another foot of tippet!  Some smaller resident fish are sipping on midge clusters in the pillow water of the larger pools. Crystal Eggs, San Juan Worms, #16-18 Assassins (dark and light), #14-16 Crystal Leeches, and #16-20 Copper Tiger Midge, Zebra Midge, and Gillies have been good patterns fished with plenty of weight below an Under-Cator. Watch the mud after the ground thaws on some of the two track roads leading down to the river-you can get stuck. Check out our guide tips page if you are not experienced in fishing attractor patterns during the winter. There is an informative posting that will give you some pointers on how to set the hook.





More Reports

Sierra Drifters Reports
for Thursday, February 1st, 2018
Owens River - Middle: Middle Owens River Fishing Report
Hot Creek: Hot Creek Fishing Report
Pleasant Valley Reservoir: Pleasant Valley Reservoir Fishing Report
Owens River - Gorge: The Gorge Fishing Report
East Walker River (CA): East Walker River Fishing Report