Multorpor Fen September 27, 2015

Fall is upon us, with chilly weather and falling leaves reminding us that summer is over and we have nothing to be happy about anymore. The icy darkness of winter is rapidly approaching, and soon the people of Government Camp will either be complaining about the crazy amounts of snow or about the lack of it, depending on this coming year's supply. As I've ranted about numerous times over the last nine months, this has been an extremely rough year for our waterways due to last winter's dismal levels of snowfall. If this coming winter's just as bad or worse, we can consider ourselves in trouble. However, it's still fall. Fishing in the area is usually very good at this time of year, as the cooler temperatures relieve the trout from the stress they faced over the summer. Although November is typically the end of the trout fishing season in the area around the mountain, this unusually warm year might drag on a little longer.

Before I became busy with high school and the endless academic, extracurricular, and hormonal stresses associated with it, I used to spend a considerable amount of time in Government Camp during the fall. There's a lot to do here during the changing of seasons, and this was well before I ever wet a line. Now, I find myself lucky to make it up here once or twice in the golden two months that are September and October. Even being able to drive, I find that I am in no way granted the freedom that I thought I would receive upon being granted a license and a set of keys. Instead, I find myself spending most of my time cramming for whatever upcoming tests I have and occasionally giving the Oregon Fishing Forum a wistful glance. When I do have time to fish, I usually throw together some stuff and head over to someplace close where I know I can probably catch fish.

The Multorpor Fen is one such place. Located a short distance away from my cabin in Government Camp, it has a decent population of small Brook Trout that are generally pretty easy to catch. I'm no expert at fly fishing small lakes like this, and I have little knowledge of what these particular fish even feed on, but I can usually get by with small attractor patterns. These fish are very aggressive and will sometimes even jump completely out of the water when attacking your flies.

Even though the trout that live in the fen are easy to catch, fishing here is still frustrating in its own way. For instance, even though the lakes are really small, the trout still have a way of rising just past your casting range. If you try to push your luck and cast just a little bit further, you usually end up hooking something behind you, whether it be a bush, a branch, a knot of grass, or a fishing partner. In addition, the area is extremely swampy. Just like most of the other small lakes and marshes I've written about, the fen is one of those places where there isn't a clear separation between water and land. One wrong step and you can end up soaked and swearing, with every single trout in the lake completely spooked. However, they have short memories and usually can be coaxed into biting again.

Even though the official fishing season is drawing to a close, there's still some hope for the winter. There's always the Crooked River, where I can lose fish after fish to my heart's content. I can also try steelhead fishing, although the thought of that actually makes me cringe considering my last several attempts at it. And there's always the sturgeon of the Columbia River, big armored missiles who eat baits larger than any of the fish pictured in this entire blog. And I suppose it's only another nine months until summer rolls around again, and I can fish all of the great lakes and rivers in the area again. I also received that Fishing the Mt. Hood Country book, which features dozens of streams and lakes I hadn't even heard of. It isn't over yet.



Until Next Time,

Kamran Walsh