Crooked River Report – 3/27/18

Our guides have had some great trips out on Crooked the last few weeks! Although the water has

been low and clear (~50 CFS) and it has been somewhat crowded, the fishing has remained strong. Although nymphing has been productive throughout the day, there has also been decent dry fly fishing in the afternoons, with good hatches of BWO’s, midges, and a few March Browns

WE HIGHLY RECOMMEND CHECKING FLOWS OUT OF BOWMAN DAM BEFORE HEADING OUT! This is the time of year that flows will dramatically increase coming out of the dam, and it is unproductive, not to mention unsafe to be on the river when this is happening.

When nymphing, using 5x or 6x tippet, preferably fluorocarbon, will be to your advantage. A small mayfly imitation  followed by a small midge larvae or pupae  is your best bet. If you are catching all our fish on midges, or seeing a midge hatch happening, doubling up on midges will be more productive. Scuds and sow bugs are also on the menu here, as well as small cased caddis larvae. With the low water, you will want to concentrate your nymphing efforts on deep slots, drop-offs, and riffles into pools. Stripping small olive or black buggers/leeches in some of the deeper, slower pools can also be effective.

Dry fly fishing will be best on warm, overcast days. Hatches generally start around 11-12, depending on weather. We say a great midge hatch yesterday starting around 12:30 that had lots of fish feeding on or just under the surface. BWO’s will continue to hatch through the end of April, with a few late March Browns still in the mix. When you see fish softly sipping in the slack water, they are most likely eating midge emergers. A dry-dropper setup can be a great approach for these situations, with a small midge pupa as the dropper. Griffiths Gnats also work great later in the hatch. As we get into mid and late April, keep an eye out for some early Mother’s Day Caddis (Brachycentrus). They are about size 16, brownish-olive caddis, and when they get going the fish take notice!

Nymphs:

•         Mayflies: #16-20 Pheasant Tail, Hares Ear, Copper John, Micro May, WD-40, Two-Bit Hooker, RS-2
•         Midges: #18-22 Zebra midge, Winkers Midge, Mayhem Midge, Disco Midge, Brassie, etc
•          #16-18 olive or orange scuds
•          #16-18 Ray Charles
•          #14-18 Prince Nymph
•         San Juan Worm

Dry Flies:

•         #18-20 Parachute BWO
•         #18-20 Sparkle Dun BWO
•      #18/20 Hackle-Stacker BWO
•          #18/20 BWO cripples
•         #14-20 Parachute Adams/ Purple Haze
•          #18-22Winkers Midge
•          #16-20 Griffiths Gnat
•          #18-22 Smoke jumper

One final note: the Crooked also has a spring hatch of Skwala Stoneflies. Although they do not hatch in great numbers, they are big and the fish take notice. We were able to pick up one of our largest fish yesterday on a brown Jimmy Legs nymph, and I’m sure you could fool a fish or two with a small olive stimulator.

A half-day guided trip is a great way to learn this river with one of our knowledgeable guides, and we still have some opening this spring! Give us a call at 541-647-2584 or click here to book your trip today!