So… 2020… after all we as humans have been through this year here comes a big flash of excitement and energy. Pyramid Lake Nevada is opening to fishing on November 2nd. Normally this place opens its season on October 1st with enormous cutthroat trout chasing down huge bait balls of Chub mimicking days out on the ocean chasing boiling yellowtail or bonito. Better late than never so here we go.
There are lots of ways to go after these big trout that hunt the shorelines here and no substitution for calling the boys at SIERRA TROUTDOORSMAN or PYRAMID FLY CO to take you out and show you the ropes. If you’re headed out on your own though the most popular fishing styles there as of late seems to be hanging a balanced leech and a midge under an indicator. Other folks love to use a full sink line and slow strip foam beetles or boobie flies on the bottom. In this quick blog we will go over what you’ll need for both of these basic types of fishing that will produce some big fish from this beautiful place. As the year progresses stay tuned to learn about the not so conventional ways some of our guys have learned to catch fish at this place. We will try and add a new chapter to the pyramid lake HOW TO book each month with a new way to fish it. For now here are the basics.
RULES AND REGS FOR THE LAKE
- BARBLESS – Don’t be that guy. Pinch them things
- 2 FLY MAX – No Christmas Tree rigs
- CATCH AND RELEASE PLEASE!
- The more fish you release the better your odds on getting a 20 pound plus Fish
- No bait, scent or organic material on your fly/lure – Don’t be that guy has to get the big fish for the Gram no matter what.
2020/21 PRESS RELEASE
INDICATOR FISHING
ROD– You’ll want nothing smaller than a 7wt fly rod for this place. I recommend the ECHO EPR or the Orvis Helios 3D in an 8wt 9ft for this lake.
LINE- You’ll be making long roll casts for this style of fishing here. The line I prefer for this is the Scientific Angler Infinity Amplitude or the Scientific Angler Mastery Andrado line. Both have a nice long taper for sending those long necessary roll casts.
INDICATOR – AIR-LOCK all the way. Get the large, one inch sized
LEADER – 7.5ft RIO Powerflex Plus Tapered leader
TIPPET – 0-4x tippets are needed and I would recommend getting fluorocarbon for this. Rio Fluoroflex Plus will work great
FLIES – Grab an assortment of balanced leeches in olive, black, chartreuse and white ranging from size 4 down to 12.
MIDGES – hooks are key here. Stong. Sizes 6-12 in colors such as black, red, blue and olive. If you are tying your own up I would look at the AHREX FW541 Barbless hook. Very strong and very sharp.
STRIPPING
ROD – When these things hit streamers it’s with some real aggression. I would say go with a 7wt Echo EPR or Scott Sector for this.
LINE – The idea is to get your flies down as fast as possible to the bottom and to make them stay there. Try the RIO Fathom Line Type 7 sink rate or RIO Outbound Short Type 6. This is a very narrow fast sinking line that will keep your beetles and boobies right where they need to be.
LEADER – NONE (Straight tippet)
TIPPET – 0x-2x RIO FLOUROFLEX PLUS
FLIES – Floating flies on sinking lines??? YUP. Foam Beetles in Black and purple combo as well as a white and chartreuse combo. Some swear by the marabou tail others rip it off before fishing. What will you do?
The way to present these flies properly is to take a short section (6in) of tippet anywhere from 0-2x. Tie a double perfection loop and add it to the end of your fly line as you would a normal Tapered leader. Then add the fly. Yes. Add the beetle 6in off your fly line. Throw your cast out as far as you can and crack a beer because now you wait… That fly needs time to get all the way down to the bottom so let it sink for a while. Now that half your beer is gone, start to strip with short pulses. This will keep that fly hovering 4-6in above the bottom in the perfect spot for that hungry trout to snatch it up
Finally and by far the most important, PACK IT OUT! Pyramid Lake is a very beautiful and very special place and all those who visit the fish and camp have the responsibility of keeping it clean, beautiful and full of huge fish. When camping make sure that you leave it looking like you were never there and please go above and beyond and pick up any trash you see from people that were not as respectful. Theres no clean or easy way to say this but PLEASE BURY YOUR POOP! Dont go to the bathroom next to the lake take a nice walk up and away from the fishing spots so you dont leave a pile for the next group coming in. Please, Please, Please use proper catch and release techniques for these fish. Keep them in the water other than for a QUICK photo and use nets that won’t harm the fish. If you are trying to get a weight on your fish you should be keeping the fish in the net, hooking your scale to the net and quickly pulling it up and out of the water. Then after you’ve let your fish go you can weigh your net and subtract to find out the actual weight of the monster you just roped!
Good luck out there and stay tuned for more tricks and tips for catching trout at pyramid lake
Dan