In the past, you had to schedule your departure around the operations of the guide or service and often had to launch late in the day. Our new boat, dedicated to this service, was designed for carrying personal watercraft and up to 6 passengers with loads of gear. Lees Ferry Anglers has embarked on a new service, Kayak Horseshoe Bend, we “back-haul” kayaks and other suitable self-propelled watercraft, passengers and gear up-river from Lees Ferry to wherever you want to go, even just below the dam. A long rod like a switch rod makes this style of fishing much easier. The best color of scud is ginger in a size #12 to #14 and a san juan worm in a natural or brown color. Concentrate on areas with a fast current with the water depth no deeper than your leader length. The trick is to get the flies (worms and scuds) to the right depth with a long leader (12 to 14-ft from indicator to split-shot) and a heavy shot that gets your flies to the bottom but does not hang up. This is the best time of year to experience this kind of fishing due to the high water stirring up the scuds and worms and the fish are in a feeding mood as soon as the water starts to rise. Fishing a heavy nymph rig while drifting from the boat is producing some great numbers of fish. And moisture … boy do we need moisture.Įven though the cicadas are hatching don’t forget that the heavy nymph fishing is extremely productive. Monsoons have also arrived early with almost daily thunderstorm activity which always brings some welcome cloud cover and cooler temperatures to the area.
Summer is in full swing in the canyon … the temperatures are a stark reminder that summer has arrived. Drifting from a boat is the most effective way to target these deeper fish. So, the fish are not concentrating in the riffles but staying in the deeper water where deep nymphing rigs using scuds and San Juan worms are working the best. The midge hatches are almost nonexistent, probably due to the warmer water temperatures. The fish look great and are actively feeding. You can follow real-time river conditions here: Ĭurrent fish condition is outstanding. How high will the temperatures go? No one knows … we are in uncharted territory on lake levels, river conditions and river temperatures. Current temperatures are 62 to 64 degrees which is ideal for trout, but higher temperatures than this begins to approach the upper tolerance range for rainbow trout. The water exiting the dam has warmed earlier than any time in my career. So far, the lake has risen 17-ft for the year which helps but is not what we need to get us anywhere close to normal lake levels. Fingers crossed … but by the sound of things it is going to be a great (maybe epic) hatch this year.Įveryone knows about the level of Lake Powell being at historic lows. The cicadas are singing, and we are getting fish to start to look up and take advantage of the hearty meal that this big bug provides. It is going on now and I expect the hatch to continue to grow for the next 2 weeks at least and depending on the number of bugs the bite could last a couple weeks beyond that. We are seeing them not only in the trees and bushes but also on the cliff walls. The bugs are early and prolific with fish starting to key on them. We are past due for a great cicada hatch and early indications are that this summer’s annual cicada hatch might be the epic hatch that we have been waiting for.
Sorry, this is on the AZ G&F Department, not us.
You must purchase a license online before you arrive here.
Important Note: Lees Ferry Anglers no longer sells Arizona Fishing Licenses. 10 = Very crowded, get up early Up-River Summary