[Dr Bob]

Fished the Yak yesterday from the bank (6/3/10) for the first time in about 3 years. I fished the canyon and the water was at summer time height (locals said it rose over a foot from Wednesday 6/2/10) and brown. It was darker than the color of tea. The weather was nice, about 70 and slightly over cast.

Fish?? What fish? Are there fish in the Yak anymore? You can't prove it by me. I got skunked. Not even a hit in over 6 hours of fishing about 4 - 5 locations with about 2 dozen different patterns of dry and wet flies. My buddy did catch a 9" monster and a
2" minnow. We saw no boats or any floating craft on the river at all. We only saw 2 other fishermen and they had not caught anything. Looks like the Yak hasn't changed since I fished in 3 years ago. :beathead:

Each location looked very heavily travelled by fellow fishermen and the trash was significant at all locations. I definitely feel the Yak is getting much more pressure than from 5 years ago. I guess you need to float the Yak to catch fish anymore, but reading the fishing reports from the local shops, even that only produces a half a dozen fish or so in a normal day with a sporatic good day here and there. I think its time for me to seek other fishing opportunities or else I have been spoiled over the past 3 years.

Oh yea, and if someone recommends purple lightning bugs, they don't work any better than any other lightning bug color.

Dr Bob :clown:

 

[Out of Here]

Timing is everything, Dr. Bob. When's the last time you fished the Yakima in October or November, or even February - April? Given your description of the river, it should have been a challenge to find fish that day. It's frustrating for sure, but it's like going to the gas station an hour after they announce $1/gallon gas. You're not gonna like what you find, and you're likely to get skunked.

There's no questions it's getting more pressure - all the rivers are. Trash clean-up days are numerous, I pick it up whenever I see it, and work very hard to create a lasting, positive experience for everyone that comes to the river after me.