The weather turned nasty for much of February and the UO was not my first choice as a fishing destination during this time frame. The ice has really come off Crowley as of late February and large numbers of the school sized rainbows are migrating back into the lake. There are significant numbers of larger spring run bows staging to spawn in the pools right now, but the masses of catchable sized rainbows have for the most part returned back into Crowley.

CROWLEY will be HOT early this year for sure, with solid chironomid activity by mid April. This will be a different scenario from the last couple of seasons due to extended ice.

If you are head hunting, fish the deep pools and runs with a streamer and nothing shy of 3X. The larger fish are definitely "size classing" and hanging out together. Having said this, if you hook a large fish there is high probability another is nearby.

Not all the pools are holding, and covering a lot of water with a few casts is a better strategy than pounding one pool continuously when hunting for trophies while chucking streamers or wet flies.

Nymphing or fishing tiny midge or BWO adults will get you into fish on the warmer days, and will be more productive for numbers under these conditions. The weather pattern should only improve as March rolls on, and I forecast some incredible days on the UO this spring.

The Upper Owens is open UPSTREAM ONLY from the Benton Crossing Bridge at this time.

ZERO LIMIT, BARBLESS ARTIFICIAL LURES OR FLIES ONLY.

Report poachers! 1 888 DFG-CALTIP (888 334-2258), 24 hours a day, seven days a week.