OLD-SCHOOL ANGLING HOT CREEK RANCH: DRY FLY FISHING IN A COLORFUL SETTING.Byline: Bill Becher Special to the Daily News If you go to Hot Creek Hot Creek could refer to one of a number of streams or rivers, including: United States
nymph (nĭmf), in Greek mythology, female divinity associated with various natural objects. It is uncertain whether they were immortal or merely long-lived. There was an infinite variety of nymphs. , or, gasp, worms. ``I shoot them and leave the bodies as a warning to other guests.'' When my fishing partner Jimmy Toy and I spent a few days at the close of the season fishing the ranch, we didn't have to step over any corpses and we did experience some terrific fishing. Despite, or probably because of, the unique gear restrictions at Hot Creek Ranch, next season is already 90 percent booked. According to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. manager Diane Nichols, most are repeat customers. ``Some families have been coming to the Ranch for forty years, they've practically raised their kids here,'' Nichols said. This was my second trip to the ranch. Earlier in my fly-fishing career, I'd fished with Bob Brooks, the previous river keeper who introduced me to trout stalking. The fish at Hot Creek Ranch are spookier than the fish at the public sections of the creek, where they are used to hordes of anglers walking by. To catch fish at the ranch, it helps to sneak up Verb 1. sneak up - advance stealthily or unnoticed; "Age creeps up on you" creep up advance, march on, move on, progress, pass on, go on - move forward, also in the metaphorical sense; "Time marches on" on them, walking quietly and keeping low to the ground, Brooks explained. He also showed me the different types of bugs the trout eat at the Hot Creek. Grabbing a caddis fly caddis fly, any of various insects of the order Trichoptera, with four hairy wings usually held back rooflike over the abdomen, long antennae, and chewing mouthparts. , he said the fish preferred them to the mayflies because they tasted better. ``You try it, you'll see,'' he said handing me the wriggling insect. Being a greenhorn greenhorn a raw, inexperienced person; especially a new cowboy. [Pop. Culture: Misc.] See : Inexperience , I ate the bug. It was pretty tasteless to me, kind of dry and gritty, with only a slight nutty flavor. ``Hey, I was just kidding,'' Brooks said. I suspect he gets a lot of of mileage now when he shoots the bell with other guides, telling the story about the time he got a client to eat a bug. It's hard to define what makes Hot Creek Ranch special. Not just the challenge of fishing with tiny dry flies and long, thin leaders to fool the fish. Perhaps it is fishing for potential trophy-size rainbow and brown trout brown trout Prized and wary European game fish (Salmo trutta, family Salmonidae) that is favoured for food. The species includes several varieties (e.g., the Loch Leven trout of Britain). The brown trout is recognized by the light-ringed black spots on its brown body. , while the steam rises from the geothermal vents on a frosty early morning. Or, when checking your back cast in the evening, you are startled star·tle v. star·tled, star·tling, star·tles v.tr. 1. To cause to make a quick involuntary movement or start. 2. To alarm, frighten, or surprise suddenly. See Synonyms at frighten. by a herd of deer behind you drinking from the creek and munching on duckweed duckweed, any plant of the genus Lemna and sometimes of related genera. Duckweeds are tiny floating or submerged aquatic plants with reduced or obsolete roots. They flower only rarely, and their flowers are small and inconspicuous. . At the Ranch, you can compare fishing techniques Introduction Fishing is probably oldest and one of the important activity of humankind. Ancient remains of spears, hooks and fishnet have been found in ruins of the Stone Age. with a blue heron blue heron n. Any of several varieties of heron with blue or blue-gray plumage. , which stalks his prey, spears them with his beak, then swallows them whole and still wriggling. Talk about fresh sushi! The views of 11,546-foot Mammoth Mountain Mammoth Mountain is a large lava dome complex[1] that lies to the west of the town of Mammoth Lakes, California in the Inyo National Forest. Mammoth Mountain is home to the Mammoth Mountain Ski Area which is notable in that it gets an unusually large amount of , lightly dusted with an early snowfall, provide a perfect backdrop to a day's fishing. There are large fish in Hot Creek. Six- to 10-pound brown have been spotted. But the primary catch is wild rainbows and browns from 10 to 20 inches. The trout feed selectively. While we were fishing, a hatch of Baetis mayflies appeared at about 10 a.m. At other times, the trout feed on Caddis, Tricos, and Pale Morning Duns. The first full day of fishing, Jimmy Toy Landed 25 fish up to about 16 inches. The second day, he landed fewer but even better fish to about 18 inches, including some browns that were lurking along the undercut riverbanks. They were beautiful, healthy fish in brilliant fall colors. A trip to Hot Creek Ranch is advertised as being like a ``traditional English dry fly chalk stream Chalk streams have characteristics which set them apart from watercourses associated with other rock types. Aside from those with an interest in the geological and ecological disciplines, the term 'chalk stream' is most widely used among a small group of fly fishermen (who fishing.'' Millions of gallons of clear, cold, water spew from fissures in the lava rock created millions of years ago. The creek meanders through a meadow and gorge before flowing into the Owens River and then into Crowley Lake. Eventually, some of the water finds its way to Los Angeles faucets via the aqueduct system. A combination of 11 different springs feed the creek that flows through the Hot Creek Ranch. Geothermal activity heats the water and the result is ideal in terms of mineral content and temperature for growing large, healthy trout. The ranch has a lot of history. In the early days, the land was a favorite summer home to the Paiute Indians, who wandered the banks of the spring creek collecting seeds and herbs for their medicines and teas. The Paiutes wove wove v. Past tense of weave. wove Verb a past tense of weave wove, woven weave tall wild grasses into baskets and collected obsidian obsidian (ŏbsĭd`ēən), a volcanic glass, homogeneous in texture and having a low water content, with a vitreous luster and a conchoidal fracture. rocks from the nearby mountains to shape into arrowheads. A family that included direct descendants from these Paiute Indians homesteaded the valley in the middle to late 1800s. A small log cabin in the center of the ranch compound is still referred to as the Tom Poole cabin. When the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) is the largest municipal utility in the United States, serving 3.9 million residents in 2006. It was founded in 1902 to deliver water and electricity supplies to residents and businesses in Los Angeles. was buying up most of the land in the area for its water exportation projects, Poole said, ``No way,'' and the ranch stayed in private hands. In the 1950s, Phil Pister, a young Department of Fish and Game biologist, suggested that the Hot Creek Ranch might try an experiment and restrict fishing to dry fly only. This rule was adopted and has applied ever since. Subsequent owner Ray Bateman built the nine housekeeping cabins that are rented to fishermen and their friends and families. Cattle grazing on the ranch was stopped when it was found that the cattle were breaking down the river banks and spoiling the spawning areas. Today, the emphasis on pure dry fly fishing and conservation remains. You need the patience to wait for rising fish and a good imitation of the right bug. The ability to make a good cast and get a drag-free drift, with a quick hook-set are vital to dry fly fishing success at Hot Creek Ranch. If you accomplish all this, you will be rewarded with lots of old-fashioned fun. And you don't have to eat the bugs. IF YOU GO The Hot Creek Ranch is located in the Eastern Sierra just east of the Mammoth Lakes and north of the Mammoth Lakes airport, immediately downstream from the Hot Creek Fish Hatchery hatchery a commercial establishment dedicated to the hatching of bird eggs to provide day old chicks and poults to the poultry industry. hatchery liquid the contents of unfertilized eggs. Used in petfood manufacture. , about 35 miles north of the city of Bishop and eight miles east to the town of Mammoth Lakes at an altitude of 7,050 feet. Highway 395 is the main route north from Los Angeles. The ranch is located east of Highway 395 on Hot Creek Hatchery Road (the same road that goes to the airport and the public access fishing). Mailing address is Hot Creek Ranch, Route 1, Box 206, Mammoth Lakes, CA 93546. Phone: (88) 695-0774 or 760-924-5637. The www.hotcreekranch.com Web site has fishing reports and information about cabin availability. Some local guides, including Gary Hooper or Rick's Sports Center 760-934-3416 and Tom April or Eastside Guide Service (760) 934-2517, guide clients who are staying at the ranch. Rates for 2001 are: Monday through Thursday - $150.00 per night, two people, with a minimum two-night stay. Weekend rate is $480 two people minimum Friday to Monday Stay. A four-weight fly rod equipped with floating line and long (12 to 16 foot) leader tapering to 6X or 7X three-foot tippet tip·pet n. 1. A covering for the shoulders, as of fur, with long ends that hang in front. 2. A long stole worn by members of the Anglican clergy. 3. A long hanging part, as of a sleeve, hood, or cape. is the weapon of choice. Full waders are not needed as wading the river is not allowed, but a pair of wading boots and hippers will keep you dry crossing some of the marshy marsh·y adj. marsh·i·er, marsh·i·est 1. Of, resembling, or characterized by a marsh or marshes; boggy. 2. Growing in marshes. spots. There is a small tackle shop at the ranch were you can stock up on some of the tiny dry flies developed over the years to fool the discerning Hot Creek trout. The Hot Creek fishery is a barbless-fly-only, catch-and-release fishery with a zero limit. The Hot Creek Ranch private waters are the same with a dry-fly-only restriction. The ranch and other waters are open during the last Saturday in April to Oct. 31. A California license is required to fish both the ranch and any other California waters. CAPTION(S): 3 photos, box Photo: (1 -- color) Jimmy Toy of Westlake Village fishes Hot Creek at Mammoth Lakes in the shadow of the Sierra Nevada mountain range. Bill Becher/Special to the Daily News (2 -- color) Hot Creek Ranch offers potential trophy-sized trout. Bill Becher/Special to the Daily News (3) Jimmy Toy brings in a trout on a recent outing at Hot Creek Ranch. Bill Becher/Special to the Daily News Box: IF YOU GO (see text) |
|
||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion