Month: July 2020

July 25 Fish A Long Report

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One of the big challenges to hosting a fish a long is finding a place that will accommodate approximately 10 anglers. With the pandemic it’s at least twice as hard to find a good place as the great outdoors has become a lot more crowded and the Mt Hood Lakes were especially crowded this weekend!

Earlier this month we brainstormed and came up with a new format for having a Fish A Long; basically we pick an area with several fishable waters close by and agree to meet somewhere for lunch. If possible we keep in touch with a group text. While it’s not perfect, it was was reasonably successful as we were able to spread out and have a fun fish a long. We had 11 members attend and while we didn’t catch a ton of fish, it was a really nice day and we all fished some beautiful waters. Here’s how we did:

Tom was supposed to start at Timothy Lake but couldn’t make it. This was probably for the best because after lunch Paul & Lane tried to show new members Rhona & Laura places to fish at Timothy and also the Oak Grove Fork but it was too simply to crowded.

Dave & George hit Clear Lake first thing in the morning. The water was very low so they opted to fish from shore by the dam after talking to two anglers that used Tenkara rods to dapple flies over the weedbeds with fair success. Dave got a fat 23” rainbow on a Green Devil down by the dam.

Anglers were putting in float tubes at the Clear Lake boat ramp so we went
to see if it was anyone from the club and ran into Greg and Hugo, who were
camping with their families.

When the sun hit the water the fish activity died and we went to check out
Frog Lake. It was pretty crowded so we headed out to find Paul & Lane at
Barlow Creek.

Paul & Lane started at Barlow creek and got some small but colorfully marked trout on dries. Then Paul, Lane, Dave and George spread out along the upper White River by the bridge but didn’t have any success. After this it was time to meet everyone for lunch.

Jim Adams tried Clear Lake in the morning and said no matter where he took his tube, the water was very shallow. Clear Lake has been drawn way down due to irrigation demands.

New members Rhona & Laura fished the Salmon River at the rock climbing wall a few miles up the Salmon River Road. It’s a beautiful spot. 

New member Jim Bennett tried Clear Lake and then Frog Lake.

Red hit some small creeks and got several small trout on dry flies.

The Frog Lake Sno Park area was incredibly crowded at lunchtime so we opted to head across the road where the chain up area offered reasonable parking, plus we could put our chairs in a shaded old growth forest rather than a baking hot parking lot. It was a good move!

Next month we are talking about having a get together at the Westmoreland
Casting Pond plus we are also looking at places for our August Fish A Long.
Suggestions are always welcome!

July 25th Fish A Long

/ davekilhefner / Leave a comment

Ok everyone, we are really going to have a fish a long this month, its NOT going to get cancelled but it will be a little different.

What is different is we are not going to meet at one specific body of water, but rather a general location: Mt Hood. This will allow us to travel alone or in small groups to maintain our social distancing plus fish where and how we want to during “the new normal.”

After fishing in the morning, we will plan on meeting at the Frog Lake Trailhead & Sno Park area to have lunch and trade flies and lies. If you aren’t familier with this area, its a large paved parking area where the Pacific Crest Trail crosses Hwy 26. It has plenty of space and bathrooms. To maintain social distancing, plan on bringing your own chair and lunch.

Some of the fishing locations available within a half hours drive are the Salmon River, Still Creek, Trillium Lake, Clear Lake, Frog Lake, Timothy Lake and the upper White River.

What- Trout

Where- Mt Hood Lakes and Creeks

When- First light until 1pm lunchtime

Saturday, July 25th

Things to Bring:

  • Lake and small stream tackle for Trout
  • Float tubes for lakes
  • Layered clothing
  • Folding Chair + your lunch
  • A positive attitude

Directions- take Hwy 26 for 7 miles past Government Camp to the Frog Lake Trailhead and Sno Park & look for familiar faces. Its a large paved parking area with restrooms.

RSVP to Dave Kilhefner (Dave@kbi-ins.com) so I can put you on the group text list. Hope to see you there!

Presidents Message July 2020

/ davekilhefner / 1 Comment

You’re probably thinking “funny cartoon Dave, but that could never happen!” On the other hand, with everything that is going on these days stranger things ARE happening…all the time.

The other day, I ran into my old neighbor. While catching up, he said he had been watching a lot of news and all the media hype got to him, which is no easy task. He didn’t realize how bad his personality had suffered until his adult son told him to stop biting everyone’s head off every time they tried to talk to him. To his credit he cut WAY back on watching the news and his outlook got much better. I don’t watch hardly any news myself and can say it’s a great anxiety reliever.

Of course, it’s hard to lower your of anxiety if you feel isolated and out of touch. After doing some brief research about the 1918 Pandemic I realized this thing was going to take a while; far longer than I would be able to stay isolated indoors. For my own health and peace of mind I tried to find a reasonable, logical approach and decided to use the strategy Sweden is employing. A brief paraphrase from the article; “recognize that the world is only in the first stage of dealing with a long, uncertain battle with Covid-19 so Sweden is keeping much it’s of society open while training people to observe distancing guidelines — is the only realistic way to cope in the long run.”

So far, I’m staying healthy plus spending a reasonable amount of time out of the house and on the water. To do this, I have my supplies. Some are visible and obvious like face masks and hand sanitizer. However, my most important “supply” is extra patience and lots of it! If a store is too crowded, I come back another time. If a car is driving crazy, I get out of its way. If someone is in a hurry and putting off the “human tuning fork vibe” I give them distance and let them go first.

We had some pretty good fishing in June along with lots of pictures to share. Thanks to everyone for sending these in. With the cool weather continuing, fishing conditions are looking pretty good for July. Personally, I’m hoping to hit some Mt Hood Lakes in my float tube, chase carp for the first time on the Columbia and maybe try for Spring Chinook on the upper Sandy River. This barely scratches the surface of what’s available but it’s good to have a plan plus a back up plan; if your first choice doesn’t work out you can still enjoy some time outdoors. Mainly, I’m going to stay positive and keep my fly in the water as much as possible. Fish will be caught!

Unfortunately the High Rocks Banquet Room will not be open for our meeting so we won’t have one in July. To make up for this we will get more fishing info and opportunities posted on the website, so stay tuned. Also, our Forum is a good place to share ideas and information.

Last year our July Fish A Long at Round Lake was our best attended fish a long ever (or at least for the last several years). It was a great time but as you can imagine, Fish A Longs or club initiated fishing trips will have to change for a while. It makes to most sense to travel alone or in small groups of 2 or 3 but we can still get out there!

Also, if you have any suggestions for the club or need any info, please get in touch.

Dave Kilhefner (Dave@kbi-ins.com)