where to go? suggestions, please!

[alex-fly]

Hi everybody!

First of all, sorry for my POOR English!

My name´s Alex, I am from Brazil. I flyfish since 2005 and I have created and run a flyfishing site/forum here in Brazil (Fly Fishing Brasil - O fly da maneira mais simples) in order to promote flyfishing down here.

Probably I´ll be retired by next year, around Sep or Oct/2011.
I intend to give myself a gift! That would be a trip to to the USA for some troutfishing and to know some fly shop as well...

As I am going alone and probably will drive to the river by myself, I would like to ask you for suggestions, considering that I prefer to fish close to a main city (for ex: Reno, Billings...). I mean, I´d like to fly from a hub city, such as Atlanta, Dallas, LA to a smaller city and to flyfishing near of this city... maybe a one-hour-d rive trip from the city. That´s why I have been thinking about Reno area (Good option????) , where I can purchase my tackle at Cabela´s and at other smaller shops and TROUTfish around...

BUT I AM OPEN for suggestions! I plan to go by SEP/OCT/2011 LOL.


Thanks for your attention!


Alex_brazil

[Eric]

Welcome to the site alex. If your going to base out of los angeles you would have the kern river which is two hours north. You could also drive north four hours and fish the mammoth and bishop area. That would put you on the owens,hot creek and the east walker. All very nice water.
Looking forward to reading about some reports from your neck of the woods.
Eric

[tomsakai]

I love California fishing but it's really hard to beat Montana. I do my Montana fishing out of Missoula (reachable via Seattle or Salt Lake with Alaska Air or Delta). The Bitteroot, Blackfoot, Clark Fork, Rock Creek. So many choices and a nice city to stay in. One important thing to consider is the weather. September in Montana is usually great but Montana could be ok or could be iffy.

[Benny]

If you are considering Reno, I would say to fly fish on the Truckee River. It will likely be prime time around that time of the year (September-October) as you mentioned above.

Also if you happen to be in the Reno area in the winter time, Pyramid Lake is one of the best winter fisheries hands down.

If flying out of LAX you might try checking out Horizon Air. They have flights during the winter time up to Mammoth air port. This will leave you much closer to some nice Fall-Winter fisheries in the area, but I'm not sure if Horizon Air starts running the flights up to Mammoth during this time of the year, they might just be flying during the winter months.

The Redding area also offers some excellent fly fishing during this time of year, lots of options up in this area. You could even do some float trips on the Lower Sacramento.

There are plenty of options all over the state of California, just need to research a bit more before your trip in the Fall of 2011.

[alex-fly]

Welcome to the site alex. If your going to base out of los angeles you would have the kern river which is two hours north. You could also drive north four hours and fish the mammoth and bishop area. That would put you on the owens,hot creek and the east walker. All very nice water.
Looking forward to reading about some reports from your neck of the woods.
Eric

Thanks Eric!!!... fishing in CA is being also considered.

Indeed, If I decide for Carson City Area, I´ll study also fishing in CA, around Lake Tahoe area.

[]s
Alex

[alex-fly]

I love California fishing but it's really hard to beat Montana. I do my Montana fishing out of Missoula (reachable via Seattle or Salt Lake with Alaska Air or Delta). The Bitteroot, Blackfoot, Clark Fork, Rock Creek. So many choices and a nice city to stay in. One important thing to consider is the weather. September in Montana is usually great but Montana could be ok or could be iffy.

Tomsakai, thanks!

Montana is really such a dream for any FLYfisherman.
I used to purchase a lot of flyfishing stuff from a store located in MT (Laurel). But this store was closed
and nowadays I use to purchase from a store located in Carson City (that´s why I am also considering
the Reno area for this (1st) trip to the USA.
Weather is also a concern... I don´t see how I could go sooner... I am afraid MT will be a little bit cold
for me in late September...
All your suggestions is already written and I will considered them all!

Big Hug!

Alex

[tomsakai]

Alex, sorry I mispoke. I would be very comfortable in Montana in September (great weather usually) but when you get into October it can get cold if the winter starts early.

[alex-fly]

If you are considering Reno, I would say to fly fish on the Truckee River. It will likely be prime time around that time of the year (September-October) as you mentioned above.

Also if you happen to be in the Reno area in the winter time, Pyramid Lake is one of the best winter fishery hands down.

If flying out of LAX you might try checking out Horizon Air. They have flights during the winter time up to Mammoth air port. This will leave you much closer to some nice Fall-Winter fisheries in the area, but I'm not sure if Horizon Air starts running the flights up to Mammoth during this time of the year, they might just be flying during the winter months.

The Redding area also offers some excellent fly fishing during this time of year, lots of options up in this area. You could even do some float trips on the Lower Sacramento.

There are plenty of options all over the state of California, just need to research a bit more before your trip in the Fall of 2011.

Hi Benny!
As I have replied to Tomsakai above, I decided to look at NV option due to the fact I buy frequently from a flyshop located in Carson City... going there I will have the chance to "THANK" this shop owner in person!
He has been helping me a lot!! ´cause I use to import a lot of items from the USA to make easier for some anglers to know and also
to become FLYfishermen! what I have noticed is that a lot of the anglers that were used to "kill" fish , they just reduce the
number of fish they bring home or stop to bring! In some way, they become more concious about the need to preserve our natural resourses.
This is the main reason for me to promote flyfishing here... FLYfishing changed me in this way too ! LOL.

So, Benny, thanks for your tips!

ALex

[alex-fly]

Alex, sorry I mispoke. I would be very comfortable in Montana in September (great weather usually) but when you get into October it can get cold if the winter starts early.

ok Tomsakai.
But I DO have to pay attention to it... I have never seen snow! LOL
Well, no problem to see it, but I am a little bit concerned about being outdoors in cold weather! I live at the coldest
state capital in Brazil... Have experienced here around 26 º F... I have already fished in 39º F... but if it get colder maybe i´ll
stay in the lodge/hotel room tying some flies! LOL.

Alex

[Benny]

Alex, sorry I mispoke. I would be very comfortable in Montana in September (great weather usually) but when you get into October it can get cold if the winter starts early.

ok Tomsakai.
But I DO have to pay attention to it... I have never seen snow! LOL
Well, no problem to see it, but I am a little bit concerned about being outdoors in cold weather! I live at the coldest
state capital in Brazil... Have experienced here around 26 º F... I have already fished in 39º F... but if it get colder maybe i´ll
stay in the lodge/hotel room tying some flies! LOL.

Alex

Layer up the clothing Alex, you'll be fine. I fished on Crowley lake a few weeks back and it was 12 degrees when I started fishing from my float tube. I only managed to catch one rainbow, but still had a great time on the water even with the cold temps. I wore a t-shirt, fleece, and flannel shirt and a beanie and was nice and toasty. I also had some fleece under pants beneath my waders and some fleece fingerless gloves.

[mk4]

Do you plan on wade fishing? Camping or staying at a motel? Do you plan on hiring a guide? How long are you staying for?

Personally, I'd hit some premier waters if I were to fly in from another country. Maybe do a San Juan River, South Platte, Green river trip. Too bad you weren't coming here in a few weeks, you could join me.

[Frank]

Sierratroutmagnet.com!

David knows CA from the Sierra to the surf, was raised guiding Montana, and his shop is in

the heart of trout country. Fun dude, and a hard worker too. Just my $.02

[midger]

There has been a lot of good input from folks so far. September can be a great fishing month for all the western waters.

We could probably answer better with more info. You never said specifically how long you planned to fish on this trip. That would help you determine the amount of water you want to try to cover. You also never said whether you planned to hire a guide for all or part of your trip, camping or motel, driving distances you are willing to endure, etc.

California does have some good waters, but it can be a long drive to reach some of them and you have to hit them at the right time to create an epic trip. That being said, September can be very good in Northern California in and around Redding. From there you'd have access to the Upper/lower Sacramento (the lower being a primarily guide/floating river), the Pit, McCloud, Hat Creek, Trinity, etc. You'd have all these rivers within a 1-1.5 hour drive if you based out of Redding. You could fly into Redding or cheaper flights into Sacramento then drive the 3 hours to Redding.

Another great area would be the West Yellowstone area. You could base out of there and fish some of the flyfisher's "mecca" waters on the Madison, Firehole, LaMar, Yellowstone, Henry's Fork (Idaho), Henry's Lake, Hebgen, etc. Here you'd have absolutely gorgeous scenery in addition to being there during the prime of the season. Great time to chuck streamers for summer fattened fish, and the temperatures aren't bad this time of the season. Yes it can be cold early in the mornings, but the daytime temps will usually rise enough so that you'll still see baetis and caddis hatches coming off--especially on the Firehole. You could fly into Pocatello Idaho and drive up the Henry's Fork to reach West Yellowstone. You'd pass Henry's Lake and the Madison enroute to WYS.

I can't overwarn you about driving too far. Many folks try to hit the Green in Utah below Flaming Gorge (a wonderful fishery), go up and fish the Green near Pinedale, the Snake and Flat Creek out of Jacksonhole, and hit the Yellowstone Park waters-----this creates a lot of driving which in turn minimizes your fishing time. Unless your trip will be 3-4 weeks, I'd either base out of an area that had a diverse amount of fishable waters within a one hour radius or I'd plan to fly a lot between the destination waters.

Have fun planning your trip.
Mike

[alex-fly]

Do you plan on wade fishing? Camping or staying at a motel? Do you plan on hiring a guide? How long are you staying for?

Personally, I'd hit some premier waters if I were to fly in from another country. Maybe do a San Juan River, South Platte, Green river trip. Too bad you weren't coming here in a few weeks, you could join me.

I prefer wadding...
I am not to much into boat.

I HOPE it will be my first trip to the USA for flyfishing...want to go several times... I plan to open a small, very small (LOL) flyshop here in Brazil, so going to the USA will be necessary from time to time.

About use guiding service, I do NOT intend to use it... I just CAN´T afford this kind of service ( around 300 dollars a day) by now.

Have looked for some lodging in Montana, Idaho, Wyoming region... around 1,200 dollars per 3 nigths + 2 days of fishing!
It´s a fair price, but I can´t afford this now. Better use this money with some tackle.

I plan to stay in hotels.

thanks!
alex

[mk4]

I assume you're probably going to rent a car. A mini-van would work out much better, as you can sleep inside with just a sleeping bag. But a van will cost almost double what a sub-compact will. You can get a sub-compact for $25 a day from an airport, but a van might go $50 or more.

Still, a van is the way to go because you won't always find a motel or campground and can sleep in the van.

You might want to send yourself (or the nearest fly shop) near the town of your destination a package that contains an ice chest, tent, sleeping bag, stove, lantern, cookware, etc... That'll save you a bunch of time and money. Just get off of the airplane, rent a van and follow your itinerary and fish.

As a veteran road warrior, I'll give you some helpful tips.

- Make a travel itinerary (travel, fish and camp plans) Have them routed, timed, and mapped.

- Make the route a loop that you can fish either way.

- Make backup plans for each river and campsite/motel. You might get rained on at a certain stop. So you need to have back up locations nearby or do the loop in reverse order.

- Get some emergency contacts near your destination and buy AAA. The car rental may come with roadside assistance.

- Get worldwide cell coverage if don't already have it. You can just get a short term contract or modify your contract.

- Take a fishing buddy. Preferably, one with a *.