Yesterday and my good friend fish all over the upper Sol Duc in pusuit of some trout on our flyrods. We fished the middle fork from the falls down to the campground at hot springs to not even catch a thing we didnt even see a fry smolt parywinkle or any type of life. We also fished the North Fork and South Fork but didnt do so well. We did catch a few fish in the South Fork but nothing to write home about. We found one upper smaller trib that had some resident rainbows form 7 to 12 inches, very pretty fish that were very agressive we caught one 10 incher three times out of one pocket. But that wasnt even that good of fishen. I think we got 8 rainbows in about a mile of a creek 5 feet wide.

We did catch one Eastern Brook in the main river just below where the North Fork dumps in that was about 8 inches.

Rich G -
Don't know much about the upper Sol Duc however a Dolly Varden population is found about Sol Duc Falls. It is likely that the Eastern brook was in fact a Dolly. The fish above the falls are what are called "residents", that is they spend their entire life in the headwater areas. The Sol Duc fish population is sometimes dwarfs, with adults being about 6" long. The easiest way to tell a Brookie from a Dolly is to look at the dorsal fin. On a brook there will black markings while on the Dolly Varden and bull trout the fin will be essentially clear.

A couple interest facts about Dolly Varden. Here in Washington nearly all the known populations are above anadromous barriers and appear to be resident fish while the anadromous fish in western WAshington are in fact bull trout. The Dolly Varden above Sol Duc falls are the only known spawning native char in the Quillayute system.

Tight lines
Smalma

Samala,

Pretty sure it was a brook as it was green, orange and black. Figured it was and escape out of 7 lakes basin or sompthin. We didnt make it above the falls but below it was a wasteland no bugs minows or anything untill below salmon cascades.

Rich,
Try between the Rainier Bridge Across from the Mt. Mueller Rd. and Klahoya campground. Have had some luck with a black stone fly. Also just below the park guard shack on the upper Duc rd.

Good Luck
-Riptide

PS- Probly right about the brookie. Used to be lots untill the park poisoned the lakes. Non-natives and all.