Any of you guys fish the Yakima? Are there any groups or clubs that do trips over that way? I am fairly new to fly fishing and most of my fishing partners are gear fishermen. Have never fished the Yakima but am planning on making a few trips this year.

Here is a link to a website with lots of info on the Yakima.
http://www.theeveninghatch.com/
Brian

Easy here's another site with good info on the Yak.
http://www.worleybuggerflyco.com
Make a few trips over before the irrigation season starts. Better to fish from the bank. Look at the river flow charts for info.
Great River to fly fish but I never caught big fish there. Not sure where your located but a lot of the local fly shops have guides that work there. Good luck.

Fished it quit a bit before moving out of Yakitraz. Fall time was my favorite time of year, after the flip flop. Total accessibility. The Yak is an evening fishery for sure. And a drift boat is a huge plus in the summer time.

Here's a couple pointer's. After the flip flop, and if wading. Park the car and WALK the river from the highway. Sooner than later you'll spot the dimples of fish feeding along the shore. These fish are fished over day after day, and spook very easy! It doesn't take much to put them down.

And think mm16.

Mf

I fished the Yakima from a driftboat today. At about 10:30 am, we started from Bighorn. It was 26 degrees out and overcast. The brisk breeze did not help the casting or the temperature level. Ice in the guides was a problem all day. I caught 1 rainbow (about 10-12 inches) and one whitefish. My friend got skunked. We floated to Umtanum (spelling?) and the entire drift only took about 3 hours becase my friend got cold and we did not really stop to work over any of the good stretches. When we arrived at the take out, it was a balmy 34 degrees. We saw a couple trout rise to hit the surface, but we were fishing only nypmhs. Overall, it was a fun day, but dress warmly!

Thanks for the input guys. I think I will do a trip with one of the many guides in the area this spring before taking my boat over. I have talked to the guys at Reds a few times and they seem like good guys. From what I understand most sections are pretty easy to float, even for an inexperienced driftboater like myself.

Most of the river is easily floated by beginner baoters, with a few exceptions.
I like April and May there, May only if the river is not blown of course.
Hoppers are fun in the summer also, but without a doubt, Fall is the most challenging time to fish the Yak.
Only one more month or so 'till Skwala's.........
Dry flys, 9 months of the year............

KK

Skwala stonefly activity (and I'm talking dries here) on the Yakima usually commences when the water temperature reaches a point between 40 and 45 degrees. Sometimes this occurs as early as mid-February. The water temperature at Umtanum yesterday was 38.352 and has been coming up over a degree a day for the past few days. I'll be tying late winter/early spring patterns (again, mostly dry) for the Yakima at the Meydenbauer show this weekend; stop by.