Large Rainbow Trout held over the cold water on a snowy landscape near mammoth lakes california on the upper owens river

Upper Owens Fly Fishing Report : Mammoth Lakes, CA – 2.8.23

February 10, 2023
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Upper Owens fly fishing report for Mammoth Lakes California. The Upper Owens is not far from the year around resort town of Mammoth Lakes, CA. Meandering through Long Valley Caldera, void of trees or shrubbery, the Upper Owens is worth it based on it amazing scenery alone. As you can imagine, after all the snow Mammoth Lakes received the banks of the Upper Owens river are snow covered with some deep drifts over its vast meadows.

Access, for the moment is limited to; cross country skies, snow shoes, and snowmobiles. The last round of storms has pushed a fresh run of very fresh and large trout up from the famous Crowley Lake. This indeed places it worthwhile for any angler to navigate her snowy banks in search of the trout of a lifetime from a smaller river. Its no secret the fish are found in the deepest and darkest of places of the curves, riffles and runs of the Upper O.

A good variety of flies can be fished down to these beasts from large San Juan Worms to smaller Midge patterns, Rubber Legs to Pheasant tails and Soft hackles and a little of everything in between. Sometimes a bright colored bead or a hint of flashy spawning colors can help induce a strike on slower days. Streamers fished down and deep disappearing down into dark waters can provoke an unforgettable hook-up. We mostly utilize darker colors for tugging our streamers. Streamer fishing with a fly rod ends up being a lot more work and requires patience and precise casting along with an understanding of what your presentation is doing while down in the water. But the payoff of the strong tug is a heart stopping experience!

Upper Owens River Fly Fishing Mammoth Lake California

Upper Owens River Fly Fishing Report : Mammoth Lakes, CA – 1.8.23

January 8, 2023
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The Upper Owens flows through Long Valley caldera right below the famous resort town of Mammoth Lakes, California. This time of year it can show those anglers that are so fortunate to arrive on her snowy banks the fly fishing experience of a lifetime! To make a long story short, a number of storms have hit the Long Valley and Upper Owens areas the last couple of weeks, with the storms happening it gives the big trout a signal to head up the Upper Owens up and out of Crowley Lake. This makes the snowy journey for the angler arriving to the Upper Owens more worthwhile than the previous month, thus making a great start to the fishing season of 2023! The only downside to this is the amount of snow can make access a bit tricky. Access is limited to snow shoes and snowmobiles, or the angler that is willing to post-hole his way up the river in the deep snow. Of course, these fish come up to spawn future generations of our beloved creatures so we make sure not to ever cast to any fish that are obviously sitting over a spawning red in shallow water. Find your quarry in the deepest and darkest parts of the river system, these are the ones that are fair game and ready to eat a fly! Below the bridge is closed, so make sure you head upstream with the proper flies to have success on the Upper O. Give us a call as we have the means to get you upstream to show the experience of a lifetime on this unique fishery. As long as not too much snow falls!

Give us a call at our Bishop Fly Shop location at 760-873-0010 or text 661-364-6981 for more details or to book fly fishing adventure. We can accommodate small groups or personal fly fishing adventures. Give us a call!

www.sierratroutmagnet.com

@stm_fly_fishing on instagram

Large Rainbow held by tail on the Upper Owens river near Mammoth Lakes California

Upper Owens Fly Fishing Report : Mammoth Lakes, CA – 4.19.21

April 19, 2021
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The Upper Owens River flowing just below Mammoth Lakes is flowing at around 50-60cfs of very low and cool sierra water. Crowds have been anywhere from annoying to nobody depending on the day and time you choose, sometimes we are surprised either way. Water is a bit off colour below Hot Creek confluence and stained a bit above at this time. Random attacks of violence on bugs can been seen by fish of all sizes, this is very hard to predict for casting and presenting while these fish seem not to hit the same area consistently. Big fish are still in the system and are usually staying down deep and out of sight. The Upper Owens is in a transition phase as temperatures are warming up for springtime allowing the fish to return to Crowley Lake to spend another summer eating protein and adding mass to their bodies. A population of large fish are still residing in the deepest and darkest holes of the river. We look forward to the late spring and summer Hopper fishing that we have enjoyed these last few years and hope to see enough moisture via rainfall to sustain this all summer. Fish attractor patterns with some more realistic impressions down below. Streamers you ask? Yes, always!

Check out @stm_fly_fishing on instagram to see recent catches

Call or text the Fly Shop at 661-364-6981

large trout head in a rubber net with a wooden frame

Upper Owens River Fly Fishing Report : Mammoth Lakes, CA – 4.7.2021

April 7, 2021
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Flowing just outside of Mammoth Lakes, CA, The Upper Owens river remains one of the most beautiful fly fishing destinations in the country. Water is low and a bit more clear above the Hot Creek confluence, with the water having a small off colour haze below the creeks main entry point. Temperatures in the valley have ramped up here this last week, which leads us to think of the soon to come runoff which will bring the river up to a faster flowing status. This can be good or bad for the fishing. Yet, always good for the fish. Right now the large fish are still throughout the entire system and have now had some time in these deeper holes, runs, and riffles. These large and wise Crowley Trout have now seen relentless flies passed in front of them. Now, you need not only to find and fool the trout, you must do it better than all fisherman before you that tried their skills on these legendary fish. Attractor nymphs, Jig-Nymphs, Non- traditional SJ worms, and small midges and mayflies will give you a good shot at these fish. Some random bug attacks on the surface do take place. But do not get to excited about it! There is no rhyme or reason to why or when they decide to come up, but it sure is exciting! A well versed streamer fisherman can also have a great day on this water. A long leader with a heavy fly or a sink tip will fish best in this smaller river. We look for a different run of fish to enter this spring as some leave back to Crowley Lake.

Call or text the STM Fly Shop @ 661 364 6981 for more details or to book a guided fly fishing trip

@stm_fly_fishing on Instagram and Facebook

Eastern Sierra Fishing

Eastern Sierra Fishing Update. Smoke status – 9.17.20

September 17, 2020
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A fair amount of Fly Anglers have been calling the shop and asking what is actually open for fishing due to the temporary closures and the smoke. For the last couple of days we have seen A good amount of smoke settled in that has not moved much and seems to be lingering in the valley, it’s not awful but annoying. We expect it to move around any day now. It is a nuisance but not a fishing game-changer, you cannot see the mountains but the fishing is still unaffected and very good with the filtered sun.
All the usual Fisheries are open except for the ones in the closed national forest. We still have:

  • Lower Owens River
    -Upper Owens River
    -Crowley Lake,
    -Pleasant Valley Reservoir and mid river
    -The Gorge
    -East Walker
  • Bishop Creek
    So yes, there is smoke, but if you really want to get out and fish it is not stopping you! We have been running scheduled guided trips as normal. Give the shop a call for more info 760-873-0010 or text 661 364 6981.
  • Check us out on Instagram for more amazing photos and up to date content @stm_fly_fishing
  • Sierra Trout Magnet Fly Shop and Guide Service on Facebook
Crowley Lake Fly Fishing

Crowley Lake Fly Fishing Report : Mammoth Lakes, CA – 9.12.20

September 12, 2020
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Crowley Lake Fly Fishing near Mammoth Lakes has been as good as we can remember. Never the exact same, but great. Size and variety of fish are unmatched. Lahonton Cutthroats, masculine Browns, and absolute HOG Rainbows are what you can expect here. Fish are now being located and caught in anywhere from 6′ to 30′ of water. Most anglers appreciate the shallower depths for casting, some have been rewarded for going deeper. Perch Fry, Damsels and Chironomids have been on our lines taking fish recently. Some algae is forming in some areas of the lake and changes daily due to wind and weather. The lake continues to drop slowly as the LADWP flows water down the hill. We imagine this should come to an end relatively soon. All spots seem to have their moments from the North Arm, around to Macgee, back to Hilton and even Crooked. Well defined weed lines are great places to get started and possibly hook the trout of a lifetime!

  • Check us out on Instagram for more amazing photos and up to date content @stm_fly_fishing
  • Sierra Trout Magnet Fly Shop and Guide Service on Facebook

rainbow trout llaying in the water on the Upper Owens near Mammoth Lakes California

Upper Owens River Fly Fishing Report : Mammoth Lakes, CA – 10.7.19

October 7, 2019
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The Upper Owens has undergone a few changes since my last report. Weather has changed in the direction of winter, dropping the temperatures around the Mammoth Lakes area extending down to the grassy plains of the Upper Owens River. Hoppers can still be seen, but numbers are diminishing during the coldness of the nights. However, after eating the leggy creatures for a solid few months it seems that they still hold some residual memory of the big insects. The Upper Owens trout will still come up and eat a hopper for the time being, during the warmer parts of the day. Some of the anticipated big boys coming out of the lake have been spotted in the deeper holes of the river. We will have to see what this year holds as these this spectacular run of fish swims up the Upper Owens from Crowley Lake from now and forward. Stay tuned!

California Fish Guide Trip Bishop

Crowley Lake Fly Fishing Report : Mammoth Lakes, CA – 9.3.19

September 3, 2019
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Typically, in the west, we see some of the biggest fish come out to feed before winter conditions arrive. That means the next two months on Crowley Lake! Already the amazing fishery nestled in between the mountains of Long Valley, just below Mammoth Lakes, has shown us some amazing Rainbow Trout, Brown Trout, and Lahonton Cutthroats just these past couple of weeks. McGee bay and the north end of the Lake are where the action has mostly been happening. 10-20′ of water has typically been where the fish have been found throughout this season. Typical patterns have been taking fish; Chironomids, Perch Fry, streamers ect… Look for the fish to move around and spread out as the overall water temperature of Lake starts to cool down and fish are able to head out and seek out some food. Call the shop for more information and to get in on this amazing fall fishery in out brand new Mako 19′ CPX!

Couple Fly Fishing

Crowley Lake Fly Fishing Report : Mammth lakes, CA – 5.28.19

May 28, 2019
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The legendary fly fishing of Crowley Lake near Mammoth Lakes California has been going on with a bang this May! Of course, a few slow days followed by some on fire ,0-100mph hook up days have happened these last few weeks. Fish have been found all around the lake to the North End of Crowley at around 16-20ft of water at this time. The normal Crowley flies have been very successful. A stomach pump recently revealed black/grey/white midges in sizes around #14-18 with some possible larger members being seen. All three species of fish (Brown Trout, Cutthroats, and Rainbow Trout) as well as perch have been coming to our nets. Making for a great start to our Crowley season!

This young man and his father had an unforgettable day on Crowley recently!
Mike B. Is now a Crowley believer!
Crowley Lake Fly Fishing Report

Crowley Lake Fly Fishing Report – Mammoth Lakes, CA – 4.5.19

April 6, 2019
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Opening at the end of the month the Legendary Crowley Lake will show us what it has in mind for us this year… After the water years recently we can all imagine what large and aggressive Trout roams the chironomid infested waters; Brown Trout, Rainbow Trout, Lahonton Cutthroat and some feisty Cuttbows. If they were as big as humans, we would fear them….. I will include a few pictures of the recent past just to jog your memories of what is to come in a matter of weeks. Call the shop for more questions or to book on trip on our special Crowley Boat! 760-873-0010

Crowley Lake – Where you can find a fish of a lifetime!
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