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The October Surf Fishout
by Sam Bishop

Pat Marshall is holding a nice one he caught on a red and orange fly.

Last month I sent a note to my surf fishing email list and told them there was a "red tide" reducing visibility to inches and I was skeptical that we would catch any fish. But five of us, including Michael DiCiano, Pat Marshall, Rich Hughett, and (? sorry, I didn't take notes and forgot one name) all caught fish. The farther up the beach we went, the less red tide we had.

Well, I realize that my invitation to the Davis Lake Fishout was terribly, terribly uninviting (I intended to be there, but couldn't promise I would be in the event of bad weather, illness, car problems, etc., and was unreachable by phone for three weeks). But with the forecast of excellent weather, I hoped against hope that a few brave souls would take a big chance and show up anyway.
Alas, no one did, big surprise! But I hardly was fishing alone. I met some very congenial folks from the Granite Bay fly club and also from the Davis fly club. Additionally, an old SCFF club member, Jim Gosciminski, and his friend Mark Chandler were there the same days I was. We all happily enjoyed the fine weather and fished together, mostly at Fairview Point. The water temperatures ranged between 49 and 53 degrees and the fish were on a major "winter-is-coming-soon" CHOMP! Mostly the fish were in 2-5 feet of water along the edges and were very cooperative. Most of the folks I fished with caught between 25-30 fish per day, 2/3 to 3/4 of which were hard-fighting rainbows between 15-20 inches. A few over 20 inches were caught. Both indicator fishing and stripping worked equally well.
This was some of the best fishing I've ever had at Davis Lake. Too bad it was such a last-minute, tentatively planned trip and more folks couldn't enjoy it. Maybe next year?

This was our 20th annual Fishout at Mammoth. Over the years, the fishing and the weather have varied but these are the aspects that have remained constant; socializing, laughing, renewing old friendships, making new friends and enjoying the rugged mountains and golden aspen trees.
Mammoth Lakes was so warm this year that we were able to keep the condominium doors and windows open after the sun went down. The beautiful evening weather allowed the socializing to move outside and we even had singing and guitar music one night.
Even though the weather can fluctuate from warm nights to ice and snow, it doesn't stop the fishing. Unfortunately, the fishing was slow. We think it was caused by unusually warm weather and 75 percent fewer fish being planted. People still had fun fishing experiences. Elaine and Kirk hiked up Convict Creek where they caught dozens of brooks, and 'bows. They also fished the lower San Joaquin, where Elaine had great fishing and Kirk caught a few of the dumber fish and enjoyed seeing new water. Elaine also took Tim Loomis to the Upper San Joaquin to fulfill Tim's dream of catching golden trout, which he did. The surprising thing was he had cell signal strength so after catching his Golden he called his wife at home. Andy and Jeannie Moreland also had a "Golden" day there. Tom Pelican landed some big boys on Crowley, but, due to the warm weather, there was LOTS of algae on the lake, making the fishing slow over all. When the fishout was over and the weather turned colder, Betty Rentz hooked 14 good sized 'bows.
Rush Creek fished well, yielding fish after fish in total solitude. Despite choking weed growth (see warm weather), Hot Creek was good to many people because of its "catch and release" regulations. We hope more waters will be given these designations. Chris Walters and Andy Moreland hooked big ones on the Upper Owens and both lost big ones. Chris said the one he lost looked and took-off like a Steelhead. Probably the best fishing was seen on Mike DiCiano's DVD of Randy Moon and him catching BIG fish on the Carson and of Mike and Jim Walt's success in New Zealand. Thanks Michael!
What was also different this year was how many people stayed for both weeks. John and Elaine Cook, Kirk Mathew, Chris Walters, Ed Kelleher, Mike DiCiano, Doug Severin, and Mike Koslosky all went the distance. First timers to the fishout were Rich Hewitt, David and Linda Doughty, and Pat Marshal. The rest of the crew was filled out by Walt and Lois Robinson, Sam and Karla Nigh, Kent and Sharon Hull, Kent Hull Jr. (AKA TK), Andy and Jeannie Moreland, Tom Pelican, Harry Schoonbaert, Jim Walt, Bob Peterson, Betty Rentz, Tom Schwab, Ralph Berman, and Tim Loomis.
Next year, I'm going to move the fishout to the last week in September and the first week in October. Dates for next year are: September 25th - October 2nd, and October 2nd - 9th.

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