As a reminder this section is barbless flies and lures only, catch and release, open all year. So far it’s just myself out there until some upcoming guide trips and therefore no fish photos since my goal is to release fish within 10 to 20 seconds while keeping them in shallow water. 

I was able to access the Longears area via the East side road up from Benton Crossing starting March 3rd and now can use Owens River Road to come in from the West side. Initially I was getting into Rainbows 18” to 20” during their late February/March run up from Lake Crowley along with 8” to 16” Browns and Rainbows. It’s slowly thinning out each trip going from a mix of 4 to 5 of those fish to 2 or 3. Still loads of fun with near perfect weather conditions. Most of those were caught with a Yellow Spot Nymph below an indicator 5’ to 6’ deep. Other good bets include Flashback Pheasant Tails, Zebra Midges, San Juan Worms, and Egg Patterns. The few times I’ve tossed Wooly Buggers have also worked. There’s been a consistent bit of surface feeding by 6” to 12” Browns and Rainbows each day starting about 1:00 in some but not all of the slower moving bends so that’s the time to break out Caddis and Mayfly Patterns. I tell ya, it’s such a joy to be fishing the Upper in March with no snow cherishing the memory of it all year long. Also as a note, Both Monitor and Ebbetts passes are open to through traffic.