Here’s your Eastern Sierra Fishing Report 6-6-24. Hot weather has set in big time for the entire state. A bit early for temperatures to be this hot, and this has gotten the snow melting in a hurry. All freestone rivers and creeks are at full runoff now. The East Walker River has been fishing very well. Crowds are thick so early starts are key to getting into any decent fishable water. Crowley Lake is also fishing well with most of the fish in deeper water. Hilton and McGee have been the hot spots. Bridgeport Reservoir has had a fairly consistent bite along Rainbow Pt, and fish are starting to migrate towards the inlets with the weather heating up. The Lower Owens is still on the high end for wading. The Upper Owens River has been fun throwing smaller nymphs along the undercuts and dry flies in the riffles. Flows are up over 100, so get some weight on the nymph rigs to get the bugs down. Hot Creek is best in the early mornings before the sun starts melting the snow and sending a lot of water down Mammoth Creek. The upper elevation lakes in Mammoth and June Lake have been fair, with float tubers doing well with full sink lines and streamers.
Upper Owens River flows are up at 106 cfs. The cutthroat trout have mostly returned to the lake. The resident and hatchery fish are in the river now and fishing has been great with weighted nymph rigs. Smaller nymphs and mid-day dry fly action has been decent. Best nymphs have been Pheasant Tails in sized #16 -18, Copper Johns, Bead Prince Nymphs, Hare’s Ears, SD Crawlers in Red, #16 San Juan Worms, and various midges in #14 -20..
Hot Creek has some good fishing in the Interpretive Site and you can get some nice fish in the canyon section if you hit the deeper pools and runs. The flows will look lower down in the canyon and seem deeper in the Interpretive Site especially around the pools. Look for major runoff late morning as Mammoth Creek flushes water in. Early starts can get you some good action in both sections. SJ worms #14 – 16, #18 Blood Midge, #18 – 20 Tungsten Zebra, #20 Bead Prince Nymph Tungsten, Broken Black and Blue Midge, #18 -20 Crystal Caddis Larva Green Black, #18 – 20 Crystal Copper Zebra Midge, #18 Flashback Hare’s Ear, #22 -24 Griffith’s Gnat, #20 Serendipity Black.
Lower Owens River flows are up and running at 400 cfs. Fishing will be very tough and limited going into the summer months. We won’t be doing any fishing here until the flows stabilize and lower some.
Bridgeport Reservoir is picking up again with some larger tagged trout and a smattering of hatchery rainbows. Deeper water in the middle of the lake has been good and the fish have started making their way over to the inlets. Callibaetis and midges are getting most of the fish along with the occasional damsel fly nymphs. Our Light Assassins, Copper Tigers and SD Chironomidges have been putting the hurt on some nice fish here.
East Walker River has been fishing very well. Water is very clear right now and flows are perfect at 200 cfs. Fish are all over the river and chomping on a variety of patterns. Angling pressure has been heavy, especially on the weekends, and the weekdays haven’t been much lighter. Prince Nymphs, punk perch, leeches, SJ worms, and midges are the flies right now. Other successful fly patterns have been #16 midge patterns, San Juan Worms, Crawdads, #18-20 Flashback Pheasant Tails, and #18 Copper Johns.
Crowley Lake pretty consistent bite in the deeper water of 20-30 feet. There have been fish also caught in the 17′ depth range, but the deeper water seems to hold up better through the day. Hilton around Pelican Pt. and Sometimes Bay in McGee Bay have been the best spots. There are fish in other areas too around the lake. Midges tight to the bottom have been working the best, and damselflies fished slow on the bottom have been good choices. Decent midge hatches are showing daily.
Thanks for reading our Eastern Sierra Fishing Report 6-6-24.
Thanks for reading our Eastern Sierra Fishing Report 6-6-24.