Joshua's Great Delta Adventure

There are trips and then there are some that are outstanding one way or another. These moments in time are memories that will forever have a place for recall.  I see and experience many things with clients like great catches or something unique or not so common happenings while on the water. Everyday has potential of being a lifetime memory. Here unfolds the story of Joshua's Great Delta Adventure...

Chris Taylor and his 11yr old son Joshua had booked me for a couple of days for my "all-day" LmBass session. They came up from the San Diego area to fish for Delta LmBass. Last year, they had made the trek towing their boat from down south so they could fish a day after spending a day with me. Chris used his flyrod and  Joshua brought a spinning rod. This trip however they left the boat at home, and booked me for 2 days with a "day-off" in-between. The program is fishing in the morning and returning to the dock around noon. After a 3-4hr break(lunch-nap) we meet up again and go out for the afternoon session. Chris had been teaching Joshua how to flycast since their last visit and this time Joshua showed up with his flyrod in hand, committed to catching a fish preferably a bass on his flyrod.

 On "Team Taylor's" first day out we worked hard for the few bites we had in the morning  and looked forward to a better evening bite later that day. Joshua was still looking for that first flyrod fish. He was doing pretty good with his casting and i was thrilled for him. 

That afternoon proved to be better fishing as we were into some grabs almost immediately. Chris had been doing all the catching while Joshua kept working on getting his casts in the zone.  Josh's casts were getting more consistent and he started hitting the target more and more. I knew it was just a matter of time until he was hooked up. Working along a weed edge in about 4ft of water a fish of about 2lbs finally hammered Josh's popper. He struck and hooked his first ever flyrod fish. He was thrilled as was his father and myself! We caught a few more fish by the last light of evening and ended the day with smiles all around as we pulled up to the dock.

On "Team Taylor's second day, things were a little different. The morning session saw Joshua catching most of the fish. Just prior to heading back to the dock for the mid day break we ran into some trouble. As i tried starting my engine to head back i heard a big "snap!".  After a few more attempts to turn the engine over i realized we had just lost a starter motor. With a quick call to Capt. Phil @ Vessel Assist, and about 40 minutes later, Capt. Kev and Team Taylor were in tow back to the dock. I was really disappointed that we were unlikely going to finish out the day. Joshua was catching some fish and i really wanted him to be able to fish the evening bite. It was about 3pm by the time we tied up at the dock. I'm sure Josh was a little hungry!

Once back at the dock it was time to go into "salvage" mode....we got the boat on the trailer and i headed straight over to the mechanic to see if they had the part i needed. Chris and Josh were probably already napping back at the hotel when i found out they didn't have the part in stock and the parts were backordered at the factory. Bummer. I checked with a few other shops in the area and came up with nothing. 

My hopes of getting Josh back on the water were all but done. I had one last chance at a dealer in Modesto and made the call. They had it! Wow!...now i just had to get there before they closed. I unhitched my trailer and drove as fast as i could to Modesto. I had about an hour and a half roundtrip and it would only take about 10 minutes to change the part. I might just be able get them on the water just after 6 o'clock if it all worked out. Things were looking up. Team Taylor must have certainly been enjoying an extended nap as i headed out onto the freeway back to Stockton with part in hand.

I returned to my boat just about 6pm. Chris helped me install the starter and we were back at the ramp and in the water in short order.  Josh was ready to go and we raced off to the fishing grounds. Josh was up front as we started fishing and doing a good job with his casts. It felt like the bite was just not going to take off like it can in the evening on the Delta. We were covering some great water and making good presentations, but no grabs. Hmmm....i just worked my tail off to get these guys back on the water and the fish are treating me like this?! Rude..very rude. I'm persistent though, I also have a lot of patience...Joshua does too.

WHAM!!,... a BIG swirl and crash on Joshua's deerhair popper! It was a good fish. This was the one Josh had been hoping for. He came tight and didn't give an inch. I immediately turned up the troller and pulled back away from the weedline. Josh was yelling and screaming as any 11yr old has a right to in this situation. I was coaching him as i watched Chris finally put a lip lock onto his son's largest fish ever.  The fish weighed in at just under 4.5lbs. A fine Delta topwater bass.

Josh was in a very happy place...how cool to see him catch the biggest fish of his young life and on a topwater fly! Excitement is an understatement. This was one of those lifetime moments. We had been through it all that day. Surrounded by adversity, wanting to see this day through, and a young fly fisher that just wanted to catch a bass. Josh was pumping adrenalin for at least an hour or two after that fish. I'm sure  his dad and myself were getting a shot of it as well. The day had taken from us but gave it back in a most rewarding way.

It was a day that i will always remember and I'd bet that Josh and his dad will too. Thanks Josh! 

a Road Trip to the Southern Sierras

Guy Jeans invited me down to Kernville to do a Delta presentation for the Southern Sierra Flyfishers club. Guy and his wife Raquel own the Kern River Fly Shop in the little mountain town of Kernville.

The shop sits on the main road  only a stones throw from the Kern River as it runs through town. Kernville is a few miles upriver from Lake Isabella. Drive time is about 1hr+ N.E. of Bakersfield. Rte. 178 heads east out of Bakersfield and follows the Kern River up through a gorgeous granite bouldered canyon.  It is a nice scenic drive up the hill.

Kernville reminded me of Ennis, Montana in a way. Kernville has somewhat of an outdoor recreation, circus-like, atmosphere but in a good way.  Instead of almost every truck pulling a driftboat as you might see in Montana, these trucks, busses and cartoppers were loaded with whitewater rafts. Guy assured me that their fishing is well removed from the rafting activity and beyond into the High Country. 

The Kern River Fly Shop is a very short walk to the tiny downtown where there are shops and eateries and of course refreshing beverages.

The  fly shop is cozy, inviting and a place where most always you'll find an angler talking of the day's catch. Bill helps tend shop while Guy is on the water guiding. A beautiful stone fireplace will undoubtably capture your attention as you walk in and provides the backdrop for a warm, welcoming environment.

This trip to Kernville did not allow me time for any fishing as i was there primarily to talk to the Southern Sierra Flyfishers about the Delta and it's flyfishing opportunities. Guy and Raquel had fished with me on the Delta a few years prior during the early fall and we had a great time. I was anxious to check out their "neck of the woods" when Guy asked me to come down.   I have seen some of the northern part of the Sequoia Natl Forest but had never ventured this far south. I will be back. But, next time with a collection of fly rods to cover the river and the lake opportunities! If you find yourself in that part of the state, you will be well served to take the time to have Guy put you on the river and catch some of those Kern River trout species. He is the man to do it!

The Southern Sierra Flyfishers club are a great bunch of anglers that welcomed me with open arms. My presentation was focused on showcasing the topwater opportunities available on the Delta during both the Striper season and the LmBass season.
















I hope my presentation was  well recieved by the group and  to see some of them someday checking out the Delta fishery. Thanks guys for the hospitality and allowing me the opportunity to present the Delta to you! I'll see you again!

Capt.Kevin Doran

For presentation inquiries contact: capt.kev@deltaadventures.com

The tides have turned.

Well, we may have just turned the corner on the Delta LmBass bite. Over the past couple of weeks we've seen obvious signs that many of the fish were on the spawn. Shredded fins and an overall look like they've been doing their "thing".  It was clear that the fish were not eating too well. Other things on their mind?...most likely.

Clients, Martin and Larry showed up to the dock with no experience fishing for LmBass with a flyrod. Larry had an arsenal of spin casting rods that he was going to use. Martin had plenty of flyfishing experience but not for LmBass. Larry spent most of the day throwing rubber worms on his spinning gear while Martin worked topwater with the flyrod. As it turned out, Martin won out in the numbers category with the flyrod. Martin in addition to catching his first LmBass on fly, caught another personal first, a small striper on top while banging the banks for LmBass. 

By the end of the day Larry had seen enough and wanted to try the flyrod. I spent about 20 minutes with him working on casting technique and shortly thereafter he was getting a few decent casts into the zone. One of those casts proved to be on target. As his popper came up to a weed edge it was immediately engulfed in an explosive flush. Now, Larry who had never caught a fish on a flyrod before was connected to a nice Largemouth Bass! This wasn't the typical 8-10in. trout most flyfishers claim as their "first". This fish was pulling hard with the flyrod almost bent to the cork. The coaching i had given him prior, and, he must have been listening!, was paying off. He kept pulling on that fish until it finally cleared the weeds and after a short tussle around the boat we had the fish to hand. 

Larry had just experienced what topwater Delta LmBass fishing with a flyrod is all about. His first ever flyrod fish weighed in at 4.5lbs!. A nice Largemouth Bass to be proud of. I'm not sure he will look at his spinning gear and rubber worms the same again! Larry's fish looked as though it was ripe and ready to drop her payload. She had obviously been working a bed based on the condition of her fins and she must have decided on one last meal before getting down to business. Larry was there to serve it up and take advantage of that opportunity. That was over a week ago now.

Over the next few days the bite slowed dramatically. Earlier this week, many of the pro FLW tournament anglers pre-fishing for this weeks tournament that i talked to were having a tough go at it. "I can't pattern these fish!" some said. Yep! same thing here, i replied. Their comments were consistent with what i had been experiencing  in weeks before. The city of Stockton is host to the FLW tourney this year. It is one of the major national circuit tournaments held on the Delta with full media coverage.

My take on what is happening?..many of the fish were focused on spawning during the past week in much of the central Delta. It seems everything is about a month late. As the current week progressed we saw the bite improve almost daily. Wednesday seemed  to be the turning point for me. Despite the never ending wind and cooler temps, we caught better numbers of fish with the smaller males showing up with more regularity. A sure sign they are guarding the nest. Much of the spawning has most likely taken place and it can happen that fast. Some gals may drop eggs more than once and in a different location. Along with that, some of the big girls are getting hungry...we dropped and missed some real monsters this week. One of those fish i would confidently say was in the double digit size class...all on topwater. Postspawn most likely. 

The Delta has finally turned the corner.

Game On!.....Now, if the wind would just quit...:-)

It's been a wild ride!

 A young Capt.Kev back in the day at Clearlake

Wow! what happened to Spring?...when i was a kid it was one of my favorite times...you know the one that slowly creeps into our lives with the cozy feeling that comes with the warming days and mellow afternoons of Springtime? For me, Springtime is when i start shifting gears. The cold of winter typically fading away at a snail's pace. Chasing Stripers throughout the winter  can be arduous at times and leaves me anxious for the sunshine and warmth of the coming months. By April i am ready to start chasing another Delta species...LmBass!  The thought of shorts, t-shirts and sandals starts to fill my head... I can't wait! It takes me all the way back to my youth.

By April I  was and am ready to put away the heavy sinking lines, the extra clothing layers, gloves, beanies, and heavy pac boots in storage for the next 6-7months. I have had enough of that by end of March. I've seen my share of great client fish over the past fall and winter season, Stripers are awesome, but now I am wanting something else. In all honesty, this past Striper season was less than stellar. The  larger fish were just not showing up in numbers. Sure there were some around and many clients caught some nice ones, but finding them was not an easy task most of the time. All of this made my yearning for the start of Spring and my topwater LmBass season even more intense. It couldn't start soon enough as far as I was concerned.

So here we are, it's the end of May and i am wondering.....what just happened?...did i miss something?                                                                                                          

 Lou with a nice topwater Bass in April

A few weeks in late April was when we started getting some topwater LmBass. Some nice fish were caught and then it seemed the LmBass train came to a screeching halt! The never ending wind, water temps started to drop, the rains, more rain and constant wind. What the...?  I was wearing my winter clothes in May! Double layers, thermal underwear, the whole bit!  Wow! I can't remember a May this cold. 

It may or may not be widely known that good numbers of LmBass will move to the banks during big moon phases in late April. They start pairing up and start setting up camp for the spawn. We saw that process on track in mid-late April and we caught some nice fish during a week long, nice weather, window. These fish were feeding well prior to the spawn. Some really good sized fish can be had during this time and they eat topwater! Yes!...what i have been waiting for all winter long is finally here!....i thought.

Renee with a big 6.25lb Delta Topwater LmBass 

About that  time, May seemed to change it's name to Feburary, and i wasn't sure if April was really April, and where was March? I was totally confused as if i had just woken up from some long strange nap. Was i Rip Van Winkle?....i took a look into the mirror just to be sure. 

Well, if i was feeling that way those LmBass must be feeling about the same. The typical pattern of a big push of fish to the banks in late April just didn't happen. A couple here, a couple there, many pulled back and probably have decided to wait it out a month. The Delta is a huge place. Spawning can take place as early as Feb and continue throughout July. These are the extremes. May is usually when staging, prespawn and even post spawn fish start becoming available to the topwater flyfisher. The season started up with a bang and then almost within days, ran out of gas with the lousy weather pattern. 

June is now the May i have been waiting for. I expect some fantastic fishing over the next month. I hope Spring has finally sprung or is it Summer?...whatever...i am ready, shorts and all!

Mat Rats, Bass, and some laughs.

To those that attended the tying session at Kiene's Fly Shop Mar. 20th, thank you for allowing me the opportunity to show how i tie the KDM Rat.  I hope it was worthwhile  and you will now be using this pattern on your favorite LmBass waters.

"Rattin' the cheese", "Fear not the Slop", and throw 'em into the heaviest junk you can find and hold on!

The Delta's LmBass season for the flyfisher is just around the corner. Every year around his time i get excited about flyfishing for these great game fish. Topwater is my preferred tactic of choice when the warm days of Spring and Summer come into focus.  The KDM Rat allows for fishing on and through some of the heaviest vegetation and cover that one can find. As a great complimenting pattern to the standard deerhair patterns we use on the Delta, "The Rat" will handle heavy vegetation and algae mats with  ease. Fear not the Slop!

By the end of the session i tied up a few "customs" for the attendees including "Andy's Special".  Andy Guibord(Kiene's staff) did a quick sketch of what he wanted and i went to work on it. What came from this was a pretty cool looking Rat and i hope he sticks a hog with it!

The "Rat" as tied weighs in around 40-46grains. In the field i will often need a heavier version for dense mats. This is an easy problem to overcome with a little UV curable "Knot Sense"or "UV Wader Repair". Just take your selected Rat and goop on some UV product to the bottom and cure it with the sun. You can build up the base with more weight this way. Keep a tube of this in your gear bag and you will be able to cover the bases.

Thanks again for those that attended, Kiene's Fly Shop and staff, and most importantly to those big LmBass that eat anything and everything that lives, swims, crawls and happens to land in their world! LmBass are Awesome!

Bass On...

Capt.Kev

Kiene's Fly Shop tying session

I'll be tying my KDM Rat pattern at Kiene's Fly Shop on March 20th. Time: 10am-2pm

The KDM Rat was a featured pattern in "Bass the Movie"(Howard Films) while fishing the Delta. It has been featured in numerous articles and books. It is not yet available commercially but i am working on getting them to market.

The fly tying steps have been well documented in print but tying one from a written step process can leave a lot of questions and less than stellar results. Seeing how this fly is made in person will clear up some aspects of tying the fly and ensuring that it fishes correctly. I will also have some DVD's available for sale that shows the steps, materials, and sequence that will certainly put one on the right track to tying the fly so it fishes as designed. If you are unable to attend the DVD is available from Jay Murakoshi @ www.fliesunlimited.com

Come join me at Kiene's Mar. 20th!

Capt. Kev

Delta Conditions

I went out solo yesterday for a quick tour checking on water conditions and temperature around some central Delta locations. Much of the water is in very fishable shape with surface temps running from 51-54 degrees. Water temps have stayed a few degrees warmer over the Winter and this could mean an early Spring season. LmBass will start staging for the spawn once the temps get into the upper 50's and the Stripers that are in the system now will soon get grabby.

I did a little topwater Striper fishing on my tour and raised 4 fish but no connection. Seeing some fish willing to look up was a good sign. No subsurface presentations were made during my short tour and i'm confident fishing subsurface would have yielded rewards. Winter usually means working hard for your fish. Once water temps rise a bit more the fish will start feeding more aggressively and catch rates will rise. Fishing should improve over the next month. The Spring Striper bite is not far from taking off. Certain areas of the Delta will start showing some Pre-Spawn Stripers over the next 2 months.

The super clear water conditions over the past year has allowed much of the water to handle the storms and muddy water associated, without blowing out. A little color is a good thing right now and much of it remains very fishable.

The Spring striper bite appears just around the corner and the early LmBass spawn not too far behind. We could very well be getting some good topwater Striper opportunity very soon and possibly by mid March some  topwater LmBass as well on nice afternoons. My expectations are based on current water temps. Pending no monumental storms i expect water conditions to hold and improve from here.

I have plenty of availablity so if you want to set a date give me a shout. Now is the time to start booking your Feb, Mar, and April trips.  My May LmBass book is filling fast but i still have some availability in April and May. If you are fishing the Bass-n-Fly Challenge in May a good strategy might be to book a day with me and get some on the water education and learn techniques for the Delta LmBass fishery that will surely put you in the game. 

Stay... On the Water..On the Fish!

Capt.Kev