Flies for Cold Clear Conditions

The last few weeks have been challenging on both the Sandy and Clackamas rivers because the water, even when it comes up, is remaining gin clear. This of course is due to the lack of snow on Mt. Hood which typically cloudys the water up adding a glacial tint. As a result the fishing has slowed down dramatically despite there being plenty of fish around. Fish are visible in almost every run when floating through but they are hugging the bottom and refuse to move. Tough conditions like these, although frustrating, are a great time to experiment with different flies and prestentation techniques. Everyone will have different opinion but keep in mind like so many other aspects of steelhead fishing most of it comes down to confidence.



Under these conditions I prefer to fish small drab flies in black, brown, burnt orange and olive. I want my flies to be subtle offerings that are not intrusive. Typically my low clear water flies are standard wet flies I would use for summer steelhead tied on standard 4 and 6 steelhead hooks. My favorite flies are the steelhead coachman and silver hilton because both have a buggy quality about them making them appear natural in the freshwater environment.

Andrew on the other hand takes a different approach in his fly selection. He prefers to brighten his flies up, fishing primarily pink, orange and red in smaller sizes. Some of his flies are tied on standard hooks and some are tied stinger style depending on how small he wants his fly to be. Typically the flies are weighted and he lengthens the leader on his sink-tip to allow the fly to drop in the water column quickly because fish in low conditions tend to hug the bottom.

Travis prefers two types of flies in low conditions. He has one fly that is straight black with just a touch of flash, tied on a small weighted tube. Black is one of those colors that is hard to beat in just about every situation because it presents a strong silhouette yet still looks buggy in the water. His other go to fly is a small silver and blue tube fly that just works because it does according to Travis.

As is apparent there is certainly strong variation between three of us and what we have confidence in in low clear water. The only strong conclusion that can be drawn is that you need to believe in the fly you tie on a fish it as if you will hook a fish on every cast.