VIRTUAL RIVER TOUR East Carson River BELOW Hangman's Bridge

Looking downstream from Hangman's Bridge, we see a flat pool with a riffle below. (#1) This area gets HAMMERED by every fisherman on the stream! The pool contains smaller fish, with an occasional bigger fish caught before sunrise or after sunset. You can catch fish against the cliffs on the West side (left downstream), but it requires placing your fly within 6" of the cliff and immediately mending the line to stop drag. Whenever there's a hatch, you will see fish rising against that cliff. Guaranteed! Unfortunately, last year's floods undercut the roots of the big tree on the right, so it's no longer there to shade this pool.

Approximately 1/4 mile downstream, (#2) is a large pool (in the shaded area) before the river forks. Drift a weighted nymph into the head of this pool. If no luck, head downstream to where the forks rejoin, and another riffle-into-pool opportunity exists. But don't spend a lot of time here unless you see fish actively feeding. You may see dark caddis flies flitting about the rock cliffs, and this can start the fish feeding once the light gets off the water. But also keep a lookout for bats flying right after sunset. Occasionally, a good fish is found in the smaller of the forks, since few people fish that side. After the Spring runoff subsides, a channel to the left of the tree starts to dry up, and trout can get trapped in this area. Last year I netted a 14" Rainbow in about 5" of water, transported it to the river, and released it. So keep your eyes open and help the fish when you can.

The river makes a sharp left turn as it hits these banks, about a half-mile downstream (#3). Good fish hide in this turn, and it's a near-impossible cast. Persistance may reward you with a fish over 16" here. The next 1500 yards downstream reveals a series of holes and runs that fish quite well. I have landed trout up to 18" here. Last Fall, trout in this area were following dry flies for 10-20 feet, then bumping the fly with their noses (mouths closed), then turning away. As my Dad once said: "Humans are like fish: If they learned to keep their mouths shut, they would stay out of trouble!" These fish are learning!

This is another cliff/pool area (#4), below where Markleeville Creek enters the East Carson (1.5 miles downstream from Hangman's Bridge). The andesite cliffs always make me think that dinosaurs could be lurking nearby, and I sometimes climb to the top for "spying" down on fish. "The one that got away" was here, when I spied a HUGE fish (looked like a salmon!) working the tail of the riffle above this pool. I put on a big weighted stonefly nymph, re-tied a new tippet with 3X steelhead leader, and went after that monster. BAM!!! He takes the stonefly, then runs toward me as I haul in slack furiously, then turns downstream in a burst that strips the nylon gear in my multiplier reel, jams my line, and straightens out a #6 heavy-duty hook to get away. The fish never jumped, so was probably a big Brown trout, which I guess could have exceeded 8 lbs. And I'll bet he's still in there, older and wiser and bigger! I bought a new single-action disc-drag reel, so next time.....

This part of the river (#5) is where the trail from the Alpine County Airport meets the river (approximately 3 miles from Hangman's Bridge). Awfully pretty, don't you think? I sat here one day eating my sandwich and watched a buddy tease a 14" Rainbow with an assortment of dry flies. The Bow would roll at the fly (but not take it) three or four times, then refuse to show again for that particular fly pattern. My buddy would change to a different pattern, and it would happen all over again with the new pattern. An hour later, we were both chuckling at this Rainbow's antics (which he never caught). But that's why it's called FISHING, instead of CATCHING.... When you think you have learned the holes and runs, Mother Nature comes along with a flood and re-arranges all the rocks. This area always changes, since the waters of the Carson, Markleeville creek, and the Curtz Lake drainage impact here. So relearning is required.

Big Hole in the Canyon (#6) 3.5+ miles downstream from Hangman's Bridge. Well, was it worth the hike? On this very hot Summer day, I was wading in shorts, drank all my bottled water, fished all day, and only caught 4 fish. This Rainbow took a #18 pheasant tail nymph drifted just under the surface at the end of the drift (NOT where I was expecting a take). You just never know...and he's still in there waiting for you to catch him this season!

END OF THE TOUR: From beyond this point "There Be Dragons" (even the map stops!). The Canyon gets quite rugged, the elevation has now dropped to around 5300 ft, with rattlesnakes and wild animals occupying the land. It's also a long way from help if something bad happens, so this is where our virtual tour ends. (And I must keep a few "secret places" too, OK?).