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Newbie question re current conditions

1K views 9 replies 8 participants last post by  Gard Nale 
#1 ·
So ... Complete newbie question... Should I think of the current floods as an event that will bring fish up into the rivers as the levels go down? If so, how far do the levels need to drop for the fish to start moving up the rivers?

Or.. Do I have a fundamental misunderstanding here?

Thanks for the help as I try to figure this all out!
 
#2 ·
Fish begin moving upstream as waters rise. When the water keeps on rising, as in a flood, best guess is that fish hunker down wherever they can. These are times when fish are seen swimming around pastures and across roads and in ditches and other not so good places. As the water begins to drop, fish resume migrating upstream. When the rivers drop but are still higher than optimum fishing condition, fish are generally well distributed throughout a river system, suggesting that they find water that is a bit too high for good fishing to be just fine for migration.

Sg
 
#3 ·
While these freshets like the one we are experiencing aren't pretty at times, they will get fish moving.

If you wait to start fishing until you think the river is in shape, you've likely waited too long.
Start fishing it as it is coming into shape, not after.
High water with some color can pay big rewards.
Hope this helps.
SF
 
#4 ·
In general yes, this year i doubt it. I think this is going to be a very poor return for hatchery steelhead but then i think the hayday of the chambers creek winter steelhead stock are long gone I think the run is dying out, just too inbred and not surviving. but that's just what I think. Mid January or thereabouts i'd expect fishing to improve as wild fish start to show
 
#6 ·
My rule of thumb is if I'm not working or otherwise obligated, and there's even a chance the rivers will be fishable, I'm fishin'. If the water's high (and there's a little vis) fish the soft stuff near the banks, and something cool is likely to happen.

The one condition I always hope to avoid is a rising river. Granted, there are exceptions, but for the most part, fish bite like shit in rising rivers. One theory is that rising water puts them on the move (and mostly off the bite). I've had days where the river was rising in the morning, resulting in crappy fishing, but then the river crested, and as soon as the drop started, the fish started biting.
 
#7 ·
I have experienced the opposite at times when rivers start to rise. I have had some of my best days, especially on smaller rivers when the river level is starting to climb. They can be very grabby, you just have to fish different water where the fish are moving or taking a quick break between shooting further upstream. I have had several winter fish boil on my fly as it is on the surface while setting up for my next cast.
 
#8 ·
Jonathan makes the point of why you should fish whenever you can, even in marginal conditions. I was the guy sitting at home watching the flows rise while Jonathan was out there lighting it up. I haven't had many good days on a rise, but I have no problem believing someone else has. After all, it's fishing.

For sure, a lot of factors we'll never understand affect fish behavior on any given day, and that's what makes it so hard to tell what to expect (and it's one of the things that make fishing fun).

I probably should back off my blanket statement about avoiding rising rivers; like I said, if I can safely fish, I'll be out there when I get the chance.
 
#9 ·
Yeah it is miserable fishing in the pouring rain while you are watching the river go out as you're standing in it but the fish are on the move and will sometimes turn on like a light switch. One of my steelheading mentors told me a while ago that if you wait for the right conditions and flows you might only get to go fishing 3 or 4 times a season (unless you don't have a full time job). He always said go when you can go, learn all you can and be persistent. Catching fish will happen, just remember the days when it all comes together and you can't keep those steelhead off the line.
 
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