Fly Fishing Report 5/30/2025
Golden Trout Guiding Co. LLC Est. 2021
Holy smokes! I have been so busy guiding this last month I havent had a chance to sit down and write this thing. Well either way here we are, and thanks for stopping by to read the report. It has been an epic spring and early summer and time is flying by. To quote the ultra classic song Summertime “the livin is easy, fish are jumping, the cotton is high”. That feels about right over here on the Eastern Sierra. Hope you enjoy this fly fishing report. Reach out to book a guided trip for you or a small group, all levels of experience are welcomed and all gear is provided. Learn how to fly fish in a fun, safe, and educational environment.
Luke Kinney, Read Reviews Here
Phone (858) 750 9820
Email- goldentroutguiding@gmail.com
Lower Owens- The Lower Owens is currently 470 CFS and temps in Bishop are in the 90’s already. I will be putting the pause button on the Lower Owens until this fall. I typically start guiding the Lower Owens around October/November. The shoulder seasons on the Lower Owens are by far the most productive times to fly fish with November and March being my two personal favorites. This last season was incredible as the fishery continues to provide excellent fly fishing for wild brown trout and the occasional rainbow trout. I will keep you posted on the Lower Owens, for now it’s time to get up higher in elevation and search for that cooler water.
Lower Owens during miracle march. Look closely at the Caddis on the water! We await these epic days on the Lower.
Bishop Creek/Rock Creek- I clump these two creeks together because in many ways they fish very similarly, although they do have their unique characteristics. The temos have warmed up substantially and the spring melt is peaking as we speak. Although the flows are high it is totally fishable and ready to go. Obviously be extra careful when trying to wade across the stream, look for bridges and safer places to cross. This is the time of year I start moving up to our higher elevation creeks to fish dry flies, dry droppers, and strip mini streamers. I am already seeing hatches of very small BWO’s, midges, and the occasional caddis. I think late spring is the best to fish these creeks as crowds are slowly building, flows are high so fish have more room to move, and they are eager to feed after a long winter. What’s amazing about these creeks outside of the beautiful scenery is the variety of trout species available, brook, brown, and rainbow trout all reside in our high elevation streams. The trout up high are typically smaller 6-12 inches, but the occasional trophy or 20” fish can be found with some time and effort. To me small stream fishing is not about size, or bragging rights, its about intimate and beautiful time in the high country, fishing dry flies, working on presentation, and having fun! Recommended flies for the creeks as of now, Parachute Adams (16-20) ** smaller the better in most cases, Elk Hair Caddis (16-20), Purple Haze (16-20), Blue Wing Olive (18-20) are all classic good options and with the right presentation will catch fish. These fish are spooky so if you can get a cast from further away and working upstream you will have more chances to hook up. Running a dry dropper can also lead to some sweet hookups. I like pairing a larger Caddis (14) to a small FB Pheasant Tail (18) Baetis Nymph (18) or Zebra Midge (18). If you want to learn how to fly fish I recommend booking a day with me up on one of these creeks, learn how to cast, read the stream and catch a few fish on topwater. Small streams and creek fishing is where I started and remains to this day my absolute favorite way to fly fish.
Rock Creek looking full and healthy! I love the clean air, clear water, and beauty of our high elevation streams and creeks.
Central Gorge- It is the end of the season for me in the central gorge as the flows have increased, the nettle is growing like wildfire on the banks, and the rattlesnakes are out. The gorge is also shut down for high flow maintenance, check DWP’s website for updates on the closure. Some folks fish the gorge all year and in particular higher up is not too bad but i’m not the biggest fan of the heat and hassle. If you do make it down to the gorge go early and bring some dry flies and you’ll get into em. As always move with caution down there and expect heat into the high 90’s soon. Good thing about the gorge is the water stays cold so if your a hardy off grid angler this is your time to shine.
Euro Nymphing the central gorge on a beautiful fall day.
Crowley Lake- Crowley Lake continues to provide some excellent fly fishing opportunities but has slowed down from the insanity of the opening weeks and month. We are still getting into fish every trip on Crowley but the fish have moved out to deeper cooler water 20-30 ft. May/June are some of the more challenging months on the lake as we tend to have to fish deeper to get into them. This doesn’t mean you wont have banner days, in fact we got 17 on board yesterday at 24ft deep, but at that depth getting a good hookset and keeping the fish on is more challenging. To keep the integrity of this report I will not be mentioning specific locations on the lake as us guides work very hard to maintain an eye on these fish and where they are going, it would be a disservice to them and myself to offer that info. That being said fish are spread out and there are multiple spots that are producing some hard hitting trout. We are getting a mixed bag of rainbow, brown, and cutthroat trout daily at this point and anywhere from 13-25 inches. Learning how to rig for the deep water is something I teach while out guiding and a great skill to have if you plan on fishing lakes on the fly this summer or for your future adventures. Water temps have already reached 60 degrees on the surface, which is why fish are getting down deep. Once it gets hot enough the fish will start moving towards the cooler inlets on the lake where that alpine water meets. The perch are in spawn and the perch fishing is PRIMO right now! For targeting perch try fishing a leech or midge under a bobber in the shallow sections on the lake (7-12ft) Recommended flies for Crowley as of now, Tiger Midge (14-18), Albino Midge (14-18), (14-18) and pretty soon Blood Midge (14-18). Balanced leeches were doing OK last month but with the supreme hatches of midge going on right now you're better off running all midges. Midge sizes hatching on the lake are ranging from 12-22 so I’ve been sticking with the happy medium of size 18 to get it done. Best of luck out there, reach out to book a guided trip on the Lake!
Angler Joe Ornales spent his life fishing the ocean and has recently started his journey of fly fishing! Its been amazing to be apart of and watch his progress. Joe put 17 fish in the net on this day.
Upper Owens- The Upper Owens river is flowing high and off color right now… 75 CFS above the Hot Creek confluence and 130 CFS below. The fishing has been sup-par to poor on most days as the flows, clarity, and crowds are heavy. On top of that I avoid the Cutthroat spawn entirely this time of year, to let those fish have a chance to reproduce without hindrance. The Cutthroat Spawn is already wrapping up as it got started way earlier this year then people had realized. I was tracking those cutthroat since early april. Now that the spawn is over I will be spending a little more time on the Upper Owens fishing early morning dry flies, and working the stream for some of the bigger residential trout on nymphs and streamers. The Upper Owens stays fairly cool all summer but its best as we move into summer to fish it early and be off the water by noon, same as Crowley Lake. Once the flows come down from spring run-off we should be getting into some better fishing, better hatches of mayflies and caddis. Right now its Pale Morning Dun season and Blue Wing Olive, so it’s hard to beat a size 18 Parachute Adams as the premier dry fly. With these higher flows fishing nymphs under a bobber or tight line is the most productive method of catching fish. Recommended nymphs on the Upper Owens, Perdigon (16-18), Hares Ears (16-18), Pheasant Tail (16-18), San Juan Worm (12-14), Duracell (16-18), Frenchie (16-18). To be totally honest I have spent less and less time on the Upper Owens while guiding as we have so much great water heading into summer with less crowds, less pressure and better fishing. The Upper Owens remains one of the most beautiful stream on the Eastern Sierra but don’t expect quantity days, work it well and go for quality!
Angler Lindsey working a tight line on the bank of the Upper Owens during the high flows of spring. Fishing is slow as of late but should get better as summer settles in.
Convict Lake- Convict lake float tube season is here, in fact i’m heading out there this evening to troll around streamers with a sinking line, listen to some grateful dead, and sip a La Croix. Convict is looking beautiful as ever and the stocking from the last few years has a great mixed bag of browns and rainbows and the occasional monster stocker. Convict is a DEEP lake, so working closer to the banks and drop off is your best bet for hooking up with some nice fish. Working the inlet or outlet of the lake is always a good call from 12-20 ft deep. I fish Convict like I fish Crowley Lake, similar flies, similar depths, hardest factor is holding position if you are fishing under a bobber. When fishing nymphs you can get away with general attractor patterns like the Perdigon (16-18), as these fish are less picky then the Crowley Fish. Fishing a single balanced leech in Black or Olive (10-14) is also a go to rig out there. General rule while nymphing under a bobber out there fish the spot where the you can see the bottom and where the bottom disappears (drop off) If you can get those flies down 10-14 feet you’ll be in the money. Lastly you can always do the lazy man approach like me and troll a black Wolly Bugger with a sinking line around the lake and wait for the magic to happen haha. I have float tubes and would love to guide you on Convict or any of our other epic alpine lakes!
The views from the tube on Convict Lake are incredible!
Mammoth Lakes Basin-Mammoth Lakes Basin is melted out and ready to rock! It is still fairly cool and cold up here right now but already starting to get warm. Fish are feeding mid morning 8am-1pm seems to be the best bite. I got out on Lower Twin Lake and did about 35 fish in two hours haha. Not bad, all stockers but I’m not complaining nor an elitist when it comes to that kind of thing, I like catching fish and I like fishing in beautiful areas. Twin Lakes is my go to because it’s a fairly shallow lake so the set up is easy on a float tube, run a couple nymphs under a bobber about 4-5 ft down get it out there and wait for it to drop. Float tubing is one of my favorite ways to enjoy summer on the Eastern Sierra and we have some great lakes to get on. I like to get a little more aggressive with my streamer fishing at the lakes basin working the banks, rocks and drop offs for some of the bigger residential trout. The biggest factor for the lakes basin as anywhere on the Eastern Sierra is wind, to windy and it’s hard to hard position on some of these lakes. My go to lakes basin flies are Purple Duracell (16-18), Perdigon (16-18), Balanced Leech (12-14), Zebra Midge or Copper Tiger (16-18). Plenty of dry fly opportunities mid morning and in the evening and afternoon. Trout will rise for small caddis or mayflies, Parachute Adams (14-18) is a standout fly. If you haven’t noticed yet it’s clear that the Parachute Adams is the supreme dry fly for almost all occasions, wish I could be more creative but lets be honest, and lets catch some fish haha. Reach out to book a guided float tub trip on the lakes basin.
Angler Kelsea enjoying the view and fishing on Lower Twin Lake in Mammoth.
East Walker River- The flows on the East Walker River are up to 167 CFS as of today which is awesome! The fish die off last year did some serious damage on that river and the numbers are down from the previous years. It will take a few years to recover fully and hopefully the lake doesnt turn over like it did last year and destroy the river below again. That being said the flows and temps are still good to go on the East Walker and there are still some epic fish being caught but you gotta work for em. If your willing to hunt and spend time moving between areas you can get into some nice fish with trout being caught from the 12-30 inch range. The East Walker holds some of the larger browns in CA, hooking up with them is one thing, getting them to the net is another. I Have not been guiding as much on the EW this year, but will be up there as long as the flows are high (above 100) and water stays cool enough (below 65 degrees) The East Walker deserves respect and hard work, as we all pay our dues out there to get into the nice ones. Cover water and stay positive and it will go down!
Head Guide Rob Hrabik and Angler Nicholas with a trophy brown trout caught and safely released on the East Walker.
Thanks for stopping by to read my fly fishing report! I appreciate all of my followers, clients and supporters. We are a community of anglers, lets share the water and stoke!
Last years Golden Trout Trip Crew!
Matthew 6:26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?
