Jim Stimson Reports on 7.21.2016

Clear, hot, and breezy….. the perfect weather for fires. Let’s be careful out there. And speaking of temperatures, as these lazy days of summer bear down upon us, keep in mind your local trout streams are heating up as well. One of the many things I carry with me when I fish in the summer is a thermometer. This time of year I am usually wet wading and if I feel the...

Jim Stimson Reports on 7.14.2016

I’ve been away from California, the computer, my fly rods, and trout. My wife and I spent nearly two weeks visiting with our daughter and exploring New England. I did manage to break away one afternoon with a buddy to wade out into the tidal flats at the mouth of the Saco River in southern Maine to cast flies to Atlantic stripers. It was a hoot standing waist deep...

Jim Stimson Reports on 6.30.2016

The mercury is rising….. the weather is hot and windy. Bishop has been in the triple digits all week. With the warm temperatures, the snow is melting even in the high country. Many of our freestone streams are beginning to blow out again. A few weeks ago the fishing was off-the-charts stellar, now with the runoff upon us, trout are scattered and fishing has slowed....

Jim Stimson Reports on 6.23.2016

The mercury is rising….. the weather is hot and windy. Bishop has been in the triple digits all week. With the warm temperatures, the snow is melting even in the high country. Many of our freestone streams are beginning to blow out again. A few weeks ago the fishing was off-the-charts stellar, now with the runoff upon us, trout are scattered and fishing has slowed....

Jim Stimson Reports on 6.15.2016

I won’t sugar up this report. We are in the midst of June-Gloom. A couple of weeks ago the fishing was off-the-charts stellar, now with the runoff upon us, trout are scattered and fishing has slowed. You can still pick up nice fish here and there, but just don’t expect the “numbers.” The high country is melting out and the rivers and creeks are swelling with runoff....

Jim Stimson Reports on 6.9.2016

June is for elections and spring runoff. I won’t dive into politics too much other than this is the most bizarre scenario for a Presidential election I can ever recall. November will be interesting….. 

The high country is melting out and the rivers and creeks are swelling with runoff. Don’t be too discouraged if your favorite stream is off color, and the color of hot...

Jim Stimson Reports on 6.2.2016

Wow! June has arrived with a bang. They say, “If you don’t like the weather now in the mountains, just wait a day.” It was chilly and very unsettled through the Memorial Weekend, now the thermometer is climbing rapidly. This means a lot of the streams around the Eastern Sierra will rise with runoff from the backcountry snowmelt. Nothing dangerous, but expect many...

Jim Stimson Reports on 5.26.2016

The weather has been rather unstable lately with a big drop in temperatures and blustery conditions. We’ve been getting spring showers with a little bit of lightning thrown in the mix. If you are out in the open and you hear the thunder, make your way to your vehicle. Those expensive graphite rods are great conductance of electricity.

Lower Owens River

The stream...

Jim Stimson Reports on 5.18.2016

Pinch those barbs! I was fishing the East Walker on Sunday and watched as two fly fisherman were given citations for not having their hook barbs pinched. They simply forgot — it was an honest mistake, no maliciousness, no intent on cheating the system. They just could not wait to recast into the river for a shot at a big brown. For larger hooks sometimes hemostats...

Jim Stimson reports on 5.12.2016

The wife and I packed up the Subaru and dashed off for an extended weekend to Bozeman, Montana! We watched with pride as our son graduated from MSU with a degree in Engineering. Proud parents, can you tell? Our drive wound through 1100 miles (one way) of basin and range, desert bighorn sheep, pronghorn antelope, deer, elk, eagles, and sandhill cranes. We contoured...