April 22nd - 23rd - Lower Sacramento River

I first fished with Jerry and Ben on Oregon’s John Day River dead center in the middle of nowhere. We ate well, drank good booze, and caught wild steelhead. This year, Ben pulled his boat north and Jerry, Lincoln, and Jim all met ready to fish the lower Sac for a couple of days. Keeping with tradition, the foursome closed down the local steakhouse and everyone still felt a bit sideways at the ramp. The river fished well on Thursday, even better Friday with the big fish taped at 20”. Everyone but Jim had floated the river before and had experienced the strength and beauty of it’s rainbows. Yet, the effectiveness of a #6 brown rubberlegs came as a surprise. Recently, a good friend and State of California biologist forwarded the above photo that speaks volumes to the importance of stoneflies to Sac rainbows. Impressive!

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April 21st - Rogue River

The tone in Mark’s voice suggested that he had watched the weather this morning and, that the forecast did not call for a pleasant day. I watched it too and took notice of the advisories posted throughout Jackson County. Nonetheless, S. Oregon’s weather varies greatly over short distances and we decided to head towards the Rogue and see for ourselves. He hooked the day’s first steelhead just long enough to feel a solid headshake, watch it go airborne, and throw the fly. Fortunately, we found another fish. This time, the take came in a tailout just above a fast chute of water littered with boulders. We held our breath and the hook held fast. The wild buck finally came to net and taped just short of 30 inches. It kicked from my grasp and we reeled up-perfectly ending the day and another winter steelhead season on the Rogue.

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Leland Fly Fishing Ranch

Leland Fly Fishing Ranch
Sonoma, California

This week, Rachel and I announced an exciting change in our professional lives that will allow us to grow both individually, and as a team in the fly fishing industry. Beginning May 1st, we will relocate to Sonoma, California (through mid-October) and become part of Leland Fly Fishing Outfitters.

Rachel will combine her love of teaching, product knowledge and travel expertise to create fly fishing programs that integrate proper instruction with tackle selection and expand to include hosted travel and travel sales to the world’s best angling destinations.

My role will center around creating a guide service that focuses on warmwater fisheries in Sonoma County. However, with the Pacific so close, the possibilities are endless! Andras Outfitters will continue to grow and come October, I’ll be back on N. California’s and S. Oregon’s finest trout and steelhead streams.

We feel very fortunate moving forward as a part of the Leland team and look forward to seeing familiar faces and building new relationships long into the future. Please stop by and say hello on your next visit to Sonoma. We hope to fish with you all very soon!

April 8th - Rogue River Steelhead

Despite a relatively dry winter in Southern Oregon, early April brought the season’s first snowfall to the valley floor and flakes flew again this morning. Thankfully, the sun decided to emerge from the clouds finally hinting at the arrival of spring weather as Jim and I slid the boat into the upper Rogue. It’s currents still green from recent rains, the river seemed to come alive illuminated by the sun. By mid-morning, a few March Browns came off and at noon the river simply exploded with bug life. Both mayfly and stonefly shucks drifted en masse, while adults littered the surface and filled the air. The fish responded as if they had been waiting for this for months with rainbows and cutthroat stacked in riffles and steelhead scattered in runs. With only one shot left in the camera, we spent more time with a line in the water and less time looking into a lens. We kept smiling though - just ask Jim.

www.andrasoutfitters.com

April 6th - Rogue River Steelhead

I consider Felton to be a complete steelhead fisherman. He pursues them throughout the Pacific Northwest and British Columbia, fishes a single-handed rod and nymphs with as much pleasure as a swung fly with a spey rod, and is passionate about the importance of wild fish. A supporter of several conservation organizations, Felton found his way west to attend the Native Fish Society’s benefit dinner and, with his wife Karen, decided to include a float down the upper Rogue as part of the trip. Karen’s fly fishing experience consisted of pitching dries to Snake River Cutthroat and from her first cast with a weighted fly knew she was a long way from Jackson. Always the good sport, she put up with the stories, landed her first steelhead, and hinted that hatchery fish are better table fare than breeding stock. Hats off to you, Karen.

www.andrasoutfitters.com

Winter Slideshow 2010 / February -March 2010

February/March
Due to my ridiculously long silence over the past two months I intentionally waited to post this entry after April 1. After going so long without a report, I thought posting one on April Fool’s Day might be received as a joke. To everyone who enjoys this blog: I owe you an apology. I have no excuse for failing to keep current with reports and realize that my silence not only slows the momentum behind building Andras Outfitters, but also takes something from everyone who enjoys reading it. While my calendar slowed during February and March, everyday spent either guiding the Rogue and Lower Sacramento Rivers or exploring coastal systems offered something noteworthy. Given the snails pace at which I write, please accept the Winter Slideshow as a means for me to catch up while highlighting another remarkable season. Rachel’s February trip to Argentina’s Rio Grande kicks it off. Enjoy!

To view images on a larger scale click on the Winter Slideshow to the right and above our logo. Enjoy!

www.andrasoutfitters.com