Fishing the EPIC Express UU Bar Ranches
We decided to start the day off trout fishing at one of the smaller ponds on the ranch known as "Box Canyon Lake". The lake was only 5 acres and had tons of brush and trees along the edges, a small shelter with bench seats and table, and two john boats waiting to get wet. The fishing was going to be a bit of a challenge considering the heavy brush around the shoreline. We brought our flyrods and that was it. The ranch does let guests fish the trout ponds with lures but we decided before leaving Albuquerque that we were only taking fly gear.
I noticed there was a “walkway” extending out into the lake about forty feet. I joked with Berry (manages Hunting & Fishing at the Ranch), “I should go and fish off that walkway”. He said, “I’ve done it a time or two, just don’t go out to the last section”, so I did. This “walkway” was an old 2”x10” bolted to steel tubing that went to the bottom of the lake. I landed tons of fish while fishing from it but Joel was catching just as many fish from the shore and not having to do a balancing act to stay dry. The problem was; the boards were a bit warped and the wind kept making me lose my balance. I decided to walk the plank back to the shoreline and fished side by side with Joel so we could get some good video footage of us hammering the fish left and right. On at least 10 occasions I looked over while fighting a fish to see Joel doing the same, we each landed well over 20 fish within three hours, loosing just as many. The fish were healthy, strong fighters and many would shoot straight out of the water showing off their acrobatic abilities after being hooked. All the fish we landed were rainbows and averaged 17-18" but we did hook a few browns in the 18-20" range but were never able to get them to the net. This was hands down, one of the finest and most action packed days of trout fishing I have ever experienced.
The Ranch has a total of 5 trout ponds that are heavily stocked with rainbow, brown, and brooke trout, they also have another pond full of largemouth bass.
The winds continued worsen so we decided to leave the trout alone and target Pike in the lagoons. The lagoons are located just below Miami Lake (a private body of water accessible to locals and Express UU Bar guests only). There are 4 lagoons that hold gin clear water, each one is loaded with pike and are great for beginner and experienced flyfishermen alike.
I started out casting a pattern I tied myself and call "the pillow" because that’s pretty much what it looks like. It’s a 6” thick and fluffy white, yellow, and olive fly mostly consisting of ostrich herl and peacock hackle. It didn't take long before I had my first follower; a small pike was inching towards my fly watching in anticipation of its prey’s next move. I completely stopped the fly and waited a few seconds, no take. I stripped the fly one final time and in a single burst it launched forward, flared his gills and completely inhaled the fly. A quick hookset and a short fight and I had landed my first pike on a fly, on a pattern I tied too. After a self portrait I released the little guy and stopped for a moment to soak in the sights and appreciate where I was.
The landscape around the lagoons consists of rolling grassy plains, large boulders, scattered trees, and snow capped mountains in the background; it's simply breathtaking. I sat down on a rock, content and inspired as I watched the swallows swooping over the ponds picking off nymphs as they were emerging. We saw a ton of turkey, elk, deer, and antelope roaming the 180,000 acre ranch. We never did get to see any Buffalo but were told there are a good number of them scattered around the property. But it was these fish with teeth I was most intrigued by, so I got back up and started fishing again.
The cold front had the pike staging in deeper water so we never did have any luck on topwater flies but the streamer bite was working just fine. The wind was whipping through the plains and by now we were fishing in 40mph sustained winds with gusts up to 60! Casting was a lot of work but when a Pike took the fly it was well worth it. After landing a few hammer handle pike I hooked into a bigger fish in the second pond. The fish swam underneath a log that was lying across the bottom of the pond about 10' out from the shore. I could still see and feel the fish and didn't want to lose it either so I waded out and passed the rod underneath the log, freeing the fight was still on. I started reeling the fish in when I noticed there was a huge ball of weeds wrapped around his head making it a lot heavier but much easier to land since he wasn't thrashing and rolling anymore. The fish went 32 inches and was fat and healthy; while I was reviving him he suddenly darted out of my hands disappearing in the depths of the pond. All it took was one violent thrash of his tail and I was completely soaked from belt to brow. This was the largest pike I have ever caught period, let alone on a flyrod, so I was all smiles and shaking in my knees from excitement.
Once I finally came back to earth I noticed that my leader just above the fly was gnawed up really bad. I retied my fly and shortly into my very next cast I feel a jarring strike and my flyline starts shooting off towards the shoreline across from me. I gave the fish a few extra tugs to insure a good hookset, I didn’t want to lose this fish it felt bigger than the one I had just released. It started slowly coming in then suddenly speeds up and comes straight at me. I was reeling down as fast as I could and hoping to somewhat gain control over this pike. Once I got it to my feet she made a few more attempts to get free by darting back out but I applied more pressure and finally the fish just gave up and let me grab her. This fish was amazing and bigger than the last, Joel got an awesome picture of me reaching for the fish as its head came out of the water with the fly hanging from the fishes mouth. The fish measured a bit over 34 inches and for the second time that day I had upgraded my personal best pike.
Joel was hungry and a bit discouraged since he hadn't caught a pike yet. He did hookup with a big one earlier but ended up losing it during the fight. He decided to walk back to the truck for a bite to eat and refocus in hopes of landing one. While he was gone I caught a few more small pike; 28, 30, and 25 inches. But I never expected what was going to happen next.
I made my way down to the first pond and started casting away. I was looking down in the water where I saw 10 or so fingerling pike about 3 inches long cruising the shoreline. It was fun to watch the little guys dart around, as I was preoccupied by the fingerlings BAMM, I got hammered. I pulled back and a tank showed itself, the fish was curled and seamed to hang in the water for a second before darting across the pond. I'll never forget the site of that fish after I set the hook and saw it for the first time. She gave me a hell of a battle and stripped drag from my overly tightened spool with ease. After a long hard fight I corralled the fish and setup the camera for a self portrait. After admiring the massive fish, getting measurements, and getting a few pictures I happily watched as the fish slowly slithered away into the dark deep water. I was so excited about this fish, it went 37 inches long, weighed an estimated 15 pounds and again was a new personal best for me.
Joel arrived not to long after I released the fish; I showed him the pictures, shared my story, and expressed how I wished he would have been there to see it. We continued to fish but never had another taker. I did have another big fish follow my fly in but wouldn't bite, the fish just starred at my fly as if he knew something wasn't right and snaked away into the darkness. I was able to get him to follow cast after cast but it refused to bite. Finally I gave up and told Joel to give it a shot with a different fly. No dice for him either, the fish would follow time after time but would never take the fly.
The Express UU Bar Ranch is an unbelievable place and has tons of amazing fishing just waiting for the next angler to make a cast. I highly recommend staying here, the lodging, food, scenery, service, and of course fishing are all top notch/first class. A guy could spend an entire week at the ranch and not see all they have to offer, I know I’m already anxious to go back. Call the ranch at 575-376-2035 or visit uubarranches.com for rates and details. Be sure to tell them you read this article.
Pictures from this trip can be found in the Photogallery.
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