Jim Stimson reports on 3.7.19

Eastern Sierra Fly Fishing Report

I just spent the last two hours shoveling and blowing snow. Winter is still alive and well but could we be over the hump? The Sierra, in general, is running about 150% of normal for the season. I look forward to summer and a plentitude of water and healthy fisheries. In the meantime, with most of the Northern California rivers flooded...

Jim Stimson reports on 4.12.18

Eastern Sierra

We had LOTS of rain on Saturday. I believe the snow line was above 11K which made many of the freestone rivers blow out. The West Walker crested at over 1600 cfs with all of the snowmelt and runoff from the rain. Everything is settling to back to normal flows and now we are left with lots of wind, my favorite. The temperatures around the area are very...

Jim Stimson reports on 4.5.18

Eastern Sierra 

The weather bureaus are starting to send out alerts for this coming weekend. It appears that we have at least one more big, warm, wet, storm system in store for the area with flood warnings being posted as the snow line is going to be somewhere above 11,000 feet. If the weather is as wet as they are forecasting, beware of the roads out on the Upper Owens...

Jim Stimson reports on 3.29.18

I believe we have turned the corner on winter. The morning temperatures are still crisp but it warms quickly with the sun being so high in the sky. The month of March turned out to be the “Miracle” as promised with a plethora of snow in the high country. The preliminary readings at Mammoth Pass indicate that we are close to normal for the season. This bodes well for...

Jim Stimson reports on 3.22.18

Whoa! The Eastside is getting some major rain and snow. The Town has received over a foot of heavy, gloppy snow just overnight. The ski area has over two feet and is expecting another two feet today. My wife is a teacher at the elementary school in Mammoth and they have called for a Red Day. The roads in Mammoth are a mess. We have not turned the corner on winter yet.

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Jim Stimson reports on 3.16.18

Don’t put away your warm clothes yet, winter still lingers in the Eastern Sierra. The ski area is reporting anywhere between a foot and two feet of new snow from this latest system with more on the way. A word of caution for the Upper Owens, be careful driving out there. With the new snow, some of the roads are sketchy. If it looks mucky, err on the side of caution....

Jim Stimson reports on 8.10.17

Do you like fishing with hoppers? Who doesn’t like hurling out large dry flies, plopping them onto the water’s surface with not a care in the world for delicate presentations, and then actually being able to see the fly bobbing high along the river’s edge? And the grabs?! Hang on! There is no sippy-slurpy subtleties…. there is chaos as the water explodes when Mr.Trout...

Jim Stimson reports on 5.18.17

Not a heck of a lot has changed on this side of California. We had a weather system pass through the area that dropped several inches of snow on the ground which will add to the spring runoff when the temperatures start climbing upwards again. The fishing in general has picked up with the arrival of the cutthroat in the Long Valley Caldera. A word of caution though,...

Jim Stimson reports on 5.11.17

We had a little weather system move through the Sierra over the weekend, bringing cool and breezy conditions. The fishing was stellar a week ago and slowed to a crawl as Sunday approached. It has been a curious spring so far with 50 feet of snow sitting in the mountains, awaiting warm temperatures and runoff. Once the weather stabilizes and heating begins, I...