Warm Springs to Trout Creek Week One May 2011

The river is empty and at first appearance, void of life.  It sort of feels like November with the monochromatic look and feel of fall and winter to follow.  In all reality it's spring.  The upper, upper river has dropped from 6000 to 5600 cfs, an alarming 1000 cfs over it's median flow for this time of year.  Water clarity is about 12 inches or less.  Noticeable is the absence of any insect activity but something is going on as swallows dance in the sky about one hundred feet over head.

It's been a long cold and wet winter even in Hood River.  This time of year the weather usually breaks just west of town and we have sunshine...not this year.  I've seen the sun four or five time in the last 5 months so when the sun came out last Sunday we strapped up the Willie and headed to Warm Springs.  Our launch time was intentionally late ensuring we would get to fish the spots most likely to give up fish at these seasonably high flows.  The first run we stopped at was sterile and I thought, here we go again!  Second stop gave up a couple and I actually broke one off, an obvious sign I've been fishing 15# maxima the last 5 months.  The day ended up solid with many redsides to hand and a couple of bruisers that left my 4x in the dust.

I could ramble on and on but the jest of it is this.  It's spring and if you fly fish, the Deschutes is the place to be in Oregon until sometime in early November.  In another week or two we will start seeing Stones and Salmon Flies, and be working Multi Day trips on the river (still some limited availability) but for now the river is empty  except for these

So for the report;-)  Fished Sunday and Thursday last week.  Fishing is solid but it's nymphing the bigger stuff under an indicator in the slack water.  I will say despite the high flows fish are in hot pursuit of the fly should you put it near them.  One spot in particular has pushed double digits both trips.

See you out there.

SS