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We have some very exciting news to share: Marisa Compton is our new (and first-ever) Office Manager! Many of you already know Marisa from her previous job as office manager for Clearwater Lodge at the Pit River. Marisa excels at customer service and attention to detail. She is looking forward to providing excellent customer service to our Confluence Outfitters clients. You will now be able to get ahold of us even when all of our guides are on the water. This is a whole new level of service that we are excited to offer. To contact Marisa, call us toll-free at 888-481-1650 or email us at info@ConfluenceOutfitters.com  Marisa in her office |
Here are some photos that were forwarded from a group that fished the lakes last week. If you're new to stillwater fishing and are interested in giving it a shot, you should consider enrolling in my stillwater clinic on Saturday, January 8th. We'll cover all of the primary stillwater fishing techniques, including landing and releasing large fish! I only have four spots left - sign up soon. |
I floated the Douglas City area on the Trinity River. It was nice to get back on the water after a holiday break. The fish weren't quite so excited, though. Gary and Ken from the Bay Area made tons of great drifts through a bunch of great-looking water. Conditions were near-perfect, with the water just a little high in a few spots. The color is great and the water was dropping fast. Gary landed one very nice fish after lunch, thank goodness. Ken wasn't so lucky, although he landed a couple of small browns and smolts. Ken's fish ate a size 10 flashback carrot nymph. Conditions are ideal - hopefully tomorrow we'll bump into a few more fish.  Gary with a steelie |
I just posted a really cool video on Youtube. Dax Messett put it together for last year's trade show circuit. It has some great footage of spey casting on the Trinity River. There is also footage from the Upper Rogue, North Umpqua, and New Zealand. The video gives you an idea of what Confluence Outfitters is all about.
Here is the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXHLQFDAQOMMerry Christmas! |
Here are some new photos from Eagle Canyon. Our first three weeks in operation have been very busy and our guests have caught some very nice fish.
We're giving the fish a four-day Christmas break. We are currently wide open on Monday Dec 27th. After four days off the fishing should be outstanding!
Katie put together a Facebook page for Eagle Canyon Trophy Trout Lakes. Here is the link:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Eagle-Canyon-Trophy-Trout-Lakes/148031245246713
I still have some room in my stillwater clinic on January 8th - call for details.  Angie from California Fly Shop  Fishing the lower lake |
It's time to say goodbye to our summer steelhead and gear up for some winter steelhead fishing. Gino and I will be heading over to the Oregon Coast in early January for two months of metal mayhem. Chasing winter steelhead is our passion, one which we get to share with our favorite and most dedicated steelhead clients. For those who are ready for the challenge, we welcome them with open arms and a first aid kit. To say it is hard core is cheesy and cliche', but it is not for everyone. But for the those who are committed and ready for the next challenge, while the challenge is great, the rewards are greater yet.
Our featured destination, the Lower Rogue, is worth seeing and experiencing in it's own right. Add to that 5 other coastal rivers within striking distance of our base camp near Gold Beach, and we have our hands full!
We have fabulous vacation rentals on the ocean that can accommodate 2-6 anglers. Call us for more details.
If you are ready to see your backing, are up for a new challenge, or want to see some awesome new water, we would love to have you.
Jon's open dates are:
Jan 7-13, 18-20, 31, Feb 1-3, 16-26
You can also check our calendars on our website. Go to the guide page and click on Jon or Gino. Open dates will be listed. Email or call us before you book us online to verify our availability.  This could be you  Don't forget you spey rod  Yes they are all this chrome |
I fished with Doug and Mike from Merced today. They were really hard to get along with, but I managed to get through the day ok. Mike hooked a steelhead right at the put-in and landed a brown before lunch. Doug lost a mystery fish and landed a nice wild fish mid-day. We covered a lot of water in the Douglas City area. I didn't notice any fish on the move, which was disappointing given the perfect color and receding flows. The river is in great shape!  Doug with a wild one |
Unpredictable weather is a big part of pursuing steelhead. We have had alot of spotty weather and high water conditions this Fall steelhead season on the Trintiy, and folks who toughed it out have had some stellar moments. All you can really do when it comes to steelheading is actually get out there and fish. You can't catch a steelhead if you are hanging out at home, reading speculative fishing reports and blogs, and tripping about the weather. That is why you hire a guide who is on the water every day..like me for instance.
I had a great day fishing with Mike Miranda, who is officially in the keen angling tribe. Mike quickly learned technical nymphing skills, and hooked 2 huge steelhead today, landing one. A superb day. Mike will catch many, many more steelhead in years to come because he became a better angler today, and didn't stay home due to weather or fear of being skunked while steelhead fishing...which can happen, but it's better than doing yardwork.  Mike Miranda..reading this fish's rights  Don't fish behind this guy! |
Here are some photos sent by Meng Syn from opening day. |
Opening Day at Eagle Canyon Trophy Trout Lakes did not disappoint. Five anglers enjoyed incredible fishing for large rainbow trout that had never been caught before. Rods were broken. 15# frog hair leaders were snapped. Here is what Benson Kanemoto from Anderson had to say about his experience:
Great, great day - 20 fish to 13lbs all day long. What grabs! Broke 15lb frog hair off a couple of times. Will be back!
One of our guests on opening day by the name of Meng Syn shot some outstanding video - here is the link: http://www.vimeo.com/17551180. Meng estimates that he and his two fishing buddies caught about 500 pounds worth of fish on Opening Day!
What a difference a day makes! Day 2 was much tougher, with a total of sixteen fish landed between 3 anglers. I'm amazed how much the fish learned in one day! Day 3 was excellent again. Representatives from California Fly Shop in San Carlos, Western Sport Shop in Santa Rosa, and American Fly Fishing Co. in Sacramento had a great time. So far the chartruese bunny leech seems to be the hot fly.
Here are some open dates in December:
Dec 13 (3 spots)
Dec 16 (2 spots)
Dec 24, 26-30 (5 spots)
We now have a check avaliability feature on our website: http://www.eaglecanyontrout.com/CheckAvailability.aspx  Alex from Cal Fly Shop with a beauty  Jerry Warren from Western Sport Shop in Santa Rosa  Our road sign. |
Here are a couple photos of Chris and Scott with nice steelhead from the Trinity today.  Chris with a big one  Scott |
There has been a push of new fish in the Trinity. But just as things were really shaping up, we got another big rain and the river was pretty off color today...tough fishing. Agonizing amount of boats in the Lewiston to Steiner Flat area to enjoy tough fishing. The rain stopped though, and the river is already starting to drop.
Prior to that last storm we had a few pretty epic days swinging...hooking good numbers of aggressive fish that absolutely hammered the swung fly...pretty insane moments.
When the river clears, we could really see some excellent fishing conditions again. A client had to cancel his trip this coming Thursday-Saturday, so I am available. If I don't get booked, I guess I'll just have to go out and swing a few up on my own...darn. |
I just finished 3 days in a row on the Trinity River. The fish are pretty scattered - that's guide talk for non-abundant. I had my first skunk trip on Monday in the Douglas City area. The last two days have been better. Yesterday I fished Harry and Greg from Sebastopol on the lower river. We didn't see another fisherman all day. We spent most of the day swinging with our spey rods. Harry hooked a nice adult on his 3rd cast and hooked another nice fish later in the day. Greg also landed a half-pounder on a nymph. Today I had George and Rich in my boat. They each had one opportunity. George landed a nice 5lb wild hen. Rich lost his fish, which looked like a big buck. I heard from Dax that he found good numbers of fish on his float today.  George with a wild one |
Eagle Canyon Trophy Trout Lakes open Dec 4th, just 8 days from now. The lakes have been rested for three years and the fish look great! These are fish that have never been fished to in their lives. They are big and they will be hungry. These fish will never be easier to catch than in the next few weeks, so come up and have some fun this December. Here are some open dates:
Dec 7: 3 spots
Dec 10: 1 spot
Dec 13: 3 spots
Dec 15: 1 spot
Dec 16: 2 spots
Dec 19: 5 spots
Dec 21-22: 1 spot
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Speycasting has become one of the most popular niches of the flyfishing industry over the past 5 years or so. From the Trinity to the Deschutes to British Columbia, you will see most keen anglers using the 2 handed rod when pursuing steelhead these days. Why?
1. From an angling standpoint, you are covering much more water. Each swing covers the entire expanse of a run. Think of it as bowling lanes, you fly sweeps through every lane as opposed to just one when you are fishing with a bobber...not there is anything wrong with that.
2. From an aesthetic standpoint, the casts look alot cooler! My job is to teach and watch other people fish, and it is extremely enjoyable to watch an angler spey casting.
3. From a spiritual standpoint, it is much more soulful to feel a steelhead eat your swung fly.
This is the year to learn how to speycast on the Trinity. The fish are not wadded up in deeper holes in massive numbers, making them easy to catch side drifting from a boat. So you don't have the excuse I just want to catch as many as possible. So why not learn a new style of angling, and you might just get addicted! Most of my clients that have learned this method have become superb spey casters, and guess what...they catch steelhead. When they don't, they get better at casting, and still have a great time.
Beginners are welcome and encouraged. Join the Tribe!
 Doug getting the Tug  Kelly throwing beautiful casts  Wolf and Doug soul searching |
Now that the busy season on the Trinity has come and gone, and the river has finally dropped into shape, you can get up here and enjoy some solitary fishing.
For almost a month, the river was running higher than normal during this time of year. Alot of the water I like to swing was quite high, but I got to start fishing it last week. Clients hook fish swinging every one of the last 5 days I guided, and are getting better at spey casting in uncrowded water.
If you are basing you steelhead experience on respecting the resource and fishing with dignity, than the fish will come. If you become a better caster and angler, then the fish will come. I have never guided someone who has not become a better spey caster by the end of the day. If you haven't tried it, you should. There are plenty of steelhead in the system for the patient angler who is willing to go through the process and earn his special moments. The only days I have left open this year are Dec 1-3rd.
After heading home to PA for Christmas, I am coming back to Nor Cal/Southern Oregon to chase winter steelhead. I won't be guiding in New Zealand in the forseeable future, but will be working as an agent for the finest guides and accommodation in the country.
I will be giving a presentation for Diablo Valley Fly Fisherman on Dec 14th about NZ at the Heather Farms Community Center in Walnut Creek...check it out!  big fly=big steelhead |
Another lovely day on the Lower Sac. I guided Cathy and Marie who suffered through a brutally slow and bone-chilling day on the Sac with me last December. Today more than made up for that last trip! We fished down low and didn't see a boat of any kind all day long. It was amazing to have the river to ourselves on a holiday. After a warm-up of trash-fish trouncing, we got into a lot of trout. Egg imitations and small nymphs like PTs and Hogan's S&Ms size 16 worked best. The nymphing was really good in the morning and slower after lunch. The highlight of the day was a pod of about 50 rising fish that we found right before lunch. Cathy & Marie took turns swinging a nymph and fishing hopper-dropper to this huge pod of midging fish. We fooled about 8 of them and two nice fish made it into the net.  Cathy with a fish caught on a twitched nymph  Marie with a big hopper-dropper victim on the line |
Bernard & Catherine fished with Brannon Santos on the Trinity Today. Here are the pictures of Bernard's big steelhead!  Brannon & Bernard |
I enjoyed a wonderful day on the Lower Sac with clients Catherine and Bernard from Mill Valley. It was a beautiful warm day and the caddisflies were hatching like crazy. It's amazing to have a hatch of such large bugs (size 12-14) this time of year. Bernard had his first grab on a bird's nest nymph on the swing, and then Catherine sealed the deal on a huge rainbow on a dry. It was an epic battle as our fish was harassed at length by a huge king salmon. Bernard hooked 3 more fatties on dries and Catherine landed another dry fly fish later in the day. We got another huge one on a nymph, but when the dry fly fishing is this good, why bother nymphing?  We hooked five more like this all on dries  Another huge fish on a dry fly |
Well, I have spent the last 15 days guiding and fishing the Trinity, and finally have a chance to write a fishing report. The volume of water, color of river, fishing pressure and actual catching of fish have been...variable, but in a good way. The remainder of this month through December are really setting up to provide some classic steelhead angling moments.
Some epic fish have been landed on the swing and tight line techniques for fisherman who have been dedicated to becoming better anglers throughout the course of the day. The conditions really haven't been conducive to the skated dry, so all swung up steelhead have come with the assistance of sink tips and larger intruder style patterns. Most have been insane, native chrome fish. Tight lining with large stoneflies has also worked for me. I've even seen two big salmon, in great shape, eat swung flies these past few days...nice job Ted!
Tomorrow however, I will fish the skater with some measure of dilligence...because Gino and I are off and the river should be in close to perfect shape in my favorite dry fly spots, and I'm going to try and find some new ones for my next guide days. If I have any openings, you should book soon.  Stroh with a pegged leech victim  Gary from Northern Ireland with a wild one  Ted with a swung up salmon |
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