@RD Washington State and I had planned a trip to a picturesque Okanagan Lake for the week of Memorial Day. We thought that if we arrived on the holiday, we would have an easy time finding a camping site as folks would be heading out. Boy, were we wrong!!! But this report isn't about the crowding in the campgrounds (and the generosity of folks who had sites and let us and others crowd in), but about the fish and fishing. Short summary: slow for us under the heat and wind. In spite of the 100+ folks camping there, folks were dispersed across the lake.
What was hatching? Before we arrived, we would have predicted midges, Callibaetis mayflies, and damsels. And that is what we saw. Winds in the teens during the middle of the day complicated the fishing options. We and other folks that we talked to had some success on a variety of strategies.
There were a few large (size 12-14ish) midges hatching sporadically throughout the day. Green or black chironomid larval patterns fished under a float produced slow, but consistent action. A quick stomach pump revealed a mix of large and small chironomid larvae in a range of sizes and colors.
This lake is known for its Callibaetis hatches. While we were there, spinners in abundance in the afternoon sought refuge on your clothes, your hat, or your sunglasses against the wind (and predation by damsel adults).
The emergences of mayfly duns were VERY sporadic in space and time. I managed to hook several fish that were hunting adult damsels off the reeds when I drifted a parachute Callibaetis consolation prize by their location. But in each case, the fish dove into the reeds and broke me off. These fish are experienced. Late on our last afternoon, I encountered a pod of fish that were feeding on a few mayfly duns emerging in spite of the stiff winds. The first fish that I hooked dove deep into the weeds and was off while I reeled in a gob of salad. A second fish broke me off on the strike. And I finally landed the third fish. And then it was over. The kind of fast action that I had been hoping for (and that I have experienced on previous trips) for the week.
Over the several days, the most visible action were trout hunting damsels, both emerging larvae and flying adults. When the winds died, you would see the occasional explosion in the middle of the lake as I suspect that trout were busting a swimming larva. And RD caught a nice trout on a larval pattern and another on an adult pattern. But the trout were really keyed in on damsel adults that were in flight; I need to refine my helium damsel pattern (patent pending…). In the evenings and mornings when the winds were calmer, hungry trout cruised the shallows.
Of course, the master fisher, the bald eagle, was very successful.
Its flights over the lake made the mallards, ruddy ducks, red-head ducks, Barrow's goldeneyes, ring-necked ducks, and scaup nervous.
The unworldly calls of pied-billed grebes echoed across the lake at random times. A hen Barrow's goldeneye watched over her brood of chicks. The little guys dove down in the shallows and popped up like little corks.
There are many other lakes in this area but this is such a picturesque location in the spring. Several species of wildflowers, like these silky lupines and Thompson's paintbrush, bloomed on the hillsides.
Upland Larkspur
One of my favorites, mariposa lily.
Butterflies sipped nectar from the blossoms. In this case a Boisduval's Blue sips nectar from a Mariposa lily.
But danger lurked in the form of a crab spider on a rose blossom for the unwary pollinator.
A pair of Say's phoebes set up a nest under the roof of the sun shelter at our campsite; both parents brought in a steady supply of insects, especially damselflies, to feed their chicks.
It a full day of driving to reach to this lake and a full day back home, but I still hope to return next spring to soak in the atmosphere (and to get my flies back from the fish that broke me off…).
Steve
What was hatching? Before we arrived, we would have predicted midges, Callibaetis mayflies, and damsels. And that is what we saw. Winds in the teens during the middle of the day complicated the fishing options. We and other folks that we talked to had some success on a variety of strategies.
There were a few large (size 12-14ish) midges hatching sporadically throughout the day. Green or black chironomid larval patterns fished under a float produced slow, but consistent action. A quick stomach pump revealed a mix of large and small chironomid larvae in a range of sizes and colors.
This lake is known for its Callibaetis hatches. While we were there, spinners in abundance in the afternoon sought refuge on your clothes, your hat, or your sunglasses against the wind (and predation by damsel adults).
The emergences of mayfly duns were VERY sporadic in space and time. I managed to hook several fish that were hunting adult damsels off the reeds when I drifted a parachute Callibaetis consolation prize by their location. But in each case, the fish dove into the reeds and broke me off. These fish are experienced. Late on our last afternoon, I encountered a pod of fish that were feeding on a few mayfly duns emerging in spite of the stiff winds. The first fish that I hooked dove deep into the weeds and was off while I reeled in a gob of salad. A second fish broke me off on the strike. And I finally landed the third fish. And then it was over. The kind of fast action that I had been hoping for (and that I have experienced on previous trips) for the week.
Over the several days, the most visible action were trout hunting damsels, both emerging larvae and flying adults. When the winds died, you would see the occasional explosion in the middle of the lake as I suspect that trout were busting a swimming larva. And RD caught a nice trout on a larval pattern and another on an adult pattern. But the trout were really keyed in on damsel adults that were in flight; I need to refine my helium damsel pattern (patent pending…). In the evenings and mornings when the winds were calmer, hungry trout cruised the shallows.
Of course, the master fisher, the bald eagle, was very successful.
Its flights over the lake made the mallards, ruddy ducks, red-head ducks, Barrow's goldeneyes, ring-necked ducks, and scaup nervous.
The unworldly calls of pied-billed grebes echoed across the lake at random times. A hen Barrow's goldeneye watched over her brood of chicks. The little guys dove down in the shallows and popped up like little corks.
There are many other lakes in this area but this is such a picturesque location in the spring. Several species of wildflowers, like these silky lupines and Thompson's paintbrush, bloomed on the hillsides.
Upland Larkspur
One of my favorites, mariposa lily.
Butterflies sipped nectar from the blossoms. In this case a Boisduval's Blue sips nectar from a Mariposa lily.
But danger lurked in the form of a crab spider on a rose blossom for the unwary pollinator.
A pair of Say's phoebes set up a nest under the roof of the sun shelter at our campsite; both parents brought in a steady supply of insects, especially damselflies, to feed their chicks.
It a full day of driving to reach to this lake and a full day back home, but I still hope to return next spring to soak in the atmosphere (and to get my flies back from the fish that broke me off…).
Steve