Hex Mayflies
Hexagenia limbata
The famous nocturnal Hex hatch of the Midwest (and a few other lucky locations) stirs to the surface mythically large brown trout that only touch streamers for the rest of the year.
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This specimen keys to the Epeorus albertae group of species. Of the five species in that group, the two known in Washington state are Epeorus albertae and Epeorus dulciana. Of the two, albertae has been collected in vastly more locations in Washington than dulciana, suggesting it is far more common. On that basis alone I'm tentatively putting this nymph in albertae, with the large caveat that there's no real information to rule out dulciana.
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Summer_doug has attached these 5 pictures to this report. The message is below.
Report at a Glance
| General Region | Inyo/Mono County, CA |
| Specific Location | Lower Owens River and Hot Creek |
| Dates Fished | 4/1 and 4/2 |
| Fish Caught | Brown and Rainbow Trout |
Details and Discussion
Summer_doug on Apr 8, 2019April 8th, 2019, 1:04 am EDT
My wife and I had the chance to meet up with friends who recently moved back to California and the husbands stole away to the Eastern Sierras for an evening and morning of trout fishing.
We initially camped on the Lower Owens, but the water was up approximately 10 feet compared to normal summer/fall/winter flows so we abandoned the idea of fishing there and headed to Hot Creek.
The creek is surrounded by hot springs at an altitude of about 8,000 feet. The hike consisted of 1.5 miles in snow that was thigh deep in 75 degree weather. During fishing, we put on and shed 5 layers of clothing multiple times and experienced a white-out blizzard that ended in a 70 degree afternoon. All of that happened between 8am and 10:30am.
In all, we landed between 10 and 15 fish each and lost that many or more to the barbless nymphs (need to work on my technique). All of the fish were landed by hand as the net became a casualty on the crazy hike in.
We initially camped on the Lower Owens, but the water was up approximately 10 feet compared to normal summer/fall/winter flows so we abandoned the idea of fishing there and headed to Hot Creek.
The creek is surrounded by hot springs at an altitude of about 8,000 feet. The hike consisted of 1.5 miles in snow that was thigh deep in 75 degree weather. During fishing, we put on and shed 5 layers of clothing multiple times and experienced a white-out blizzard that ended in a 70 degree afternoon. All of that happened between 8am and 10:30am.
In all, we landed between 10 and 15 fish each and lost that many or more to the barbless nymphs (need to work on my technique). All of the fish were landed by hand as the net became a casualty on the crazy hike in.
From Michigan
Partsman on Apr 8, 2019April 8th, 2019, 10:52 am EDT
Doug, great report and some very nice scenery! What technique to use to fish the nymphs?
Summer_doug on Apr 8, 2019April 8th, 2019, 11:00 pm EDT
I used the smallest indicator with a two nymph rig and no additional weight. I found the most success essential tight lining with the rig and could anticipate the takes after getting accustomed to the river.
I generally didn't alter the depth. I had the indicator set at about 5 feet - though I probably should have adjusted in a couple pockets.
Nymphing is definitely not my strong suit, but I definitely improved on the trip.
I generally didn't alter the depth. I had the indicator set at about 5 feet - though I probably should have adjusted in a couple pockets.
Nymphing is definitely not my strong suit, but I definitely improved on the trip.
From Michigan
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