www.KayakFlyAngler.com

Welcome back to the 2021 kayak fishing season recap.  It's now the waning of summer and Mark and I focused our efforts on the Columbia as the Fall King season gets underway. We are still close enough to home that I have time to fish a couple hours before work, keeping our carbon footprint low and putting extra hours on the water. Salmon No. 5 - After July, the action moved from the Willamette River to the Columbia River. I caught a nice jack king during an early trip and tagged No. 5 on a trip before work on August 23. We were still using spinners and Pro Trolls but we can only fish one rod in the Columbia. The video features a look at the jack first and finishes with the big fall king.  Salmon No. 6 - Number 6 was caught on another trip before work and it was the biggest of the season at that point. My trips before work start in the dark and last about 2 hours before I need to be at the shop by 9 a.m. I have a little wiggle room with the 9 a.m. start, but this year I ma...

In mid-August, I enjoyed my first SUP fishing trip in nearly a year. The opportunity came up when MAC Executive Chef Philippe asked me to join him at his cabin near Swift Reservoir (check out the video here) Nice trout caught on the SUP. Click here for the video. Swift is always good for fly fishing, especially where the Lewis River drops into the reservoir. Of course having been stocked with 500,000 trout in late April helps. On this trip, since I was only going for a night and Philippe already had his boat in the water, I didn't want to take the trailer and the kayaks and I didn't want to put the Hobie Pro Angler on top of the Escape. As I was contemplating my need for a kayak, I decided I should get the SUP out again. It had spent many months traveling unused on the kayak trailer and it was time to put it back on the water. It was also easy to put it on top of the Escape. I loaded up and headed out shortly before noon and arrived at Swift within a couple hours....

While most of the country was chasing deals on Black Friday I was chasing fish. For a couple years now, Washington state has closed a handful of lakes the week of Thanksgiving and stocked them with larger trout. The lakes and ponds open on Black Friday providing a chance to skip the shopping crowds and catch some fish. I was looking forward to the day because if offered the chance to catch some nice trout while initiating my $250 fly fishing kayak. My destination was Kress Lake outside Kalama. There were a couple small lakes close to Portland but because I had never fished Kress, I decided it would be a perfect location to spend a couple hours while testing my latest kayak project. I woke up a little later than expected and drank my coffee while watching the rain poor down. Oh well, I thought to myself, it was the Northwest and I had everything to stay dry. Besides, the rain may reduce the number of anglers on the water. I loaded up the kayak and within 90 minutes was on the ...

       The Columbia River is truly one of the great rivers of the world. Running through two countries, three states and draining a huge portion of the western United States, it refuses to be fully tamed. The fisheries of this river have been nearly decimated and only recently have they shown significant life. This year more than a million Chinook, or "king" salmon returned to their home waters. And this is only one of the salmonids that return to spawn, die and continue a cycle of life that is nearly as old as the land itself.         As a boy growing up in Heppner, a small town in Eastern Oregon, my brother and I would spend our summers fishing for trout in Willow Creek, the small stream that ran through the tiny farming and ranching town. On a typical hot summer day, we were fishing near the confluence of Willow and Rea Creek. We could nearly have jumped across either creek but the confluence was deeper and wider than any other...

The spring fishing season started with a surprising successful trip to Hagg lake on opening day. The surprise was finding a pod large of rainbows on Scoggins Creek arm. The Hobie proved its worth that day easily pedaling from the Sain Creek arm which had frustrated me that morning.      The following weekend wasn't nearly as successful but I did land another big stocker. During the next couple months, trips to Harriet Lake, Benson Lake, Willamette River, Tillamook Bay, Deschutes River, Columbia River and Swift Reservoir were all mixed with some days outstanding while others a total bust. The trips are all recorded on my YouTube channel.             The weekend before 4th of July was the highlight of my summer so far when my son, Sam, and I joined friends of Western Rivers Conservancy on a four day float trip down the John Day River. The canyon was stunning and the guiding and support from Little Creek Outfitters  made it a trip that...

A fish rises during the early hours. Wild parr from the pond. The confluence of two small streams. Wild cutthroat from the pond. Labor Day weekend was spent driving around Washington visiting friends and honoring my wife's birthday wishes. Instead of a gift, she opted to get out of town and spend time on a friend's farm outside Sedro Woolley and another friend's land outside Cle Elum. The beauty about having friends with property is that on a busy weekend we have a place to camp. Of course the kayaks went along and so did our new springer spaniel, Nik. I had wanted to visit the farm for some time and it proved to be a wonderful experience. My buddy Chuck dug a 1/4 acre pond on the farm and stocked it with some trout several years ago. The goal was to provide entertainment and fresh fish. After a couple years, the fish disappeared despite his regular feeding. Recently,  resident cutthroat trout found the pond and are now reproducing. My new kay...