Rock Creek has been fishing well, but the water levels are very low right now. Flows are currently sitting at approximately 193 CFS at the moment, down from around 248 CFS this time last year. Nightly water temps are getting down in the low-forties and staying in the mid-forties in the afternoon highs. Fish are sure to become increasingly active as temperatures get cooler.

Dry fly fishing this time of year is always good. Mayfly hatches will be starting a little later in the afternoon with the cooler temps. If you get out before the sun comes up the dry fly action will be a little slow, but streamers and attractor patterns are great options to find fish before the mayflies begin emerging. The Mahoganies are still present, but becoming less numerable as the weather cools. THE BWOs will be the most abundant until early November when they’re usually done. Late in the afternoons the October caddis will come out, and will become more abundant with falling light. With the best dry fly fishing being early morning and late evening, the middle of the day can be a bit slow. That’s always a good time to alternate to the streamer or the nymph, though the hopper dropper rig can also get some good action with the promise of some opportunistic eats on the dry. There aren’t many if any hoppers present on the creek at the moment, but a chubby Chernobyl or foam ant works great for the “hopper” part of the rig.

Nymphing is always a reliable option, especially for fishing that mid-day lull. For tight-line nymphing or fishing as a dropper, smaller perdigons and soft hackles do a great job of imitating the BWOs and mahoganies before they hatch. For fishing deeper water with indicator rigs and sink-tip lines larger bugs like the Double bead stone, rubber legs, and TJ hooker are great options to imitate the larger stoneflies in the river and great options for indicator nymphing or sinking line fishing.

The streamer bite has been steady, and fish are chasing bugs actively and with a lot of energy. Right now the biggest browns have completed their fall run and are staging up on redds. There are still a lot of juvenile fish moving through the river and actively feeding, but if you see big fish sitting on pale patches of gravel and not moving off the spot those fish are actively spawning and sitting on their eggs. Do the right thing, don’t try to fish for them and try to get out of the water and walk around them without disturbing the fish on the redd or agitating any sediment that could otherwise kill the eggs. It’s easy to tell when someone is targeting spawning fish, especially on rock creek, and it’s easy to tell which trophy browns were caught off a redd. Don’t be that guy, you can always find active fish in the deeper pools and lower elevations. Some spots are harder to effectively fish the streamer with current flows, but fishing unweighted flies in the upper water column or plumbing the deep pools for active fish is sure to bring you success in your day on the water. The Goldie, Dungeons, Peanut Envies, and Lil Kims have all turned heads and brought good size to the net. Swing into the shop to pick up all of your essentials to getting out on the water!