Edit - Aug 27-29, 2014
Recently spent two nights here. Mosquitoes are insane, saw one bear that surprised us so we backed the heck up and let him pass without incident with me or dog. Busy - In afternoon most easy and accessible spots are 2-3 cars deep. Talked with a few folks, most not catching much, if any rainbows in river. Barometer up/down. Weather cloudy/sunny/slight rain and wind gusts that are fun to cast in. Picked up a lot of garbage (3 grocery bags), line, lead weights, triple swivels(?!!!), and drink containers - wish more people would respect this area.
Not any prolific hatches but several types sporadically coming off. Trout extremely selective and fly needs to be right on them with perfect presentation.
First few hours I was baffled, the first time I've gone so long skunked. Then, I found the fly that worked like a charm and, though it wasnt like some times of fish after un-fussy fish, i got into many fish, only a few small ones. Several seemed post-spawn - tired and slightly dark. ALL fish took extra time and care to release due to overfishing, low water, and possible spawning even though I limited the fight for all but a few larger ones which took me to reel. Please take the time to revive your catch fully (facing upstream), not covering the gills and only removing for a quick pic before letting them swim off on their own accord. Once locked in, I tried a bunch other flies to see how it would go and only the most absurd worked well.
Katie did well with over 40 river crossings as I wet-waded the whole time - made the lake seem like bath water after 12 hours of this. No otters, but saw a huge pigeon? Rabbits are in force, as are the bats and frogs. Overall, very good trip. Be patient and observe. You'll have no trouble.
Phone froze and had to wait for it to die before resetting but some pics in fish porn.
alphonse
Author
Topic: Skagit River, August 27th - 29th 2014 (Read 2435 times)