new blog2

NEW Blog and Fishing Report Location Hey everyone, thanks so much for following the blog here for so long.  As many of you know, historically this was the #1 Yakima River Fishing Report blog for a long time!  We took our foot off the gas over the past...

Crane Flies and Terrestrials Hopper

        View this post on Instagram                    ...

thunder thighs hopper in rainbow trout

The fishing has been fabulous.  Big swift water during the heat of summer is a unique blessing that the Yakima River posesses, and it flows like no other western river. It's at this point in the summer however that the reservoirs feeding the Yakima River begin to get lower, warm...

Summer Stonefly Patterns for the Yakima River

The river is high, swift, and giving the trout escapment and reprieve from 100+ degree heat and the peak of the summer fishing pressure.  As many of you know, the Yakima River is a "flip flop" river and as a tailwater that feeds agriculture it runs very high during the...

Joe Rotter High Stick Nymphing Watermaster Yakima Canyon

The high water flows of summer that make the Yakima River unique are here to stay. The water is up, but clear and stable.  Thank goodness we get LOTS of water during the summer, as the heat wave underway is going to be hard on fish in some of the...

Lady Fly Fishing on a Guided Yakima River Trip

The cooler weather has the river in pristine condition with low and clear flows! We are seeing Golden Stoneflies, PMD's, Caddis, and a few Salmon Flies are still kicking around. As the river drops, the trout are likely to begin looking for dry flies as many of the spring food...

Super Simple Nymph Rig Diagram Tip Topper

Before you scroll down and click the video, consider these thoughts. Your setup should be a joy to fish and cast, this rig does, and in order for you to get good at drifting and presenting a fly you need REPS.  Many reps.  Lots of casts, thousands of drifts.  An...

PMD Mayfly

The Yakima is in great shape, and looks like it is going to stay that way for the next 5-7 days. The weather looks decent, with some wind but no major rainstorms or enough heat to muddy things up. Plan your trip here with confidence this week! Changing...

Caddis Hatch Drift Boat Yakima Canyon

The hatch continues.... big emergence of Caddis over the weekend spurred by 90 degree heat actually made for some tougher dry fly fishing. We really had to hunt for very sneaky risers tight the shore in the shadows. The PMD (Pale Morning Dun) hatch has been consistent each day and...

Mother's Day Caddis Hatch Yakima Canyon

The Mother's Day Hatch blew its lid yesterday, and conditions are excellent!         View this post on Instagram        ...

Salmon Fly Hatching and Caddis Riding On Top

While we wait for the Mother's Day Caddis hatch to absolutely blow up, which should happen in the next 2 weeks the Salmon Fly Nymphs are currently migrating toward shore to hatch.  These big nymphs live in swift water and crawl out onto the shore at night, undergo a metamorphosis...

Joe Rotter Hooked Up Using TJ Hooker Fly

Last week we reviewed "What Big River Trout Actually Eat" with a video featuring crawfish, stonefly nymphs, and sculpin.  This week we want to teach you a really great way to imitate these critters that live on and near the bottom and show you a fly that can do it all...

sonic spey and hohbo steelhead snake river

I realize this is techy stuff for many of you, but I am certain that some of this information will be incredibly helpful to a few of you hoping to have a "one rod to rule them all" spey rod quiver for your Steelhead, Salmon, and Trophy Trout game.  If...

stonefly nymph deep cleaner

Trout are constantly hunting stonefly nymphs because they are big, protein packed, and available year-round in almost all western streams.  Stonefly nymphs spend 2-4 years as a nymph before migrating to the shoreline and hatching into an adult. Anglers should be well outfitted with a variety of sizes and colors...

Euro Leader Building Materials and ESN Leader

You can easily do better than a factory tied Euro Nymphing Leader. While these are a fine start as you are dipping into the sport, haha, it's easy to build a leader that is more effective and more fun to fish with.  Feel free to deviate as it makes sense...

yarndicator system new zealand strike indicator

  I have modified this rig over the years, but it's basically remained the same for the past 15.  I'll take shortcuts to shave time sometimes while I'm rigging up a client, but if I were fishing for a million bucks and need...

wading the yakima river canyon summer

With so many anglers jumping into "direct line nymphing" or Euro nymphing, also called about 10 other names, it feels like anglers are misunderstanding how strike indcators can be an advantage. Listen to this podcast and check out the video to learn more about using the right indicator, at the...

IMG_0259

Bogey (Nymph Ninja) and I got the chance to sneak out on the water before headed to work this morning. While the temps remained below freezing and we had to clear ice from the guides a handful of time we can both agree, time spent fishing is time well spent. ...

Joe Rotter Wade Fishing Late Fall November Euro Nymph

As the days get shorter, the bite window on the Yakima River shortens as well.  This works in the angler's favor! The best action of the day from now till ice-up, is between 12 pm and 4 pm. You won't miss much in the morning hours as the fish tend...

steve johnson trout spey yakima canyon wading

We are at the point in the year where covering lots of water becomes a disadvantage.  With 1400 trout per mile in the Yakima Canyon, try focusing your efforts on water that looks good and appears to hold trout because gues what; it is holding fish.  Work on being delicate...

wading drift boat riverside ruff fishalong

Conditions are excellent right now, especially for anglers hoping to have some DIY success here in the Yakima River Canyon. Flows are now quite low at 1,300 cfs versus July - August when the river runs at just over 4,000 cfs!  Right now it's fabulous wading with lots of easy...

Jensen Rotter Wade Fishing Nymphs in September ESN Kid Youth

Canyon Road is back open!  While the sky is hazy the Evan's Canyon Fire is finished and not producing any smoke. There are some fires further out in Eastern Washington that are sending smoke into the atmosphere so it's a bit hazy.  Fishing today was VERY good!  Boats are back...

max netting fish drift boat yakima river guide trip

Flows and Weather Links: Current River Flows at Umtanum Flow Forecast at Umtanum (this is one step above fortune telling, often not accurate!) Weather in Selah, WA Suggested Flies for This Week: Hoppers: Shop ALL Hopper Patterns  ...

drowning hopper

Flashback Friday // Hopper Tip Circa 2013 Flows and Weather Links: Current River Flows at Umtanum Flow Forecast at Umtanum (this is one step above fortune telling, often not accurate!) Weather in Selah, WA Suggested Flies for This Week: Hoppers:...

hopper fishing

At this point in the year TROUT HAVE SEEN SOME FLIES!  Try fishing hoppers that are very realistic rather than just big attractors like Chubby Chernobyls, PMX's, Stimulators, and misc. foam creations.   We are sort of at a turning point in the summer where most of the aquatic...

bob and eric yakima river drift boat trip

The river swelled up to our high, but typical, summertime flows this past week. For several days the fishing was fairly tough on both dry flies and nymphs with big particulate, sticks, and vegetation floating in the water column.  Things are now beginning to settle out and we're back on...

creek fishing ruff reds fly shop

This river has some attitude!  Flows are high, swift, and relatively cool in comparison to most big rivers across the west today. The Yakima River is special and unique due to the fact the river flows are very high in July and August when trout need water the most.  Right...

Euro Nymphing Tip  All About the DIP_Moment

High flows make for tough wade fishing, but it makes for GREAT drift boat and hopper fishing!  The Yakima River is running at summer level and "bankful' which means a lightweight wade fisherman might be whisked away in waist deep water!  There are LOTS of tubers and rafters on the...

kelly and jacob rotter creek fishing ruff 2

River flows will now make wade fishing fairly challenging on the Yakima from the top down. Whether you are in Cle Elum, or the Lower Canyon it's going to be tough on foot without a boat to access good bars and slots along the side.  Big flows make big fish...

woman and man ruff wading yakima canyon

The river has bumped up in flow to make it a tad more difficult to find good wading water.  Be selective about where you fish on foot, and plan to "dry wade" up from the shoreline with drifts at your feet.  This is a great strategy in high water and...

Yakima River Summer Stonefly Shucks

Flows are good, water is clear and stoneflies are on the move!  Fish stonefly nymphs in the fast currents and focus on dry fly fishing early in the morning and late in the evenings.  The Caddis hatch is only happening in the evenings, and the PMD hatch is now sparse...

hooked up in drift boat yakima river guided trip canyon

The Yakima continues to remain in excellent condition, in fact, many of the guides are saying its too low and clear for optimal fishing.  A GREAT problem to have, especially for DIY anglers because the low water makes the river much easier to read and interpret.  Wade fishing is a...

Yakima River Canyon

The river is in great shape!  The dry fly fishing has been surpisingly good!  Look for feeding fish on PMD's, Para Adams, and even #8 Golden Stoneflies every day starting at 2-3 pm.  The mornings have been solid on nymphs and streamers. You can also link over to a new page...

Joe Rotter Wading Yakima Canyon Summer

I am going to try and begin provide a weekly forecast for the fishing here, rather than just a glimpse at how we've been doing.  You can also link over to a new page we call the "Yakima Canyon Daily Essentials", that we started to make curbside pickup of tackle...

yakima river fishing report may 28th 2020

I am going to try and begin provide a weekly forecast for the fishing here, rather than just a glimpse at how we've been doing.  You can also link over to a new page we call the "Yakima Canyon Daily Essentials", that we started to make curbside pickup of tackle...

Podcast by Joe Rotter

I took up a public offering for some Q and A on our Instagram Story a few days ago and got some GREAT questions posted. I'll try do this about every 2-3 weeks and try to sift through them an find the most relevant topics.  You can listen right here...

kamchatka russia ozernaya river (20)

In a world that is flooded with hundreds of fly rods, choosing your first fly rod or you next fly rod is a daunting task.  There are so many choices!  Let's make the right one together.  Choosing the RIGHT fly rod for trout. The Starting Point We like...

wading drift boat riverside ruff fishalong

Hey we miss all you avid anglers that come in the shop all the time!  Well the good news is that fishing is going to open, but the bad news is that we won't be able to open the shop or start guiding yet.  Or maybe that is good news...

Bass fishing in a Watermaster boat Joe Rotter

Bass fishing is America's most popular sport.  They are found all over the country in waters both big and small.  I recorded a podcast with some very detailed information but wanted to provide a full blog post with some tips and links to the my tackle...

joe rotter euro nymphing class ruff fishalong

We help anglers from all over the world set up their Euro rods every day and the biggest questions are always about line systems and options.  While this video explains line systems well, I wanted to post an entire blog post to make things simple when it comes to rod, reel, and...

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