Omak Lake Report 4.4.17
The action has really started to pick up
The weather is getting nicer and nicer. It's starting to really feel like springtime now -warmer days with the sun. It has also brought in more anglers into the shop before they head out to Omak Lake. From the reports I've been getting, the action has really started to pick up. About the only thing that has caused a slow down for people at times, is the spring winds that can pop up.
This year the Lahontans have not quite been cruising in close to the shoreline like they have in the past. A lot of it may be due to the water temperature. The lake is still holding a temperature of about 42 degrees toward the surface and in the shallows. A lot of the fish seem to be holding in a little deeper water, from 10' to 20'. There is still a lot of runoff coming into the lake, which I feel is a big contributor to the cooler water conditions. With that said, there is still good fishing to be had.
I had action on a handful of fly patterns
I went out the other day and did real good. I was casting from the shore and had a number of hook ups with some nice cutties landed. Most of the cutts I hooked into were out where the water depth drops to about 10 feet. I was working real close to the bottom most of the time. I have been using the FORTY PLUS line from AIRFLO and liking it a lot. The 36' head makes it cast with ease. I had action on a handful of fly patterns, but that day the top producers were; a brown and orange balanced squirrel leech that I tie up, the TFP Stinging Smolt and Dirty Water Fly Co's Smoke N' Mirrors. One thing I have learned when fishing here is: to carry a variety of flies. What works one day may not work the next. So, be prepared to change it up.
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The takes were somewhat meek by most of the cutts that day, but I had that one that showed me who was boss. After a good long fight, it finally uncorked me when it was still out about 12 feet from shore. Most of the ones I landed were in that 20" to 23" class. Some of the customers that have come into the shop have shown me photos of the cutts they have landed. Some nice 25" to 30"+ Lahontans are still out there on the prowl.
Fishing this year is a little different than in years past. I’m not sure we are going to have much of an opportunity to sight cast to prowling fish, as they move around the lake in the shallows.
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