Report by: Ted Welling
Wednesday, November 19th 2008

We hope that you like our new report format. You can subscribe to receive a notice when a new report has been posted, by clicking “subscribe” in the above toolbar. All previous reports are archived and available by clicking “Previous Entries” at the bottom of this page.

Today’s Fish rating
Upriver: 7.5
Walk-In: 7.5
Key: 1 = Go fish somewhere else
10 = Rent a helicopter and get here now!

Today’s Weather: Sunny, High Temp. 67 & a Low of 42 degrees

Today’s Crowd Rating
Upriver: 1.0 NO CROWDS!
Walk In: 1.0 NO CROWDS!
Key: 1 = Sleep late and fish where you want.
10 = Very crowded, get up early!

Today’s Fly Fishing: Another great day here at the Ferry. The weather has been outstanding, there are no crowds and the fishing is great. The flows are back to normal, I reported that the flows had changed in my last report but it was Sunday and the flows are almost always different on Sunday, ( low power demand ) Duh! The report I received today was a good one. A lot of good healthy trout were brought to net and then some bigger fish that were not. From what I have been told these fish are getting thicker and heavier as the days go past. They are just in outstanding shape. From the looks of it, things will only improve. There are a lot of fry in the water that we are noticing since last season which I believe will make for incredible fishing in another couple of years. But, for now we will just have to take it as it is, Great! If you care to book a guide you may do so most likely with no de-lay just call us at 1-800-962-9755. Hope to see you soon. T

Check this out!!!
I would also like to inform all of you folks out there that starting November 10th, 2008 thru February 19th, 2009 lodging at Cliff Dwellers will be $55.00 plus tax for one or two people, $10.00 extra for each additional person, with a maximum of four to a room. We are also offering our three bedroom house for $200 plus tax. The house can accommodate up to 6 people. Call 1-800-962-9755 to make reservations.
I am going to leave this report from the other day as it is spot on. Had a report today fishing is GOOD 20 or so brought to net between the rock and the confluence. Same patterns San Juan worms zebra midges brassie’s and the like. T

Walk in: Fishing is still good in this area but timing is everything. When fishing the walk-in, you will want a good early start say, 7:30 to 8:00 AM. Fishing will be productive until around noon or so, and slow down during mid-day. Then around 3:00 PM or so, it should pick back up again for the evening bite. If you choose to fish the big rock area you don’t need to wade in waist deep or you will be standing smack dab in the middle of the feed lane and most likely have little or no success. Knee deep is plenty, and you will want to fish the drop-off. You will notice that the water changes color from light to dark, that’s the sweet spot. A long dead drift with the proper amount of shot is important so you are not dredging the bottom, and you are not going over head of the fish you are searching for. San Juan worms are still the favorite, in cinnamon or natural worm brown and wine or burgundy. Zebra midges are also a popular choice, brassies are also picking up fish as well. If you are having a bit of trouble down there, stop by the shop here and we will get you all fixed up to fish this area. Hope to see you soon!

Spin Fishing: Glo bugs bounced off the bottom. Also, black and olive jigs were effective today. Stop by and check out the rig for bottom bouncing and we will fill you in on whatever else is happening and fun while you are out there.

Lees Ferry Fishing Synopsis and Forecast by Terry Gunn 11/12/08

Recent Fishing Conditions: At a time when just about everything you read is bearing bad news, it gives me great pleasure to bring you some good news: The fishing at Lees Ferry is not just good it’s great! The fish are in the best shape and size that I have seen in several years and everything points to this being a trend that I expect to continue. Fishing is just going to get better and better as 2009 arrives…. Isn’t it great to hear some good news for a change! Not only is the fishing upriver great but rumor has it that the Walk-in area is fishing extremely well. One other thing; there has been no one here…come up (you can probably book a guide for tomorrow) and see the best fishing in years and you will likely have the river to yourself. Read on for the full story.

The experimental steady flows that occurred in September and October (12,000 constant) were as I predicted, beneficial to the river. In years past, the flows in September and October have been the lowest flows of the year and have reset the “green line” to the 5,000-cfs level from the 12,000-cfs level of the summer flows. This has effectively reduced the food supply in the river by a significant amount. Then the higher flows of November and December arrive; but because of the declining sun angle and the shade of the cliffs, photosynthesis and aquatic production in the river declines and the areas of the river that were desiccated by the low flows do not regenerate until the following spring. This did not happen this year because of the steady flows in September and October the green line stayed high. The current fluctuating flows (7,500-cfs to 13,000-cfs) are continuing to keep the green line higher than in years past. There have been prolific midge and black-fly hatches every day and it appears as though the scud population has a higher density than any time since 2004.

The trout spawn last winter was off the charts, never has there been such a productive spawn in the river. The high flows of summer and the steady flows this fall provided the perfect rearing habitat for the fry and fingerlings. I’m seeing them all over the river and they are growing fast! In addition to last winter’s great spawn, the survival rate from the spawn of 2006-07 was substantial and the river has a very good population of smaller fish that are growing fast.

The fish that we have been catching are probably averaging 16 to 17 inches and most are thick, fat, and heavy. We are also catching lots of larger fish, 18 to 20-inches. I have recently had clients hook into fish that were probably much larger, but as you well know, the big ones almost always get away.

Is this a peak before another down turn in the fishery? No, this is the beginning of a trend that is set to continue for at least a couple of years, and if nature cooperates and gives us moisture in the Rocky Mountains, and Lake Powell continues to rise, this trend of healthy trout populations and good fishing will continue for the next several years.

The turning point and the beginning for the recovery of the Lees Ferry fishery occurred in 2005 when Lake Powell had the first above normal snow-pack and runoff year since 1997. This year we had almost exactly the same conditions. The above normal winter snow pack and runoff into Lake Powell in 2007-08, stirred up a tremendous amount of nutrient laden sediment that had accumulated at the lake mouths of the Colorado River, San Juan River, and the Green River. Lake Powell elevation increased 43-ft. and the rivers flowing into the lake mixed the sediment and nutrients into the lake water. It usually takes several months before we see this mixing affect the nutrient load in the water that enters the river from Glen Canyon dam. I believe that we are just now starting to see that as evidenced by the recent warmer than normal water temperatures. The river temperature this time of year is normally 48-degrees but the recent temperature has been 54-degrees which is the IDEAL water temperature for trout. The increased nutrient load in the lake and river will be evident this coming spring by the enormous and dramatic increase in aquatic vegetation and aquatic organisms throughout the river.

For those of you that remember what the fishing was like in 1999 and 2000…you should be as excited as I am about the current conditions and what the increased nutrient load should do for the fishing at Lees Ferry.

Lots of stuff happening at the Ferry and it is all good!

Recent Fishing: With the water flows once again fluctuating and lower flows; we have stopped fishing from the boat and have been wading the riffles. The best fishing technique has been using a “heavy nymph rig” which is a 9 to 12-ft leader, strike indicator, split shot, and dual fly rig. I have been using 6X fluorocarbon tippet and feel that the lighter tippet results in a much higher success rate than say 5X. Anglers might argue that they break fish off on such light tippet but my argument is that in order to break a fish off, you first have to first get a fish to eat your fly and you are going to get more eaters with lighter tippet than heaver tippet.

When wading the riffles you need long dead drifts. There are 2 types of drifts; perfect dead drifts and all other drifts. Perfect dead drifts catch fish at Lees Ferry; all other drifts don’t catch fish here. You get a dead drift by mending the line, then throwing slack line on the water. If your line is straight from your rod tip to your indicator or you move your indicator during the drift, then your drift is not perfect and will not catch fish. The key to success is to stay over fish, get the flies down to the bottom, and get a long, perfect dead drift.

Flows should increase in December and I predict another year of a normal and strong spawn. I have already seen a few fish spawning; I have not seen this is several years.

We have recently lost a couple of friends who have contributed much to the sport of fly fishing. Mel Krieger passed away last month after a brief illness from a brain tumor. Denny Breer, from Trout Creek Flies and Green River Outfitters, passed away 11/07, he was involved in a freak accident. Our hearts and best wishes go out to all their families.

The high flow experiment, 4/08, was basically a non event as far as the fishery is concerned. It came and went with few visible changes to the river or the fishery. For more details and to see my complete comments go here: http://coloradoriverconservancy.org/

For details on Lake Powell conditions and snow-pack, go here: http://lakepowell.water-data.com/

For a real time graphic view of water releases and ramp rates go here: http://waterdata.usgs.gov/az/nwis/uv?09380000

New guides at Lees Ferry Anglers. The last couple of years we have had several long time guide staff move on to bigger and hopefully better things. This past year we had 3 new guides join our team, though new to our organization they are not new to guiding. Luke Blaser, Tom Jones, and JD Miller have joined our team. They bring with them a couple of decades of combined guiding experience on various waters around the world, college degrees, and an enthusiasm for guiding that is contagious. I’m proud to introduce these fellows and I’m sure that you will agree that they are a great addition to our team.

The AZ Game and Fish Department recently detected whirling disease in a small percentage of Lees Ferry trout that were collected for a random sampling. A recent sampling turned up no sign of the disease, which may mean that it was a “one time” exposure, where the disease was not established or that the disease is present but at a very low prevalence. Anglers should still use caution in cleaning their equipment both before and after they have fished here or in other waters. For more information visit: http://www.whirling-disease.org

Glen Canyon Dam Operations
The monthly release volume for October 2008 is scheduled to be 743,000 acre-feet. During the months of September and October, releases from Glen Canyon Dam will be steady as described in the Final Environmental Assessment for Experimental Releases from Glen Canyon Dam, Arizona, 2008 through 2012 (EA). The corresponding release rate for the scheduled release volume for October is about 12,083 cfs. Beginning on November 1, 2008 releases from Glen Canyon Dam will likely resume daily fluctuations as described under the 1996 Glen Canyon Dam Record of Decision. The release volume scheduled for November is 600,000 acre-feet which translates to an average daily release of 10,000 cfs. Daily fluctuations about this average will likely be from about 6,500 cfs during the early morning hours to about 12,500 cfs during the afternoon and evening hours. The water year release volume from Glen Canyon Dam during water year 2008 was 8.978 maf. This volume was based on actual and forecasted inflow and reservoir operation conditions for Lake Powell and Lake Mead under the Equalization Tier of the Interim Guidelines. The 2008 water year ending elevation and storage for Lake Powell was 3626.90 feet above sea level and 14.51 maf respectively. This was a 2.58 maf increase in storage year over year. Lake Powell begins water year 2009 at 59.6% of full capacity. Under the Interim Guidelines, the August 24-month study projected the end of December 2008, elevation of Lake Powell to be 3625.75 feet above sea level which set the operational guideline to be the Upper Elevation Balancing Tier for water year 2009.

Under the Upper Elevation Balancing Tier, the end of December elevation of Lake Mead was projected in the August 24-month study to be 1110.4 feet above sea level. This condition set the water year 2009 release from Glen Canyon Dam to be 8.23 maf as described in section 6.B.1. However, with this release volume, the August 24-month study projected the 2009 end of water year elevation of Lake Powell to be greater than 3639 feet above sea level, the condition that triggers section 6.B.3 of the Interim
Guidelines.

Under section 6.B.3, if the April 24-month study projects the end of water year elevation of Lake Powell to be above the equalization elevation for the current year, then the Equalization Tier should govern for the remainder of the water year. For this reason, the August 24-month study projected 2009 water year release from Lake Powell reflected Equalization Tier objectives. Forecast conditions for the October 24-month study also project that the end of water year conditions will trigger section 6.B.3 of the Interim Guidelines and the Equalization Tier is projected to govern during water year 2009. The actual water year release volume will only be greater than 8.23 maf if the April 2009 24-month study projects the end of water year elevation of Lake Powell above 3639 feet above sea level.

Upper Colorado River Basin Hydrology
Precipitation in the basin above Lake Powell was below average during the summer months and has continued through September. Precipitation during June, July and August 2008 was 70%, 65% and 90% of average respectively with precipitation in September measured at 70% of average. The overall precipitation in the Upper Colorado River Basin for water year 2008 will likely be near average (about 101% of normal). The unregulated inflow to Lake Powell during the April through July 2008 was 8.906 maf (112% of average). The long range outlook for unregulated inflow to Lake Powell for water year 2009 is projected to be 10.8 maf (90% of the 1971-2000 average).

Upper Colorado River Basin Drought
The Upper Colorado River Basin is experiencing a protracted multi-year drought. Since 1999, inflow to Lake Powell has been below average in every year except water year 2005 and 2008. In the summer of 1999, Lake Powell was essentially full with reservoir storage at 23.5 million acre-feet, or 97 percent of capacity. Inflow to Lake Powell in 1999 was 109 percent of average. The manifestation of drought conditions in the Upper Colorado River Basin began in the fall months of 1999. A five year period of extreme drought occurred in water years 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, and 2004 with unregulated inflow to Lake Powell only 62, 59, 25, 51, and 49 percent of average, respectively. Lake Powell storage decreased through this five-year period, with reservoir storage reaching a low of 8.0 million acre-feet (33 percent of capacity) on April 8, 2005.

Drought conditions eased in water year 2005 in the Upper Colorado River Basin. Precipitation was above average in 2005 and unregulated inflow to Lake Powell was 105 percent of average. Lake Powell increased by 2.77 million acre-feet (31 feet in elevation) during water year 2005. But as is often the case, one favorable year does not necessarily end a protracted drought. In 2006, there was a return to drier conditions in the Colorado River Basin. Unregulated inflow to Lake Powell in water year 2006 was only 71 percent of average. Water year 2007 was another year of below average inflow with unregulated inflow into Lake Powell at 68 percent of average. Over the past 9 years (2000 through 2008, inclusive), inflow to Lake Powell has been below average in all but two years (2005 and 2008). Drought conditions have eased in water year 2008 with above average inflows to the main stem Colorado River reservoirs (with the exception of Flaming Gorge and Fontenelle Reservoirs). Reservoir storage in the Colorado River Basin, however, is still below desired levels with the overall Colorado River system storage at the beginning of water year 2009 of 34.0 maf which is 59.3% of capacity.

Check out: www.kutv.com/content/outdoors/default.aspx

I have had some people that are fishing on their own (unguided) tell me that they are having a difficult time catching fish. The fishing has changed from the peak of 2000 and many people are not adapting to the new conditions. The current fish population is lower than it was in 2000 and there are not fish “everywhere” in the river like there were several years back (this is probably the reason that we are seeing better conditioned and larger fish today). Just because you might have been successful in one spot on the river in the past does not mean that particular spot is always good. There are many times of the year that the water flows, or conditions are not right to hold fish at “famous” spots such as 4 mile or Dam Island. It is often challenging, even for a good guide, to stay on top of where the fish are and what they are eating; but we do have the advantage of spending a lot of time on the water.

Lees Ferry Anglers - Fly Shop Specials:
“GIFT CERTIFICATES AVAILABLE!!”
*****CLOSEOUTS******
PATAGONIA- Women’s Stretch Jacket was $315.00 now $175.00
Call for all current sale items as they change quickly.
Cliff Dwellers Lodge:
Our lodge has rooms with cable TV (20 channels), in-room coffee, and the basic amenities. Choice of rooms are ONE king-size bed $80.00 plus tax, TWO doubles $75 plus tax, and TWO queen-size beds $85 plus tax for 1 to 2 people. Also our group unit we call the HOUSE, sleeps six with two baths, dining area, kitchen, patio with a view, and cable TV. We are excited about the cool fall season and have some great “black board” specials planned. Patio dining is available. (Enclosed in the winter months)

Meet the Guides:
THE GUIDES AND STAFF OF LEES FERRY ANGLERS have thousands of days on this water, and over 100 years combined fish-guiding experience. Captains’ Terry Gunn, Jeff English, Skip Dixon, Rick Smith, Natalie Jensen, J.D. Miller, Luke Blaser and Tom Jones make up our guiding staff. Lees Ferry Anglers is proud of our fly-fishing guide team! Wendy Gunn, Sandy Willie, Ted Welling, and Kris Stoudt work in the fly shop to provide you with the best customer service in the industry.

Email: anglers@leesferry.com
Lees Ferry Anglers
HC-67 Box 30
Marble Canyon, AZ 86036
Toll Free 1-800-962-9755
Direct 1-928-355-2261
Fax 1-928-355-2271
Copyright © 1996-2006 Lees Ferry Anglers and Flyshop
All rights reserved Lees Ferry Fishing Report

Terry Gunn
Lees Ferry Anglers Fly Shop, Guides, & Rentals
Cliff Dwellers Lodge
http://www.terrygunn.com
http://www.leesferry.com
http://www.cliffdwellerslodge.com
800-962-9755