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Looks like there is going to be some serious pockets of hoppers across the west this summer. I like thinking that those dark red spots in AZ are right over the Rim creeks. Make sure to stock your fly box with a fistful of Mini-Hoppers (aka the “ultimate small stream dry fly”)

Mini-Hoppers – Available in the Arizona Wanderings Shop

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The morning sun broke the brisk chill that hung in the canyon and we sat in the sun trying to get warm. After thawing out we headed to the water to see if we could bring some of those trout back out from the depths, I missed to fish after about an hour and a half of fishing and Jake had a monster break him off after taking his dry fly. Around that time as if someone had turned a switch the wind started picking up and within 15 minutes it was impossible to cast.

We made the hard decision and decided to pack up our gear and hike out of the canyon. Even though we had another day and a half planned to stay, there was no point if the wind was going to blow and possibility that we might run into other anglers was not especially appealing. The hike out was rugged and the truck never looked so good. We took the washboard road back to civilization and after a little bit of strategizing decided to hit some water that would be a little bit more sheltered than the canyon streams that are so typical in Arizona

As if to validate our decision to switch water, a beautifully colored brown took a parachute adams on my second cast to the dark side of the first pool. The upper portion of this creek is dominated by rainbows but the occasional brown does find his way into the swift plunge pools.

The foliage is nice as it breaks up the wind, but it can make for some casting issues. Roll casts and side loops are the name of the game.

If we played our cards right and dropped soft enough flies, wild rainbows would eagerly take parachutes out of the film. The creek was skinny but healthy and the mayflies, terrestrials, and midges were out in full force.

Jake and I both stuck with a parachute for the bottom part of the stream and had great success in fooling fish. We continued to hike and fish higher and the water kept getting smaller and smaller, but the rainbows kept getting hungrier and hungrier.

This creek started to get very shady the farther up we fished and I switched back to a bright orange mini-hopper in order to follow the fly in the fast plunge pools. Another brown showed up to play.

Losing count of fish numbers is always a good thing. It seemed that each fish was unique in its colors and spots. A good day, all in all, out of the wind with not a soul in sight. Bushwhacking through brambles and over downed trees had us working hard to access the small upper reaches of this stream.

We wound up back at the truck with a little bit of daylight so opted to hit up one of the local places for dinner. Potato skins with bacon and onions always tastes better after a day or two with only Clif bars and Easy Mac. With a burger in my gullet and a couple of hard miles on my feet, I was out in no time and slept hard through the night. One more day in store chasing wild trout in the Arizona high country…

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My wife thinks I am insane, but does not even budge when my alarm rings at 2:15 in the morning. Coffee, gear, and a granola bar keep me company for the hour drive across town to meet up with Antonio where after a refill of coffee from the thermos, the cruise get’s set on 75 for the rest of the drive to washboard road that leads to the creek. This is a typical Saturday in Arizona, and even though it is 90 degrees in the Valley, the brisk mountain air helps make the decision to wear a longsleeve t-shirt.

We rigged up and were on the water shortly after the sun started to warm the surrounding hills. The first couple of pools started to produce and the small, wild rainbows who call this creek home were hungry and looking up.

These rainbows are so unique in their spots and colors. For such little guys they fight and pull all the way to your hand. I never get tired of catching beautiful wild fish.

I stuck with my standard mini-hopper with a rotating variety of droppers and I imagine 90% of the fish that I brought it in were from the surface. There is something about seeing a splashy surface attack or a nose come out of the water in a riffle for a dry that makes my soul smile. Antonio stuck with a streamer which he is extremely productive with. “The fly which shall not be photographed” (Harry Potter reference for my wife) is an Antonio original that pulls fish from every part of the stream. Luckily, I think Antonio and I are good enough friends now, where if I tied a few up I think he would be ok with it.

With Antonio on the streamer and myself on the dry/dropper, we each fished appropriate water and picked up fish all throughout the morning. The stream was teaming with life and the trees and foliage were green and alive. It was a picturesque morning on the water and one that shall not be soon forgotten. Part way through the creek we opted to check out a different section of the stream and see if we could get into some bigger fish. I never miss the chance to check out some new water…

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Received the final product of the local hopper swap and I am very excited to go and put some of these on some moving water. Thanks to all the guys who tied.

The post Hopper Swap: Completion appeared first on Arizona Wanderings.

How to tie the Chubby Chernobyl…

In getting ready for a summer of fishing and a probable shot at the Deschutes River, I have started tying up some of the patterns everyone tells me to have in my fly box. The Chubby Chernobyl is at the top of everyone’s list and a half dozen different colors have made their way into my stone/salmon fly box.

Material List:

– #8 Hook

– 6/0 Uni-thread

– Crystal Flash

– Dubbing

– Polypropylene Yarn

– 2mm Foam

– Super Glue

– Silly Legs

Thread wraps back to the curve of hte hook.

Tie in a little crystal flash.

I am a cheapskate and this method doubles the amount of material I can get out of one batch of crystal flash.

I like a buggy look on my flies so I heavily dub the thread.

2mm foam strip wrapped securely into place at the point of the hook.

Tie in polypropelene yarn.

Tie in legs and dub over wraps.

Dub thread, wrap forward and secure foam.

Tie in longer bit of polypropelene wing. (double long as back wing)

Add legs, dub over wraps, whip finish under foam behind the eye of the hook.

I tied up a couple different color variations and hope these do the trick on the Deschutes.

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On one of the local fly fishing forums, I entered my first fly swap. I generally do not participate, but the opportunity to tie up a bunch of hoppers and see some other styles from local tiers seemed like a good idea. I put my batch of Hopper Juans with a couple variations into the mail the other day. The Hopper Juan is a fantastic pattern that was one of those flies I always wanted to learn to tie when I first got started on the vise. Thanks to Juan Ramirez for a great fly that is fun to tie and even better to fish.

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