Guadalupe River Fishing Report
March 14, 2010
Flows on the Guadalupe have moderated from the highest flows but the river below Canyon is still above historical averages, and is currently flowing at 580cfs.
One of the benefits of the recent increase in flows is that quite a bit of sediment has been flushed downstream, resulting in a marked improvement in water clarity. The redhorse sucker spawn is in full swing at this time, along with very good hatches of midges, tricos and caddis.
There is a lighter mix of red quill, slate drake and PMD mixed in as well, giving quite a few cross hatches on the river and making many varied patterns effective at this time.
Fly Patterns that are working are very similar to the past report and include larger sucker spawn patterns in pink and orange, RS2s in black and gray, black midge emergers and PMD nymphs and emergers. Using BB or AB shot on 10-12 foot leaders will help get the flies down to the fish.
At this flow the Guadalupe River remains unsafe for wading trips. Anglers are strongly encouraged to float or wait for flows to improve and wade trips are on hold until the flows moderate. Though if the current trend holds, the lake level should be down by early March and we will see a return of safe flows for wade fishing.
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February 28, 2010
Flows have increased dramatically on the Guadalupe River below Canyon Dam, with current flows at 800 cfs. Canyon Lake is full for the first time in almost two years and the fish have taken advantage by moving into areas of the river that were previously too shallow for the trout to hold.
The fishing has continued to stay good but we have changed our tactics somewhat and are now using longer leaders, more weight and larger nymphs to help get the flies down. It has taken the fish a few days to get readjusted to the new flows but they are still feeding and taking similar patterns as before.
On February 27 we saw the best trico hatch of the season, with fish taking black RS2s. Only a handful of anglers have been on the water in the past few days who were wading, which will also help the fishing, as the trout are no longer being continually fished to on a daily basis.
Fly Patterns that are working include larger sucker spawn patterns in pink and orange, RS2s, black midge emergers and PMD nymphs and emergers. Switching to BB or AB shot on 10-12 foot leaders will help get the flies down to the fish.
At this flow it is unsafe for wading. Anglers are strongly encouraged to float or wait for flows to improve. There will be no wade trips until the flows moderate. If the current flow trend holds, the lake level should be down by early March and we will see a return of safe flows for wade fishing.
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February 15, 2010
Rains continue to fall in the Texas Hill Country and Canyon Lake has benefited from another boost in flow from the Upper Guadalupe. This has brought Canyon Lake as close to full as we have seen in over two years.
Flows below Canyon have also improved, though until the lake is completely filled the flows through the trout zone will stay below their historic norms for this time of year.
The rains have put a little color into the river below Canyon but the trout zone remains very fishable.
We have seen a number of very good hatches in recent weeks, with cross hatches on the sunny days that include midges, caddis, hexagenia and slate drakes.
The tricos continue to show on the warmer days but we are still early in the season to see the thickest of the trico hatches.
In typical winter fashion, the days when a front first comes through tend to produce few bugs but days just before and a day or two after have been nice fishing days.
Cooler mornings continue to be slower for fishing but most afternoons have been good to very good.
Days when we start warmer tend to produce bugs earlier and fishing soft hackles and emergers on a swing have been very effective in recent days.
I have also started to go lighter on my tippet sizes over the past few days. I am still using 4x tippet on my attractor flies and 5x to my trailer but have had a number of occasions where I will use 5x to my top fly and 6x to my midge trailer.
While this might not seem like a big change, at this time in the season any advantage helps when fishing to trout that have seen many flies and many drifts.
I am still not seeing much in the way of a sucker spawn but more of the trout are starting to key on the sucker spawn patterns. If conditions hold, I would think that we will start to see the spawn in the next two or three weeks.
All-in-all the trout fishing on the Guadalupe River continues to be good and the fish are fighting very well.
Fly Patterns that I have been favoring are not much different than the last report and include (in the mornings) black RS2s or a black zebra midge fished below either a hexagenia nymph, red worm or pink sucker spawn and (in the afternoons) caddis emergers, hares ear nymphs, black midge emergers or BWO emergers fished below a prince nymph, hexagenia nymph or San Juan Worm.
I have had some nice goes with WD40’s and rainbow warriors in recent weeks as well.
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January 20, 2010
Rain! For the first time in about a month the weather has included steady, widespread rains throughout the Texas Hill Country. The level of Canyon Lake is up and both the inflow and outflow of the reservoir are on the plus side in quite a while. We have seen better flows on the Guadalupe below Canyon this season when compared to this time last year but with Canyon still about 9 feet below the conservation pool level, we need every drop so that the threshold for the minimum flow agreement will be met and the trout zone will be guaranteed good flows throughout the coming summer months.
Fishing on the Guadalupe River has continued to be good to very good over the past two weeks; and has included a mixture of a few cold days, some wet days and a number of blue bird days. The fish haven’t seemed to mind the cold or wet days and some of my best fishing has been a day or two after a weather change. With the changes in weather patterns we have seen a variety of bugs out. The overcast and wet days the blue winged olives have been nice, overcast and warm has brought us caddis and hexagenia, sunny days have been good days for midges, and some days we have seen a mixture.
There have been a few tricos, slate drakes and other mayflies about, but they have been somewhat sporadic, but mostly on the sunny days.Our average fish size still holds in the 16-17” class, with a number of 20+” fish being hooked and a few landed.
Fly patterns that we have been favoring include (in the mornings) smaller black pheasant tails, natural hares ears, black RS2 or beadless Zebra midge fished below either a red worm, tan egg or prince nymph and (in the afternoons) green caddis emergers, hares ear nymphs, black midge emergers or BWO emergers fished below a prince nymph, hexagenia nymph or San Juan Worm.
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January 2, 2010
Winter continues in the Texas Hill Country, with most mornings starting in the upper 30s or low 40s and warming in the afternoons in the low 50s to lower 60s. I did have one day last week where I was able to wet wade, but the norm has been for layers in the morning with pleasant weather in the afternoons. We have had a full moon and clear skies this past week and the fish have taken advantage of those conditions to feed throughout the night. That resulted in more selective fish in the days, but steady fishing nonetheless. The moon is now waning and the fish will be going back to a more angler friendly pattern over the next few days. Most days have started out with light bug activity but as the days warm we have seen very good cross hatches of midges, BWO, caddis, tricos and even some hexagenia. The mixture of bugs has made changing flies and depths a must and taking our time in any one spot will result in hookups as we take the time to dial in on the fish on a spot by spot basis. With the multitude of bugs the fish are not moving off their feeding lanes and so getting good, long drifts, with minimal drag has been another key for success.
In a typical day we are seeing good fishing in the late morning, a slight slowdown in the early afternoon and then the fishing picks back up in the late afternoon and into the evenings. I believe the slowdown was partly attributable to the moon phase but that is also the time of the day when we are somewhat between hatches. There continue to be quite a few anglers hitting the water at first light but I have not seen anyone of those anglers with any large measure of success until later in the mornings.
Float fishing continues to be my preferred way to fish the river, as it allows us to cover more water with greater ease. For those on a wade trip we have been able to get into spots where the fish are in a pod, allowing for some fast action but quite a bit of walking.
Fly Patterns that have been the most productive over the past week include smaller attractors such as cream colored eggs, beadless prince nymphs and smaller stonefly patterns. Trailer flies that have been productive include smaller hares ear nymphs (18-20) various RS2 patterns in gray and black, midge emergers in black or chocolate and pheasant tail nymphs in black or natural in the same sizes as the hares ear nymphs. I have also had good luck with caddis emergers on the warmer days. My most productive pattern has been a #22 beadless zebra midge with a white wing. The standard Guadalupe assortment seems to be staying productive at this time with possibly a shift towards smaller flies.
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December 6, 2009
As the trout season on the Guadalupe River goes into full swing, we continue to see numerous large fish that are strong fighters. Twice this past week we had fish over 19 inches that ran into the backing, even through we were chasing them down in the raft. Various other times we have had good, healthy fish make 40 to 60 foot first runs before they could be turned and have even had a couple of fish break 4X fluorocarbon tippet on the take. Flows are nice, allowing us to float through longer sections of the river or easily float a shorter section with time to get out and walk-wade the more productive areas of the river.
Hatches over the past couple of weeks have included good tricos in the mornings, baetis on the cool, overcast days and a light tan caddis on most afternoons. The midges are still on the water in the afternoons and we have seen some hexagenia and ginger quills on the warmer afternoons as well.
Fly Patterns that have been working well include various small midge patterns in the 20-24 size range in both black and gray, including WD40s, black beauties and juju midges. Baetis emergers in the 18-20 range including RS2s, Roy Palm Special Emergers and Bubble Back Baetis are also working. For caddis, patterns such as graphic caddis and olive soft hackles in the 16-18 range are working, especially when fished as a trailer fly. We are still seeing many fish taking standard nymphs such as hares ear nymphs, pheasant tail nymphs and prince nymphs. Tippet sizes have gone down in recent days, with 4x to our lead fly and 5x to our trailer. With the size of the flies being smaller and the strength of the larger fish, playing a nice fish on the Guadalupe is one of the more challenging aspects of our days on the river.
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November 17, 2009
The trout season on the Guadalupe River has begun! We have had a number of nice days fishing for trout already this year and expect the fishing to stay good through the Spring of 2010. There are still a number of holdover trout in the river and they have been joined by the first round of new fish of the 2010 season. Recent rains have made it possible to float much more of the river this season and that has opened up waters that have seen very little in the way of fishing pressure in recent years. Most of the trout we are catching are podded up and there have been quite a few double hookups on the boat! Average fish size is about 17 inches and they are all strong fighters. In the past few days on the river we have seen very good hatches of tricos, some Pale Morning Duns, a handful of slate drakes and lots of midges. Fly Patterns that have been working well include smaller wooly buggers in olive and tan, standard nymphs such as hares’ ear nymphs, pheasant tail nymphs, prince nymphs, zebra midges, various egg patterns and San Juan Worms.
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November 5, 2009
The trout season on the Guadalupe is starting early this year. Cooler days and cooling rains have brought the average daily river temperature on the Guadalupe River tailwater down to the required thresholds for the safe introduction of new fish that will soon join the holdover trout in the Trophy Trout Zone of the Guadalupe. My guiding season for trout on the Guadalupe will being on Tuesday, November 17 and continue into the spring. Flows are still down from the historic averages but Canyon Lake continues to rise, and has now gained five feet since the beginning of September. This is one of the earlier starts to the trout season on the Guadalupe in a number of years and, with the long range forecast calling for above average rainfall and slightly cooler temperatures this winter, we might finally be seeing the end of our extended drought and a return to nice trout fishing well into the spring.
Fly patterns early in the season often include smaller wooly buggers, standard nymphs such as hare’s ear nymphs, pheasant tail nymphs, zebra midges, various egg patterns and San Juan worms. There have been nice hatches in recent weeks, including caddis and some mayflies. As winter approaches the bugs, and therefore the fly menu, will change but for now, start with your “go-to” flies and then get more creative from there.
All-in-all, it is looking to be another very nice season on the Guadalupe River for trout.
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April 30, 2009
Rain! For the first time in a very long time the radar is showing real and significant rains throughout the Hill Country. This season has been puncutated by the lowest flows on the Guadalupe River since the completion of Canyon Dam in 1964 but with the moderate rains over the past few weeks and more rain to come we are looking at the best chance for Canyon to fill in over a year.
Fishing has been nice throughout the Hill Country. A common day can include a walk-wade trip for trout in the morning on the Guadalupe tailrace, followed by an afternoon on the upper Guadalupe fishing for small mouth and Guadalupe bass. Rivers like the Llano, Colorado and San Marcos have been producing very nice fishing of late, with a number of bass over 2 pounds being taken. The other day we had a 12" Rio Grande Cichlid taken on the San Marcos that weighed in at just over 1.25 pounds and will be the new Texas catch-and-release record for that species. We have also seen some nice channel catfish coming to flies such as wooley buggers and crawfish patterns, with the best fish weighing in at over three pounds and putting a great bend in a 4wt rod.
While our trout fishing has slowed somewhat with the warmer conditions, the overall fishing in the Hill Country is very good right now and with the additional water should continue to improve.
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March 29, 2009
Spring has arrived to the Guadalupe River valley, and with it our first substantial rains in many months. Flows below Canyon Dam are up from the season lows and are now at 85cfs. In addition to more water, we are also seeing slightly stained water which has been good for the fish as well as the fishing. Trout have moved somewhat with the increased flows but we are still finding most of the trout in the deeper water. The stained waters has helped keep the fish more hidden from birds such as ospery, and we are seeing more fish on the edges of the deep waters and often in the riffles. These conditions also have helped with fly selection (patterns such as San Juan Worms and Prince Nymphs are working again) and we are able to use somewhat heavier tippet--4x & 5x, rather than 5x & 6x. The sucker spawn is coming to an end, but we are seeing some fish still eating on egg patterns when fished deep. Other successful patterns include baetis emergers in 16s to 20s and caddis emergers. Our tricos have continued to appear in the mornings and quite often we are seeing good cross hatches of midges and caddis in the afternoons.
All-in-all the river has been fishing very well for trout and we are seeing some nice hits from other species. We landed a nice 12.5# carp on 4x tippet and a damsel nymph last week along with some nice smallies and a few sunfish mixed in for good measure. Float trips are still the best way to see the river, as we are able to cover quite a bit more water in a day and get to spots that are more difficult to access via foot.
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March 9, 2009
With more consistent weather, the fishing on the Guadalupe River has improved considerably over the past couple of weeks. With spring conditions come late season hatches including caddis, slate drakes, hexagenia and lots of midges. We have also been seeing quite a number of our suckers spawning, putting thousands of eggs into the water; a favorite food source for our trout. Effective patterns include zebra midges, gold ribbed hares ears, various beatis emergers, graphics caddis and sucker spawns. We have seen quite a few anglers on the river this season and many of the trout have become educated. Because of this, we are going lighter on the tippet (down to 6x fluorocarbon in some cases) and changing flies more often. Even with the low flows we are seeing nice water temps (upper 50s to mid 60s most days) and the better hatches are coming off in the late mornings and continue into the afternoons. With the warmer days we are starting to see the bass come to life on the Guadalupe (and throughout the Hill Country) as well. All in all, it is a nice time for fishing in Texas.
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February 21, 2009
Flows on the Guadalupe continue to drop and are currently holding at 45 cfs. With these exceptionally low flows and early Spring weather conditions over the past week (lows in the morning range from the upper 20s to mid 50s, highs range from the low 60s to upper 80s) hatches have been sporadic and fishing has been slower. We are still seeing a number of nice fish to hand but are having to work harder for those fish. On mornings with warmer temperatures early we are still seeing nice trico hatches and with the warming trend the caddis are starting to show. With the warmer days we are also starting to see the red horse suckers begin their spawn, putting eggs into the water and giving the trout a favorite spring food. Conditions on the river are in flux at this time but will begin to stabilize as winter ends and spring begins.
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February 1, 2009
Things are in full swing on the Guadalupe River, fish in excess of 22 inches are being caught and released seem commonplace and many anglers boating fish in the 15-18 inch range that are shaped like footballs. Flows are still low but float trips have provided the best opportunities as we are able to cover more water and often get into places that have less fishing pressure. Nymphing deep with an attractor nymph above a natural is bread-and-butter for the Guadalupe with favorite patterns including flashback pheasant tails, poison tungs, black zebra midges, various colors of RS2s and egg patterns in pink or orange. On overcast days we are seeing very nice hatches of tricos in the mornings, followed by blue winged olives in the afternoon. We are seeing good hatches of hexagenia on warmer days and the caddis are starting to show themselves a little more often.
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January 15, 2009
the Guadalupe River tailwater is flowing low and mostly clear. Even with the low flows we are able to float a raft through the trophy zone with a minimum of wading/dragging. Nice summer flows have helped retain a number of hold-over fish in the river this year and those fish have been supplemented with very nice fish courtesy of Texas Parks and Wildlife and Guadalupe River Trout Unlimited. Average fish size through the special regulation zone has been 17 inches and just over 2 pounds, with some fish going in excess of 24 inches and pushing five pounds. We have seen nice hatches of tricos, midges and caddis, with various beatis and hexagenia mixed in for good measure. The better hatches start in the mid-morning and run throughout the day. Favorite patterns on the river at this time include hares ear nypmhs, black RS2s, zebra midges and bead head pheasant tails in black with a little flash in sizes ranging from 16s to 22s. Weekends have been pretty busy on the river, with those looking for a little more solitude opting for weekday trips.
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Here are some reports and photos from a past season....
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Mar 20 - 26
The fishing slowed down a bit this week. We had a couple good days, a couple slow days, and one great day. Cloudy without wind was good, sunny and 30mph winds was not good. The murky water earlier in the week also made it tough. Size 20 midge emergers were the top flies.
    
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Mar 6 - 19
The fishing has been great! We had a few days of strong winds which made it tough, but whenever the wind let up we caught fish. We also had a couple slow mornings. Big mayfly nymphs to imitate the slate drakes, and small trico and midge emergers were our top flies. We've seen some decent slate drake hatches, and lots of midges. Click on pics for a bigger view!
     
     
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Feb 27 - Mar 5
The superb fishing of last week continued this week! We had a few fish on egg patterns, which we tied on as a result of the spawning suckers. Most fish were caught on size 12/14 hare's ears and pheasant tails and #20 rs2's and wd40's. Slate drakes, tricos, bwo's and midges were abundant.
    
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Feb 20 - 26
Fishing this week was just about as good as it gets!! I love clouds and fog on the Guadalupe! Although the sun returned Sunday, we still caught lots of fish! Big (14) pheasant tails and small (20)mayfly emergers were our all we needed to keep the rods bent. Lots of tricos and bwo's.
    
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Feb 13 - 19
Fishing was great all week! Even a complete lack of circulation in our limbs over the cold weekend didn't stop my clients from hooking fish, and I am proud of them for toughing it out! Big hares ears and tiny bwo emergers did the trick. Water has become very clear.
    
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Feb.6 - 12
Fishing was not as red hot this week as last, but it was still very good. Hare's ears, small mayfly emergers, and midge pupa did the trick. The catfish below ate a hare's ear. I held two sold-out fly fishing classes, and during the nymphing class every participant landed a trout!
    
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Jan. 30 - Feb 5
Fishing was excellent this week! Big hare's ears and small midge pupa were the top flies. I got a day to go camping and fly fishing with my daughter too, who landed a nice rainbow.
    
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Jan. 23 - 29
Fishing continued to be wonderful! Big flies, small flies, it all worked. We grilled chicken, bison, and one day enjoyed (really!) veggie burgers. Also caught a striped bass, and saw a bald eagle!
   
   
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Jan 16 - 22
We had another great week on the Guadalupe! Small mayfly emergers were key, and big mayfly nymphs/emergers were automatic when the slate drake hatch was on. Liddy (13yrs) caught her first trout this week! Way to go Liddy! Bruce caught this 21" hen at dusk. Click on pics....
    
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Jan 9 - Jan 15
Fishing was great this week! Size 14 pheasant tails and hares ears worked well, but size 22 mayfly emergers and size 18-20 midge pupa using small (5x & 6x) tippet were the top flies. Grilled chicken was our top lunch.
    
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Jan 2 - Jan 8
Fishing was a little slower this week, though we still caught a fair number of fish. The fish are becoming wiser, and smaller tippet and flies will get the job done. Size 22 mayfly emergers and size 18-22 midge larva were our top flies. Wooly buggers also picked up some fish. Check out this big gray redhorse sucker (caught previous week)!
   
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Dec. 26 - Jan.1
Well we rang in the new year with a lot of fish! Wooly buggers, small pheasant tails, midge pupa, hares ears and prince nymphs have all worked well. Fish are rising in the evenings, and a properly drifted & lifted nymph can pick up fish. Jackson, 7, caught this 18" bow on his second cast of the day. His brother Justin, 12, was unstoppable! Click on pics...
    
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Dec. 19 - 25
Fishing was excellent in the early part of the week, then slowed down a bit with the bright sunshine later in the week, but we still caught plenty of trout. Hares ears were more important as the slate drake hatch intensified. Grilled bison burgers were our top lunch. The fisherman in the first picture below caught that beauty on a dry fly, thus the large smile!
    
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Dec. 12 - 18
Fishing is still great! Any midge pupa in a size 18 continues to be our top fly. We've seen more slate drakes on the water, and a hares ear with a midge pupa dropper has been our top combination.
   
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Dec. 5 - 11
Fishing has been great! Top flies have been size 18 midge pupa in a variety of colors and bwo emergers. Also the fish are starting to key in a little more on big slate drake imitations, like hares ears. We're starting to see more bug activity, including small bwo's (22's), caddis (16-18), and slate drakes(14).
   
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Nov 28 - Dec 4
Fishing has been very good. The trout are acting a little weird because they're spawning, so if you know or suspect fish of being in a certain lie, keep hitting it until they decide to strike. Stripping wooly buggers was very effective, as was dead-drifting small midge pupae.
   
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