More fun

[Hairstacker]

Last weekend I briefly scouted out a section of the lower Tuolumne river and decided to return to it today with the inflatable kayak to see if I could round up some smallies on the fly rod. Here's what the water looked like (kind of reminds me of the Delta a bit):

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v484/Sachlil/DSCF0519.jpg

I decided to row upstream to eliminate the risk of running into fast water and not being able to return. :shock: :lol: As it was, it was like paddling on a lake most of the time -- I didn't run into any current whatsoever until I paddled upstream for what seemed like a mile and a half (?) and I was able to paddle past those (2 sections) as well. Water visibility was mostly very good (up to 5 feet or so in many places) and water temp was 65 degrees in the two places I checked, which surprised me -- I thought it would be a little cooler.

Well, long story short, I didn't run into any smallies. I did run into a bunch of these (the red color is a reflection off my kayak by the way):

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v484/Sachlil/DSCF0521.jpg

And these:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v484/Sachlil/DSCF0524.jpg

These were about the average size today, with some smaller and some a little bigger. The bass were strong for their size, which I think is common of river fish. With that said, I wish I had brought my 2 wt. rather than my 5 wt.

Although I also tried a chartreuse/white Clouser and a black Strymph, all the fish today came on a size 6 Jurassic Sculpin (the one I tied for the fly swap). Ah well, even though I didn't run into any smallies, I had a great and relaxing time. And I still got to come home smelling like fish. :D

[David Lee]

Very cool !

Questions -

Crowds ?

How large do you think the population is (the dreaded numbers question) ??

Really vivid bars on that 'Gill !!

David

[erhetta]

That looks like a great place to float. Thanks for the pics :)

[Hairstacker]

David, I did see several other small motor boaters and kayaks scattered throughout the day over a couple of miles but I never thought of it as "crowded." You do have to get out on the water, though, in some kind of watercraft (boat, tube, kayak, pontoon, etc.), as shore access is extremely limited. In the future, I hope to explore areas further upstream -- I'd really like to find an area that can be walked and/or wet-waded.

As far as fish populations, hard to say. . . . There did seem to be plenty of them, as I saw and caught them almost everywhere in the stretch that I paddled. Since the main purpose of this trip was to find smallies, I spent far, far more time paddling and looking for rock piles (didn't find any) that might hold smallies than I did fishing.

I was told by another kayaker there that it's not unusual to have 50-fish bass days when the water temps come up, although I didn't catch half that many. Once I got serious about the fishing toward the end of the day, I did seem to start picking them up pretty regularly. I only caught about a half dozen bluegills but then again I wasn't targeting them either -- if I had, I think the results could have been epic.

I also saw quite a few carp but didn't fish for them and didn't hook any.

[Scott V]

That place looks like a lot of fun Mike, I might have to take the toon out there. Is the access easy enough to launch a toon?

[Hairstacker]

Scott, check your PM. :)