We don't have the perch in our Central Oregon lakes, but when I first started float tube fly fishing in Idaho, we would fish Magic Reservoir just south of the towns of Hailey and the Sun Valley area. Magic has a huge perch population, and the big rainbows would feast on the perch fry schools.
Some of the most exciting fishing I've had is when the big rainbows rocket through schools of fry, and hundreds of fry leap out of the water to avoid being eaten. It looks like a motorboat wake going through the water with the "wake" shooting off the sides being panicked perch fry. The rainbows are more intent on stunning the small fish. Then they circle back around and eat the ones suspended stunned in the water. We would use Matuka patterns with some olive in them, and cast these in back of the wakes made by the predator trout. When the rainbows returned to eat the stunned fry, there our fly would be, settling in the water. BANG! Fish on. Some of the rainbows were so gorged with perch fry, they would cough them up after being netted. Amazing display of Nature, and great fly fishing. Wes Wada Bend, Oregon
