December 17, 2021 – A Short Morning Visit with an Old Friend Feeling Low and a Little Damaged – Valley Creek

Wide and flat is another Ida effect it seems.

I am not sure if I remember Valley getting much below 20 CFS even in the summertime, but it has been around 19 this week.  The Silver Fox said he heard that we have had a total of .25 inches of rain for December, and it certainly feels about right.  Low water in late fall is nothing new, so I was undaunted by the prospect of sneaking around in low, clear water conditions, but the additional destruction made by Ida this year was an added variable.  I did some recon in the upper reaches of the creek right after the storm, and it was bad, but I stayed out of Chesterbrook and the Park, knowing that too would be depressing.  It was too nice to not fish today, and I only had a small window, so today was my day to go back post-Ida and post-spawn and see what’s up.  There are still washed out and posted paths, some new channels and ultra-deep sandy holes, along with piles of gravel and stones small enough to get moved by flooding rains.  But there were also many redds, not to mention a heron and I getting into a few fish.  Valley is nothing if not resilient.  Except to photograph from a high bank, I steered clear of the redds, now unoccupied but full of eggs, but I managed to raise about 8 fish and land 4 of them on a bugger during my 3 hours and change of walking and fishing. 

Many positive signs, however!

Despite it being low and clear, those deep holes that were dug out by the storm(s) made me choose a jigged bugger, especially because there was a decent NW breeze that would have made it tough to nymph the size bugs I would have chosen to throw.  Instead of a bobber and midges or micro-caddis, I just tossed a jigged bugger on the mono rig.  Fishing at least a 20- to 25-foot leader and fishing upstream, I was able to stick a couple without spooking them.  Any little old man stumble in wet leaves or loose stone sent them scurrying, but as I said I did interest 8 fish and land 4 of them.  For Valley, they were very decent fish too.  I would say between 10 and 13 inches.  The bugger does tend to weed out the dinks that would be all over a zebra midge.  I would have been happy with dinks, and I almost quit after two fish.   I just wanted to get out for a walk today and see the creek, which I will see a lot of this winter.  I am glad I kept going and saw more creek and landed a couple more decent fish, however.  There is still plenty more to see on a less crowded weekday after the holidays, of course.  Doing a rain dance for Saturday.  If it works, Sunday somewhere, maybe even with the Silver Fox, is a possibility.  I guess I am making up for the beginning of the month?

Some Valley-decent fish along the way too.