Deschutes River Stonefly Hatch is Close!

They're not here yet... But they're close!

I spent yesterday afternoon on the Deschutes River with guides Mike Duffy & Joe Ringo.  We had a monster Slate Wing Olive hatch around mid afternoon.  Despite the blanketing of bugs, we could only find small trout and a few pesky smolts.  The big boys were no where to be found.  My suspicion is many of the big fish are spawning.  That being said, if you do head out to the river, please be mindful of spawning gravel!  Avoid fishing around islands or small backchannels as these prime spawning habitat for Deschutes trout.

All of the fish we did find came on golden stonefly nymphs fished under strike indicators.  It's clear the fish are starting to key in on the migrating nymphs and the Deschutes River Stonefly Hatch is close!  With a little nice weather we should see rising water temps. and some really good fishing,

-TL