It all started about a year ago. Paul was an avid angler who enjoyed casting bait on ultralight spinning gear for trout in bay area lakes, and one day while surfing the Internet for fishing websites, he stumbled across Fishsniffer.com. I'm not saying that it was a direct result of reading fly fishing articles by Tom Loe, Richard Alves and myself, but around the same time, Paul decided to purchase a fly rod and reel, and have at it. Not one to do things halfway, he chose a five weight Sage, one of the best rods on the market, and began taking it along to his favorite reservoirs, practicing casting and even catching a few bluegill on small popper-flies.

Paul wasn't satisfied, though. He knew that fly tackle could be used to take any species of fish, but what he really wanted was to catch a trout, and not at a crowded urban lake but in a clear, cold, swift flowing river, with clean air to breathe and elbow room to cast. When reading about such experiences, he enjoyed my articles especially, probably because I'm the only fly fishing writer who will also happily ramble on about impaling nightcrawlers on baitholder hooks, or even (Gasp!) killing and eating an occasional trout.

So when I announced recently that I'm now a licensed guide working through Tahoe Fly Fishing Outfitters, Paul emailed me to request a trip, to "learn some skills" as he put it. I booked him for July 22, and he even managed to convince a friend, Dave Nguyen, to join him. Dave had never even picked up a fly rod in his life- maybe Paul figured he needed someone to make him look good by comparison. Regardless, I enjoy working with beginners and welcomed the opportunity to introduce these guys to the art of taking trout on the fly.

They drove up the day before our trip, registered in one of the many inexpensive but clean hotels in South Lake Tahoe, and met me at Tahoe Fly Fishing Outfitters. Though Paul had seen photos of me from my articles, he didn't recognize me at first, and I laughed as I introduced myself and we shook hands, as I had built a completely false mental image of him from our phone and email correspondence. "It's funny how you get a picture of someone in your mind," I told him- "from your name and voice on the phone, I pictured you as a tall, skinny blond guy. I have no idea why, really."

Then it was Paul's turn to laugh. "And here we are, a couple of Asian dudes." I introduced Paul and Dave to Victor Babbitt, the shop's owner and master guide. He had them fill out the necessary paperwork for our trip, then I helped Paul stock up on tackle he would need; leaders, strike indicators, and a few dry flies from the shop's huge fly selection. I tie and fish mostly my own custom nymphs, but Victor tipped that the golden stoneflies were coming off on the East Fork and that fish were hitting big, bushy dries as well.

My clients agreed to meet me at the shop at 5:30 the next morning, and from there we drove 45 minutes to Hangman's Bridge, which marks the beginning of the catch-and-release wild trout section of the East Carson. The weather has been quite hot lately and we opted to wet wade in shorts, Paul and myself with felt-soled wading boots and Dave with some old workboots he didn't mind ruining. The difference was noticeable immediately as we stepped in the river, with Dave having a harder time wading, slipping much more on the stony river bottom with his rubber soled footwear. Next time I have a client without much experience wading and without shoes made for the purpose, I'll be sure to recommend a pair of high-quality wading boots, which the shop rents for only five dollars with a guided trip. We set up our fly rods as I explained our tactics and showed them how to read the water at the first good run downstream of the bridge. Paul had brought his Sage rod, I had my 5/6 weight St.Croix, and Dave had the good fortune to make his first cast with a sweet demo Sage rod provided free of charge by the shop.

I demonstrated the short line, high-stick nymphing method we would be using, then directed each angler where to stand and started them fishing. You can talk all day about technique, but the learning really happens when the concepts are put into action. Each angler actually had a fish hit in the first few minutes, but in both instances the trout quickly came unhooked. We talked some more, about setting the hook and using the long flexible rods to move and tire the fish, then we moved downstream and fished each good hole. First pool, nothing, second pool, same, third pool, zip. I was getting nervous, but my clients' form was improving with practice, and I encouraged them, talking from my experience on the river- "You'll often get nothing in several pools, then find a hotspot where you'll hook a bunch of fish. Also, I wanted to start you guys early to get you up to speed, but the best bite lately has been around 9:30."

The fish must have heard me too, because just as I predicted, by mid-morning we were fishing a good pool, and Dave, the guy who had never picked up a fly rod before, had the first fish. I honestly don't know how he kept it on, as his line went completely slack three or four times as he struggled with the unfamiliar equipment, but soon he brought a 12-inch rainbow trout to my net. It had hit a micro-egg pattern fly, bounced along the bottom. I let him continue casting where he was for a while as Paul combed the tail of the pool, then suggested they switch positions. I had seen other fish flashing in the run Dave was working, but none wanted his egg fly, and I had Paul fishing a beadhead stonefly nymph. Sometimes a simple fly change can make a world of difference, and as soon as Paul tossed out his fly and let it sink at the pool's head, he had a fish! Another 12-inch rainbow, it gave him a good fight on his sensitive rod, and I stepped in for a quick catch, photograph and release. He resumed fishing and quickly hooked a better trout, which stayed on for only a few seconds before leaping, showing itself to be a fat rainbow closer to 18 inches, before throwing the hook while in mid-air. He then had two smaller fish, both of which made it to my net.

"How do you feel?" I asked him.

"Pretty damn good." He replied. "Man, you sure called it, too. Here it is, just after 9:30, just like you said, and here's the 'hot pool' you were talking about." I felt pretty good myself, as the guide always does when he has 'taken the skunk off' his clients.

"Swami says fish here five more minutes, then we move. Stick and move, baby, let's find the next hot pool." Paul hooked and lost one more fish where we were, then we hiked further downriver. Two more pools failed to produce, despite a change of flies. I seined the water with my insect-sample net, and came up with some caddis larvae and small, olive mayfly nymphs, but my closest imitations did not draw a strike for Paul or Dave. As we traveled past mid-depth riffles, I threw out a large foam stonefly dry to see if we should switch to a surface approach. Several times trout came right up to it, nosed it, then rejected my offering. Hmm. I could have changed patterns until I found one they liked enough to bite, but why mess with success? I switched my clients back to the subsurface flies that had worked earlier; by this time it was getting close to noon and the end of our half-day trip, but we had one more big pool ahead of us. This hole had more complex currents and back-eddies than any they'd fished, and it was perfect that my anglers had spent the morning training on easier runs. We talked a little about strategies for fishing this water, then they went for it. Paul hooked another rainbow on his stonefly nymph at the head of the pool, and it ripped across the current and toward the far bank using the swift water to resist coming in. Another rainbow, it was close to 14 inches, quite plump, with beautiful parr-mark diamonds down its flank. Dave's efforts were fruitless at the tail of the pool, but just as I announced that it was time for a final cast, he hooked up. I knew immediately by the bend in his rod that this was the big fish of the day, though it remained to deep to see. I coached Dave to try not just holding the rod straight up but to bend it over to the left or right at different angles as needed to move the fish and tire it. I told him to lead it toward a slack-water area but the trout had other ideas. As several minutes passed, it only became more active, tearing up and down the pool and testing the limits of the 4X tippet I had tied on. Upstream is fine, across stream no problem, but I cringed as the trout surged for the fast, shallow tail of the pool, directly downstream of the struggling angler. This is the best possible position for a fish to pull itself free, and that's just what happened. We all had a brief glimpse of a trout around 20 inches long, before it shot back into the green depths of the pool. I thought Dave would be disappointed, or even angry, but he just looked tired, a bit dazed, and completely satisfied. We sipped Gatorade as we hiked out on a hot, dusty trail above the river in the mid-day sun, and by the time we made it to my truck my two new friends, who had planned to spend the rest of the day fishing as well, were completely spent. They opted instead to return to Tahoe and relax, but Paul was eager to try the indicator nymphing technique on other waters. I explained that with variations, the same method would work for steelhead on the big Sacramento Valley rivers, for smallmouth bass in warmer streams, and even on lakes, where he could 'heave-it-and-leave-it' by casting out and just letting a nymph hang motionless under the indicator until a cruising fish takes it.

"This is kind of what I was hoping for," Paul told me, "to learn some skills, like I said, so I could go out and do okay on my own." Even Dave, who had been noncommittal about this whole fly fishing deal, was talking about going back to the shop and checking out the fly rod selection-

"And some of those felt-bottom wading shoes." He said as he poured water, sand and pebbles out of his workboots. Thanks for a great trip, guys!

Note: If you're interested in a guided spin, fly, or canoe trolling trip, Call Tahoe Fly Fishing Outfitters at (530) 541-8208 or click on the banner at the top of the page. I also offer family trips. My 'real' job is as a teacher at Lake Tahoe Child Development Center; I have a valid teacher permit from the state of California, and infant, child and adult first aid and CPR certifications. I recently took Teresa Thurman, her eight-year-old daughter Danielle, eleven-year-old nephew Chas, and two-year-old daughter Victoria for a combination canoe trolling/river fishing adventure, and had the pleasure of netting the big kids' first trout ever, as well as their second, third, fourth, and so on. Kids, bug mom and dad for a fishing trip for your birthday!

Until next time, remember, never stand in a canoe!
Mark Wiza
Email Me!

More Articles & Reports by Mark Wiza