Deschutes River, Upper
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The irrigation season has started, so the middle Deschutes has dropped. For the next couple of weeks, expect the March brown and blue-winged olive hatches to fade out.
Due to the lower water level, the water temperature will rise. This means the salmonflies will become active. The hatch starts sooner on this stretch of the Deschuts than it does lower down.
The upper Deschutes--above Benham Falls--is closed until May 22.
Importance by half-month
Super 
Major 
Minor 
Slight 
None
Hatches are matched from Westfly's database of "standard" fly patterns.
Nymph
Emerger
Flats, runs, backeddies: standard dry fly
Dun
Flats, runs, backeddies: standard dry fly
► Expect hatches around 1:00 to 2:00 (daylight time) on cloudy days or drizzly days that aren't too cold.
Emerger
Size 10-14 Soft Hackle, Quigley Cripple, Film Critic, Hackle Stacker. Tan to red-brown body, brown wing
Near riffles, flats: surface swing
Dun
Near riffles, flats: standard dry fly
► During the hatch, trout may be more receptive to emerger patterns than to duns.
► During hatches, look for feeding fish in the slow-to-moderate runs that are within about a hundred yards (upstream or downstream) of a good-sized riffle. Hatches start around 2:00-2:30 p.m., daylight time.
► Prior to the hatch, nymphs can be productive if you drift them near the bottom.
Pupa
Adult
► When trout are midging, a Sprout Midge can work well, but a pupa pattern is always a good choice.
► Trout can be very picky about size and color of the pupa. You may need to swap flies several times to find the right combination.
Adult
Lakes; rivers over gravel and cobble, undercut banks: count-down-and-retrieve, slow retrieve, wind drift, deep swing
► When fishing a streamer, try matching your fly to the sky color: dark patterns on dark days, lighter patterns on bright days.
► Resident brown trout can whack a streamer that is presented in the pools and alongside the river bank where the water is over two feet deep.
General
► The river is closed from Little Lava Lake to Benham Falls until May 22.
► There is good public access near Terrebonne. This area holds a mix of brown trout and rainbow trout.
Confluence Fly Shop 541-678-5351
Fin and Fire 541/548-1503
Fly and Field Outfitters 541-318-1616
The Fly Fisher's Place 541-549-3474
The Hook 541-593-2358
The Patient Angler 541-389-6208