General season opens this Saturday (tomorrow). We know that’s a fact because of all the Montana licenses we are selling! Hebgen Reservoir will be ice free, Clark Canyon is fishing well. We do not have information on Wade, Cliff & Elk lakes yet.
The lower river (Warm River on downstream) is at its early season best. Remember that it is closed from Ashton Dam to Vernon Bridge until general season opening to protect spawning ‘bows. Here’s the ledger on what is active: BWOs in the PM with overcast conditions being best time. March browns, same conditions best, Caddis life cycle patterns and yellow sallys, any time. Streamers work well in evenings; concentrate on waters out of the sun and with overhead cover. Big stonefly nymph patterns should be in your fly box and they will become increasingly important as we move through the next several days. It’s early to see any adult giant stoneflies. That’s also several days away, but when we get word that fish are keying on them, we’ll pass it on as part of this report.
Damsel nymph patterns are the way to go on Daniels, Springfield and Hawkins reservoirs. Use intermediate lines, and concentrate on shallower water. Midge pupa patterns underneath a strike indicator work well on these, as usual. Being at higher elevations, Chesterfield and Twenty-Four Mile reservoirs are coming on. Look for our warming weather to improve action on these. As soon as information comes in on these we will post such here.
The Birch Creek Family Area above Lone Pine is a great choice to take a youngster, anyone new to fly fishing, or to try out that light weight fly rod. Right now the creek is in near perfect shape. It’s high country water, so fish (rainbows & brookies) and insects do not become active until mid day. Then look for caddis, small stoneflies, and BWOs to become active and for fish to respond. Small bead head nymphs, the almost forgotten peacock wooly worm, dry attractors, yellow sally patterns, or life cycle patterns for caddis and BWOs are just the ticket. Come to the shop for more information on this great little stream.
Feeling the effects of the Palisades flush, too. Result is a high & discolored river. So better fishing is elsewhere until it passes.
The flush is on with flows out of Palisades Dam up to 18000 cfs. Flow at Heise is about the same. So it may be best to try elsewhere this weekend! As the flows lower to around 12000-14-000 cfs, likely next week, the South Fork will be back to what we all like this time of year.
Flows have been increased to 14500crfs. I talked to the Bureau of Reclamation today and they have decided to do the flush this weekend while they are making room in Palisades Reservoir for flood control. It is expected that flows will drop to normal summer time irrigation flows by Wed. next week. Although this is the plan things can change depending on weather and precipitation. We will keep you updated as things change with the flow situation.
We also have an update on the boat ramps for the South Fork. The BLM will be closing Conant and Byington Boat Ramps for the week of May 24-28. No vehicles will be allowed to enter the parking area and ramps will be closed. If you have questions on the boat ramp closures please contact Monica Zimmerman 208-524-7543
I just got the water report form the Bureau of Reclamation today and it has some information that needs to be passed to you our customers in regards to flows on the South Fork
Here are the key points from the Letter.
So if you are planning on fishing tomorrow the river is going to be blown out! If you are planning on fishing this weekend you will have plenty of water to fish and all of the boat ramps will be accessible except Cottonwood because the road is closed. If the flows do not increase after tonight the fishing should be back to normal in a few days. Nymphing rubberlegs and bead head nymphs will be your best bet. Streamers should fish fairly good on the lower river where the water is warmer.
Stay tuned to the fishing report and we will keep you updated on the flows of the river. We are expecting the flush next weekend but we don’t know for sure. It very well might happen on Memorial Day weekend like it has in the past. For any up to the minute advice, suggestions call the shop or email us.
By the way we got about 140% above average precipitation in April this year which has been really good to make up for the lack of snowfall this past winter. And the cold weather has held run off water int he mountains and slowed irrigation demands. What does this mean to us as fisherman? In August we should have cold water and more water in the system,which translates to healthier fish and more insect hatches! So the next time you wake up in the morning cursing the crappy cold weather, just remind yourself it’s helping the PMD hatches in the heat of August!
Shop Talk
Rolling went Fishing last Sat and got blown off the water while he was looking for Carp. Jimmy went out on Wed. and had some fun fishing for Bass, but he also saw some major wind. I get to go fishing this afternoon and there is no wind! HA, don’t ask me how it worked out this way but I am happy it did!
New Merchandise
We have got some really neat stuff for tying nymphs its called Flash Back. Its a Hareline product and is mostly used for wing cases on bead head nymphs and stoneflies. We have 14 different colors to choose from which opens up tons of possibilities for this product.
We also have this new product that I am actually really excited about. The boys over at Flymen Fishing Company (they produce the tungsten nymph head beads) have a new product out called Fish Skulls. These are weighted heads for streamers. Works like a conehead or a beadhead for weighting your streamer but is attached differently.
Quick-and-simple to tie, this latest innovation in fly tying offers fly fishermen an exciting alternative to using old-style dumbbells or cones to weight their flies. The Fish-Skull™ has unique design features making it a very versatile platform for tying a wide variety of realistic, weighted streamer patterns using natural or synthetic fly tying materials.
