No Place Like Nome

After three flights and seven hours of flying I finally arrived in Nome. For those like me who have heard of Nome but have no real idea where it is I have included a map. Near the center of the map you can see the Seward Peninsula sticking westward into the Bering Sea, and Nome is on the southern shore.

Another fun fact: it's the end of the famous Ididarod sled dog race from Anchorage. Here's a shot looking down Front street, where they set up the finish line, that's the Bering Sea to the left.

I had come to Nome to meet with the staff at the Norton Sound community hospital and tell them about the work we have been doing on an inherited metabolic disease that is very common in the local Eskimo population. I also spent a morning with the tribal research ethics committee explaining a research project we have proposed that would involve some kids from the area. Fortunately my two days of meeting was highly productive and it looks like we are going to get the green light for our study. Here's a shot of an Eskimo mom driving her 4-wheeler through town with her infant tucked under the back of her coat (purple hat), a common way to carry the young. There are more 4-wheelers in town than cars, the hospital even has a "4-wheeler only" parking zone.

Fortunately we also had time to play. I had been joined in Nome by a friend from Anchorage that comes out several times a year to run a pediatric clinic at the local hospital. Matt spent quite a bit of time living in western Montana, where he frequented the Henry's Fork and streams throughout Yellowstone, therefore I knew that if I showed up with a car after he got done with clinic I could convince him to go fishing. I was able to rent a truck from the Hotel, and had 6 and 8 weight rods with me, so off we went. The tundra on the way to the river was in full fall colors, we even saw a few musk ox grazing.

The road was firm gravel, and followed along the Nome river heading out of town. We drove about 15 miles out until we came to a bridge over the river, which was also the end of the maintained road.

The next two pictures were taken from the bridge, this first one is a nice panorama showing the beautiful colors and the crystal clear water.

This shot was looking straight down from the bridge, the large white things are decomposing sockeye that were all over the river bottom. There were also a few actively spawning silvers but it was pretty late in the year for salmon. However we were happy to see that the trout were here snacking away. You can see two big Dolly Varden in this shot just to the right of the carcasses. For perspective keep in mind that these were probably 8-10 lb. salmon, those were monster trout!

In spite of working it hard we were unable to get any trout to chase either an egg pattern or flesh flies. (Can you really call a piece of bright orange rabbit fur a fly?) Matt did manage to catch a couple of grayling on an egg pattern, but unfortunately I was across the river and didn't get any photos.

The next day I caught a plane back to Anchorage, with a stopover in Kotzebue, which got me above the arctic circle for the first time. It was an interesting flight, we were just about to leave Kotzebue when the captain came on and said that the high school football team from Pt. Hope was delayed on their bush plane flight in to Kotzebue, so we sat and waited about an hour for them and a few other folks that hadn't made it to the airport yet before we finally left. I had two days off before having to work again so when we landed in Anchorage I rented a car and drive out to the Kenai peninsula for the weekend. The weather had turned nasty, 40's and rainy over through the mountains. I found a little cabin with no running water to rent for the night, and awoke to clouds but no rain. When I looked out my window I saw this fish mobile in the lot next to my rental car and knew I had come to the right place.

On Saturday I went out on my own after stopping at a local fly shop and getting some flies (more egg and flesh patterns) and some advice. I went to Quartz creek, where there were still quite a few beat up old reds still spawning. The trout were also there in great numbers snacking on eggs. It was like seeing the great circle of life right before your eyes, big salmon coming in from the ocean and trout swimming three feet behind them waiting to snack on their eggs and eat their flesh after they died.

It took a while to get the hang of the technique, which was essentially a dead drift through the spawners. Of course that meant once in a while you would snag a sockeye, which on a 6 wt. meant I just tried to break them off before I lost my line. There were mostly Dollys in the creek but one guy I met did land a nice rainbow. It was all catch and release so no meat fisherman were to be seen. This was my best Dolly of the day.

It was like a day in Oregon, an occasional drip of rain but mostly just low clouds.

On Sunday I had arrange a float down the middle portion of the Kenai river. This was the same river Zane and I had floated the year before, but now was getting into prime season for trout. The river was littered with dead, dying, and spawning salmon. The reds were mostly dead but a few were still on the beds and looking really nasty. It was also the start of the pink run, also known as humpys, which are just plain ugly. But it's pretty amazing to be going down a river and seeing humpys porpoising all over the place. Once again the tactic was egg patterns. Most of the gravel spawning beds are in water that is only a few feet deep, and then it drops off sharply on the downstream side to where the trout sit and wait for eggs. This was my best fish of the day, and for that matter my biggest trout ever. It measured out at 25.5 inches and was a nice big fatty. The biggest fish of the day was about 26 inches and a bit fatter than this one. They occassionally catch 30 inch and bigger fish out of there, and I lost a couple that may have been close to that.

Sunday night I drove back to Anchorage, which is only two hours from where I was fishing, and spent two more days working before returning home. I think I'll keep working this Alaska connection, maybe next year I'll check out the steelhead runs.......

Little North Fork Wilson

Labor Day, 2008

Went to Oceanside for Labor day weekend; 8 adults and 8 kids. We rented a big house on the cliff overlooking the beach, complete with hot tub on the deck looking out at the surf. Great beach walking, tide pools and hikes in the local state parks. The shot below is from a hike out to Point Lookout, just outside of Netarts.





That sweet living only gets you so far, so on the trip home we decided to fish. Since Oceanside is just outside of Tillamook we had to drive up Hwy 6 along the Wilson river to get back to Portland. Mark and I stopped at the first bridge over the river on the way East and parked at the trailhead that leads up to the Little North Fork. This is the only tributary of the Wilson that is open for fishing, and is a salmon and steelhead haven.

We hiked up an abandoned road for about 45 minutes and then bushwhacked down to the river. The bank was almost all well worn gravel, ranging from about 3 to 8 inches in diameter. Clearly the water was well below the normal fall and winter flow, but there was still plenty of water flowing. We sat on the bank and ate lunch while plotting our strategy. Meanwhile we started seeing small trout or smolts going airborne after something on the water. That made the decision easy, I tied on an Adams.

The river was a series of fast shallow riffles broken up by deeper riffles and flat shallow stretches. There were also occasional deep stretches along the bank, which appeared to be from 4-6 feet deep. It was from 10 to 20 yards wide in most places and easily waded in sneakers. However, I wish I had felt and spikes on, those rocks were REALLY slippery. We had constant harassment of our flies by smolts, but very few fish actually to hand. My biggest was about 4 inches, and had the markings of a rainbow, which I assume means it was a young steelhead. The Wilson is reported to have resident Coastal Cutthroat throughout, but we never saw any during our time there. I am thinking we may need to go higher up to get away from the big water favored by the salmon and steelies for spawning.






















There were a lot of ribbons hanging from trees adjacent to the plentiful gravel bars, and ODFW signs warning not to mess with the census collecting, so I think we were in a prime spawning stretch. However, being between seasons we saw no big boys hanging out. It was cool to see the river at such a low flow, you get a feel for where the deep troughs and big boulders tend to accumulate, which can only help in reading the water come winter when it's high and roiling and full of bright returning fish. This river is clearly prime habitat.

It is also clear that by hiking in a couple miles we got above where most people fish. I think this is the first river I have ever fished that had no trail along the bank. The only way to move along was in the water or along the shoreline gravel bars. There was absolutely no way to either get up the steep bank or through the brush along the shore. As a result getting off the river was no easy task. We hiked and fished our way downstream for a mile or more before we found a trail up the bank. As always it was not the fish, but the fishing that mattered. I would definitely put this one on your list of places to see if ever you find yourself near Tillamook with a few hours to burn.

Dave and Mark's Big Adventure

Friday morning August 15: Stop at The Fly Shop in Welches for a few last minute flies - soft hackles, sparkle pupas, and a couple extra Kaufmann's Stones just in case - back on the road by 10:30. Cross the river at Warm Springs at around noon, head for CRR to grab Doug's drifter. Back on the road by 1:15. Stop at The Riffle to drop off keys and pay for the shuttle. 2:45 PM - finally floating. The flow at 3,900 cfs, a great level for wading and drifting.


We pulled into some shade on the right hand back just after rounding the turn below the first island. As we were getting rigged up we were swarmed with tan caddis - around size 14-16. Because of the time we decided to push on for Mecca rather than work this shore, after all the temperature's around 100, the sun is straight overhead, and there's not a cloud in the sky. As we floated along we saw fish rising all along the shore, mostly splashy little guys, but an occasional slurp from bigger fish. This made no sense, but perhaps the clouds of caddis over the water were just too tempting to those hungry trout. We worked the island at Mecca for almost an hour with Deschutes candy (Black stone and a dropper) but had no takes, and didn't see any more fish rising. We pushed downstream to make up time and stopped at the big deep back eddy where you cast from some high rocks up on the shore - don't recall the name of this hole. No takes again, but a few little splashy risers way out in the foam. As we were getting ready to move on a guy in an inflatable kayak comes drifting in to shore, smiling and asking how the fishing is, at which point I see his State Patrol cap an T-shirt. He checked our licenses, and told us he was looking for bait fisherman, who apparently have been coming to that part of the river. That probably explains the stealth approach he was making in the inflatable. That's the first time I have been checked for a license on the Deschutes.

As we moved downstream we started getting a pretty good head wind - occasionally a hot head wind, so I had to turn around and row quite a bit to make time. We passed up a number of the favorite spots but spent about an hour at the Basalt campground about a mile and a half above the take out. Once again nothing doing with the Stone and dropper rig and no surface action at all. Mark got one good take on a parachute Adams but no fish to hand.

The sun was now well below the canyon wall so we pushed down and made our last stop on the Reservation side of the river about 1/4 mile above the island at the Trout Creek campground. There were a lot of splashy rises and an occasional shoulder could be seen from a big boy. I switched to a soft hackle below a big caddis and let it swing around in the current and finally had a fish on. He took a few runs against the drag but came off before I could get him in. I threw a few more casts but nothing doing. Mark was throwing the Adams and not scoring either. Unfortunately it was already 8:30, and though we could still see well enough t0 fish, adn they were still rising, I didn't want to do my first landing and take out at Trout Creek in the dark, so we called it a day.

We go back to CRR at around 10:30 and enjoyed grilled steaks, zuchinni and Walla Walla onions. At around midnight we took the traditional cigar walk around the green space and then finished off our Cohiba's on the deck. It was a perfect night, cool and clear with an absolutely full moon, you could have read a book out there.

Although the fishing was slow we accomplished a lot, I would call this one an educational trip. We learned that going from Portland to the Ranch and then back to the river is too much driving. We could have left earlier and done all of our shopping ahead of time, but it's still a long day. In spite of that, it was still a blast to take the drifter down the river. I can honestly say we did not hit any rocks - the only mishap was getting too close to the trees and snapping my leader - it was either that or let the rod keep going over the side of the boat and into the river. The Highlander was a champ at pulling the boat, but I'm thinking new tires may be in order, the road out of Trout Creek was AWFUL.

As we were putting the cover back on drifter I saw this monster bug in a hole that was beneath the board that sits under the stern. I have no idea what it was, almost looked like a scorpion, and was about 2 inches long. I left it there Kevin, so if there's a giant bug sitting on your deck smoking a cigar when you get back you'll know where it came from.



Special thanks to Kevin for letting us crash at the Ranch, and to Doug for the use of the boat - I have already been on Craig's list looking at used ones........................

Oregon Biathlon

I volunteered to take Zane and three of his buddies up skiing today - although it's mid-April, they had another foot of snow yesterday and are still pushing a 200 inch base. This photo of the parking lot kind of says it all.



The biathlon consisted of me hopping back in the car and driving over to Maupin for a few hours on the Deschutes. Weather was in the 40's with high clouds, occasional sputters of rain and a few sun breaks. By around noon the swallows were racing up and down the river chasing the hatching mayflies. I parked at the bridge and walked upstream along the tracks until I found a really nice stretch of boulders and riffles.


I started with a brown Stonefly with a dropper - a funky little purple and black thing the guys at the Deschute's Angler set me up with. It wasn't long before I had my first take - a feisty 14 inch Whitey. Now you may scoff at a mere whitefish, but after a winter of chasing steelhead it was nice to know I could still coax something to take my fly.


As it started to warm up I started getting strikes when my fly was dangling in the current, so I switched to a combination of a Stonefly and a nymph that would better imitate an emerger. This was the ticket. I managed to bring a couple of small redsides (8-10 inch) to hand and lost a couple more. The only really big take snapped off my 6X tippet before I knew what hit me, so I switched to 5X.






The fish were really aggresive - the oddest take happened after I got a big tangly mess in my leader from the stonefly, dropper, and split shot all wrapping around each other into a bird's nest. When I realized I needed to switch leaders I just let the line dangle in the water while I waded to shore - on the way a 10 inch redside nailed the stonefly.

I started to see splashy rises but never had a chance to actually toss the March Brown dries I had, it was time to jump back in the car and drive back to Mt. Hood Meadows to get the boys. That was also an adventure, I hit a blizzard about 2/3 of the way back up to Hwy. 26. It was a great day, and the fishing was totally hot. Though the fish I caught can't compare in size to a 12 lb. spring chinook, there is nothing like a day on the D.

Springers

April 12, 2008

I was invited to join our former clinic nurse and the Doc that used to have my job for a day on the Columbia chasing Salmon. We met a few miles below Bonneville at 6 AM and hopped in the boat for the ride upstream. The menu on this trip was salmon egg clusters. I am always fascinated by the special cures and sauces that people use when fishing for Salmon out on the Columbia. I have used herring a couple times in the past and each person I have fished with has their own version of "special sauce" they squirt on the bait to attract the fish. I thought spawning fish did not eat????

Well the fish sure were hungry for something, by 10:30 we had four fish in the boat, had lost one, and released a native fish. Not too shabby. By the time I got mine filleted I had about 7.5 lbs. of prime spring chinook. We grilled up half a fillet that night and I smoked a full 3.5 lb. fillet the next day. Man, you gotta love meat fishing when you bring home something as tasty as that!

The Fall in Winter

Packed up the car and the families and took off for Sunriver for Spring Break. It was a great week, with a Tri-fecta of sport: Downhill and X-Country skiing, and of course fishing. Mark and I wanted to avoid the bright sun so instead we got the blizzard. Since we knew our odds were pretty slim anywhere we opted for the shortest drive, which landed us at the Fall River. We went to a spot just above the falls, which is just a little ways upstream from where it dumps into the Deschutes.

Imagine tying on #20 nymphs with 7X tippet when the snow is pounding hard and the wind is howling. Well after about an hour of that we retired to the car for sandwiches and anti-freeze.



Well as usual with Oregon weather the snow stopped and the sun made an appearance so back out we went. Now things were looking more like the Fall I had seen in the summer, and it turned out to be just as productive - that is to say not a nibble. However I could swear I heard a splashy rise, so maybe there really are fish in there......

Snow Day on the Sandy

Well I needed to get out and flog the waters again for mental health purposes, so it was off to the the Sandy. Weather report said snow above 500 ft., but I've heard that before and was not deterred. Well this time it happened to be true. I stopped at the Flyfishing Shop in Welches to get info on the newly opened water between the site of Marmot dam and the mouth of the Salmon, all of which is now open for winter fishing. The parking lot in front had about 4 inches of new snow and the sky was a lovely dark gray - it was snowing pretty good up there. For the price of a new National Forest map and a couple steelhead flies I got my map marked with yellow highlighter showing spots where public access is available. Unfortunately there's a lot of that stretch of the river that is inaccessible via public land. Due to the weather I turned back around and went to the Cedar Creek Hatchery outside of Sandy. Good thing I had studded snow tires or there was no way I would have gotten there.


It was beautiful, with several inches of fresh snow everywhere and the river low and clear. The only thing missing were the fish!













I spent about 90 minutes swinging this beauty but never got a grab. Even though the flow was good - the river had been dropping all week with the cold snap and yesterday's rain gave it a quick blip from which it was again dropping, but I think the water is a bit cold, at least my feet thought so after standing in it for an hour and a half.






















But on the bright side, in spite of no fish, I now have plenty of other spots to try, and with the Sandy less than an hour from home, I am hoping to get back soon.