Fly Fishing Fall River, Oregon

On our way home from camping at Cultus Lake Sunday, we hit Fall River for an hour or two of fly fishing near the fish hatchery. Fall River has been a favorite of mine since my first trip there about a decade ago. It is a fly fishing-only stream that flows about eleven miles into the Deschutes River. Fall River is spring fed (bubbles right out of the ground near the guard station) and as a result is very clear. You can often spot trout hiding near fallen trees. It is stocked with legal-sized trout and has healthy populations of rainbow, brown, and brook trout. Since I am a big fan of pocket water, the fish hatchery provides a few good spots for me to fly fish.

By the time we arrived at the hatchery it was a bit after 11 AM. It wasn't the ideal time of the day to fly fish, but any fishing is better than no fishing. We saw four or five other guys fly fishing, but luckily none of them were at "Ed's Hole". I am not sure how the spot received it's name (on a wooden sign nailed to a tree), but it is at the far SE corner of the hatchery grounds where water comes out of a culvert into Fall River. This is where I typically start fishing and then work my way upstream. Today was no exception.

I used my typical two fly setup with a dry fly on top (Adams Irresistible in this case) and a wet fly on the bottom (Pheasant Tail in this case) about two to three feet apart. After a few casts, I saw a lunker rise to a real bug and then retreat back down to the bottom of the river. That's what I was targeting. Fall River has some big fat trout in the 14-18 inch range. Last year I caught a couple of them and was hoping for a repeat today. After about a dozen casts without any strikes, I switched my top fly to a Yellow Humpy (one of my all-time favorites). No sooner did my fly hit the water, a fish hit and I quickly set the hook. After a short fight (even the small trout fight in Fall river), I landed a beautiful 8 inch rainbow trout. Katie took a few photos before I quickly released it.

   

I moved upstream and fished a few more holes. I managed to land two more rainbow trout, but they were small like the first fish. No monsters today. The fish were not very active as I only saw a few rising for bugs. I didn't notice any of the other fisherman catching fish. That's Fall River. Sometimes it is awesome and other times not so much. At least I didn't get skunked.

   

Fall River is absolutely beautiful. It goes from meandering flat water to small riffles and waterfalls. There is a trail that follows the river upstream from the hatchery to the primitive campground and then on to the source. I definitely recommend this hike and don't forget your fly rod and barbless flies.