Ask not what Leonard can do for English lasses
Don’t let Leonard’s rant fool you … he’s still writing that check to the athletic fund. The girls will be back to train again, and The Sheet editors aren’t betting against his fishing offer still being good when they are. (Photo: BigWillyStyles/Flickr.com)
By Leonard
I am so bummed. The UCLA women volleyball team was up in Mammoth entrenched in their annual high altitude training camp, and I missed them. I was down in Antigua, Guatemala, attending the wedding of an ex-pat cousin who married a fantastic local girl.
But, to come home to the Eastern Sierra and not find the baby blue collegiate women knocking on the front door of my house to take me up on my generous offer of housing the entire squad of blonds, brunettes, and redheads in my 3-bedroom, 2-bath bachelor pad? The only reasonable explanation that I can come up with for the no-show is that the Bruin athletic director must have lost my invitation letter somewhere on his desk. There goes my gift check to the athletic fund. Oh, how I would have loved to have spent a couple summer evenings simply entertaining such fine, dedicated, attractive athletes.
Hence, I was left only with the opportunity of hitting on British lassies down in Central America. Isn’t it Kennedy who once said, “Ask not what your country can do for you, but how you can spread the love of America to fine-looking international women?” Or, is that just what I heard? In any event, speaking of practicing catch and release…
Fishing in the Eastside is pretty good right now. The lakes are all turned on, as plenty of big browns are coming out of Crowley. The North End is as good a spot as any to kick a tube around with a sink line and Bugger. The lake fish are moving up towards the O. Bridgeport Rez keeps bending rods for bait anglers with Gulp! and nightcrawlers; and trollers dragging Needlefish and Rapalas. Rainbow Point and the Channel are good spots. The lakes above Mammoth are chock full of healthy trout. Mary, Mamie, Twin and George are all producing. Paddling a rental boat over towards the waterfall at Twin to pitch size 16 and 18 Black Gnat dries at the brooks is also an incredible way to spend the late afternoon. Listening to the waterfall dance down the rocks is about as peaceful an experience as any. The brookies in Twin are not sizable by any means, but they are some of the most beautiful trout found around here, not like the song girls in the Rose Bowl, but keepers to mount if you get a good one. And Convict is seeing a lunker here and there come ashore. Shoot some Kastmasters from the beach or the rock marina. All the lakes are fishing rather well right now, and they are only going to improve as fall approaches. Around the time The Ohio State University sticks it to the Trojans in football, we’re going to see some huge fish.
Hot Creek is rather challenging right now. Lots of vegetation, lots of trout conditioned to various fly patterns and less-than-perfect drifts. You’ve really got to be on target at Hot Creek this time of year. Try using some of the flies that you haven’t yet pulled out of the box this season, or moving to a place you haven’t hit … see if you can still manage to trick a few to take your decoy. If that fails, just toss in a couple sticks of dynamite and blow ‘em out of the water. Just kidding, DFG.
More legit, the last hour of day is definitely, in my opinion, the best time to be on Hot Creek. When the wind dies down, and the boil begins, you can more or less resort back to most size 18/20 Caddis patterns to hook trout. Landing them in the weeds is another story.
Invite a group of lady volleyball players down with you. If they don’t catch the eye of the trout, nothing will. I’d even be fine with spending some time on Hot Creek with the cross-town rival USC Trojan squad. Why discriminate? Fight on!
A more detailed report can be found at http://kittredgesports.com/fishing_report.php. Leonard guides for Kittredge Sports. Call 934.7566.
