Grizzly Peak Fly Fishers - May 2020 Irideus

THE IRIDEUS The Newsletter of the Grizzly Peak Fly Fishers Based in Kensington, Serving the East Bay & Environs since 1982

Videos to keep you busy during Quarantine

The Lower McCloud River

By Loretta Strickland

By Michael Malekos

may

‘20 GPFF.ORG

CLUB MEETINGS Online Zoom Meetings Every second Wednesday No meeting in July Due to COVID-19 Concerns, Meetings will be conducted online in Zoom Business Meeting - 7:00pm

THE IRIDEUS - MAY 2020

FEATURES

Departments

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03 The President’s Message

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videos to watch while waiting out the coronavirus fishing the american river with michael wier the lower mccloud river at ash camp

03 BOARD 04 CALENDAR 05 Zoom Primer 06 From the Editor’s Desk 07 Conservation Conversation 10

news, notes & random casts

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Fishing Throwbacks

THE IRIDEUS - MAY 2020

The president’s message

By Brad Gee

L

ike Yogi Bera said, “it’s deja vu all over again”.

Bay Area counties have extended the shelter in place order through the end of May. We must be diligent to protect communities and respect those who are most vulnerable.

With the shelter in April and May, the club cancelled 3 outings: Deer creek, Dunsmuir, and Burney Falls. We hope to reschedule the Burney outing for another time in the summer. The McCloud trip in June is still “on” in hopes that the campground will reopen and that out-of-county travel for fishing will be allowed. To whet your appetite read Mike Malekos’s article on fishing the McCloud at Ash Camp later in this Irideus. Let’s keep our fingers crossed.

Let’s also hope that we can get back to the Sports Basement in June for an in person club meeting.

Until then, we will continue to host club meetings on Zoom. The link for joining our next meeting May 13 at 7:00 PM is: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/834393 59689?pwd=dXU3dEpTR3lqdDluSGJ2dWdpSFNI dz09 . You will receive a reminder (and the link) a few days before our meeting. If Zoom is new to you, this Irideus has all the instructions you will need to use it successfully

Be on watch for announcements about fly tying classes online to keep us in a fishing mindset until the shelter in place ends.

One final thing. We are actively looking for an editor to team up with Zachary Wong beginning in June or July. After 3 years and 38 editions of the Irideus, our Editor Doug Hale has decided to retire.

Doug did a fantastic job when the club needed him to keep the monthly newsletter going. We are indebted to him for his service. See his Editor’s Note later in this issue. Please contact me or Zach if you are interested in editing the Irideus.

Be safe, grateful, and patient.

Brad

Executive Board OFFICERS

Brad Gee President

Eric Larson Secretary

Mike Lippman Treasurer

PROGRAM CHAIRS & BOARD MEMBERS

Josh Genser

Julie Haselden

Mark Likos

Douglas Hale

Dave Garfin

Zachary Wong

Bob Fabini

Mike Leong

Program Chair

Education Chair Trout in the Classroom

Conservation Chair Newsletter Newsletter

Membership

Membership

NON-BOARD CHAIRS

Lee Hahn Webmaster

Bob Marshak

Todd Pond

Librarian

Outings Coordinator THE IRIDEUS

Douglas Hale Content Editor

Zachary Wong Design Editor

PHOTO CONTRUBITORS THIS MONTH

Cover............................................................... Kirston Koths Table of Contents........................................... Zachary Wong Calendar......................................................... Zachary Wong Editor............................................................... Douglas Hale Conservation................................................Various Sources News Notes & Random Casts...............................BLM, Kirk, .............................................. Kirston Koths & Bob Marshak Fishing Throwbacks................... Wikipedia - Public Domain American River................................................Michael Wier McCloud.................................................... Michael Malekoff

We are always looking for photos! Submit your photos to Zachary Wong at craigwong810@gmail.com or Doug Hale at drhale@gmail.com

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Upcoming Events May 13

May GPFF Zoom meeting - Michael Wier on the Truckee or American Rivers

May 21

Todd Pond Talks - Upper Walker River

Past Events April 24

Deer Creek Outing - Event Cancelled

April 18

Earth Day - Event Cancelled

April 8

April GPFF Zoom meeting - John Rickard on the McCloud

THE IRIDEUS - MAY 2020

Your Primer to Gettinng onto Zoom With COVID-19 cancelling spring events left and right and keeping us cooped up in our homes, Grizzly Peak Fly Fishers is going to move ahead and continue its meetings to bring you, our members, the best possible programming. For some, Zoom is an already essential part of your workplace but for the rest of us, Zoom might as well be a book written in a foreign language. Here’s GPFF’s handy-dandy guide to getting onto our meetings for the time being and soon you’ll be able to see old friends and forget about the worries of the world for one evening.

Step 1: You will receive by email a link to that month’s meeting. Make sure you save this email or star it or add it into your calendar.

On the day of, be sure to click on the link.

It will take you to a landing page on zoom’s website.

Step 2: This is what you should see. If you haven’t downloaded zoom, hit “download & run Zoom” If you get the popup above, hit Open Zoom. Zoom will automatically open up in its own window.

Step 3: You should see this screen now that zoom is open. If you are unsure you can hear or concerned your microphone isn’t working, click on Test Speaker and Microphone.

When ready, click Join with Computer audio.

If this is too daunting for some, or if you have a slow internet connection, click under phone call and it will provide a list of toll-free dial in numbers for your use.

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From the Desk of the Editor

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lmost three and one half years ago Rodger Wachtler and Will Moore asked me to be the editor of the Irideus. I took the job under protest-- I knew nothing of computer graphics, had limited computing power, no ability to edit pdfs. I took the job out of respect for Roger and Will and to support the Grizzly Peak Fly Fishers Club. I have long been taken with the enormous talent and good will of our members and felt a need to contribute. Plus I love trout streams.

especially to: Ed Beggs, Rebecca Blair, Bob Fabini, Linda Friedman, David Garfin, Brad Gee, Josh Genser, Julie Haselden, Kirston Koths, Mark Likos, Mike Lippman, Lukas Luby-Prikot, Rich Miller, Will Moore, Juan Ordonez, Todd Pond, Luong Tam, Roger Wachtler and Dan Zimmerlin.

After thirty eight issues, it is time for me to step aside so younger technically adept members can speed the Irideus’s evolution.

Zachary Wong has made a major contribution to the Irideus by modernizing its look and feel. I am deeply grateful to him. But much remains to be done.

Sincerely

It has been a great ride because I came to know better the members who provided photographs, articles and tall tales. Thank you

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My plan for the future is to focus on actually fly fishing. I also intend to continue to introduce young people to what remains of our natural world.

Doug Hale

THE IRIDEUS - MAY 2020

C

onservation onversation

With Julie Ruth Haselden

Rogue River Story

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ote from Mark Rockwell, D.C. President & VP Conservation, No. Calif. Council, Fly Fishers International:

“If you don’t advocate for the fish, we’ll not have them in the future. Good news is that dams have been removed from the Penobscot in Maine and have come out of the Rogue in Oregon. The result - fish are returning. I’m hopeful the Klamath will be next and maybe the Snake. It takes all of us to tell decision makers the benefits outweigh the costs. Our voices matter.”

Hope you find a few minutes to watch this video. Great fly fishing on the Rogue River and an important message.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lRzaF_ yLTGg Dams Out Project Goal

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ecover Klamath River salmonid populations by removing 4 dams on the Klamath River (Iron Gate, Copco 1, Copco 2 and JC Boyle) and opening up fish passage to over 400 miles of potential spawning and rearing habitat.

April 16, 2020 KLAMATH FALLS, Ore. -- Advocates for salmon hope the timeline holds for dam removal on the Klamath River, saying it’s a race against time to make sure some salmon species don’t go extinct.

It’s the largest removal project in U.S. history and will demolish four dams in southern Oregon and northern California.

In the Klamath Basin, coho salmon populations have fallen as much as 95% and the spring chinook run has dropped by 98%.

Frankie Myers, vice chairman of the region’s Yurok Tribe, says the tribe is looking at a potential harvest of two-thirds of a salmon per member.

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THE IRIDEUS - MAY 2020

and hundreds of streams would be destroyed from the roads to and from the mine and its pipeline.

Klamath River steelheading - Marcel Siegle Photo

“It really does have a deep psychological effect on our members who are so tied to salmon culture and fishing culture and being on the river,” he states.

The removal is supported by dam owner PacifiCorp because of the crumbling conditions of the dams. Demolition could begin as soon as 2022.

Continuing Battle to Protect Bristol Bay Proposed Pebble Mine Threatens the World’s Largest Salmon Runs I attended a ZOOM meeting of supporters of Bristol Bay. Pebble Mine promoters are sidestepping EIR (Environmental Impact Report) and trying to fast track the project in spite of all data indicating its negative impact on fish and fish habitat.

The proposed Pebble Mine will destroy over 3,500 acres of wetlands and more than 80 miles of salmon streams at the mine site. The proposed mine is in the headwaters of Bristol Bay’s world-class salmon run.

Arctic Char, Arctic grayling, rainbow trout, lake trout, Dolly Varden, northern pike and whitefish habitats will also be harmed. At least an additional 1,000 acres of wetlands

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Bristol Bay continues to produce the world’s largest sockeye salmon fishery. In 2018 the Bristol Bay sockeye stalmon run produced a record-breaking 62 million fish.

With wild salmon runs disappearing from the planet, Bristol Bay is a place of international importance because of the salmon runs and the local economies they support. All of this is risked by the proposed Pebble copper mine and large-scale hard rock mining on adjacent public land.

Your support is vital to the protection of bristol bay! Please copy, sign and send the letter on the next page.

THE IRIDEUS - MAY 2020

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers - Alaska District 645 G St. Suite 100-921 Anchorage, AK 99501

Date:

RE: Comments on Pebble Draft EIS for Bristol Bay, Alaska - POA-2017-271 To Whom it May Concern: The Proposed Pebble Mine threatens the World’s Largest Salmon Runs The proposed Pebble Mine will destroy over 3,500 acres of wetlands and more than 80 miles of salmon streams at the mine site. The proposed mine is located in the headwaters of Bristol Bay’s world-class salmon run. Arctic Char, Arctic grayling, rainbow trout, lake trout, Dolly Varden, northern pike and whitefish habitats will also be harmed. At least an additional 1,000 acres of wetlands and hundreds of streams would be destroyed from the roads to and from the mine and its pipeline.

Bristol Bay continues to produce the world’s largest sockeye salmon fishery. In 2018 the Bristol Bay sockeye salmon run produced a record-breaking 62 million fish. With wild salmon runs disappearing from the planet, Bristol Bay is a place of international importance because of the salmon runs and the local economies they support. All of this is risked by the proposed Pebble copper mine and large-scale hard rock mining on adjacent public land.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineer’s mission is to provide vital public engineering services in peace and war to strengthen our Nation’s security, energize the economy, and reduce risks from disasters. The very intent of the Pebble Mine is a disaster specifically to fish and wildlife as well as the livelihoods of citizens who are dependent upon the well-being of Bristol Bay and its wetlands.

Legally, the Corps of Engineers must take a hard look at the reasonably-foreseeable impacts of this proposed mine. This hard look must include the likely impacts of a complete mine and infrastructure build-out as well as potential catastrophic events.

I represent myself and concerned citizens.

Signature: Name Print: Address:

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News, Notes & Random Casts Next Meeting--GPFF goes Virtual.

T

he next monthly meeting of the Grizzly Peak Fly Fishers Club will be on Wednesday, May 13, but it will be a virtual meeting. You will get an email inviting you to connect via Zoom. Just click on the link in that email at the designated meeting time and you will be connected to everyone else who clicks in! A perfect, if infrequent, antidote to the social isolation we’re all experiencing.

Todd Pond Talks Thursday, May 21 7:00 pm Zoom Our own Todd Pond will give us an encore performance of his talk and video about fishing the East Walker River. The talk will be held online on Zoom. Information below for the meeting ID and how to get on.

Outings in the time of Coronavirus.

Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/ j/84741757112?pwd=dWI2Q2FYVnR2eXNPbDlt L1pZS0prdz09

ALL OUTINGS THROUGH JUNE HAVE BEEN CANCELED OR POSTPONED.

Meeting ID: 847 4175 7112 Password: 023868

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East Walker River - Bureau of Land Management Photo

THE IRIDEUS - MAY 2020

Pyramid Lake Lanhontan Cutthroat

Today I hooked five!

A photo sent in to us from Kirk who managed to get out to Pyrmaid Lake in Nevada before the shelter in place. He wrote to us as follows:

Lost a great fly every time.

Attached is a photo of me and a fish … Lahontan Cutthroat caught Sun. March 15th at Pyramid Lake, Nevada. Just at 3 feet, 10 lbs.

Also, enclosed are some fishing-related haikus (for what they’re worth!), in case you’d like to drop one in every other page or so! Use them or don’t, your choice of course.

Damn I hate willows!

Hurry! Get the net! (a son-in-law has uses!)

“Scoop! NO! Crap! Go home!”

You flash – and that pull runs up my arm like lightening! and then you’re gone … again.

Kirk’s Lahontan

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Bob’s Golden Dorado (not a mahi-mahi!) caught in the fresh water marsh of Northern Argentina. Yup— a wire leader. Mid January, 2020. Temperature about 90 degrees fahrenheit.

Underwater photo of Kirston’s 125lb, fly-caught striped marlin in the Pacific off Magdelena Bay, Baja, Mexico, after a 50 minute fight. Taken mid November 2019.

Bob Marshak & Kirston Koths pose with a double, landed on the Rio Grande in Tierra del Fuego in mid-January. Temps in the mid 40s.

Resident brown on the left. The sea-run version, just one year older, is shown on the right.

The river is food-poor, so the fish have learned to go to the ocean where they fatten up a lot. They return to spawn 3 times. Our best brown was 17.5 lbs. Not a misprint!

Bob Marshak photographs his fly-caught dorado (mahi-mahi!) at the Thetis Bank off Baja, Mexico. Mid November 2019.

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THE IRIDEUS - MAY 2020

FISHING THROWBACKS

This month’s edition of Fishing throwbacks features the artwork of Winslow Homer.

Considered one of the foremost painters of 19th century America.

On a fly fishing trip in upstate New York, he began to experiment with watercolors where he began to paint more of his scenes of nature, and outdoor life. His many works capture the struggle of survival vetween fish and angler.

Above: Casting (1897) Below: Trout Breaking (1889) Images in Public Domain

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kland's Loretta Stric d recommende

Videos to watch while waiting out the Coronavirus Amazon Prime Video*

Videos YouTube

• Orvis Guide to Fly Fishing – Full shows on Amazon Prime , Shorts can also be found on YouTube.

• Planet Fly Fish – Three-episode documentary.

• Fishing with Ladin – Multi-season fishing show focuses on the Northwest and Canada, Seasons 2-15.

• Seasons on the Fly – Documentary-style series.

• Pure FLY NZ – Sixteen episodes covering the rivers and lakes of New Zealand.

• Live The Stream: The Story of Joe Humphreys – The story of a famous fly fisherman, teacher, and conservationist.

• …and for pure escapism, a fun little film: Salmon Fishing in the Yemen.

• George Daniel – Fly fishing educator/coach of Livin on the Fly. • Ashland Fly Shop – Everything from gear reviews, fly tying and fishing reports to cooking and skills building.

• New Fly Fisher – Formerly shown on PBS, now available on YouTube. THE mellow fly fishing show, with a focus on skills and venues in Canada and northern U.S. states.

• Gunnar Brammer – A focus on fly tying, sprinkled with the odd gear review and skills building videos.

• Jensen Fly Fishing – Destination and skills videos from Dave & Amelia Jensen as they fish western Canada and the South Island of New Zealand.

• Jim Misiura – Videos highly focused on fly tying, from a gentlemen who’s been tying for 30-plus years.

• Fly Fish Food – Fly tying tutorials with a few odds and ends.

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THE IRIDEUS - MAY 2020

fishing the american river with michael wier

W

e are fortunate to have Michael Wier speak at our May 13 ZOOM meeting.

Michael will be sharing some of his vast knowledge of the American River with us.

Growing up in the Sierra Foothills Michael was always close to Nature. While spending a lot of time exploring the lakes and rivers of the Sierra Foothills as a youngster, he learned to fish and tie flies. Once he moved to Lake Tahoe he began to split his time between snowboarding in the winters and fly-fishing in the summers.

Michael spent 15 seasons fishing and guiding the waters of the Truckee, Carson, Walker rivers and surrounding waters.

Notable titles to his credit include FISH EYE Videos, Trout Bum Dairies 1, SOULFISH 1&2 and CALI RUSH. Michael now works for California Trout helping to protect California’s Trout Salmon Steelhead and blue ribbon waters. Michael is an Ambassador for Patagonia Fly-Fishing, Dragon Eyewear, Loon Outdoors, Galvan Reels and Outcast boats.

In 2001 he started BURL Productions specializing in adventure and outdoor films.

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THE IRIDEUS - MAY 2020

The Lower McCloud River at Ash Camp: An Overview of fishing this section of a storied trout river

By Michael Malekos

You can never appreciate the shade of a tree unless you sweat in the sun.

— Author Unknown Conditions

T

he summer heat hit hard in McCloud this past Fourth of July. I expected that combined with drought conditions, the 98-to101 degree temperatures and low water levels would make angling a challenge as I set out to fish the Lower McCloud River. Because low water flow and rising temperatures combine to stress trout, I planned to fish the water above Ash Camp during the cool morning hours. This section below the dam lies in a deep canyon with limited morning sunshine. Unfortunately, by the time I entered the river, the sun had risen high, and the air temperature was exceptionally hot.

Gear and Strategy

W

henever I fish rivers and streams in hot weather I wet wade. On hot days when flows are low and water temperatures rise, I try to fish the deepest water available, because trout tend to gravitate there, where the water is deeper and cooler, and toward shade. And when flows are low, I tend to stay out of the water as much as possible. Disturbances made by wading in low flows spooks trout. To minimize stress, I land fish quickly and keep them in the water.

The Author blends in with his surroundings and attempts to keep a low profile. In low-water conditions trout are easily startled. Wear drab or camouflage clothing and stay hidden. If possible, stay out of the water.

My outfit consisted of a 9-foot 5-weight fly rod with 10 feet of 6X leader attached to a The lower McCloud River at the Ash Camp footbridge.

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floating line. I was able to sink my fly to where the fish were holding, but getting a strike was more hit and miss. Fly patterns that work well here on intensely hot days usually include Pale Morning Duns and Little Yellow Stones. After several changes, though, I found a pattern that consistently brought hits and stuck with it throughout the day. It was a prospecting pattern that I was shown by the late David Brown of Trout Country Fly Shop in Johnson Park, near Burney. His wife Janet tied it. The design is a classic Pheasant Tail Nymph on a size 18 to 20 scud hook using red thread and a red wire rib.

I’ve learned to limit my casts on this stretch of water to quartering upstream and quartering downstream. Rarely do I use direct upstream, downstream, or across-current casts on the Lower McCloud. A quartering upstream cast is a great way to avoid drag and the unnatural movement of your fly. Quartering upstream is also the most common cast I’ve observed anglers use when fly fishing for trout in rivers and works equally well in both slow and fast-moving water.

David called his creation “trout candy” and I cannot recall a body of trout water I have fished where this pattern hasn’t drawn a strike or two. About eight inches above the nymph, I fastened one number 4 split shot. That’s it: one fly - one split shot. That is how I was rigged for the remainder of the day. I’ve come to practice simplicity when fly fishing for trout and tend to stay away from indicators and dropper rigs. I believe the fewer odds and ends attached to my line, the better.

The Author quartering downstream.

A quartering downstream cast was the presentation the fish preferred July Fourth, though. It allowed my fly to swing across the current, instead of traveling in the same direction as the current. The action imitates the behavior of an emerging insect. As my fly swung, I followed it with my rod tip, and at the end of the swing, I allowed it to sit for a moment.

Strikes tend to occur at the end of the swing.

This large rainbow trout was released immediately after the photograph was taken. The fish remained in the water while the barbless hook was removed with forceps.

Presentation

P

resentation of your fly on the McCloud River is just as important as the fly pattern you select, if not more important.

Quartering downstream was the presentation fish preferred on this hot summer day

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Location / Directions / Notes

W

ading the Lower McCloud River wet on a hot day was wonderful, and the river is a great place to fish that time of year.

Surprisingly, while fishing the section from the Ash Camp footbridge toward the dam, I crossed paths with only one other angler. However, if you are planning to spend the night there, keep in mind that the campground is frequented by nonanglers - campers, birders, and more. Ash Camp lies adjacent to the Pacific Crest Trail, and while rigging up, I encountered a fatigued young man trekking his way to Canada. He appeared puzzled when I asked him if he thought he could handle carrying additional weight, then grinned from ear to ear as I reached into my chest pack and handed him a frozen-solid water bottle. Someone coming upon the scene would have thought I had given him a bar of gold. As I wiped the sweat from my brow and glanced at the blistering sun, I thought to myself “I bet that before this day is over, I am really going to regret having done that.” And I did.

To get to Ash Camp from the town of McCloud, make a left onto Squaw Valley Road and drive approximately ten miles. Once across the McCloud Reservoir dam you’ll come to a T in the road. Go right and make your way downhill into the canyon. Ash Camp will soon appear on your right. Here you’ll find easy river access to a true fisherman’s paradise.

David Brown’s Trout Candy, basically a Pheasant Tail Nymph with a red rib.

In the heat of the day trout gravitate towards shade. Anglers should cast along the shoreline and work their fly to drift beneath overhanging vegetation.

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