Crowley tributaries: McGee, Convict, Hilton, Crooked Creek, Upper Owens R.

I get a bunch of questions regarding the fall fishing in these areas. "Is the fall spawn as good as the spring migrations?" NO. The vast majority of trout in Crowley are spring spawners. Browns and Coleman/Whitney strain rainbows are the only fish to migrate in the fall. You must also take into account that the water flows in the tribs are very low for the most part in the fall. This makes for a less than ideal habitat for fall spawn trout. The exception in this area is the Upper Owens R. which has far more water than its counterparts and is the base for most of the Long Valley drainages wild trout. The CDFG has documented in prior surveys that the hardiest wild trout in this region are fall spawn rainbows and browns. They comprise a small fraction of the total biomass of trout in this drainage and are very resilient and beautiful. With the year around openings of the UO (some sections are closed, check the current regs) the angling public will get the opportunity to see some of these special fish in the cooler fall months.