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Post 06 Jun 2022, 23:25 • #1 
Master Guide
Joined: 06/07/12
Posts: 865
Location: US-CA
or… when was the last time you did something for the first time?

I’ve taken an annual trip to the McCloud with friends for the last dozen or so years around the end of May. This year was no different. We fish the same section of river, but I’ve managed to mix things up over this years. This was the first place I took a modern glass rod (a Hardy Stream) after I got back into fly fishing; it’s also the first place I caught a fish with a bamboo rod.

Still, it’s easy to get in a rut – the same runs, the same trails, the same poison oak blocking river access, the same blackberry bushes threatening pinhole wader leaks. This could have even been another “same as last year” trip report.

So I did a few things this year to mix it up. First, I swapped out a graphite rod for indicator nymphing in favor of a 6wt Orvis Superfine Glass rod. Second, I brought my new (to me) 3wt Echo Switch Glass rod with the intent of seeing what this “swinging nymphs” thing is all about. Third, the weather mixed it up a little, too. This year, the last three days of the trip brought cool, breezy, rainy weather – a welcome change from wet wading in temps near 100 degrees. I also set up my 5wt Livingstone Western Glass for dries and dry-dropper fishing.

I spend most of my time with my Orvis and ********* rods. After comparing the two, I’d have to say that I think I prefer the Wells grip and fighting butt of the Orvis rod to the classic lines of the Western Glass rod. Dusty Smith’s grip design is aesthetically awesome, but the 8’9” rod takes a pretty heavy reel to balance for the kind of fishing I end up doing on this river (flinging multi-fly rigs, high-sticking, lots of mending, etc.). I do like the way the Western Glass works for playing fish.

The fishing… was really good this year. Not huge numbers, but the fish were big. I caught more trout in the 17” and up range than I have before. The rods definitely did not let me down. I landed the biggest rainbows with my Western Glass rod – several above 18” and one well over 20”. It’s pretty cool to watch your dry fly get yanked under, set the hook, think “that’s not small”, feel the rod bend to the cork, and know that you’re going to be playing the patience game to get the fish into the net. The reels… also did not let me down. Every reel I used this trip turned out to be a made-by-Hardy clicker, and they all did just what they needed to do. I do like the Marquis design – having the rim right there makes it really easy to add a little drag with a couple of fingers.

As promised, I did have a couple of great first-time experiences. The first was getting a fish with a Spey cast and nymph on the swing. My buddy and I went out one evening to swing nymphs through a run that we usually fish with dries. He’s an experienced Steelhead and Trout Spey caster, and he helped me out with a few casting tips. I got a couple of grabs, then nothing for a while… until I got the crisp yank-yank of a fish on. As I reeled it in, it didn’t seem big until it took off and sent my Bouglé singing. A few minutes later, we had a 16” silvery lake-run rainbow to hand.

The second was my last morning. We were fishing in the rain – something that rarely happens in the summer in California. I went to a river bend that I thought would need deep-dredging with nymphs to yield fish. Just to be sure, I fished the inside with a dry dropper to see if there were any little fish in the shallows. I noticed rises, which just doesn’t happen at 9am in the summer in clear weather. The fish totally ignored my dry dropper. So I swapped out to a little Baetis cripple and got a grab. A short fight later, I had a 10” Brown in the net. Cool. I saw another fish rising up at the head of the pool, so I sent a cast up there and hooked up with what turned out to be a 17” lake-run Rainbow. So another first – a big fish, at 9am, in the rain, in California, on a dry fly.

Good times. Pics follow.

Typical productive spot - this one yielded four fish for me.


Wildflowers.


More wildflowers.


Orvis SFG 6wt rigged for nymphing.


********* Western Glass 8'9" 5wt.


Silvery Brown.


This Rainbow grabbed a dropper nymph.


This one grabbed a dry in the rain.


My second-biggest (probably) fish of the trip.


Not your typical NorCal June day...


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Post 07 Jun 2022, 00:30 • #2 
Master Guide
Joined: 11/11/13
Posts: 774
Location: US-CA
Wow, what a great trip nice long glass for big water. The fish are real beauties they must have a lot fun on glass. Well done!


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Post 07 Jun 2022, 00:48 • #3 
Guide
Joined: 11/15/17
Posts: 101
Location: SanDiego,California
Great Report!! Great Pictures!!


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Post 07 Jun 2022, 05:56 • #4 
Master Guide
Joined: 07/21/21
Posts: 447
Location: Florida
Thanks for sharing. Beautiful fish in beautiful places.


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Post 07 Jun 2022, 07:16 • #5 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 06/16/05
Posts: 2537
Location: Georgia
Thanks for sharing. Looks wonderful. Always fun when you try something new and have success.


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Post 07 Jun 2022, 07:20 • #6 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 02/26/14
Posts: 3578
Location: US-MN
Very nice!


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Post 07 Jun 2022, 18:10 • #7 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 07/11/14
Posts: 1784
Location: urban Colorado
beautiful, thank you..

a fighting butt on a 6wt looks funny to me.. but sounds like it works well for you, interesting.
Agree, the Marquis is a perfect trout reel in my mind. Mine is VERY LOUD so haven't fished it much, everywhere near me is crowded and I like a stealthier quieter reel there. Need a Wyoming trip..


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Post 09 Jun 2022, 08:52 • #8 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 05/22/16
Posts: 1760
Location: SJC
Looks like good times !


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Post 09 Jun 2022, 09:08 • #9 
Master Guide
Joined: 07/18/07
Posts: 735
Location: US-NH
Beautiful water and fish!
The 3 wt switch should be given more play time...swinging softies :-)


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Post 09 Jun 2022, 19:59 • #10 
Master Guide
Joined: 02/09/16
Posts: 746
Location: Colorado
So awesome!


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Post 09 Jun 2022, 22:17 • #11 
Guide
Joined: 02/18/18
Posts: 276
Location: US-TX
Well Done!!!
Carl


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Post 10 Jun 2022, 08:20 • #12 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 10/18/12
Posts: 1712
Location: Bozeman, MT
Thumbs Up!


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Post 10 Jun 2022, 19:48 • #13 
Guide
Joined: 04/06/10
Posts: 144
Location: US-NY
Nice photos, Looks like a great time. Gotta love those Hardy Marquis reels.


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Post 13 Jun 2022, 11:21 • #14 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 12/31/15
Posts: 1238
Location: Northern Rockies
Very nice report and lovely photos. I have landed in a similar place when indicator nymphing. I prefer a strong 6-weight. I used to fish these rigs with an Epic 686, but I felt that there could be some better options, so I am playing with a McFarland GTX right now. If that doesn't quite satisfy, I may try the Orvis next.


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Post 17 Jun 2022, 08:58 • #15 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 10/09/09
Posts: 2796
Location: US-NM
Very beautiful stream..........Aurelio


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Post 17 Jun 2022, 11:39 • #16 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 06/21/06
Posts: 3080
Location: Orygun
great report & thanks for taking us with you!


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