Bugs Up!

 

If you want to fish the Metolius, the next couple of weeks will show strong with dry fly hatches, along with a spectacular drive over to the Cascades with all of the Vine Maples displaying brilliant autumn colors in abundance. Don’t miss it!

 

On Monday, Joel and I fulfilled our Deschutes River Alliance hosted trip auction item with a lovely couple from the Bend area, Jack and Jan. We all enjoyed the variety of hatches and opportunities to tempt trout throughout the morning and early afternoon. A scrumptious riverside lunch from Chef Jo-el included hot, homemade Sourdough panini sandwiches with tomato basil bisque soup while the Metolius mist and her abundant Caddis flies filled the air. 

 

As we all know, part of fishing is taking in the beautiful sights of nature, and the small woodland creatures are probably my favorite next to the birding opportunities. En route to a favorite angling spot, a very cute thing happened with a local Townsend chipmunk! We watched him pull up an apple core from the ground and gallantly trek it up the tree stump to begin snacking. He dropped it in what looked like an accident; the core landed perfectly in the gap of the dilapidated stump only to secure its placement for more munching. One could see his pleasure with the newfound goodie then something startled him from behind a bush, and he accidentally knocked the core to the ground in his twitchy fret. He had his tiny arms outstretched to where the apple had just been, as though to say “Ohhh heck!" I couldn’t help but feel bad for the poor little guy as I chuckled beneath the brim of my hat, thankful to have observed the little nature scene unfold. 

 

Folks, The Metolius is “bugs up!” and the air is filled with strong hatches. BWOs and Caddis are everywhere along with MSM (misc. small Mayflies) hatches. Now is the time to fill those boxes with Mahogany Duns and Green Drakes, which will more than likely be around for another 8-14 days, especially during the afternoons all over the river so don’t worry if you can’t make it over at dawn’s early light.




Big, juicy October Caddis always catch the angler’s eye but never did I see a solid eat; mostly smaller Tan (#14-16) Caddis seemed the be the main course, but I landed my big fish on a #10 Green Drake Emerger, a smaller profile fly. The fall Green Drakes are smaller than their springtime cousins, so size down if your dry fly stands out in the crowd when floating with the naturals. Flightless stoneflies are cruising the shoreline along with big black ants. I always keep a couple of ants of various colors and sizes in my box although I don’t seem to fish terrestrials as often this time of year on the Met with so many other winged creatures about. Clusters of black midges like Griffins Gnats and small black Caddis often produce, but are difficult to see on the water. There have been many times I have had a fish on the line and only discovered it’s eaten my fly when I go to recast. Be sure to pinch those barbs, and if you can, choose patterns that have a hot top for a positive visual indicator of where that fly is in the water column. For me, 6X is the name of the game even when the hook size is a little bit too big to properly match up; soft hands, barbless hooks, and delicate play always make for a special challenge and best practices for a healthy fish release.

 

I’m looking at the weather forecast and things are supposed to warm up this weekend, so reaching for higher-profile bugs might just be the ticket. Clark’s Stones or Stimulators are always a favorite choice, along with the ever-faithful October Caddis. By early next week, clouds and rain return, and along with it, the possibility of more Green Drakes, BWOs, and Mahogany Duns would be what I’d reach for most.




Joel spotted a few Kokanee back in the river getting set to spawn, so this opens the door for more feeding opportunities for everything with fins. Eggs will be in abundance and Bull Trout will be looking to eat it all. Streamers of sculpin & various Dolly Llama patterns that represent the life stages of the Kokanee are all good options when swinging for or dead drifting flies to target Bull trout. 

 

Looking to nymph? As a dry fly geek, I can’t be of much hands-on help but the emerging patterns of any of the above insects would be a good choice; you can’t go wrong with Silvey‘s Caddis Pupa, Bryan’s Door Stop, or a classic Prince Nymph. Did I mention dry flies are up and in abundance? 

 

Whatever you do make a plan to get out with yourself or grab a friend for the journey. If I’ve been reminded of anything this year is that life is too damn short; seize the opportunities to create memories in places you love with those that you love. And if you want a wintertime challenge, take a 1 hr lesson with me using your non-dominant casting arm to up your game and make new windows of opportunity for both single-hand and Spey.