The Eastern Sierra
A Guide's Perspective with
Doug Rodricks
Most of us are familiar with the tried-and-true spots in the Eastern Sierra. Hot Creek, the Lower and Upper Owens and Crowley Lake offer few surprises to Club regulars. However, fishing pressure, run offs and closures can prompt head scratching and send us scurrg to Plan B. Enter our July presenter Doug Rodricks of Sierra Drifters Guide Service.
Doug's program will hit some of our hot spots but will open the door to lesser known options, rivers and still waters. He will bring a guide's perspective to rigging, fly selection and the proper care and handling of trout. He will cover correct rod manipulation when fighting large fish and the correct way to safely net them. He will also cover how to capture that special photograph. For boaters and float tubers, he will discuss recent improvements in electronics.
Doug Rodricks grew up in Southern California and spent many summers vacationing in Yosemite National Park with his family before he could crawl. The sights, sounds, and smells of the outdoors were instilled in him at a young age, as he experienced the beauty of the high country. His interest in trout fishing started at the age of 9, when he witnessed an angler reeling up a trout out of the Merced River. The following year, he hooked his first trout in the gin clear waters of that same river. Doug took up fly fishing at the age of 18 and would practice fly casting after school every evening.
He vacationed in Idaho and West Yellowstone one summer, where he experienced drift boat fly fishing for the first time. In 2001, he met Tom Loe in the Eastern Sierra, where he continued his path to learning the most exciting way of catching trout. His patience, outgoing personality, and teaching techniques have served him well in guiding clients to some of the best fishing areas in the Eastern Sierra.
He has a knack for working with beginners and youngsters and finds it very rewarding to watch them catch their first fish on a fly rod. Doug's knowledge of the area and fly fishing techniques have also challenged and rewarded some of the most experienced of fly fisherman. Many of his clients claim an outing with Doug is like fishing with a friend they have known for years. Doug has appeared numerous times on the pages and covers of Western Outdoor News, with his clients displaying their trophy catches accompanied by their smiles.
By learning from his mentor and friend, Tom Loe, Doug soon found himself taking over as the owner of Sierra Drifters Guide Service, where he continues to innovate and provide the best service and instruction to Sierra Drifter's fast growing customer base. Doug is a USCG licensed captain and holds a BS in Business Management.
His top-of-the-line Ranger Bay Boat spans 24' in length and sports an impressive 250 HP Mercury Verado; which not only gets you to the biting fish quickly and safely but employs some of the most cutting-edge electronics and fish finding tools available. This vessel can handle up to 4 anglers on Crowley and Bridgeport reservoirs comfortably and with ample room for storage. A 17' Willie Drift Boat which can take up to 3 anglers is also available for fishing the Lower Owens River.
Doug guides on the best rivers and creeks in the area for catching large trout. Nymphing and streamer fishing are the primary techniques Doug uses during these outings, but when the fish come to the surface to feed, he will switch over to dry fly fishing to catch these beautiful fish. In the winter months Doug rides his clients out to the best fishing spots by snowmobile where they can fish to rainbow trout ranging from 19 - 25" in length.
He has spent the last 17 years guiding the Eastern Sierra and has made learning something new a priority whenever he gets out to guide or just fish for fun.
Program Description
My program will cover various locations in the Eastern Sierra, with emphasis on some of the best waters to catch trout with a fly rod.
While many of the locations are currently well known, there will be areas mentioned that are not typically fished with heavy pressure and not as known. The program will also cover techniques, rigging, fly selection, use of a boat with emphasis on today's electronics on how to have an advantage in locating and catching trout. Stillwaters as well as moving waters will be mentioned.
How to utilize the entire rod to play a fish, thus shortening the time it takes to land a fish, mainly larger fish. Maintaining a 90-degree angle at all times while fighting a fish. Properly netting and caring for a trout after the battle. The best ways to photograph and release fish while incurring minimal if any damage to a fish.