We have gotten a lot of rain the past week but it seems that most of the streams in the area are fishing well.  There were a good number of people fishing on North and South Bear this morning.  The water is a little high for this time of year and a little off color but the fish were active.  I talked to a few people who fished Coldwater Creek this weekend and they said it was very high and dirty.

Fall is a great time to get out and fly fish some new water.  Iowa trout fishing never closes so get out and fish.  Catch and release fly fishing is very important in the fall.  The brown trout are spawning so let’s keep the population strong.

Rain has been hitting us hard the past 2 days and may continue until Saturday.  Rain fall amount from 2-5 inches have been reported from last night.  The rain is coming down hard and fast which leads to run off and water levels rising fast which can hurt fishing for a few days.

The Upper Iowa River was fishing well before the rain.  The white flies were out and the fish were feeding up until dark.  We will see how the rain changes things.

Fished Coldwater Creek for a few hours tonight.  The trout were very active feeding close to the surface.  Dead drifting soft hackles and size 22 emerger patterns worked well.  I really enjoy fishing Coldwater Creek.  It has deep runs and cut banks that hold a lot of fish.

The day started off cold and cloudy with a light rain.  By the time Laurie and I hit the water this afternoon the rain was gone but it was still overcast.  It was a fun day of fly fishing on the North Bear.

Laurie was in town from Virginia to test her skills against the trout of Northeast Iowa and she succeeded.  We had success swinging soft hackle flies at the tail end of runs.  With the overcast skies we saw a few bugs starting to hatch later in the day.

Laurie, Thanks for fishing with Northeast Iowa Fly Fishing while you were in Decorah.  I enjoyed our trip.

Went fishing on the North Bear tonight with my old fly fishing partner Valli.  She has not been on the stream much this year but enjoyed her self tonight.

The North Bear is getting a make over.  We saw some new stream work that looks like  it has just been completed.

The water down stream of  the stream work was a little off color but not bad.  Up stream the color was great.  We got a lot of rain last week so the flow is perfect.

Caught fish on midges and 18 pheasant tails.  It was a very nice night to fish.  Fall is my favorite time to fish and I think it is here.

Wow!  What a crazy month.  Between catching fish and working in the garden time has gone by fast.

I spent my Labor Day weekend in Colorado guiding at the 4UR Ranch.  I had guided there a few years ago and they called me last Friday and asked me if I could help them out during their busy Labor Day weekend.  Once you fish/guide at the 4UR you will not turn down an invitation to go back (even if you have to travel all day to get there).

Goose Creek runs though the Ranch and dumps into the Rio Grande just miles down from its head waters.  Goose Creek is a private tail water and has great hatches all year long which makes fly fishing exciting and challenging.  It also makes for huge fish that will test your skills.  Catching AND landing fish, ranging from 19-24 inches (some bigger) on 7x with flies that are size 22-26, takes some getting use to.  That’s right- 26! I could not believe my eyes when I saw them.  I was able to head out for a quick evening fish after my first day of guiding with my brother and we both caught a nice fish on the creek.

If you are ever looking for a great fly fishing experience, check out 4URRanch.com.  Head guide Andy Lee and his guide staff can help you find, catch, and land great fish.