July 11th, 2019

Flows were "perfect" for fishing the Pit #3 @ ~350cfs. Flows over this amount get very tough! Even at 350 cfs the wading is very difficult--probably the most difficult wading you will ever come across. Very slick bottom & deep water from the bank with strong flows. Other rivers that were as difficult were the Madison due to similar conditions, except for the depth along the banks, and the Gowan in New Zealand. The Gowan was insane when I fished it, with ankle depth water that would knock you off your feet (I am not joking) and didymo cover rocks. I gave up on that one after a half an hour.

The images above are what you will initially see when approaching Pit #3 and when you descend on the stairs below. The final step off the stairs is a little nerve wracking. I can't imagine doing it in higher flows. Basically if you fall in that cauldron you will die. I bet there are some large fish in there but how to fish it with a fly rod is tough. The large fish in there probably sit in tough spots to reach and feed at night. I didn't bother as there were some spin fishermen fishing it pretty hard.

From the road up at the dam the river looks waaaaay down there. Further down the road though it comes closer to the road. Interesting note is that the movie scene from "Stand by Me" where they run across a railroad bridge is just up the lake from here.

Hiked from the dam all the way to the end of the riffles. Downstream was frogwater and suckers. In fact, it seemed all the water that didn't have any "white" in it had suckers or squawfish. The rainbows where in the whitewater basically. Makes sense since the river seems to run warm in general. Two weeks ago with my good friend Todd, he had did a temp reading in the morning and it was 62! Looking at the bank above is deceiving. Water looks great and that you could step right in and fish. Forget it. Water goes right up to your waist and the bottom is extremely slick.

Damm camera that I was trying out (Sony Rxo II) had tons of footage that turned out, out of focus and unusable. I caught a good number of fish making my way up the bank back up to the dam, but the footage was unusable. Camera otherwise gives great images you could not get with a gopro or other action camera. It will take some time to dial it with it. Hopefully it will work out ($700!). 

Beautiful, unique rainbows! nothing large, average size was about 9-11". 

Probably the last time I will fish the Pit. Too long of a drive for me and too difficult wading. At least the poison oak and wasps/ants weren't nearly as bad as when I first attempted it, LOL>