Tuesday, April 27, 2010

WILLAMETTE IS ON!


Christian Rhode with a Willamette summer run!

We are on track for a great early season Willamette fishery this year. We are seeing the best fish counts over the falls in years! We already have 3 times as many fish over the falls than we have had thru any other April since 2004. Even though there have already been some reports of good fishing, I plan to take another couple weeks off to get caught up and wind down after the long grind of my winter season. As mid-May rolls around, I hope to be back on the water full time. I still have slots available for my Willamette fishery. if your itchin' to get an early season crack on some chrome summers, the Willy is your fix. As we get into the prime time (mid-May thru July), there is very little element of "if". It is generally a matter of "how many"! It is a user friendly fishery that is a perfect opportunity for anglers to get a lesson or touch up on their spey casting.

Thursday, April 22, 2010

BACK FROM FILMING!



GOOD STUFF!

I just got back from filming parts of the Skagit Master DVD I am doing with Jeff Mishler. The last two weeks we spent filming the BC part of the production. We had a great trip and captured some exciting action. We were fortunate enough to accomplish everything we had hoped for - a couple huge fish, great fight action, and some great adventure visiting a couple small remote coastal rivers. We were successful in tying together much of the winter technique footage we had from the North Umpqua as well as covering some low water scenario technique. We both came home finding ourselves more excited and optimistic about our project. It should be great!!! At this point, we have no doubt we are going to be able to create a very educational DVD that has enough action to keep people glued to the screen.

Sunday, April 4, 2010

HAPPY EASTER!!!






"Fly Girl" Beth with just 4 of the many she landed during her latest trip!


I just finished a great trip with lead "Fly Girl" Beth Brunswick. The recent rain forced us onto some different water yesterday. Our move really paid off!!!! She ended the trip going 5 for 5 on her last day with one fish over #16. Each day we are getting a mixed bag. There are a number of colored fish that have been up river for a while, as well as, some brighter fish that are moving up out of where they have been living in the lower river. We are even seeing the odd shiny fish fresh out of the salt. I expect to see some good fishing for at least another week or two. Seeing how we now have most of our fish in the river, April can be the best month to see some big number days. It is also a great time to experience our rivers without the hustle and bustle of the mid-season crowds. Many anglers have had their fill of the winter grind and have moved onto golf and other spring activities.

I am off today to celebrate Easter with my family. Soon, I am heading north to BC to continue filming my DVD project with Jeff Mishler. We are hoping the weather cooperates and we can capture some great spring steelhead footage. We got big plans to visit some of the small remote rivers off the BC coast. We should be able to showcase some of the rivers I used to fish when I lived up North. These are rivers that few anglers have heard of and even fewer have fished. It should be fun!