NOTEBOOK: FISHING A CHALLENGE FOR THE AGES SKILLED, TALENTED YOUNGSTERS FREQUENTLY HOLD THEIR OWN.

Byline: Randy van Vliet Special to the Daily News

A trip to the East Sierra recently reminded me that when it comes to fishing, age doesn't matter. On a weekday last week, Hot Creek humbled me with its very finicky rainbow and brown trout, yet delivered the goods to a boy who was barely a teen-ager.

I've always thought, judging by the age of the members in most fly fishing club meetings I've attended, that fly fishermen took up the sport as a management tool for a midlife crisis.

On a sunny, windy afternoon at Hot Creek, I stumbled into Jim and Nick Doudna of Agoura, a father and son who were taking time off from their daily routine for some serious fishing. Nick, 13, was dry fly fishing and he wasn't about to stop until the hatch he was fishing was over. Despite his father's request to join us for lunch, Nick responded, ``Just a few more casts, dad.''

His casts were almost perfect, a blend of soft underpowered strokes, painting the sides, in front of and on top of a sighted fish, waiting, waiting, waiting for the take. And sometimes the refusal. These fish have seen it all by now, and it really requires a perfect, drag-free drift, something that takes time and a lot of practice and skill to accomplish. There is really no substitute for time on the water.

Nick was proof that you don't have to be an old-timer to dry fly fish with the best of them.

If you have the skill and patience, right now Hot Creek is living up to its name, with 25- to 40-fish days. Of course, it is strictly a catch-and-release, artificial-barbless-flies-only stretch of water. Check the Department of Fish and Game fishing-regulations book before you go.

--Book 'em: The East Walker River was the next place I visited, located a few miles north of Bridgeport.

There, someone was oblivious to the fact that everyone else around him and his sons had nine-foot rods with flies tied on the end of their lines, not six-foot rods with bait hooks and bottled or canned bait.

It did not go unnoticed by an angler who called Cal-TIP (1-888-334-2258), a hotline number for reporting poaching.

Shortly, a game warden arrived and ticketed the offender. The warden then asked every angler on the stream to pull their hooks out of the water, checked their fishing licenses and dragged a cotton swab across the portion of the hook where a barb would be. If cotton stuck, the fisherman got either a suggestion to do better of debarbing or, if it was really obvious, a ticket.

--Hot and cold: Fishing the East Walker is iffy. Flows are down to 80 CFS, the water is smelly, and the water temperature is reaching 71 degrees, which is dangerous and stressful for trout. Better to fish it early in the morning or late afternoon or evening, when the oxygen levels in the water are higher. Play your fish quickly and be sure to resuscitate the fish sufficiently before releasing. ...

With no activity since March on the Colorado River near Willow Beachor Cottonwood Cover regarding stripers of any quality or size, things finally broke loose in the 105-degree heat last weekend. Wooden plugs were working for Jerry Rago, of Independence, when he landed 34 1/2-, 32- and 19 1/2-pound stripers on Saturday.

For an up-to-date report on fishing conditions, contact the Willow Beach Marina at [phone]. ...

There is a great grasshopper fly bite going on, the fish going goofy over the opportunity for a big meal instead of all those tiny midges. ...

The Santa Clarita Valley Chapter of Quail Unlimited will have their annual Snake Avoidance Clinic July 28-29. The expression ``An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure,'' has never been more true. A trip to the vet and medication can cost $2,000. If you hunt your dog, or even walk him in areas where snakes reside, you should consider this clinic. For information and appointments, contact Bruce Kenyon at [phone]. Price is $50 per dog, probably one of the cheapest life-insurance policies you can buy for your best friend. ...

SCVQU has started a youth round-robin trap-shooting team. This is an excellent father/mother and son/daughter opportunity for competing and having fun together as a family. Shoots and practice are at Oak Tree Gun Club in Newhall. For more information, contact Lou Francouer at [phone] or Joe Kubasak at [phone].

CAPTION(S):

2 photos

Photo:

(1) Fisherman Jim Doudna sets the hook and plays a brown trout on his two-weight fly rod at Hot Creek.

(2 -- color) Windy conditions couldn't keep Eric Zumstein from a successful outing at Hot Creek.

Randy van Vliet/Special to the Daily News