[2hottie]

so boys... flies 4 the skagit....?? ???
i hear there are some big fish in there
wat set up, flies, teqnique???????? and WHERE?? (other than the water 4 u smart asses out there )

 

[HOOK]

I can tell you which flies im taking but as to where, there are 2 areas. Upper & Lower, Upper (sumallo grove) & Lower (26 Mile Bridge to the lake) Im going for my first trip there this weekend and im taking these flies in various sizes.(12-16 for most flies, streamers of course are bigger)

Dries: Adams, Lt. Cahill, Green Drakes, Elk hair caddis, Elk hair emerger, and i have parachutes of the first 3 tied up also.

Wets/Nymphs: Hare's ear (green and brown){with and without legs}, Prince Nymphs, Stones and some streamers (these are for the Bulls)

this is a good start i was told so this is what im taking my first time out. if i see other things hatching while im there i will jar one bug so i can imitate it later for next time ;D

hope that helps

HOOK

 

[Kuma]

I've had good luck with grey duns and muddlers believe it or not. There are big fish in there if 12-14" is big - maybe closer to Ross Lake will see the bigger ones.

 

[glx]

Basic wet flies would include hares ear nymphs, pheasant tail nymphs, prince nymphs, caddis pupa. I prefer small bead heads on them. Fish them under an indicator for best results.

Dries, an adams or adams irristable are hard to beat. Yellow cahil, green drakes, really to many to name.

If things arent working out, put on an olive wooly bugger.

 

[bronjuan]

japander....i'd say 12-14 is average on the river. Even then they are very scrappy and lot's of aerials are common. I caught one that was definitely lasooed on a previous CNR and I could tell why. He was flippin, jumpin and being an all around spaz.

I big one is 18-20 inches. then there are those dollies...rumour has it, up to 10 pounds...

 

[patagonia]

The lower i think holds generally some bigger fish, easier to access and you will see more fisherman. The upper has more pocket water and is harder to access, you have to scramble over rocks and logs, walk & wade, hike the trail ect... Im a big fan of the upper as I prefer less crowds... 12" to 14" is a big fish for the upper but they are beautiful fish. Careful if you park at Sumallo... dont leave anything visible in your vehicle.

 

[Kuma]

I was referring to the upper - 12-14" on a nice lightweight rod in that current is fun. The dollies stay way low in the pools and haven't been able to get them to take on what I've been offering. The dollies are definitely the biggest things in there at that point.

If it means avoiding crowds, I have no problem hopping over logs and tripping/wading. Part of the fun.

 

[HOOK]

is there really that many people on the lower Skagit on say a weekend day? im hoping there isnt as i dont wanna have to spend half my day walking to get away from people my first time there :cheers: Is the upper really that much log hopping and wading? (just curious not that it would bother me)

 

[patagonia]

The Upper doesnt have to be as much log hoping and wading.... I usually fish from where you first see the river on the trail as far down as I can... usually about 3 km or so then work the same water coming back. I dont use the trail at all, which involves alot of wading. You can just take the trail and access the river when you see it but you do miss some nice water.

 

[dryflyguy]

I like hare's ear nymphs, preferably with a gold beadhead, or even a fairly large stonefly nymph. For dry flies, believe it or not, my all time most productive dry has been the royal coachman. But when there are specific hatches, I find a blue dun or elk-hair caddis - even a down-wing caddis are great. For quieter water with regularly rising fish (on some pools, on the right day, the rises are pretty predictable), then I like a no-hackle dry fly.

 

[Bead Head]

I've had some pretty good days on the upper and lower just fishing simple soft hackle flies.

 

[flyfisherB]

I've had some luck with very small cream parachute flies. Its better very late in the day, but the walk back in the dark can be a challenge. I suggest bringing a small marine air horn to scare off any big shadows etc.

 

[dryflyguy]

Yes, parachutes are better than standard dries. I forgot about the cream parachutes. Thanks for the reminder, flyfisherB.

What about black dry flies? I've never done well with those. Anyone else have any luck with black on the Skagit?

 

[Chehalisking]

Royal wolf, Royal coachmen and a mosquito

 

[Kuma]

Went up last weekend (26 mile bridge area), nothing hatching or visible on the surface. Opted for some nymphing below a strike indicator and had some luck. I doubt there's a single go to "catch-all" to use but probably a condition-dependent big three or top five kind of thing might be a good way to look at it.

 

[Jinfoot]

I was up there this weekend, we parked at the suspension bridge and walked up all day, lost count of the amount of fish we caught but was at least 10+ and many lost during the day, amazing fish. We had luck on tiny #18 parachute adams and PMD's.