Well autumn is finally arriving here —  at least we hope we all are done with summer high temperatures.  We’ve received good rains lately and everything is green again.  The trees are starting to show a little color on the bluffs, and the fall flowers are in full blooms along the lake.

Trout fishing on Taneycomo stayed pretty strong all summer.  We usually see water conditions deteriorate as fall approaches — the dissolved oxygen drops, and water temperature rises — but we haven’t seen hardly any of that yet.  The lake temperature is holding at about 52 degrees, and the water is very clear.

Generation has varied; weather and temperature seem to dictate how much and how long dam operators run water.  Since its grown cooler, they’ve been running water for two to three hours late in the afternoon and only running one to two units.

Our brown trout move up in the lake in fall months to spawn.  They actually don’t spawn successfully, but do go through the motions.  We are seeing a good number of browns already up below the dam, some being caught up near the hatchery outlets.  Guide Chuck Gries told me clients are hooking most browns when  wading and fly fishing below the dam.  Most of these browns are on the small side, but several in the 22 – to 26-inch range have been brought in.

Guide Tony Weldele has been seeing some very large browns moving up, staging in the Narrows area.  These browns are almost always on the move and won’t stay in one area for very long.

Browns and rainbows are being caught on scuds, sow bugs, egg flies and sculpin streamers.  I know other flies are good, too, including cracklebacks, WD40’s, san juan worms, mega worms, soft hackles and woolybuggers.  Night fishing has been very good throwing big streamers, as well as the miracle fly and scuds under a glowing indicator.