The late season here in the valley has been hot, dry, and smoky, thanks to the myriad fires burning to the east and south of our area.  Our wet winter and spring made for lots of understory growth in the forests of the Cascades and Siskiyou Mountains.  After several weeks of hot dry weather plus a sprinkling of lightning storms, the worst fire season in a generation is upon us.

While the eerie, orange-hued, apocalyptic conditions have been unnerving, uncomfortable, and downright unhealthy some days, the fishing has actually been very good.  Apparently the trout don’t mind the faux overcast.

While the fires will persist until we get some significant rain, each day on the river is different.  With smoke conditions dependent on the whims and vagaries of the wind, some days are beautiful; some are… decidedly not.  As we look to the weeks ahead, once we have some reasonable rain and the first wet onshore flow off the ocean, things should settle back into a more normal pattern.  The fishing will remain excellent from here on out into November. In the meantime, seemingly everyone is hunkered down inside keeping a wary eye to the hazy skies, waiting for the air to clear.