Fly and Gear ordering and delivery: We can get flies to you within two to three business days from the time you place your order via Priority Mail. If you provide a budget for flies, we will select them to match the budget and get them to you on time for your trip. Please see the bottom of this column for ordering options.
We also have custom Perfect Fly selections in 3 different price ranges for this stream that come with or without fly boxes. They make excellent gifts. Click Here To Order or Call us at 800 594 4726 or email us at sales@perfectflystore.com.
Type of Stream
Freestone Stream
Species
Rainbow Trout (wild and stocked)
Brown Trout (wild and stocked)
Brook Trout (wild)
Size
Small to Medium
Location
Northern Arizona
Nearest Towns
Sedona
Access:
Good
Non-Resident License
State of Arizona
Weather
National Weather Service Link
USGS Stream flow data: Near Sedona
Seasons:The season runs year-round
Spring:
Late Spring is a great time to fish due to the hatches
Summer:
The lower part can get too warm in the Summer but the higher elevation
sections will continue to fish well.
Fall:
Fall is a beautiful time for fly fishing Oak Creek.
Winter:
You can catch trout on warm, nice days during the winter.
Recommended Tackle & Gear
Fly Line:
5 or 6 weight
Leaders:
Dry fly: 9 & 12 ft., 5 or 6X, Nymphing:
71/2 ft., 3 or 4X, Streamers 0-2X
Tippets:
Dry fly: 5 or 6X, Nymphing: 3 or 4X,
Streamer 0-2X
Best Fly Rods:
Perfect Fly Superb Five or Ultimate Six
Fly Reels:
For 5/6 fly line
Fly Floatants and Misc Items:
Floatants, KISS Strike Indicators
Tools & Accessories:
Nippers, forceps, retractors, etc.
Fly and Gear ordering and delivery:
Email us at (sales@perfectflystore.com) with the dates you will be fishing and we will send you a list of our fly recommendations. We can get flies and gear to you within two to three business days from the time you place your order via Priority Mail. If you provide a budget for flies, we will select them to match the budget and get them to you on time for your trip. Your can also call us at 800-594-4726 and we will help you decide what flies and gear to use. All orders are shipped free in the U.S. If under a $100 order requiring Priority mail is a charge of only $8.10. Orders over a $100 are shipped free via Priority Mail.
Copyright 2013 James Marsh
Oak Creek Fishing Report – 03/08/24
The stream is flowing below a normal level and the water is clear. Good hatches continue to take place. Remember to order online (free shipping) or call us 800 594 4726. Don’t wait to the last minute to place an order and get free shipping. There are no fly shops in Sedona or nearby.
Rate: 36.3 cfs
Level: 2.33 ft.
Afternoon Water Temperature: 48
Clarity: clear
USGS Real-Time Stream Flow Data Near Sedona
7 Day Weather Forecast: (click the box below to see more detailed weather)
Brown Sculpin and White Belly Sculpin and Articulated streamers, size 6/4
Black Matuka and Olive Matuka Sculpin, size 4/6
Blue-winged Olives: size 16, 18 nymph, emergers, duns and spinners
Aquatic Worms, size 12, pink, red, and others
Midges: Light Green and Red (Blood) midges sizes 20/22, larva, pupa and adult. Our larva and pupa midge flies, pre-rigged in tandem, are very popular here. You can fish them under a strike indicator keeping the larva fly near the bottom. https://perfectflystore.com/product/pre-rigged-tandem-midge-larva-pupa-tippet
Fly Fishing Oak Creek Arizona: There couldn’t possibly be a trout stream that is much more appealing and as beautiful as Oak Creek Arizona. Fly fishing Oak Creek will make you quickly understand why fishing for trout isn’t always just about catching fish. Don’t get this wrong. You can catch plenty of trout, it’s just that if you didn’t, you would still leave very pleased and satisfied with the time you spent trying. Highway 89A runs along Oak Creek from Sedona, through Oak Creek Canyon, and all the way along the creek including the North Fork of Oak Creek. The West Fork Oak Creek and the North Fork Oak Creek flow together at Cave Springs. From there the creek flows downstream through Sedona and the Sliding Red Rock State Park where it joins the Verde River. Oak Creek is stocked with trout from the Page Springs Fish Hatchery upstream. The lower section of the stream above the hatchery up to about Grasshopper point warms up during the Summer. It can warm up so much the trout have a difficult time surviving in this section of the creek. That’s why it is managed as “put and take” fishing. Above Grasshopper Point (about 6 miles above Sedona) the stream begins to be capable of supporting trout year-round and there are holdovers, and even some wild trout. Fly fishing Oak Creek is best in its upper 12 miles. In the Page Springs area, Oak Creek is much cooler due to the cold spring water. Forest Road #119 off of highway #89A will lead to the Page Springs Road which will take you to this area of Oak Creek and the springs. The West Fork of Oak Creek must be reached by foot. It provides several miles of wild brown trout fishing. The Call of the Canyon Parking area is the departure point to hike upstream on the West Fork. In my opinion, from a pure fishing standpoint, this is the best section to fish; however, you don’t miss the beauty of the lower sections. Fishing above Grasshopper point up to the West Fork can also be very good. Large holdover browns can be caught in this long section of the stream. Oak Creek consist mostly of pocket water with riffles, runs and pools. You should note that from Junipine Resort to the West Fork Trail is limited to single hook, barbless “catch and release” only.Most of the stream is fed by springs and the pH is very good. That’s why Oak Creek has some very good hatches. Dry fly fishing can be very good and at times the trout can become selective to certain insects when matching the hatch is the best bet. Fly fishing Oak Creek can be challenging at times and easy at times. It depends on whether your fishing for newly stocked trout, holdover trout, or wild trout. It is best to base your strategies on fishing for wild trout because that way, you can catch just as many or more stocked trout as you can otherwise, but not be eliminating your chances of catching plenty of wild trout.
Oak Creek Fly Fishing Guide: Oak creek is made up of many different types of water depending on where you are fishing.The wild brook trout tend to live in the highest elevations where the water runs cold and clean through the meadows and stands of spruce and fir.The Oak Creek Canyon is a gorge located along the Mogollon Rim that runs between the cities of Flagstaff and Sedona. State Route #89A enters the canyon on one end and runs down to the bottom of the canyon to Sedona. The canyon section hold plenty of both browns and rainbows. It consist of some pocket water but mostly pools connected by runs and short riffles. Most anglers new to the stream have a difficult time keeping their eye on their fly because of the beauty of the canyon. It is like a small Grand Canyon. Oak Creek requires a certain amount of physical ability to wade but casting isn’t difficult. It is wide and open enough to get decent backcast, so it is a good stream for beginners to learn to fish. By mid summer, the trout can become a little picky and tend to stay well hidden. Oak Creek does have a lot of anglers and sight seeing visitors that keep the trout wedged up under a rock at times. Most of the time you should be making upstream cast and fishing in an upstream direction. Short cast usually produce more fish than long cast. You need to keep as much fly line off the water as you can. If you expect to catch any holdover or wild trout, getting a drag-free drift is a must.It is a good idea to dress to match the surrounding as best you can. You should wear non-flashing clothing that blends in with the surrounding. Move slowly. Sudden movements spooks the trout.Staying low help you approach the trout without them seeing you. Avoid getting up on banks and rocks where you have a clear view because in those situations, so do the trout. You should always use as light of a leader and tippet as you can get by with. Leaders and tippets about 9 feet long work best in most cases. Many of the aquatic insects are small, hook sizes 18 and 20 are used mostly and tippets of 5X and 6X are usually best.In the air mends are best. If you mend your line on the water very much, you usually end up spooking more trout than you hook.
Oak Creek Hatches and Trout Flies: Our information on aquatic insects is based on our stream samples of larvae and nymphs, not guess work. We base fly suggestions on imitating the most plentiful and most available insects and other foods at the particular time you are fishing. Unlike the generic fly shop trout flies, we have specific imitations of all the insects in Oak Creek and in all stages of life that are applicable to fishing. If you want to fish better, more realistic trout flies, have a much higher degree of success, give us a call. We not only will help you with selections, you will learn why, after trying Perfect Flies, 92% of the thousands of our customers will use nothing else. 1-800-594-4726. Starting in the late winter and early spring you will find hatches of Little Blue-winged Olives, size 20. These hatch in February and March. Little Winter stoneflies will also hatch during the same time and on into the first of March. These little stoneflies crawl out of the water to hatch but deposit their eggs late in the afternoons and can create some dry fly fishing opportunities although that is rather rare.In March, Baetis species of Blue-winged Olives will begin to hatch. These are hook size 16 mayflies. This and other species of mayflies called BWOs will hatch off and on from March though June. In May and June, species of net-spinning caddis called Cinnamon Caddis and Spotted Sedges will begin to hatch. Green Sedges will also begin to hatch. The larvae of these caddisflies are important trout food. They are called Rock Worms by most anglers. These caddisflies will hatch through the month of June. In the faster water of the Oak Creek headwaters, Pale Evening Duns will hatch in June and early July. These are sparse hatches but will usually create some dry fly action.In July, Tricos will begin to hatch. These tiny mayflies, called White-winged Curse by some anglers, are prolific. They hatch in very large quantities. They are a hook size 20 and to complicate the hatch, you will find that the male and female duns and spinners are all different colors. This hatch will continue through September. In September, Little Blue-winged Olives will again hatch. These are usually size 20 or 18’s. They will hatch on into October and early November. In the spring water sections of Oak Creek, you will find some scuds called freshwater shrimp by some. Imitations of these can be very effective. The creek also has plenty of sculpin and baitfish. Streamers imitating these fish are usually very effective if used during low light situations.In the Summer months and on into early Fall, imitations of ants, beetles and grasshoppers will produce good results.