President's Message
The Club is off to a great 2020 year with two outstanding outings which occurred in January and February. We kicked the year off with our usual outing to the Lower Kings with 60 members participating. Randy and Carole did a fantastic job organizing and making sure everyone had a fun time. The Saturday morning traditional Breakfast Down by the River was delicious and gave us time to chat with new and long-time members. The Saturday night gathering was just too much fun with the Crazy Hat contest, raffles and awards.
February found us fishing the Lower Owens River. This was another fun, well organized outing with 40 members fly fishing the special regulation section of the Lower O, the Gorge, Hot Creek and Upper Owens. This outing brings the opportunity to fish different waters with other members which have the local knowledge. A big special Thank You goes out to Dave and Lesley Smith for holding the European Nymphing class again this year. They traveled from San Diego, provided flies and volunteered their time to teach this effective nymphing technique to our members.
Congratulations to the Buhler Bros; Ryan and Rob for winning the 2020 Fly Fisher(s) Of The Year Award. Their contributions to the fly fishing community have been abundant and exceptional. They have elevated the art of fly tying to another level and are always willing to provide their expertise, knowledge and know how. They are always giving to all levels of fly fishers not only with fly tying, but with their vast knowledge of the Sierra’s. They are our first to repeat winning this prestigious award with voting from our general membership.
We also awarded a new second award this year: The Bayla-Hart Award. This is awarded to the club member who exhibited excellence in representing SSFFC and going above and beyond to promote all our club events. This award is voted on by our Club Board members. At the Kings River outing, Marisol Moreno received this inaugural award. Her work leading the Celine Fly Gals Weekend was exemplary, in addition to her work handling all miscellaneous club tasks and assignments. Congratulations Marisol.
We are working on 2 special unscheduled outings which are vastly different: Urban fly fishing and Golden Trout outing. These outings are “spur of the moment” events and don’t require much planning. The Urban fly fishing outing will be no more than meet at “X” location for a ½ day of fun fly fishing. Since the snow pack levels are low this year, we are fairly certain the roads will open and clear to travel to a special creek in search of Golden Trout. Stay tuned for announcements.
I would like to welcome all the new members to our Family. The new members are in store for more fun outings and special unique events which no other club holds. Please let me know if there’s anything you would like to see from our club.
Everyone needs to thank our hard working Board members. None of this would be possible without their hours upon hours of diligent work making each event special and fun.
Come fish with us.
Southern Sierra Fly Fishing Family.
Chiaki Harami
Spotlight and Into the Backing
Featuring Derek Erquhart
Retired or working. If working, what do you do? I have yet found a way to monetize my fly fishing addiction so I still have to work. I am the marketing manager for a large almond grower and processor.
How did you get started in fly fishing? I spent a lot of time growing up in the outdoors, but that primarily revolved around big game hunting. While fly fishing had always intrigued me, most of my fishing adventures included a bobber, bait and a cooler of beer on the bank of a lake or pond. To me, fly fishing seemed like hunting for fish, but with almost zero knowledge I was a bit intimidated to start. Three and a half years ago I finally decided to take a class with Guy Jeans and I haven’t looked back.
Did you have a mentor? YouTube…. Lots and lots of YouTube videos. Aside from learning as much as I can from reading and watching videos, I would have to credit many of my fellow SSFFC members as mentors to me. I am still amazed by the generosity of the fly fishing community to share their knowledge of the sport which definitely helped ease the intimidation factor mentioned above.
Describe your favorite style of fly fishing. My favorite fly fishing is when I am throwing dries on small mountain creeks… or cricks.
What was your most memorable fly-fishing experience? This should be an easy answer since I haven’t been doing it all that long. Every event with the SSFFC family is memorable. I would have to say the 2019 California Fly Fishing Open ranks towards the top! 😊
Why do you fly fish? I would love to say it is relaxation…. But those who know me best know that I am probably more anxious and high strung while fishing than at any other time! First and foremost, it fulfills my need to be outdoors. I love the thrill of the hunt, trying to target fish you see, or a fish you expect to be in a certain spot after reading the water.
If you could fly fish anywhere in the world, where and why? Looking at the scenery and the fish, I would have to say that New Zealand is at the top of my list. Plus I can throw in a Red Stag hunt
Music you've been listening to lately? My daily commute is typically filled with talk radio, exciting, I know. However, when it comes to music I have been and always will be a country boy. Garth Brooks, George Strait, Keith Whitley, Chris Ledoux type.
Kings River Outing Recap
Another EPIC Kings River outing is in the books. This year we served 50 people from the Fly Van, “Down by the river”. Breakfast burritos just taste better when you are within casting distance of running water. The Kings was her typical finicky self, she can be technical on some days and proved this was the case this year. Both Saturday & Sunday gave us epic BWO hatches that went on all afternoon. Heads were popping up everywhere as fish feasted on bugs drifting in the seams.
If you could get that perfect drift, you were rewarded with very nice fish. If not, you certainly got some great water time and casting practice.
Once again the evening festivities were the highlight of the event. 60 people joined us for dinner and some fun & games. The Fly Fisher of The Year award went to Buhler Brothers, well deserved for sure. A new award this year, the Bayla/Hart Award was presented to Marisol Moreno for all her hard work at last years Celine Fly Gal Weekend. The wine bar influenced some fun and interesting conversation throughout the night. Once again the “White Fish” gift exchange proved to be a blast as everyone took and gave until they had had the gift they wanted. This alone is a reason to attend next years event. We also had the First Annual Funky Fish Hat contest.
It certainly brought out some interesting and creative fishing hats, with the winner receiving a $50.00 gift card from Kern River Fly Shop. We also had a raffle for a custom rod built by the master himself, Chiaki. The big winners of the night had to be the Tyler’s, as they won both the Funky Hat contest and the Chiaki rod. CONGRATS!!!!
We certainly have many to thank as this was an off-site event that took a lot to pull off. Big thanks to those that donated/brought food and helped cook “Down By the River”. Big thanks to those that helped create a limited menu & helped with coordinating with caterer. Big thanks to those that helped create name tags & table toppers, they were very cool. Big thanks to all those that helped create all the catchy flyers & reminders prior to the event. Thanks Analiza for getting those out over SM. A big thanks to all those who participated and signed up through the website. As we have said before…………. It takes an entire fly club to raise a happy fly fisher.
Carole & Randy
Lower OWENS Outing recap
Our annual winter Lower Owens outing is always one of the best attended events of the year and this year was no different. With over 35 anglers fishing on Saturday and even more attending the evening's festivities, we had SSFFC members spread all over town.
Ryan, Savy and I arrived on Friday morning and after the usual stop for sandwiches and supplies at Schat's Bakkery, we were on our way to the river. We arrived at a favorite spot, downstream of the "wild trout section" and were on the water by 10:30-11am. No love! Savy was drifting a Frenchie and midge through a seductive run that has produced in the past, but was not being cooperative on this morning. A switch to a bubble gum squirmie and she only got a bump or two with no hook-ups. Ok it was time to explore now! The next hole downstream was instantly productive as I quickly netted a rainbow and a brown plus missed a couple more. A quick call to Savy and Ryan who went searching upstream and we relocated at the middle of the productive run after some snacks. It was only a couple of drifts and Savy was hooking one little brownie after another with a Frenchie & midge combo platter! Once she had caught enough to satisfy, she even let her Dad in to catch a few too. lol
On Saturday morning some of us met at the Looney Bean Cafe for fuel and an early morning game plan. Then, the full group met at PVR Campground to either participate in the annual clean up, attend Dave Smith's Euro Nymph class, go fishing or a little bit of everything.
Dave's Euro Class was extremely well received with many participants catching their first trout with the newly learned, international competition style techniques. Dave and his wife Lesley put on a world class clinic that was not only informative, but incredibly fun!!! They brought several Echo Euro rods to test and gave each participant a Euro leader with Euro style flies, as well as sharing their in depth knowledge of these incredibly productive techniques. We are grateful that they made a return visit this year and hope that this can be an annual event for the SSFFC. Dave and Lesley also officially became club members after the weekend! Welcome aboard and thank you both!!!
Other members were spread from the Mammoth area down to below town in Bishop. Rumor has it that all who fished, caught fish! Yew!!! Some were bigger and others caught more, but I think we all had fun!
Saturday evening was the not so typical pizza gathering that featured a raffle of a custom built Winston rod by Club President Chiaki Harami. The lucky winner, Brad Weich returned the feel good donation by committing to wrap his own custom rod for a future SSFFC raffle. Thanks Brad!!! It's gestures like this that help make our club the best fly fishing club in the world!
On Sunday the weather moved in, but those who stayed on the Lower were treated to some fun action if you could find shelter from the wind. The upper valley was not so hospitable and anglers on the Upper O and Hot Creek struggled before the drive back to reality.
A huge thank you to all that came out and made this another epic Southern Sierra Fly Family outing!! Hope to see ya at the next one!
TIPS ON Flies by Ryan buhler
The next club outing at Pyramid lake require a change in fly construction. The lake holds everything fron 16 inch cutthroats to 20 plus pound cutties. This makes it mandatory to beef up your hooks in hope of landing one of these monsters. On midge hooks go to 3x scud hooks(Togens fly shop) and balanced patterns do the same and choose a jig hook that is at least 2x strong wire. Streamers are the same beef it up. Fullingmill has good jig hooks as does Umpqua. Whichever company you choose make sure they are extra strong. Losing a fish of a lifetime over a bent out hook will haunt you along time.
Lower Owens River Clean-UP
By Chris Leonard
Wow! Over 100 volunteers showed up last Saturday for the sixth consecutive Owens River Annual Clean Up. Seems like the constant pestering on social media paid off for event organizer Chris Leonard. The weather last Saturday was gloriously sunny which no doubt helped inspire people to show up to give the Owens River its annual cleansing. As always, the morning started with volunteers gathering at the Pleasant Valley Campground for coffee and pastries. Leonard thanked everyone for showing up. Jessica Strickland of Trout Unlimited and Eric Huber of Caltrout were both present with literature for interested volunteers on what their respective non-profit organizations do for our treasured fisheries. After hearing a warm-hearted “thank you” from Chris, volunteers split up to divide and conquer different parts of the river. Attendees returned at noon with enough trash to fill a six-foot-tall dumpster about two-thirds full. “It’s too bad this needs to be done,” Leonard commented, “but it’s great to see the community rally together every February to get er done!” Volunteers came from all over the state. There were several local residents present as well. A few went home with some cool free raffle swag including a fly-fishing rod and reel, tenkara rod, fly-fishing tools, literature, gift certificates, and clothing. All in all, it was a great success!
Chris Leonard would like to personally thank the following supporters of this year’s event: Back Alley Bar and Grill, California Deer Association, California Waterfowl Association, Caltrout, Ducks Unlimited, Eastern Sierra Fish Reports, Erick Schat’s Bakery, Great Basin Bakery, Golden Trout Lanyards, Inyo Recycling and Waste Management, KIBS Radio, Kittredge Sports, KMMT-KRHV Radio, Orvis, Preferred Septic and Disposal, Rhino Nets, Rio, Redington, and Sage, Scientific Anglers, Sierra Brite Dot, Sierra Mountain Trout, Snowbee, Silver Lake Resort, Southwest Council, Fly Fishers International, Tenkara Tanuki, Trout Scout, Trout Unlimited, and Virginia Lakes Resort.
Next year’s event will be Saturday, February 13, 2021 – always the Saturday following the Super Bowl. People interested in making monetary donations for lunch or donations for the raffle – or any inquiries in general - can call Chris at 818.288.3271.
Pyramid Lake Outing
March 8 - 14 - By Randy Skidgel
Toad, pig, dinosaur, beast, all words to describe the Lahontan Cutthroat Trout found in Pyramid Lake, NV. Here is your chance to chase one of these magnificent fish. This will be a DIY outing, there will be club members coming and going during the week and overlapping into the weekend. Weekends can be extremely crowded on the lake, just be aware of that. This is the “Ladder” lake that you have heard of, with many people fishing the troughs and drop-offs from ladders. There is plenty of bank and rock fishing if the ladder isn’t your thing. Both bobber and streamers will give you a chance at a world class fish.
For anybody wanting to fish in a group we can plan a meeting place for each morning and go from there. We will talk about getting together for dinner each night if anyone is interested. We’ve listed some sites with general information about the lake, they are a great source of info for equipment suggestions and flies also. If you would like to have a guide, some of these sites offer that. There are lots of lodging options, Reno/Sparks is a short drive from the lake, we’ve included links to the ones we use below. We will answer any questions that you may have. Come join us for some unstructured fishing fun.
Carole- wwhikerlady@gmail.com or Randy- mdcitrusrandy@ocsnet.net
Lake & Fishing Info; www.pyramidflyco.com, www.pyramidlakeflyfishing.com, www.pyramidlakefisheries.org, www.renoflyshop.com, www.crosbylodge.net
Lodging Options; www.nuggetcasinoresort.net, www.grandsierraresort.com, www.crosbylodge.com
SSFF 2020 Calendar
March 8 – 13: Lake Pyramid – Outside of Reno, NV. RSVP: Randy - mdcitrusrandy@ocsnet.net
March 28/29: Fly Tying Class & Club Meeting: Fly tying class with the Buhler Bros: 9:00 am Kernville Chamber of Commerce room. RSVP: Chiaki - haramic@aol.com
March 28: Club meeting 7:00 pm Kernville Chamber of Commerce room. Guest speaker: Guy Jeans “Secrets of the Kern.”
Sunday, March 29: Fly fish the Kern River.
April 25/26: Kelsey Bass Ranch – Merced This outing is held in conjunction with the Wilderness Fly Club. We will be camping and fishing a private lake. Rod fee apply. RSVP: Chiaki - haramic@aol.com
May 16: The Jon Hart Carpfest: This is a partnered carp tourney. Check in at Kern River Fly Shop. Details TBD Signup will become available on the website soon.
June 13: Kids Academy and Club Meeting: Kids ages 8 to 18 learn to fly fish. Limited to 15 kids. Details TBD RSVP: Chiaki - haramic@aol.com Club meeting 7:00 pm Kernville Chamber of Commerce room. Details TBD
July 13 – 18: Rancho Leonero, Mexico Panga fishing for dorado, roster fish, wahoo, tuna, etc. Details TBD RSVP: Randy - mdcitrusrandy@ocsnet.net If you are interested in the trip, contact Randy ASAP.
Aug. 1/2: Mammoth – Crowley Outing: Fish the San Joaquin on Saturday and Crowley on Sunday.
Sept. 12: Beginners Day Class and Meeting: Learn how to fly fish class for beginners. Lunch provided, limited to 50 people. RSVP: Chiaki - haramic@aol.com Club meeting 7:00 pm Kernville Chamber of Commerce room. Details TBD
Sept. 25: Kids Poker Night: Join the fundraising efforts for our Kids Academy playing Texas Holdem.
Sept 26: California Fly Fishing Open: Join the 4th annual CFFO. Check in at Kern River Fly Shop and afternoon activities at Rivernook campgrounds. Signup will become available on the Club website.
Oct. 10/11: Celine’s Fly Gals Weekend: Beginners Women’s fly fishing class. Lunch provided, limited to 50 women. RSVP Marisol: moreno_marisol@ymail.com
Please note all events are subject to weather conditions and river flows. Additional event details will be provided as the events become current.