Jim Stimson Reports on 2.17.2016

I have to admit, I have been away from my home turf. With the torrential rains Northern California has been getting hammered with, I have been looking at the long range forecasts for a break in the weather for the opportunity for a steelhead trip. It is a minimum nine hour drive so before you commit to a road trip, it is nice to plan ahead and try to stack the odds...

Jim Stimson Reports on 2.10.2016

It is amazing how quickly the weather can change over here. A week ago the thermometer read – 4º at daybreak. Today it reads 24º. Last week the temps barely crept out of the single digits the warmest part of the day. Now they are climbing into the 50’s in Mammoth. Bishop is expecting temps in the 70’s.. The Upper Owens is turning into a muddy quagmire in the...

Jim Stimson Reports on 2.3.2016

Winter has hit the eastside, it is cold and snowy. Today we awoke to a balmy 4º, yesterday it was – 4º! Beware out there! I can’t emphasize that enough. There are no access problems for the lower Owens River, however the upper is an entirely different story. Friday’s storm system arrived warm and wet. The high mountains received snow, but the lowlands rain. Then on...

Jim Stimson reports on 1.28.2016

As Jon Snow says on Game of Thrones, “Winter is coming”…. with just a few days left in January, it looks like a hoser coming in this weekend. One of them “pineapple connections,” an “atmospheric river,” whatever….. in other words, it looks like it could be wet and nasty. If you are planning on a trip to the eastside, make sure you are prepared. In addition to plenty...

Jim Stimson reports on 1.21.2016

Winter is flying by…. with just one week remaining in January, I’m wondering about El Niño. We still have two potentially wet months ahead. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that the Eastern Sierra will receive some much needed drought relief. So far, we have been hovering just above “normal.” Northern California and the Pacific Northwest however are getting slammed....

Jim Stimson Reports on 1/12/2016

It is amazing the difference a day makes. For the past several mornings I have risen to temperatures near 0º. When a high pressure system settles into the Eastern Sierra, we typically get a temperature inversion in Crowley Lake and Long Valley. Even though Mammoth Lakes is higher in elevation, they will be warmer than us. That cold, stagnant air pools in the low...

Jim Stimson Reports on 1.5.2016

Happy New Year! I spent the holiday week near Sayulita, Mexico hanging with my family. My son and I went out early one morning with a guide and a panga and tried to catch some dorado. We had zero grabs with the mahí mahí but we did land some nice bonito and bass. It was a kick casting saltwater flies with a 10wt and watching how much bend those little fish can put...

Merry Fishmas! We are in a period of unsettled weather for the holiday season. The mountains in particular have received a fair amount of snow and the storms keep lining up out in the Pacific. If you are coming to the Sierra to fish, dress warmly. The Upper Owens tends to be cool and blustery but the fishing is getting better by the day. Take your time getting to the river. You can always go...

Jim Stimson Reports on Dec. 12 2015: http://flyfishing.jimstimson.com/

If you are coming to the Sierra to fish, dress warmly. We had two nice storm systems come through the area which dropped a couple feet of snow along the crest. As these frontal bands move off east into the Great Basin, that counter clockwise flow typical of low pressure systems, pulls frigid air down from Canada and spills it...

Jim Stimson Reports on 12.10.2015

Most of the weather models are coming into agreement, the Eastern Sierra by Thursday will be getting pounded by a substantial storm. Even though we are off to a good start to winter, we are still behind the Eight Ball at about 33% of normal precipitation for this time of year. Soooo, bring it on! We will need many wet storms to start erasing four years of drought.