The river is on the drop and hopefully within the next week or two the river will be back down to a great wading level. Fishing has remained steady with dry’s, dry dropper and nymphing will of course find fish if you need it. We’re starting to see a couple of our late Summer bugs making an appearance such as big Summer stones, craneflies, and small sculpins looking for places to hide in the dropping water.
For dries, we’ve been running Chubby Chernobyl’s, Gypsy Kings and Flat wing Stones from sizes 12-6, and putting a small dropper off the back. For the dropper, stick to pheasant tails, prince nymphs, hare’s ears and lightning bugs. We liked the jigged versions of these flies since we can get them deeper a bit quicker.
For streamers, anything that imitates a small sculpin has been great. Small sculpzillas, zoo cougars or even simple muddlers will get the job done. Fish them with a sink tip on the swing, or strip them through structure and seams.
As far as nymphs go, the standard pat’s stone and pheasant tail will do great this time of year, but keep in mind that October caddis and craneflies are also on the move as nymphs right now, so large hare’s ears, bloody mary’s, or even pat’s stones in orange or tan are great flies to try as well.
As usual feel free to give us a call with any questions or if you would like to book a trip. The fall is a great time to experience the Yakima River! 509-674-2144