The Lower Columbia Flyfisher

The Lower Columbia Flyfisher
March, 2014
Issue 198
Meeting: Tuesday, March 4, 2014
Time: 6:30 PM
Place: The Carriage, back room
Next board meeting
PROGRAM:
- Tuesday, March 18, 6:30 PM at Masthead Backroom
LCFF Annual Club Auction
March general meeting fulfils promise of holding the annual LCFF fundraising auction following
the sudden cancellation of January’s meeting date. Many thanks to club member and auctioneer
extraordinaire Don Harris for accommodating the change and contributing his talent and humor.
As our primary fundraising effort to support club activities ranging from outing expenses to speaker fees to conservation and charitable donations, success of this event depends on each of you.
Through your generous donations of auction items and purchasing power club finances remain
healthy enough to keep club mortgage above water.
So please dust off those unused treasures and bring that Christmas cash you’ve kept squirreled
away since January’s false start and lets inaugurate our new meeting digs at the Carriage with an
event to remember.
The Carriage Restaurant won favor enough that we have already called it home and board
has elected to halt effort to consider alternates. Who could blame us what with the fading carpets
bare on spots, a few wrinkles and cracks here and there, age spots on the walls, maybe a leak
once in a while…..what a perfect match for the audience we bring. And they’re even willing to
house our library to boot.
Food is very reasonably priced and wow, what a menu variety. Restaurant management has offered to winnow down a menu targeted for our group after a few months ordering from their expansive selection, allowing us to explore what suits our taste-bud...and what does not.
One accommodation we’ll need to get used to is The Carriage does not take plastic, credit or debit, at the present time. Likely a contributor to why they are able to keep their prices reasonably
low, it was nevertheless an unwelcome surprise to most of us and the only “wish it were better”
we found. Remember to bring a little extra cash or a check if you plan to order a meal or drinks.
Should one forget they do have an ATM.
February meeting highlights were the great turnout at our new digs and the fantastic presentation by WDFW biologist Dan Ayers on SW Washington clams and the pursuit of same. Very educational and informative and sure enough, Bandit Bob did get in his pitch on taking them on the
fly. Sounds like this is shaping up to be a banner year, so if you are a fan of eating clam, chowder
or otherwise, this should be a banner year. Also presented was good info on what diseases clam
can bring, the best prevention always starts with a good education.
Please keep Ray and Kay Greene in your thoughts as well as Al and Rose Quick. Ray is recuperating from
his latest scare having a downturn while in Portland, trapped by last month’s bad weather manning a booth at
the Portland Sportsmen’s Show. Ray was optimistic on making the March meeting so his spirits are doing as
good as one would hope for. Al is recovering from a little operation, ‘nuff said there. We count on seeing them
both next week.
S FORK TOUTLE STEELHEAD OUTING—SATURDAY MARCH 8
Vance and Jeff continue to sponsor our annual outing opener , the famous S Fork Toutle Steelhead pursuit. While not
every year promises a steelie hookup (though once in a while we do) one can count on tagging a bowl of Chef Jeff’s
famous “Chili con’ mano a mano”, guaranteed to at least put hair on your chest if it doesn’t take it off your ass, cold
beverage and maybe a pickled something or another to accompany it. Served up roughly 1 PM at Harry Gardner Park
just upstream from Toutle proper you’re also invited for 9 AM coffee and donuts assuming you aren’t busy on the river.
For the brave souls exercising out the winter casting kinks for the first time, we recommend pitching something of spring
color. Pink, orange, chartreuse perhaps and mixed with black, anything to remind of the coming bloom growing from
winter’s darkness. Purple is another productive base color if black is too depressing. In an odd statement on our
populace, Schroeder swears by the Green Butt Skunk, but Raymond favors the Kalama Orange. Of course, Jerry swears
by everyone but your missing the point. Egg-sucking leech is another favorite, who can forget Chesley’s gargantuan
bunny leech patterns often of articulated design. Pay attention to weather - if following a few days without rain the S
Fork is best fished on dry line, extend your leader if you want to fish deep. A little rain and we’d suggest a sink-tip to put
your offering on a Steelies nose.
Directions for the uninitiated; From I5 take Exit 49 at Castle Rock and head East on SR504, Spirit Lake Highway,
toward Mt St Helens/Toutle. Toutle is about 10 miles or so up the road. Pass through Toutle, the high school will be on
your left, until you come to a large gas station, grocery store, “Drews”, also on your left. There is a major intersection of
several roads there, you want to turn on the middle road heading to the right, South Toutle Road. About 1.8 mile up
South Toutle Road you will come top a bridge crossing the S Fork Toutle proper, Harry Gardner Park is the left turn
immediately after the bridge. To head up the S Fork, for a little casting practice, pass by the park and continue to bear
right at all intersections. You’ll pass through a Weyerhaeuser gate before hitting the river, great access to the river
anywhere up the road.
A sign-up sheet will be circulated at Tuesday’s meet and reminder time is short as the outing is Saturday following. Give
Jeff a call if you plan to attend but may not make the meeting.
Montana, 2014
Consider invite extended to all to join this year’s unofficial Montana excursion. Pick your own dates if ours don’t meet your
schedule, but the Pihl/Barker expedition is scheduled for Sept 20-28 this year. We are trialing some different lodging locations this
year and will have room for a couple others to join us as we rent a house in Sheridan and one on Georgetown Lake.
Sheridan is just around the Ruby river corner from Dillon and offers close proximity to the same Dillon area waters of Big Hole,
Ruby, and Beaverhead/Clark Canyon but adding possibility of reaching the Madison for a day trip should the itch or weather dictate.
On Georgetown Lyle has found a rental home right on the Lake roughly opposite shore from the boat launch. Our plan is fish
Georgetown 2 days with one on Rock Creek, staying on the Lake should gain fishing time over our previous digs in Philipsburg.
More to come as the year progresses.
Wind Knots
Should you find yourself drug along on a Portland shopping excursion by your significant other, fear not! A couple fly shops have
been given high marks by some of the board members and worth checking out to ease your shopping jitters. Larry swears by the
Royal Treatment Fly Shop in West Linn while Jim favors River City Fly Shop out Beaverton way just where Scholl’s Ferry Road
starts.
Hal’s reporting both Kalama and Toutle hatcheries are finding miserable returns of Steelhead bringing quite a concern over meeting
minimum spawn goals. No clues yet to explain just what is behind it nor what it portends. Really confusing given the huge
projections for Columbia Coho and chinook returns this year.
Journal Entry; 5/23/05, Upper Rock Creek
Good drive over, beautiful day in Missoula. Mom was at Deanna’s helping pack for the move to Medford. Still not sunk
in my sis’ place will be no longer after all these years. We have so many memories there not least that of giving me
reason to come in the first place.
All the local Fly Shops tell me the rivers are blown out, Grizzly Hackle offering upper Rock Creek out of Philipsburg
being the best bet as it drops first during runoff and rains. Hadn’t been there yet so headed on up….hmmm, Flint Cr
doesn’t look too bad if Rock doesn’t deliver.
…..but I like what I see right away. Upper Rock definitely looks better water overall than down low, and passed a moose
just before crossing a cement bridge. Not too many people up here…...and not many fish today either! Threw the kitchen
sink at ‘em. Promising at first with a hit after a few casts and slowed from there, 5 hits but only one to hand. Big green
Prince, brown/copper Clouser, black Matuka, Kaufmann stonefly, and small caddis pupa—green w/red bead all brought
the hits. The GH boys probly knew what they were talking about with the bite being 2-4 PM, I got on the water at 5.
Weather was warm, maybe 70, when I arrived but already starting to freeze tonight. Mix of calm and gusty winds all
evening. Full moon out and just gorgeous.
5/24/05 Camped just outside Wolf Creek
Great pot of hobo coffee this morning, decided Rock Cr treated me bad and Missouri sounded better given most rivers
were ramping up spring runoff. Ran into a father-son combo from Butte when leaving Rock Cr who reported a banner
week of fishing…..until yesterday. Their speculation was rain and cold water turned them off and might pick up in
another day or two—I might stop by on my way back.
Missouri was a surprise as I’ve never seen it this low—must be filling the reservoirs. Can wade everywhere. Wolf Cr fly
shop offered a tiny peacock green and red bug might work and so it did. Several 12”-15” ‘bows before I lost it. Skimpy
zebra midge almost too small to tie on snagged an 18” brown, then a 20+ ‘bow that slipped the hook so cleanly at my
feet I think maybe he was playing me. Time for lunch and a nap.
The Wolf Creek shop boys promised some nice, dry action in evenings but warned they would be tiny and picked a
handful to try for me—the tiniest of things. I must need new prescription as I promptly lost each and not on fish. A
crumpled tippet each time suggested maybe my knot tying skills needed work—I surely got plenty tonight! And fish
slashing and dashing literally all around me until too dark to see. Bastards.
5/26/14 ahhhhhh the Beaverhead.
Damn the river is crowded just below the dam, but I guess it is opening week. Crowd cleared up by the time you hit
Buffalo Bridge and river got pretty dirty at High Bridge downstream but found solace in my favorite pool in between.
Now this is what I’m here for! Spent the entire afternoon in the pool. The first brown went low but the second put on an
aerial display. One of those days when you just lose count. After cleaning house on my side of the creek I foundered my
way over to opposite bank. Decent current in this pool and biggest I could land was ~20”, breaking off several larger.
A group of 3 college buddies parked just above me and strung up, surprised when they broke through the brush and
spotted me there. “Come on in, boys, the water is fine” I assured them “I’ve had my fun here”. Then they started
tagging one after another until a hawg, must’ve been 24”+ took literally at one’s feet.. We all put rods down and
cheered him on during the battle, and that it was as there was quite a current there. The crowd roared as the beast was
finally brought to hand and slipped quietly back to the river. Inspired, I started casting once again and lo! A monster of
my own took the ruse, a deep red slash revealing it Rainbow when it took air. Being somewhat more upstream it took
help of the young bloods to bring it to hand as my leader strained, the current preventing bringing the haul back
upstream. Another 24 incher, we surmised the two may have secreted away for a little illicit rendezvous, for the pocket
they both were drawn from was both deep and dark..
Their first rip to Montana, I shared location of a few favorite spots . Hope their time there is successful, that’s a good
bunch
Greased lines
……Thanks to all of you that have submitted articles…..I
really appreciate them and...If you have not seen your
submitted article ……I will be using them in future issues…..Thanks again and keep them coming.
……If any of the rest of you have an article, editorial or
fishing story for the newsletter, submit it to the Editor at
least 10 days before the first of each month:
Phone: 636-2739
E-mail: ronandcindypihl@msn.com
PO Box 1495
Longview, WA 98632
2013/2014 LCFF BOARD
President
Vice Pres
Treasurer
Terry Frost
Jim Williams
Glenn Gee
423-0145
414-8147
425-8856
Bob Buchman
Doug Stafford
Larry Peterson
Hal Mahnke
Scott Donaldson
Jeff Sowders
Ron Pihl (Newsletter Editor)
274-6738
423-6528
577-7266
577-6077
425-9823
636-0629
636-2739