About the Author

Joe Rotter

Joe is the "blogger in chief" here at Red's in addition to being our guide service manager and partner here at Red's. He is a father of 3 spunky children his wife Kelly can only be found fishing when the temperature gets above 85 degrees and the fish are gobbling up dry flies.

In addition to being a fly fishing junkie, Joe is a hard core bowhunter, is a volunteer Hunter's Eductation Instructor, and loves riding horses with his kiddos. Joe still guides a small part of the time but spends most of his time working on web marketing, travel, and helping customers find the right tools and information for the job.

Tough Sledding This Week

March 7, 2016

After a great window of fishing this past week, the Yakima boiled over yesterday with heavy rains falling throughout the upper Yakima River Watershed. The headline picture is a shot taken by a long time Yakima River Angler. We'll see if he recognizes his own photo haha. It absolutely poured in the mountains and the tributaries swelled and due to both the fresh precipitation and the melting snow.

It looks like this week is going to be rough with the river just on the edge of fishable later this week. It isn't uncommon for the water to clear up and provide decent fishing at 3,500 cfs, but anything over 4,000 cfs in March is awfully tough.

Like many of you, I missed this small window of opportunity this last week. I was hosting Red's Fly Shop Week 5 in Ascension Bay and had a smooth and well organized trip. I'll post some pictures and a full report in the next couple of days. I'll knock out some chores and post some shots from the trip. Also, I have one more spot to join me fishing in Costa Rica in May. Email me at joe@redsflyshop.com if you are interested in more details.

I am booked to fish this Thur. What if the river is blown out? What's Reds policy for such occasions and hopeful ASAP re-booking? On the sent of Squallahas
Bruce, We are taking a good look at what we think the upper river will do this week and in the next 24 hours we'll have a better grasp on how fast the river is recovering. We'll postpone if necessary and schedule you in for a better time.