Lees Ferry Fishing Report - Lees Ferry AZ

March 12'

2012-03-13T09:03:00.004-07:00

Hello all my fellow fishers,
Low water again and we are loving it. The flow is an average of 10,000 cfs, but we are seeing it as low as 7,500 cfs first thing in the morning.
The fish are FAT, just have a look at this beautiful 15' female bow, tell me you don't see the football shape and the fat squeezing out between fingers!
I am seeing more and more fish meet this profile, the health of the population as a whole is phenominal. They were healthy coming out of winter but with the spring food coming early because of a warm winter they are happy, happy fish right now, and I predict it will only get better through the spring. The key factor in this prediction will be the BIG spring midge & black fly hatches, which we should see starting any day now.
I have been having most success with a regular nymphing rig, of about 9' in total length, #4-#1 weight with a glow bug, and a #16-#18 zebra midge below. Throw this in the riffle as the water rises, then move down or up the bar to find the slower fall out areas after the water has came all the way up.
Spawning fish are out there and we have been enjoyed some sight fishing for the redds as well, this rig is a 5' single fly version of the nymphing rig explained above, use all flies in your box and change often to keep them guessing. Pick out the biggest fish and make that your target, as you will see first you'll catch the littler fish, but the most patient guy will eventually get that big one and she is worth it too!
If we can be of service as always it would be our pleasure to take you out to pursue thoughs beautiful wild bows.

"May your lines be tight, and always, always remember to keep your tip up"

Mick Lovett

For More Details, Visit Home at http://www.LeesFerryFlyFishing.com

Feb 2012 / ISE Expo

2012-02-22T21:47:00.006-07:00

02/22/12

Hello heres the lates report on my return to the Ferry. After coming off the water for the last week fishing was good. The spawn beds are active and make for fun site fishing hook ups. One way to fish this is with a short single nymph rig with a egg pattern. Locate your bed and throw a good distance infront of the fish to allow your egg to get in the fish's face, and be ready to set. Also in low water becareful not to desturb emurged or shallow beds. Fish have also been regular to take San Juan worms, scuds, and midges are always a go to with spring soon to come. With the nice weather and finally a wadable flow. We have been able to wade any gravle bars. Were a standard nymph rig on the outer deeper faster water produces good fish. Coming in to the slower inside water of seams we run a midging rig, or early in the A.M.have been having luck with a dry dropper set up. Sunday was a great day on the bottom of the river were the water flow produced a slow rise all day. The fishing was a one stop shop. Running a egg as a bottom fly was also a good fly choice for that day. Looking forward to see if we can se more Sunday water flows like that in the future. We will keep you updated, also we will be in Glendale,AZ from the 23-26 at University Of Phoenix statium for the Internationl Sportsmen Expo. Come on down and check us you can find us at booth 430.

Tell next time keep them fish busy.

Kyle Klemme-MCO Guide

For More Details, Visit Home at http://www.LeesFerryFlyFishing.com

January 28, 2012

2012-01-28T10:57:00.003-07:00

Hello all my fellow fishers,

The photos above are from a trip on 1/21/12, Bill Hayes holding a beautiful 17'' female rainbow, caught on a olive scud, on his first cast of the day.

The fishing at Lee's Ferry is good right now, due to the lack of moisture this winter the high flows have finally come down from 20,000cfs steady to a slow fluctuation from 9,500cfs to 16,000cfs. For us as fisherman this means, at 8:00am when we get to our fishing spot the level is about 10,000cfs, with a very slow rise, when we leave our spot at 4:00pm the water will be about 15,000cfs.

I have been using short nymphing rig, or even a dry dropper, and fishing the slower bottom portions of the main gravel bars with great success. The flies I use on the nymphing rig are; worm, scuds, and eggs (change colors often to find the most desired colors, and patterns, as the fish preference changes daily). For the dry dropper, I use a cicada, or stimulator for the dry, and a zebra midge for the dropper #16-#18, black, grey, or green.

For those of you who are thinking of taking advantage of our unusually great weather, and wanting to get in an early fishing trip this year, Lee's Ferry has to be your destination, great weather, wading is finally an option again, and the rainbows are happy and healthy. If we can be of service please let us know.

Until next time, "may your lines be tight, and always remember to keep that tip up".

Mick Lovett

For More Details, Visit Home at http://www.LeesFerryFlyFishing.com

Winter Flows & Begining of the Spawn

2011-12-16T09:22:00.002-07:00

Winter time at Lee's Ferry means high flows(20,300 cfs) and of course December signifies the start of this years spawn. We are using a few different techniques out there, depending on where on the river you are fishing.

First rig is your standard nymphing rig; 9'-5X leader, 15'' of 5X tippet, first fly, 18-20'',second fly, I use a double indicator, and a split shot(size depends on location) above tippet knot(15'' above first fly). This rig is your drifting rig and can be used river wide, your favorite wading bars are a good place to start for drifting.

Second rig is a dry-dropper rig; 7.5'-3X leader, dry fly(size 10, stemmy, or cicada pattern), and 5X tippet from their(length depends on location), to a size 16, zebra midge. This rig is used in small seams and side water, located at your favorite wading bars, anchor your boat, or if you dare; wade fish.

Third rig is a modified nymphing rig; 9'-5X leader, tie on fly(size 16 egg patterns, size 14 scud patterns, size 14 San Juan worm pattern), 10-12'' above the fly goes your split shot(size depends on location), and a single indicator(the smaller the better) 4-5' from fly. This is the rig I use to sight fish for the spawners, either from an anchored boat or again if you dare; wading.

Last but not least; for those of you like me that enjoy streamer fishing; tie the ol' olive bugger on your sink tip line and either swing it thru your favorite riffle, or strip it thru your favorite seam or back eddie.

Winter time is beautiful at the Ferry, the lighting is extraordinary during the winter months. Come on down and fish with us, or boats are fully covered and we'll have the heater running for you. Fishing is good, weather is fair, and you will enjoy this time of year, so please let us know if we can be of service.

Remember "keep that rod tip up", and I wish you all tight lines blue skies!

Happy Holidays Everyone!

Mick Lovett

For More Details, Visit Home at http://www.LeesFerryFlyFishing.com

October 27

2011-10-27T11:33:00.002-07:00

Hello fellow fishermen and women.
Fishing on the Ferry is still producing good fish and with good weather it is a great time to be in the canyon. I have had good success on gravel bars were the water drops off the edge of the run. I have been using a standard midgeing rig normally around 6' to my first fly but will very on locations. Fallowing about 16-18 inches to my dropper fly. Flys, top fly will consist of a #16 zebra midge, main colors I run are black, laser and a purple and silver. For the dropper we have found that the smaller the fly the more action produced. Fish seam to catch on to the gig quicker than usual so I am always changing out my bottom fly. Normally start with a 18-20 black midge. Once the fish seam to catch on I will change colors and even throw San Juan worms and scuds. My growing favorite way to catch fish is the streamer. Tie on a olive to brown woolly bugger with some hackle in it, throw out to were a seam and back eddie are present. Key is to always try to present it in different retrieves from long slow strips, to quick short jerks. Try to keep it low to the bottom some were in the 6-8'' from the bottom. I apologize for no photos but they will be on the next report. Size of the fish have been from the new fry hatching's to some really nice hogs, fish are always there and are waiting for you. Hope to catch you all out there, as always keep me in the loop and yours from crashing.
Thank you,
Kyle Klemme-MCO Guide
For More Details, Visit Home at http://www.LeesFerryFlyFishing.com

September 8

2011-09-08T14:12:00.006-07:00

Hope everyone had a great holiday weekend. It was a good Labor day weekend alot of traffic,but the fishing stayed consisten. The fish are striking our midging riggs all day. The best set up I found was a #16 on top with a #18 black dropper. The top fly I will change with the time and hatches thru out the day. The #18 black I kept as my main fly. Another setup we thru was the streamer rigg. Olive/black, and olive with green hackle wooly buggers were working good. Fish were aggressive on big sand bars throwing your bugger into the current and let it swing down to a seam. Key to this is getting your bugger down close to the bottom,also try with a trailer fly about 16-18" back. Here are some Pics of my client Mike, speacail thanks to him and his wife it was a great day on the Ferry that I will never forget!

Thanks, Kyle Klemme-Guide

For More Details, Visit Home at http://www.LeesFerryFlyFishing.com

2011-09-01T20:44:00.002-07:00

Hello everyone,
Hope your all having a great year. As you all know the season is turning and fall is just around the corner, for the Ferry this means lower water flows for September and October. A steady 15,500 cfs to be exact, and remember this is down from our summer flow of 24,500 cfs.
I was the only guide boat on the water today, and one of two total fishing boats out?
I was anticipating the wading and proceeded to a favorite wading bar for this water level, and as expected it was my midging rig that we were having our success. The rig is pretty simple;plsa indicator, 36'' of 5x tippet to a size 16 tung. bead zebra midge(you pick the color), then 20'' to next midge, size 16-18, on 6x, and steel or tungsten bead.
The numbers were good, lots of variation in size, plus for those of you who want to wade the ferry again before the winter; now is the time.I have availability all over September and October, so if Ican be of service please let me know.
So the picture to the right is the other guide now working for MCO, and the author of the previous few blog entries; his name is Kyle Klemme, just wanted to make a semi-formal introduction, he has been a great addition to MCO.

Til next time, tight lines, and always remember to keep that tip up!
Mick Lovett

For More Details, Visit Home at ttp://www.LeesFerryFlyFishing.com

2011-08-05T17:16:00.003-07:00

Today on Lees Ferry fishing was good. All morning we had good numbers running a nymphing setup. Like the previous post we were running the same length and setup. I found the sand devil set up was working the best, black#16 zebra midge on top being followed by a #16-18 red midge. The fish were super active all morning, in the afternoon the output flow increased which required some minor adjustments. When you are fishing the Ferry pay close attention to the canyon walls were they meet the water. You will be able to watch the water fluctuate through they day. So always keep that in mind and adjust your rig accordingly. When the water increased I added another foot between my indicator and first fly, keeping the rest of the setup the same. We were also able to get some good site fishing in on big sand bars using a streamer setup. After siting your fish, use the current to let your line swing your fly in front of them and watch it happen. Good takes and always a great show. Until the next, keep me in the loop and yours from crashing.
Kyle Klemme-Guide
For More Details, Visit Home at http://www.LeesFerryFlyFishing.com

2011-08-03T08:57:00.004-07:00

Hello everyone, fishing Lees Ferry is successful. The last two day trip we had good success with three different rigs. Morning and end of day consisted of a big bug setup with or without a dropper(#16-18 zebra midge) running between 14-24 '', hugging banks and tamarask. Next rig is nymphing, running a 5x leader with 10' to the first midge, add on another 12-16'' of 5-6x tippet for your bottom midge. Add a (AB) 20-26 inches above your first fly, and get in the water. Last we ran a streamer setup with a 200g depth charge with 3x tippet 6 feet out. Working a olive pattern woolly, low and slow to false strip on the swing or a quick strip back to the boat all work. Keep up moving and always work in different patterns. As Bill would say "Its all about the presentation!"

As always keep me in the loop and yours from crashing.

Kyle Klemme-Guide

Special thanks to Bill, and Mickey for the great two days.

For More Details, Visit Home at http://www.LeesFerryFlyFishing.com

Walk In

2011-08-03T08:26:00.003-07:00

Hello to all, fishing at the walk in is good. I have found that high water at the walk in makes for fun dry dropper fishing. Starting at the top of boulder field and working my way up to the cottonwoods. There are several kick outs between the two locations. I start at the bottom of the seams, working a small terrestrial bug with about a 10-14 inch #16-18 zebra midge as my dropper. Fishing early morning and late evening is when this works the best. Midge colors; Red silver, black silver, and laser are best. 6x tippet with dropper and 3x leader to dry. Hope to catch you there.

Kyle Klemme-Guide

For More Details, Visit Home at http://www.LeesFerryFlyFishing.com

2011-06-09T10:04:00.003-07:00

June is the start of our summer, this year has had a cold start, so we are still having day temperatures in the mid 80's.

The Colorado is running 22,825 cfs, high water for us, and with that being said we are still have great success and lots of fun out there. The high water just changes our tactics a little. I have been having the most success drifting my favorite gravel bars, with a 12' nymphing rig, 2 flies, and AB weight, and a double indicator. The double indicator is for a visual confirmation of the dead drift, which is the most important skill when trying to be successful with this rigging and technique.

The flies that I'm having the most success with are; San Juan worms in brown, rust, and flesh colors(live colors), also scuds; these I like the dead pattern, your classic pick scud works best.
Last but not least; I have had a little free time on the water, and have been experimenting with the "Big Buggs" (terrestrial patterns), and to my surprise, been having some success. As the temperatures have not reached triple digits yet, the cicada's themselves, have not yet made an appearance. But this early success coupled with the already high water flows, may mean a banner "big bug" season for The Ferry in 2011.

Until next time, always remember to keep that tip up, and may all your lines be tight'

A special thanks the Kuo family; Kane, Amy, Sammy, Kay-Kay, and Kane's brother Eric who on the first drift with the nyphing rig explained above, caught this FAT 21'' female (shown in two pictures above).

Mick Lovett

M.C.O.

For More Details, Visit Home at http://www.LeesFerryFlyFishing.com

2011-06-09T09:45:00.002-07:00

Hello all my fellow fishers,

This is a client I had the pleasure of fishing with on May, 26th 2011. Keith Ohrstrom with a beautiful 19'' male (top) caught with a 12' nymphing rig, on a favorite drift of mine. And a fat 18'' female (bottom) also caught drifting a deep nymphing rig. It was a great trip, thanks again to Keith.

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2011-05-03T10:38:00.003-07:00

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Here is a group I fished with May 1, 2011, Les Roberts (bottom) with a big male he caught on the midging rig, (zebra midge), his son Cole (middle) with a fat 16'' female also on a zebra midge, and Garrett (top) with a fat 15'' once again, with the midgeing rig and a zebra midge.

May is here, which means a new spring month, filled with great fishing, fair weather and of course great people to share it with.

The midges are out in full force, which means lost of feeding, especially in the shallow runs, and Eddie seams. As I have mentioned in previous posts; the fish are really healthy and full of energy. May has brought a new water flow and in turn good fishing. Much the same as April, we are having the best success with my midgeing rig, and size 16, and size 18, zebra midge patterns of various colors, from your standard black & silver, to one of my own ties, purple & silver, and everything in between. Its all about the midge right now, but there are still some fish out there willing to eat a San Juan worm, or scud, in live colors, and of course the egg patterns for another weeks or two, when the last of the spawners finish for the year.

Looking forward to another great month on the Ferry, so if I can be of service please feel free to contact me at anytime. Thanks again to all who came and enjoyed the Ferry with me so far this year. Tight lines to all, and always remember "keep that tip up".

Mick Lovett

2011-05-03T10:26:00.002-07:00

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Here is a Father and son trip that I had the pleasure of being a part of on April 30, 2011, Greg Crenshaw (top right) with a big male he caught on the midging rig, (red zebra midge) and his father Scott Crenshaw (bottom left) with a FAT 17'' female, also caught using the midging rig, this one on a purple zebra midge.

2011-05-03T09:18:00.003-07:00

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Hello to all my fellow fishers out there,

Sorry its been so long, I am a one man show at the moment. With that being said; I will do my best to stay up to date, from this point forward. April was a good fishing month for Lee's Ferry, she got to show her true colors all month, the fish are in beautiful condition, lots of size variation and every fish is healthy and full of energy. Here are a couple of gentleman I fished with on April 26, 2011, Steve Obee (top left) with a beautiful 19'' rainbow he caught on his first cast of the day, and his friend Rick (bottom right) with another beautiful rainbow, this one 18''.

2011-04-02T19:16:00.003-07:00

Hello Everyone,

Just wanted to let you all know that the fishing is good the weather is fair, and we are having a lot of fun. Here is a couple I had the pleasure of fishing with on March 23, 2011. Steve Helerman (left) with a 19'' female rainbow, caught that one using the midging rig (details in previous post). Loretta Helerman (right) with 17'' male rainbow, a little roughed up from his recent spawning, caught that one drifting a full 9' nymphing rig from the boat. Thanks again to the Helermans.

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Spring is here

2011-03-28T10:22:00.003-07:00

Hello all my fellow fishers out there, I had the great pleasure of fishing with Geza "The Big Cheese" Kmetty and crew earlier this month. This is Mr. Kmetty to the left holding a FAT 16" Lee's Ferry rainbow, one of many he caught that beautiful day. We had a great trip, nice spring weather and plenty of good action. My last report spoke a little about my midging rig, now I would like to touch on it a little more in detail as it was the key rig for this trip. The midging rig is designed for a suspended presentation instead of a, from bottom up presentation. Basically its a mixture of a dry-drop and full nymphing rig, I use a pulsa indicator where you would put the dry, and 4-6 feet below that a size 16 tungsten beaded zebra midge, then 18-24 inches below that a second midge, size 16 or 18 tungsten bead as well. The key to this rig is that you make sure you use tippet for the whole rig so there is no tapered leader below the indicator. Midge patterns of any type will work just as long as they are tungsten beads and in the correct sizes. Spring is beautiful at Lee's Ferry, the river banks are turning that beautiful emerald green as we speak, the weather is warming by the day, the midge hatches are getting bigger by the day, its time to shake that cabin fever and come join me on the pursuit for the wild Lee's Ferry rainbows. If I can be of service please feel free to contact me at anytime. Thanks again to Geza and crew. Mick Lovett For More Details, Visit Home at http://www.LeesFerryFlyFishing.com

Spring is comming fast, bring on the midges

2011-03-07T09:17:00.002-07:00

Hello everyone, sorry it's been so long since my last report, its been a wild start to the new year, as some of you may know, my father Jon "Rocky" Lovett passed away on January 15, 2011. I want to start by saying, the business is still operating.

I have been on the water pretty regular and the fishing is getting better and better everyday. The midge hatches are getting to be bigger and bigger, and as soon as the winter weather breaks, and the nights stay above 50 degrees, the midges will come out in full force and mark the beginning of the great spring fishing.

The fish are still in great health coming out of winter and are already looking for their spring midge feast.

I have been catching fish with a couple different techniques; of course the standard nymphing rig, the midging rig, and have had good success as well with a dry-dropper rig in curtain places.

San Juan worms in live colors, zebra midges, the occasional scud in live colors, and of course egg patterns in multiple colors are all producing fish.

The spawn is still going, as it will until usually the month of May. Spring is a great time to come to Lee's Ferry, the canyon is exceptionally beautiful this time of year, the slopes along the river are already turning green, and the Tamerisk trees have started to bloom.

I encourage you come see M.C.O. for a great time, and the thrill of chasing the beautiful, wild rainbows of the Colorado river.

Look forward to meeting and fishing with you all, thanks again, and as always keep your rod tip up....Mick Lovett-owner/operator, M.C.O.

For More Details, Visit Home at http://www.LeesFerryFlyFishing.com

2011-01-02T18:36:00.002-07:00

Sorry everyone, my pictures just came through the email this evening. So here it is 16'' Brown. Caught this one on a Chocolate San Juan worm.

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Winter means NO Crowds and the "Spawn" is here!

2011-01-02T09:50:00.004-07:00

Hello my fellow fishers, its winter time, the mighty Colorado is quit and as peaceful as it gets. The spawn has been going for about a month now, I know its hard to believe but they started earlier this year and we have been seeing some BIG fish on beds. I had a cancellation the other day, so I went out and fished the day on my own, for me it was one of my most memorable days, I caught my first German brown (16'') at Lee's Ferry. He was mixed in among the rainbows in full spawning colors. I fished for about 4 hours and landed about a dozen fish. The drifting is good, most wading is good, sight fishing the reds is good, the fish are taking egg patterns, San Juan worms (in live colors), and of course the ol' zebra midge, with the occasional scud mixed in. This is one of my favorite times of the year to be out, so if you don't mind a little cold and would like to fish Lee's Ferry, this is the time. Contact us if we can be of service. Thank You: Mick Lovett

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Can you say 18 incher

2010-11-09T09:25:00.002-07:00

Chris Rich, With another nice rainbow caught Nov. 1st. The fish seem to be settling in to the high winter flows. They have been taking natural colored worms, Crystal flash midges, zebra midges, egg patterns and some scuds in live colors.

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Another big bow

2010-11-09T09:14:00.002-07:00

Steve Bloom, With a nice,healthy rainbow caught this month.

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nov. show off blog

2010-11-09T09:08:00.002-07:00

Chris Rich, Caught this awesome rainbow on Nov.1 on a sanjaun worm.

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10/26/2010 fishing

2010-10-26T20:33:00.002-07:00

Hey My Friends, Sorry it has been so long since I have given any updates on the fishing. Actually things have not changed since my last report. By the way this picture is of Elliot Noll with a nice fat 16 inch he caught on a tan sanjaun worm last Saturday 10/23/2010. The fishing is a 5 on the scale of 1 to 10. The trout are more active in the deeper water so wade deep and bring your 200 grain sink tip. When nymphing use the infamous black zebra midge and when stripping the sink tip use a olive woolly bugger with flashabou or crystal flash. Some of the guys have been drifting from the boat and doing pretty well again using a tan or brown worm and a size 16 zebra midge. I have been seeing more and more scuds in the river lately for those that don't know what a scud is its a fresh water shrimp. Try them in live colors such as tan, olive or grey size 12 or 14. Don't forget the first of November the water will be returning to normal flows and will be washing tons of food into the river or at leased perceived food if anything like last year the fish will be gorging. I talked to one of my good friends and client Chris Rich today and we were reminiscing about last year Nov, 1st and his words were I caught a fish almost every cast. one after another. So get up here when you can and give me a call if I can be of service. Your humbled guide and friend. Rocky

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10/5/2010 fishing report

2010-10-05T08:42:00.002-07:00

Hello everyone, The fishing has slowed back to normal from off the hook in the first part of September. Fishing is still pretty good and the rainbows are fat and feisty almost all of them jump up out of the water at leased once and we are still catching fish in the 20 inch range. We have been getting a little rain lately but other than that the weather has been great. The fly of choice lately has been a rust colored san jaun worm, second would be the zebra midge,third live colored scuds. We have been catching a few big fish on a olive flashabu bugger and a 200 gran sink tip. I wanted to show you one of them but I have not received the picture in time but maybe next week. Drifting from the boats has been working very well using the standard nymphing rig. The fishing pressure has been very low maybe 5 to 10 boats in the 15 miles of river and 10 is on Saturdays. So come on up and enjoy the most beautiful place on earth and feel the serenity of the canyon. Oh also catch a few feisty bows while your here. If I can be of service to you give me a call. Rocky Lovett

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2010-09-26T18:45:00.000-07:00

For MoEnvironmental Assessment (EA) for proposed alternatives to Mechanical Removal (MR) of Rainbow Trout (RBT)

1. The non native fish (NNF) control process should be (adjusted, amended, revised, modified, broadened, expanded, reinterpreted) to consider the status, i.e. current population, condition, carrying capacity, and trends of the targeted native fish (NF) before implementing any considered NNF control action.
Existing agreements/opinions between BOR and USFWS among other agencies require mandatory NNF control. This requirement is incorporated in a conservation measure to reduce the numbers of NNF. The current determination to implements NNF control is based on the (numbers, population, relative abundance) of NNF without considering the status of the target NF. A decision process that ignores countervailing information is arguably faulty and flawed. This produces difficult to support positions that confound common sense and undermine reasonable support for actions, including mechanical removal or other options for NNF control.
This problem of making decisions in a knowledge vacuum is compounded by the present status of the hump back chub (HBC). For reasons that are either speculative or unknown the present HBC population has risen to a level where the Biological Modeling Summary mentioned in #2 below includes the statement that 75% of the science participants accepted that “It is not likely that the Lower Colorado River (LCR) can support a much larger population of humpback chub, even if all predators (are) removed because little excess food production is available.”
The (mechanism, means) must exist in some form to review within the existing agreements/opinions the current situation to accomplish an integration of the relevant conditions of both NNF and NF before implementing any action for NNF control. The initiation and completion of this process should precede any components of the steps that are being presently being considered in the EA. The failure to address this present inconsistency erects a barrier making support from Tribal and other stakeholder interests for NNF control actions difficult to obtain.

2. The implementation of any proposed NNF control actions above Lee's Ferry should be deferred until the completion of the Grand Canyon Monitoring & Research Center (GCMRC) study "Detection of Rainbow Trout Movement from the Upper Reaches of the Colorado River below Glen Canyon Dam". The proposed GCMRC budget for FY2011 contains $437,000 and for FY 2012 contains $459,000 for these studies.
The "2010 Biological Modeling Summary by USGS/GCMRC, dated June 24, 2010 (BMS) presented a number of summary statements to which a "…subjective proportional level of certainty was assigned…to provide some relative quantification of the level of certainty knowledgeable scientists can assign to the conclusions". Among the scientists participating there was acceptance that most of the RBT were spawned at Lee's Ferry. However, at present this is and will remain only conjecture until the actual science is done as proposed. The expenditure of nearly one million dollars and potentially more beyond 2012 is an indicator and a validation of the existence of sufficient uncertainty over NNF fish movement below Lee's Ferry before initiating control actions in the absence of a catastrophic event affecting NF.

3. Without the completion of A & B the implementation of any NNF control actions attempting to depress or control NNF reproduction by altering dam flows or redd related actions should be deferred. A & B are integral to making an informed science/management decision for the reasons stated above.
The BMS referred to in #2 includes a number of summary statements related to the effectiveness or outcome of dam flow and/or redd actions. The level of certainty of effectiveness was 50% for reducing predation pressure on humpback chub by removal of downstream migrants, 30% by altering ramping rates to disadvantage rainbow trout eggs, and 50% by altering ramping rates to reduce juvenile recruitment to the adult population.
In addition there was universal agreement of 100% that "When numbers of rainbow trout eggs or larvae are reduced at Lee's Ferry then survivorship of the remaining individuals increases, i.e. compensatory response.” This results in a conclusion that there is a 50% or less likely hood that any of the above actions will be effective and regardless of the actions the RBT numbers will increase to compensate for any decrease resulting from the actions. An unfortunate consequence from these actions could be Tribal reliance and agreement on a set of actions only to be confronted by their failure which would then be used as a rational to justify the resumption of MR.

4. The utilization of some combination of a rearing pond/hatchery operation for supplemental introductions of NF HBC should be a component of any NNF control plan and any NF conservation measure. Up to the present there have been a number of actions, studies, activities projects, etc. in support of HBC. However, few if any of them have directly produced with certainty any HBC. They have functioned on the hope that by taking a peripheral action or creating a certain condition that perhaps the status, population, and distribution of HBC would improve.
There are several rearing pond options available or being proposed that will produce transplantable or translocatable HBC. These ponds can be stocked with a combination of fingerlings from either Dexter and/or the LCR. The use from a combination of these sources removes any genetic issues. The rearing ponds will provide HBC of a sufficient size to reduce predation and can be used to enhance or expand existing HBC locations. Grand Canyon National Park Service is developing a plan for the Colorado River mainstream and tributaries that requires a source of HBC for installing in a number of locations. By only installing the HBC outside of the LCR, except in the event of a severe decline or catastrophic event, GCMRC studies in the LCR can continue and any potential conflicts with the Environmental Species Act or other regulations can be avoided.
There is budget money available to implement a rearing pond project. The proposed FY 2011 GCMRC budget redirects $600,000 from the NNF Suppression Contingency Fund to the Experimental Fund. Considering the apparent current status of the HBC and in light of #1, #2, and #3 above those funds would not be required in FY2011 and should be available to initiate rearing ponds. re Details, Visit Home at http://www.LeesFerryFlyFishing.com

9/21/2010 fishing talk/report

2010-09-21T13:54:00.005-07:00

Hello My Friends and Fellow Fishers, The tricky trout are starting to move out into the deep,that is the ones who want to bite anyway. Their is a reason for this but in short its the steady flows. So we have been having fun with it and using all different tactics in our creel to catch them awesome critters. We might start the day wading the riffles, then strip some buggers and end with fishing a size 20 midge in one of the many eddies stacked with fat bows. If one is quite for a second you can hear them smacking on those midges. HUNDREDS OF THOSE WHITE MOUTHS. The weekends have been a little busy,but still plenty of room to fish.The rest of the week is just right and the weather has been great, cool in the morning,warm in the afternoon.The trout are in great shape, most all of them jump,role,speed to mid channel, you just keep those fingers out of the way from that reel handle

and keep your tip high and enjoy the show. I know you are reading this and saying sounds too good to be true,but I just call what it is TOO COOL. Rocky here, see you out there and if I can be of service give me a call I would love to speak with you For More Details, Visit Home at http://www.LeesFerryFlyFishing.com

9/10/2010 plea for support

2010-09-10T10:38:00.002-07:00

Hello friends of Lees Ferry, Lees Ferry needs your support. The Lees Ferry/Marble Canyon fishing and economic interest group has prepared and proposed elements with the intent of replacing the Bureau Of Reclamations actions under consideration. The BOR actions will be detrimental to our fishery, in my opinion. So what we are asking is for you to send e-mails to Dennis Kubly dkubly@usbr.gov with a copy sent to John Jordan jcjordan1@cox.net . Please state your support for LF trout fishery and opposition to any detrimental actions to that fishery and request that the Elements proposed by the LF/MC Fishing and economic interest group be included in the final environmental assessment. We need a second e-mail stating the importance and uniqueness in AZ. of the LF fishery and thanking them for their commitment to the fishery. Request their support for the Elements proposed by the LF/MCFandEIG to the extent that it does not conflict with their position as a State agency. Send to Mike Senn msenn@azgfd.gov and a copy to John Jordan jcjordan1@cox.net 1-602-840-4224 or1-208-634-8212 Thanks Rocky For More Details, Visit Home at http://www.LeesFerryFlyFishing.com

9/7/2010 fishing report

2010-09-07T13:14:00.002-07:00

Hey my friends,Can you all say OFF THE HOOK. If so that would explain the fishing this month. The weather is perfect, the trout are fat and happy, the water level makes it possible to wade all the good bars, the eddies are full of fish. If you are quiet one can hear them slurping. Just as it was in late spring its all about the midges. Size is important color is not and dredging the bottom is not necessary, so what that means is use a dry,dropper rig or get rid of the dry and replace with a pinch on indicator and use two bead head midges and you have what I call a midging rig. This rig has been very effective. I still have days available so give me a call and we will go catching. This is a good time to make a fly fishing buddy out of your wife, best friend, son, daughter or girlfriend anyone you would like to make into a life long fly fisher. If their first time fly fishing is successful they are hooked. Hope to hear from you soon. Rocky

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8/19/2010

2010-08-19T12:31:00.002-07:00

Wow, Another nice, big, fat rainbow. This is Adam Weeden. All these fish were caught in August. Come and get you some. Rocky

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show off report 8/19/2010

2010-08-19T12:22:00.003-07:00

This is Phil Lane with a fatty.

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fishing report 8/17/2010

2010-08-17T16:09:00.002-07:00

Hey everyone, Here is a picture of a great young man named Christopher Lane with a beautiful Lees Ferry rainbow. He and his father Phil Lane came and spent a couple of days taking advantage of the great fishing we have been experiencing. I think they caught fish just about every way one can catch fish at Lees Ferry what a great time we had. Thanks guys.Well I expect more of the same for the rest of August. September fishing is going to be great because after high flows for the summer and the fact that when they lower the flows for the fall

the fish will be condensed in the riffles. Those first two weeks of September are always good. Also another good thing that will be happening is four days of steady low flows on and around Labor day weekend. Last year we were having 100 fish days during this time. So don`t miss out on this great time to be out on the Ferry. Rocky For More Details, Visit Home at http://www.LeesFerryFlyFishing.com

2010-08-02T17:09:00.002-07:00

Hello my fellow fly fishers,
Here is proof Lee's Ferry still has BIG beautiful rainbows. This is a picture of a 22" male, caught by Brandon Weeden. We caught this beauty drifting San Juan worms, from the boat. The cicada action is winding down a bit, but still productive enough to keep you in the action all day. Wading and nymphing is very productive in a few choice spots. When selecting a spot to wade, look for Sharp drop offs. One such spot is the top of 8 mile bar, first thing in the morning, while the water is rising. The fish are fat and sassy, they have lots of food. The lighting in the canyon is beautiful and the weather has been just right. The number of fishermen on the river is very low, and the fishing is good. People always ask what the best time of year to be here is, well this is that time of year, July and August, so in short the only thing missing is you! Give us a call if we can be of service. Rocky & Mick

For More Details, Visit Home at http://www.LeesFerryFlyFishing.com

July 14, 2010

2010-07-14T10:50:00.003-07:00

Hello all my fellow fishers, this is a picture of a beautiful fat female rainbow in her summer colors. Kay Flanagan caught this beautiful fish on a size 8 cicada pattern. The fishing at Lee's Ferry is as good as it gets, as far as dry fly fishing goes. We start the day fishing cicada's and end the day fishing cicada's from the boat. I know most of us would rather fish dry flies, but right now all methods are working well. The weather has been fairly warm, but we have had the pleasure of cloud cover in the afternoon. Hardly any wind to speak of, basically perfect conditions. We still have slots open, so those of you that can get way for a couple days, this would be the perfect time to do so. In my opinion this is the very best fishing Lee's Ferry has to offer the size, numbers, and weather conditions all coming together for us to take advantage of, and have a great time on the ferry. If we can be of service, please contact us. Rocky & Mick

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Fishing Report July 2nd 2010

2010-07-02T08:43:00.003-07:00

Hello all my fellow fishers,
July is here, the cicadas are singin, the water is up under the trees, and the trout are taking the "big bugs". We have been throwing cicadas at the banks for the last two weeks, and have been fairly successful, but now that we are in July the high water is here and we expect the fishing to pick up. It always does. We are now fishing strictly from the boat. The weather has been calm and warm, with some occasional afternoon sprinkles. So when you come bring a big hat, sunscreen, shorts, and your sandals. 6 and 7 weight rods can be an arm saver, for those of you that have them. We are using 9' 3x leaders, and sizes 6-8 cicada patterns, in black, or chocolate brown. For those of you that have fly shops close by, don't be afraid to bring a selection of cicadas. The action is fast and furious, so those of you that want to fish 3 people to a boat, is a good time to do so, because by the time you have sat in the shade and had a cold drink, it will be your turn again. This is the only time of year we encourage 3 anglers to a boat. Deep nymphing, eddie fishing, and streamers, are all tactics that will also produce good numbers, but why when you can be throwing the "big bugs" from the boat. So hope to here from you soon, and those of you that are already booked, we are looking forward to fishing with you. Rocky and Mick

For More Details, Visit Home at http://www.LeesFerryFlyFishing.com

June 7th, 2010

2010-06-08T11:42:00.003-07:00

Hello everyone, Well I have some great new! I herd the first few cicadas buzzing along the river yesterday. I couldn't resist, I just had to try it. So I tied on a home tied cicada pattern and a #18 zebra midge 20'' below and started pounding the shoreline, within 30 minutes, I had my first taker! I had 20 fish break the surface to take my "big bug" in only about 4 hours. This picture is of the biggest, she is 18'' and FAT, got her on the dropper. As my father had said the record breaking high temps we have been having this week have really got the cicada season coming quick! Make some room in the schedule and get here for this! The rest of this month and all of July, this is what we wait all year for, this is the 10 fishing on the 1-10 scale, and we are almost there! If my father or I can be of service, give us a call. Thanks everyone, see you soon.
Mick Lovett

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6/7/2010fishing report

2010-06-07T09:14:00.003-07:00

Hello My Friends, This is a picture of Danial Doolittle and myself with a fat 18 incher he caught with a size 18 lazier midge. She fought her tail off. She jumped and done summer salts in the air it was awesome. This time of year 90% of the rainbows jump at least once and know matter the size they all fight very hard. They are fat and feisty,lots of fun. The best news this week is that the weather has been hot and dry. That means the cicadas are going to be here sooner than later. Last year we started throwing the big bugs on June, 23 2009. Speaking of last year I filmed a T.V. show on 6/29/2009 as it turned out it was the best day of catching the whole season. My educated guess is cicada season will start any day and last thru August. By the way one will be able to see a 30 minute video of the awesome action we have at the Ferry during cicada season right hear on my web sight. So look for it real soon. The fishing on the river right now is as good as it gets as far as the midge fishing goes. I say its a 9 on the 1 to 10 scale. You guys always ask me which is the best time to fish the Ferry, well it is now. From today thru August. For thoughs of you that know me ,know I Would not write this way unless I could back it up. So get up hear as soon as you can and test us out. I look forward to it. Rocky your fishing buddy. , Visit Home at http://www.LeesFerryFlyFishing.com

Fishing Report May 30th

2010-05-30T18:43:00.003-07:00

Hello my fellow fishers,
Here is a picture of one of my clients, Bill Brennan with a nice 17" Lee's Ferry rainbow. The fishing is about as good as it gets at the Ferry right now. As far as sub-surface fishing goes. The good fishing will continue through June. Towards the end of the month the cicada fishing should begin, and the fishing will be a 10 on the 1-10 scale for the month of July and into August. The fishing right now is about an 8 on the 1-10 scale. The eddie's are full of slurping rainbows, and the riffles are stacked with trout. Today I was on a bar and my client said "there must be 500 fish in a 25 yard walk along the bar". We caught several fish that were in the 18-22" range today. I had a beginner land 15 fish today, 3 of which were 18". We caught them with a full 9' nymphing rig, we caught them dry dropping, and we caught them on streamers. Its still pretty much about the midge patterns, but the tip of the week is to use live scud patterns for your bottom fly. So if we can be of service give us a call. See you soon, Rocky & Mick Lovett

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2010-05-17T08:46:00.002-07:00

Hello all my fellow fishers. The fish are happy, the midges are hatching, and the weather is beautiful. Here is a picture of Charles Loepkey, and a beautiful 17" wild rainbow he caught first thing in the morning. He proceeded to catch one fish after another from the same spot, on the same flies until about 2:00pm. Jim Clifford is Charles's son-in-law, he did all the moving around up and down the bar, and managed to catch plenty of fish as well. At 2:00pm we went to another spot and swung some woolly buggers, and caught a few more fish. I caught an 18" on an olive semi seal leach. That concluded the day, and what a great 2 days it was, fishing with two of my good friends. Charles is 86 years young, and I admire his energy, passion and devotion to fishing and life in general. He has taught me a lot of things about fly fishing. He tied his version of a zebra midge, he used an olive bead on a #16 hook, black thread, and white wire, and put a hurtin' on the fish with that fly, both days of the trip. Its all about the midge, experiment with all the midge patterns you can, and be sure to adjust your leader length and weight as the water level increases. Remember just because the fish stop breaking the surface does not mean they have stopped feeding. Hope to see you out there, and be sure to give us a call if we can be of service.
Rocky & Mick Lovett

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2010-05-06T07:21:00.003-07:00

Hello my fellow fly fishers. As I said before I am starting to see lots of spiders, moths, and ants. The cicadas will be next but we have to hit that 100 degree mark in canyon first. As for the midges they are here and hatching in a BIG way. I had the pleasure of fishing with Tad McKnight on May 1st, it was nothing short of a great day, the fish were happy and on the feed, we landed so many fish that I am going to say its the best day of fishing I have had in ten years. We used the rig I call "the midging rig" its a variation of a dry dropper rig except I dont use a dry fly, I put a pich on indicator where the dry would be so that I can drop two midges below. The weather is perfect concidering its spring, after this last cold front we have had a week of warm weather and only the ocational afternoon wind, the midge hatches will continue and be on a large scale from here on out. Remember the warmer the weather, the better the catching. Hope to here from you soon. Rocky Lovett

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4/20/2010 fishing report

2010-04-20T13:29:00.003-07:00

Hi all,The first thing that comes to mind is what great weather we have been having!. The fishing has been getting better by the day.I am starting to see the ants ,spiders,moths,lizards etc.active soon to follow hoppers and other terrestrials. Around the 100 degree mark the cicada.I cant wait. But until then we focus on the midge patterns. Just about all the fish we have been catching are coming on some form of midge pattern. The zebra midge is just as good as anything else but try everything one never knows you might find the next hot fly. My clients have caught a fair amount of fat 16 to 19 inch rainbow of late. I am still seeing some fish on redds spawning shallow and deep so keep an eye out for that. Same advice throw everything at them when you find them on redds not just egg patterns. Well I hope to hear from you soon remember this the hotter the temperature is the hotter the catching is . Rocky Lovett

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4/9/2010 fishing report

2010-04-09T15:20:00.002-07:00

Hey my friends, My interpretation of this pectrogliph which can be found on the river at mile nine is bighorn sheep make the would go around. Hows that for all of you sheep hunters? Now about the fishing. Do to cold nights and weird weather patterns we have had very little bugs as in fish food which has made for tough catching. I say catching because the fishing is great. The day temps have been warming up near 70 degrees. To adapt we have been swinging and then stripping streamers woolly buggers to be exact,olive with cristeal flash or flashabou. I expect as soon as the night temps start to stay above 45 or 50 degrees the midge hatches will start to be more prolific and the trout will move to the shallows and resume more vigorous feeding habits. Last night was a bit warmer. Don't get me wrong we are still catching a fair number of fish. But be prepared to use all of the tactics in your arsenal. One might start with a dry dropper in the morning then a nymphing rig in the mid day and finish with a streamer and heavy sink tip. The tip for the week is cover lots of water and fish deep.I would like to give a special thanks and appreciation to Sir John Matox, Mr. John Breznak and Dave Cohon for their friendship, faith and encouragement. THANKS GUYS Rocky Lovett

For More Details, Visit Home at http://www.LeesFerryFlyFishing.com

3/29/2010 fishing report

2010-03-29T08:47:00.006-07:00

Hello everyone, When the weather is good and the river level is down for the afternoon the fishing is good. As you can see one of my longtime clients Tim Flanagan caught a beautiful,big brown trout, but he wasn't the only one. Daniel Huthsinger caught a 17 inch German brown seven days later. He was caught off of a spawning bed,so lets hope it is a trend. I have heard of three other browns netted by other guides. Now about the catching of the rainbows. The key word is midges. They are taking midges over anything else try to use all different patterns that the fish may not see very much. I have been experimenting with several different colors of bead head midges. I found so far purple has been working very well. A dry dropper rig or a midging rig has been working the best lately,remember alot of the fish will be suspended while feeding on midge emergers. The places to look for are seems and slow moving water. You may or may not see trout working the surface, but they are there. When all else fails break out the sink tip and swing,then stripe a olive woolly bugger. The spawn is winding down ,but you may still see a few trout on redds. If you do chocolate worms have been the Best for me, but try every thing you never know what they will take. I will see you out there ,until then good fishing. Rocky Lovett

For More Details, Visit Home at http://www.LeesFerryFlyFishing.com

3/8/2010 Fishing Report

2010-03-08T12:44:00.004-07:00

Hello My Fellow Fly Fishers,
To start with the weather is great, today its around 60 degrees and the lows are staying above 40 degrees. 45-50 degree lows are the magic number, when this happens the midge and black fly hatches will be more prolific, in short "lots of them". As always in the spring these short weather fronts, put a damper on the catching, but luckily only during the front. When the sun sun breaks out the fishing returns to normal.
Right now the catching in my opinion is a 5 or 6, depending on where your at on the river, and of course the weather.
Right now the fish are making more and more "redds" throughout the river, mostly in deep unwadable water. So to fish them you have to strategically anchor yourself, to make deep nymphing possible, or you can drift over them. All colors of eggs (in sizes #10 to #14), and a chocolate chenille worm, have been producing the best. A caution in anchoring is to not place your anchor where it can be drug through the "redds". For those of you who don't know the term "redd", it means the spawning bed of the rainbows.
Another thing I want to talk to you about this week is the surface action going on near the shores. Keep your eye out for fish breaking the surface, they are taking some adult midges, but most are right below catching emergers. A lot of the time they catch them right before they make it to the surface, and in returning downward cause the surface disturbance, I call "poping". The way to target these fish is the dry, dropper rig. Use any medium size dry, and drop a zebra midge 20-30" below, on 6x tippet. You can drift by them using your oars, or anchor where possible.
And of course nymphing the riffles is producing a few fish (spotty). Looking forward to seeing you or hearing from you soon.
Rocky Lovett
M.C.O.

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2/28/2010 fishing report

2010-02-28T12:35:00.003-07:00

Hi everyone, I am going to be short and sweet. The black fly and midge populations are way up compared to the past years . I myself have not seen so many fish popping the surface, up and down the river, so early in a long time. The other day we cast a dry, dropper rig, a big dry on top and a size #16 zebra midge about 24 to 30" below and did pretty well. All of this was done from the boat. We just looked for fish popping the surface ,basically in all the same places one would throw a cicada in the summer. We had alot of fun. Other than this refer to my last report. Give me a call. I would love to show you the river and how to fish it. Rocky Lovett.

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2010-02-07T13:43:00.002-07:00

Hello my fellow fishing persons, I have been out on the ferry a bit lately and the fishing has been good. We have been catching some real nice18 to 20 inch spawning males that are all decked out in there spawning colors. Also catching our average size of 15" trout and good numbers of them. The great thing is we have been able to catch them in all kinds of different methods which is always alot of fun. So I will list and explain each of the methods that are working in the order from best to good. Of course,sight fishing rainbows on the Redd's would be most anglers number one. My best tip for this is use one fly a roe colored glo bug or a rust Sanjaun worm,put a small stick on foam indicator at the end of your nine foot leader 5x. Where you would have already tied on a length of 5x tippet twice the length as the average depth of water you are fishing. Number two is what I call a midging rig. Lately on alot of bars where we are fishing after the water has come up. I see fish taking emergers they are not really taking dries but one would see a flash,splash,dorsal fin,tail or porpasing. The rig is the same as method one except use 6x tippet about 24 to 30 inches long and use a bead head midge pattern I've just been using a zebra. Third method is streamer fishing. we've been using a olive Crystal bugger. The secret here is the orvis depth charge sink tip line in the 150 grain. Finally the standard nymphing rig is always a deadly tactic on the Ferry. My tip here is make sure you adjust your weight as the water rises and when it falls. My standard rule is one should get a false strike every 4 to 6 dead drifts. So I don't care how you get out on the river just get here. If I can be of service to you give me a call I would love to share more with you. ROCKY LOVETT

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1/13/2010 fishing report

2010-01-13T16:30:00.003-07:00

Hello My Fellow Fisher folks, I have not been on the river much lately unfortunately. But I will tell you what I know. The rainbows are spawning in the deeper water mostly out in the river not in wadable waters. The way we take care of that is drift over them using a long heavy nymphing rig with a worm and egg pattern.The only trick hear is knowing where these areas are and using the perfect amount of weight. A valuable thing to know this time of year when you have that copper colored glare on the water is this. Use a black indicator its the best color for that glare. The fishing can be great in January. I remember last year around this time of the month me and my son Mick had a awesome day of catching doing just what I'm writing about. So I guess what I'm getting at is get out of the cabin get rid of the fever and get in on some good fishing, smell and feel the fresh air and catch some trout in some of the most spectacular scenery in the world. Hope to see you soon. Rocky Lovett For More Details, Visit Home at http://www.LeesFerryFlyFishing.com

12/02/09 fishing report

2009-12-03T08:19:00.002-07:00

Hello my friends, I have been hunting a lot lately and I am happy to report my son Mick Jay Lovett has harvested a very nice mule deer. It is 27'' wide, 5 and one half inch bases and It has 7 points on each side. This deer is a nontypical he has lots of character. We had lots of fun hunting him. By the way my son Mick will be joining the M.C.O. team as of now. Mick has been raised in Page fishing lake Powell and Lees Ferry. He has hundreds of days on the waters and lots of great stories and experiences. I know he will be a great guide and a real asset to my team. I look forward to working with him. Another service we will be providing again in 2010 is back hauling. We are available to haul you and your kayak,canoe,float boat,tube, raft whatever will fit in our boats up to the dam or camp spot you wish. Most days at the time of your choice. So give us a call if you need a back haul. About the fishing it looks like the spawn is getting started. We have been catching some bigger mature males all decked out in there spawning colors and some fat, egg bearing females also. As you can see in the photo at the top left. Nymphing is still the game using natural colored worms, zebra midges and some scuds. The most important thing is to make sure your weight is correct. My general rule is every five dead drifts you should get a false strike. You set and their is nothing there it was just hitting the bottom. If this don't happen you do not have enough weight. Fishing is still good in the winter trout do not stop feeding because it is a little cold in the morning. The afternoons have been beautiful about 50 to 65 degrees that's perfect fishing weather so get out of the cabin already. Give us a call and lets go fishing. Until then good fishing hope to see you soon. Rocky Lovett

For More Details, Visit Home at http://www.LeesFerryFlyFishing.com

11/03/09 fishing report

2009-11-03T10:55:00.002-07:00

Hello my fellow fishers, I will say my last day out on the ferry was a 10 plus. That day was the first,11/01/09. My clients landed at least 50 trout by noon. The size varied from 10 to 19 inches. This is as good as it gets except for the cicada bit in July. We caught them on worms, scuds and zebra midges. The weather has been nice around 40 in the morning and up to 75 degrees in the day and then the fishing. The reason the fishing is so good is because we have gone back to normal fluctuating flows after two months of steady 10.000 cfs. . The situation is every day that goes by the flush of food for the fish gets less and less. Until it returns to normal and the fishing returns to normal also. So for those of you that can get away on short notice this is a great time to give me a call and set up a day or two on the river. I will be looking forward to hearing from you soon. The next happening you should be looking forward to is the spawn. We should start to see some deep water spawning this month and it will increase as the winter and spring come on. One fact that I would like to share is that the last two years spawn has been very productive. The best we have had in ten years. So I expect the same productive, wide spread spawning this year also. We have been seeing desert bighorn sheep on the river lately this is a picture of a ram one of my clients took. Thanks Frank. I hope to see you all soon. Rocky Lovett

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10/27/09 fishing report

2009-10-27T11:51:00.003-07:00

Hello everyone, I am still alive If you were wondering? I have been fishing alot this month and the catching has been good. The riffles are fishing pretty well using natural colored worms,live colored scuds and just about all colors of bead head midges. Drifting is working very well using the same flies. Make sure you have a long enough leader. The general rule is to have twice the length as the average depth of water you are fishing. As I always say do not forget to bring your sink tip and olive buggers this always works any time of the year. For those of you that are coming to Lees Ferry even if you are not fishing with us please feel free to call us with your questions at 928-645-2781.
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2009-10-08T15:38:00.002-07:00

Hello fellow fisherman, The water level is still the same, at a steady 10,000 cfs. So the fishing has not changed much since my last report. I have seen more scuds in the river than I have seen in a long time. Even tho the water isn't fluctuating we have been catching fish on live colored scuds, and natural colored San Juan worms. For those of you that can cast a long heavy sink tip line, olive woolybuggers are producing fish as well. It seems we are catching bigger fish using this method too. Places to use a woolybugger would be at the deepest portion of every riffle. Weather has been great, lots of sunshine, daytime temp 65-70 degrees still. The fishing pressure is almost non existent. So we hope to see you out there. For More Details, Visit Home at http://www.LeesFerryFlyFishing.com

2009-09-26T16:29:00.002-07:00

For More Details, Visit Home at http://www.LeesFerryFlyFishing.com

Happy fall everyone, The weather is awesome nice and cool in the morning and 80 degrees in the afternoon. Fishing is good also a 6 on the scale of 1 to 10. Not much has changed as far as how we are catching them. I have been using almost only midges except for the olive woolly bugger and sink tip gig. One thing that has helped us catch more trout this week was to fish some of the not so well known or fished spots such as sand beaches or small riffle spots. Again before you move on to the next bar. To add to your fish numbers make sure you hit the bottom deep end of every riffle with the heavy sink tip and a olive woolly bugger rig. Another method I follow this time of year is to try and stay in the sun as much as possible. The fish seem to be feeding better in the sun. Good fishing!

9/16/09 fishing report

2009-09-16T12:00:00.002-07:00

The first thought that comes to mind is WHAT GREAT WEATHER.The next is LETS GO FISHING. We have been doing pretty well wading the riffles using what I call a midging rig. Refer back to last weeks report to review how to rig the midging rig. Remember one can effectively fish 0 to 6 feet with this rig. Two tips are make sure you are getting long drag free drifts and be sure you to fish every line or lane that you can reach.Every foot from near to far. I see that the trout are not moving very far to take the fly you need to put it right in their face. Its all about the midges right now so use midges of all sizes,colors and shapes. Well I will be looking forward to fishing with you soon until then good fishing.

For More Details, Visit Home at http://www.LeesFerryFlyFishing.com

fishing report 9/10/09

2009-09-10T10:11:00.002-07:00

Hello everyone, The feel of fall is in the air. The temperature is perfect,water levels are perfect the catching is great. The only thing missing is you. The time to be at Lees Ferry is now.The fishing at every spot we try has been a 5 on a scale of 1 to 10.I have been using midges 100 percent of the time. Now here is the trick. I call it the midging rig. You tie on 40'' of 6x tippet,tie a size 16 zebra midge,add 22'' of 6x and then tie on a grey Cristal midge in a size 18 . If you feel you need some weight put it dead center between the zebra and your very small indicator. I use a pulsa pinch on. It will be put on the knot where you tied your 6x to your 5x leader.With this rig you can effectively fish anywhere from 0 to 5' of water. Try it and let me know how it works for you. I know I always say this, but a heavy sink tip line and a olive woolly bugger has been working very well. Have one rigged up and try it on the deep end of every spot you fish. I have my clients do this after were done fishing the bar and before we move on to the next spot. Last week this tactic produced three 18''ers in three consecutive cast. So give us a call and come see us. I look forward to fishing with. Until then good fishing! Rocky For More Details, Visit Home at http://www.LeesFerryFlyFishing.com

9/3/09 fishing report

2009-09-03T14:03:00.002-07:00

Hello everyone, I was out on the river monday 9/1/09. The fishing was great. We started out nymphing with a size #16 zebera midge and a#18 creastal flash midge. That worked well but we soon got bored with that.I know your saying I would like to be bored nymphing at the Ferry. Ok we wanted to try somthing else. So we went to casting and blasting streamers a olive woollybugger to be exact.That worked really well. We caught a couple fat 18 inchers and a whole mess of fish. Drifting a deep nymphing rig is working also.Try a dry dropper along the grassy banks from a boat or wading.That sould be good. Well I will see you out there or you could give us a call and be out there with us. Good fishing! Rocky Lovett For More Details, Visit Home at http://www.LeesFerryFlyFishing.com

8/27/09 fishing report

2009-08-27T08:39:00.002-07:00

Hey everyone, It seems the cicadas have left us for the year. You can still catch a few trout casting to the banks.If you do try this method fish were you know there are fish year around. Like 14 mile,power lines,8mile places like that. We did real well nymphing from the boat Sunday 8/23/09. Use a 5x leader, 9ft. add 20 inches of tippet and put your weight there. Tie on two size 16 midges add your indicator and drift the long runs such as 14 mile,8mile ,3 mile and watch for those strikes. Wading is good while the water is rising use a scud or worm natural colors and a midge. Make sure you adjust your weight as the water rises also the general rule is to have twice the length of leader as the average depth of water you are fishing. That's from your indicator to the first fly. Try a terrestrial dry and a dropper a bead head midge of course in the morning while the water is rising. Spiders,ants, Beatles,hoppers and dry scuds all get washed into the water and hungry rainbows are looking for them. Now in September the river level will drop and that usually means really good fishing. So give us a call and book your trip today.Good fishing to you all and may I see you soon.

For More Details, Visit Home at http://www.LeesFerryFlyFishing.com

8/18/09 fishing report

2009-08-19T09:27:00.006-07:00

The circadas are quiet and all you hear is the river running and the dip splash of your guides oars. Your watching the big circada pattern but not really watching it because its so serene and beautiful in the canyon all of the sudden you hear set! set !You do. Your rod feels heavy.

A nice fat 16'' rainbow explodes into the air. Your heart is racing you have a big smile on your face. You get it landed you admire it as it swims from your hands now thats awesome you say aloud lets do it again Rocky says.

This is just one way to catch trout at Lees Ferry right now.

Nymphing a double midge rig works well also but don't dredge the bottom shorten your leader and use less weight. A dry dropper rig is a good way to go also. Always a sink tip line and a olive woolly bugger works at Lee's Ferry. Don't forget when the river levels drop September 1st the fishing will be very good for awhile and then will become good to fair until the spawn starts and the water levels rise again.

So give us a call at 1-800-533-7339

Rocky Lovett

07/21/09 Fishing Report

2009-08-18T19:56:00.001-07:00

07/21/09 Circadas are still singing away along the banks of the cool clear waters at Lee's Ferry. The eddies are full of hungery trout sipping midges and taking emergers, so stop when you get to one and put on a dropper. Nymphing deep with a worm and a zebra midge worked well this week . You can drift from a boat or wade the lower ends of the riffles. Again the over looked factor of the month is wading the long cobble bars and casting upsteam with a dry and a dropper. Don't forget one of my favorites is fishing the deep seams with a 200 grain sink tip and a olive wooly bugger. You folks that have trolling motors can hold on the seams longer and deeper. Make sure you are fishing as close to the bottom as possible. Have fun and be safe I hope to see you on the river. Rocky