 |
Fishing Reports
San Juan River, NM from Customflys.com
March 18, 2005
Posted by Jude Duran
NM
Email: customflies@msn.com
Current Report
Water Flow------500 cfs
The past two weeks
have been unbelievably busy.
I've been guiding 4 days a
week, and last week I did a
presentation for the Arizona
FlyCasters Club in Phoenix.
There were about 160 people
there, and it was good to
see several women, and young
fly fishers attend. They are
a great club with so many
good programs to help
educate the members. It was
one of the most
enthusiastic, learned, and
positive clubs I've ever
spoke to.
If any of you AZ
FlyCasters are reading this
report, I want to take this
opportunity to thank you for
your graciousness, and for
having me down to speak. It
was an AMAZING experience,
and it was nice to hang out
with some of the best
clients I have every fished
with.
Back to business. Many
people have been concerned
about the river's clarity
and the tough fishing
conditions that exist now.
Hopefully, I'll be able to
shed some light on the
situation for all the people
coming to the river for
Spring Break. As you know, I
am a straight-forward guide
who gives honest reports, so
you can arrive at the river
prepared, and with realistic
expectations. I won't tell
you the fishing is good just
to get trips booked. Above
all, I want people to have a
good time fly fishing, so
they continue the sport and
share it with their kids.
Having said that, the
river clarity is about as
bad as I've seen it.
Visibility is only about 8
inches, and it doesn't look
like it will improve anytime
soon. What's causing the
change in water color? It's
the considerable amount of
murky, cold, run-off flowing
into the lake from the
various rivers that run into
Navajo. The water coming
into the lake is about
2,000cfs, and much of that
water is very cold and
carries silt, and other
debris with it. This cold
water stays low in the lake,
and flows through the old
river channel to the dam
where it's pulled into the
turbines, and flows out to
the San Juan. This cold,
murky water has thrown the
fish off in the last two
weeks. They are feeding
less, and are more apt to
sit on the bottom.
Under these tough
conditions, landing 3-6
trout per day is good, and
you should feel good about
your skills. With all my
expertise on the river, fast
knot tying skills, and 1,000
flies at my disposal, I can
do what it takes to get my
clients into 8-15 fish per
day, but that will be harder
for most people since they
don't have the many days on
the river a guide does. Most
of the anglers I'm talking
to are landing 2-6 trout per
day, and are finding the
conditions tough.
However, it's still
possible to have a good day
of fishing on the river if
you just change your tactics
a bit. I'm fishing junk a
lot now. I RARELY fish eggs
or worms because I like to
match the predominant
insect, and that is midges.
However, with the murky
water, you want to use a
bright attractor pattern as
your point fly to get the
fish's attention. I'm using
a #16 Burnt orange SJW, or a
chamois worm, and dropping
either an egg, or a bright
midge emerger with a longer
krystal flash wing. I am
using only size 7-9 weights,
and concentrating on finding
pods of fish, and then
fishing to that pod
thoroughly until we catch at
least half of them. The fish
are still there and they are
catch able, but using the
same flies, the same weight,
and the same tactics as you
used in the summer when the
fish were actively feeding
on mayflies, black flies,
midges, and worms, won't be
successful.
If you've been
wanting to take a trip with
a guide on the San Juan
River, now is a good time
because of the tough
conditions. It will make the
difference between a 2 fish
day or a 14 fish day. My
spring months are filling up
quickly now that my name is
getting out there, so e-mail
me at customflies@msn.com or
customflys@msn.com or call
me at 505-280-3533 to book a
trip.
Top Producing Flies (in
order of importance):
#16 Burnt Orange San Juan
Worm
#18 Light cream egg
#22 KF-Wing mercury midge
emerger in black and
chocolate
#22 Johnny Flash
#20 Duran's M&M Larva
#22 Cream and Brown Envy
Midge
Guide's Advice:
Besides the colder water,
the other problem is the
clarity of the water. Those
of you who have fished the
river before when it was
clear will be at a loss for
finding fish. It's more
difficult, and as a result,
you will need to cover the
water VERY thoroughly. When
I say that, I mean break the
water you're fishing into 6
inch slots and fish every 6
inches with at least 8
drifts through each slot.
This means, it will take you
an hour to cover a 15ft hole
well. It's going to take
that type of drift to catch
the fish in these
conditions. They won't move
at all for your midges, so
spoon feed them, and set the
hook DOWN RIVER at even the
slightest hesitation in your
indicator.
-Jude Duran
|
|
Email this link to a friend
Log In