Recent Rains

[Texastroutfisher]

How have the recent rains affected the local waters ( LMFR, LIR, BR ) ?   I know here in the DFW area its has been a frog strangler for about 3 days now.  

[darrelln09]

The LIR doesn’t seem to be affected too much right now. The roughly 2.5” of rain this week has only moved the Tenkiller Lake level up to 85% of the conservation pool. I think it was in the upper 70s not too long ago.

In reality I think the rain will help the LIR since, hopefully, they will increase the nighttime flow rate to make room for more rain. The 35 cfs rate has been a little slow for the wider sections of the river.

[dainw]

LMF and LIR - since those are tail waters, not going to be terribly affected by rain unless it’s a torrential downpour. 2 or 3 inches of rain over a three day period is really just a moderate steady rain. It might make the water a bit more off colored while the rain is coming down, but that sometimes helps the fishing.

Looks like blue river saw closer to 5 inches and came up to 400 CFS but has since calledn to 58 CFS. Median this time of year is 47 CFS.

waterdata.usgs.gov/ok/nwis/uv?07332390

[jonbo]

I fished the "Park" at the 'Mo yesterday in a steady rain. Right by the dam there the water was a little turbid from a couple of intermittent streams coming in, but not too bad. It fished very well. For some reason what they really liked was a black caddis emerger, a La Fontaine pattern I tied using a lot of black antron. I don't know why, but it works really well for me at different times, on the LMF, too. I just swing it.

Funny, I started with wooly buggers. They barely worked for me at all. Downstream from me the other idiot who fished in the downpour was tearing them up with woolies. Something I do wrong. I don't have a lot of luck with them, but when I see someone else having great luck with them, I know somehow it's just me. I had a 5 foot tapered leader I made of 20 lb Max Chameoleon, 12 lb Cham., then 2 feet of 2x tippet. It turns over very well. The woolies were tungsten conehead, probably with wraps of lead free wire underneath the body. I had floating line. (I have (or had) a sink tip leader but couldn't find it.) I THINK it was getting down. The river there is 2-3 feet deep, and slow moving. So I don't know. Does the reddish brown Chameleon mono put them off, or the flyline just ahead of that? In any case, once the fish got active near the surface I went with tried and true emergers until I found one that worked.

[dainw]

The park huh? Up in the skinny water or closer to the parking lot?

As far as the woollies not working, the only thing that stands out is the leader. I would go lighter than 2x. I usually just tie them off the end of my standard 9 foot leaders with 4 or 5x. Also, what’s size and color were you fishing? Usually 10-12 in an olive or brown is usually the ticket for me. If you’re fishing an 8, that can be just big enough for them to not like it.

[jonbo]

Feb 22, 2018 13:19:12 GMT -6 Texastroutfisher said:

How have the recent rains affected the local waters ( LMFR, LIR, BR ) ?   I know here in the DFW area its has been a frog strangler for about 3 days now.  

I was fishing first, a pretty big 6 or so in black. I caught a decent rainbow right off the bat, so I thought "hey, this is great"! Then, nada. After awhile I switched to a somewhat smaller olive. Probably a 10. I think I had a short strike on it. I have to amend something I said. The fellow below me was fishing a "wooly", but he said it was one of "Jeff's". Jeff, our local guide (great guy), ties and sells flies that work very well up here. I have bought some of his in the past. His wooly buggers are really just leeches as far as I can figure. They lack the hackle palmered up through the body that creates a wooly bugger out of a leech. I don't know why he calls them Woolies". Marketing I guess. But they're his own unique recipe. I used a couple of them a few seasons ago and they worked great on some planted brownies. I might try buying a couple of his again just to compare.

You thoughts on the leader are interesting. I have somehow gotten the idea that for streamers most guys tie on a pretty short, fat, tippet and do fine.  I thought that was great. Why use a light, easily broken tippet when you don't have to? I'm going to take your advice and try a regular old tapered leader and end it in 4x or 5x. I wish I'd done that yesterday. It would have made for a good somewhat controlled experiment.

Oh, yeah, I was fishing just a few feet upstream of the boat ramp. Once I got them something they liked it was like it's been all season up here, fish after fish. Unfortunately, I don't have a decent rain shell, just my jacket over layers. After awhile I got soaked through and was freezing. Then awhile after that, I quit and left. So far I've felt no ill effects,... except a slight cough,... and a runny nose... I think I'm running a fever. Oh, s!!!! No, JK. 

[jonbo]

I was meaning to reply to Dain.

[dainw]

Jeff’s woolly sounds like a mohair leech. Does it look kind of like this? www.flysandguides.com/how-to-tie-mohair-leech

Pretty popular fly in Missouri. Sounds like what you’re describing.

I think when people fish streamers it’s pretty common for them throw them on a short leader. I think it’s more common though if you’re fishing bigger flies, like articulated stuff, big sculpins, stuff like that. If you’re fishing a woolly though in size 6-12, that’s really just a big nymph. Depends on the type of water too. Slow moving water where trout see a lot of flies like the park and they get to take a long look at it, I think 2x is a little big. I’d go with 4x just to see if results are any different. If you’re fishing heavier or faster water where the fish gets less of a look at it, especially if you’re on a sink tip line, definitely can get away with a stouter leader.

Also, I sometime tie off a zebra midge, small nymph, or even a soft hackle off the back of the woolly when I’m fishing it. A lot of times you are getting follows on the strip back and that midge getting pulled up looks just like an emerger coming up in front of their face and they’ll hit the trailing fly.

[jonbo]

Yeah, they're mohair leeches. I've known Jeff's to work nicely for some stocked brownies. I'm going to try my nymphing leader next time I break out the leeches or buggers, though, if the spot is under 3 feet deep. Tie up some smaller ones, too. Thanks for the tips, Dain!

[dainw]

Man mohair leeches are killer in a lot of the rivers I fish in the Ozark. Guys throw them all the time and crush fish on them.