Fly fishing Snake River with top guide Ewald Grabher
Published: 22nd August 2016 | Author: Fulling MillTop Snake River fly fishing guide and Fulling Mill Ambassador Ewald Grabher, Idaho, gives us an insight into his life on the river in this Q&A session:
What is your favorite River to do a Float trip on?
The south fork of the Snake River, Idaho. The Snake River canyon offers everything for an all over experience, and it is fairly close to where I live.
The scenery is breathtaking and the fly fishing is fantastic. In the upper part of the canyon there are no roads or trails, so the river is only accessible by boat.
There is a lot of wildlife. You can see bald eagles, golden eagles, sandhill cranes, white pelicans, herons, moose, elk, deer, black bears, and much more…
The Snake offers some of the world’s best dry fly fishing for cutthroat, rainbow and brown trout. The Idaho state record brown trout came out of the Snake River.
What does your floating trip check list look like Ewald Grabher?
Well, here are a few items on my list:
LINES
1. Line 15’x1/2″ with carabiner
2. Anchor line 35-50’x1/2″ with (twist type) carabiner
3. Rescue rope bag, 75′ of line (can be used to tie up the boat)
ANCHOR – 28-35 lb. Steel anchor
SAFETY EQUIPMENT
1. Fire extinguisher
2. Safety whistle
3. Polarized glasses
4. Extra hats
5. Flash light
6. Spare oar
7. Water-proof First Aid kit contents:
• Band-Aids
• waterproof matches
• sun screen
• 1 arm splint
• 1 eye dressing
• burn lotion or zinc oxide
• four triangular bandages
• 3″ wide adhesive tape
• 3″ ace wrap
• 5″ Kurlex or battle dressings
• two 2×2 and assortment of 4×4 gauze compress pads
• wool or space blanket
• pen and paper for accident report
PERSONAL FLOTATION DEVICES (PFDS)
Type III, l or V. One for each person in the boat.
KNIFE
A sharp knife must be kept in an accessible location. It may be necessary to cut the anchor line if the anchor becomes snagged. (A badly snagged anchor in fast water can pull the transom of the boat down, sinking the boat.)
TOILET SYSTEM
1. Toilet paper
2. Small shovel or trowel
3. Plastic bag for used paper
4. Soap or wipes for washing up hands
FISHING EQUIPMENT
1. Guide and fishing licenses
2. Fish net
3. Complete fly selection and terminal tackle
4. Extra rod
5. Client’s fishing licenses
LUNCH KIT
1. Cooler with drain plug
2. Bottled drinking water
3. Plates
4. Forks, spoons, knives (one set per person)
5. Condiments
6. Napkins
7. Soap or wipes for hand wash-up
8. Trash bag
9. Roll a table
10. Portable chairs
11. Table cloth
Have you ever guided a celebrity?
Some widely known people, authors, etc.
What are your most productive guide flies?
A self-tied version of a streamer, called Mortgage Maker.
Which Fulling Mill fly works best on the Snake River?
Perhaps the Purple Transfoamer or a Slum Hopper
Do you have superstitions/special rules on your boat?
No bananas please!
What’s the most important thing you would advise a client to bring along?
Appropriate clothing, everything else is covered by me.
Any special tips you have?
Practice your casting, there are some different and special moves when fishing from a boat.
If you could choose to fly-fish any destination on the planet, where would it be?
Bristol bay, Alaska. It offers seven species of freshwater fish and all five types of pacific salmon. It is all pristine wilderness and the wildlife is abundant.
Thank you to top Snake River fly fishing guide, Ewald Grabher, now get back to those rapids!
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