South Fork 6/11
The river was bumped again last night to 19,000 cfs. They are making room for all the water coming into the reservoir. If you fish use nymphs and streamers, go to the back eddys and the slow deep pools.
June 2010
Henry’s Fork 6/10
Fishing below the Chester dam right now is going to be marginal at best. The Fall River is still blown out and putting a lot of dirty water and debris into the system. I have been keeping an eye on the flows and the Fall River is dropping fast I would expect fishing below Chester to pick up this weekend at the earliest. This of course depends on how much rain we receive in the next few days. I have been told the Warm River has been putting dirty water into the Henry’s Fork, but I have not had a very reliable source on that information, so check it out before you float that section and have an alternative in mind. Ora Bridge to Chester, and Box Canyon are still running good and fishing well. Golden Stones, Caddis and Pale Morning Duns are fishing well on the surface. Call the shop if you have any questions.
South Fork 6/10
Flows on the South Fork have been increased to 17,000 cfs. Flows have been increased to make room in the resevoir fo rthe increase of runoff water that has started to come into the system. As of right now the flows have not gone up this morning. I will keep an eye on the flows today to see see what happens. If they do not raise them the fishing will pick back up this afternoon and through the weekend. This level is not to high to fish and fish will be eating. The most important thing is the flows level out for a day or two.
I talked to a guide last night who had a trip yesterday and he mentioned that fishing was surprisingly good. Nymphing was the name of the game. He mentioned they had success on big rubberlegs, and san juan worms.
Southwestern Montana 6-8-10
With May rainfall averaging 135% of normal you can bet that most streams are high and discolored. Exceptions are immediate tail waters.
Henry’s Fork 6/8
The Henry’s Fork has some spots you will want to avoid right now. Below the Chester dam has been blown out, because of the record flows on the Fall River. Also Warm River to Ashton is really dirty right now because of the runoff from Warm River. You can fish from Ora to Chester, and the Box Canyon. Golden Stones are staging, PMD’s are hatching as well as the Caddis. Don’t get to discouraged things will settle down in about a week and the Henry’s Fork will be back again and ready to roll. With increased traffic on the Henry’s Fork remember common courtesy goes a long ways. Call the shop with any questions.
South Fork 6/8
Flows on the South Fork have been bumped up to 14,00 cfs. They are making room for all the runoff that is coming down into the system because of the rain we got high in the mountains. 14,000 cfs is completely typical for this time of year and the fishing will be back on once the flows stabilize after a day or two.
Nymphing and Streamer fishing is the best tactic for catching fish on the South Fork at the moment. I like to fish a rubber leg stonefly nymph with a bead head dropper. I put my stonefly nymph about 6-7 feet from my indicator and my dropper 18-24 inches below the stonely. Fish riffles, banks and seam water. Good luck and be safe out there. Call the shop for any questions you might have.
Still Water 6-8-10
Still the same if you are looking for big trout. For almost all of these, damselfly nymph patterns are your best bet. Concentrate on shallow waters. Again, see our 5-2-10 still water fishing report for fly selections.
Bluegills and crappies are becoming active in Twin Lakes. Rollie was there yesterday and did quite well using black poppers and white spiders in shallow water.
Yellowstone Park 6-8-10
Streams here are still impacted by the recent big rains. Best exception is the Firehole River where water is a bit high. Caddis, BWO, PMD and yellow sally life cycle patterns are making for action. Duck Creek also offers some action with damselfly nymph patterns and streamers being best bets.
Small Streams 6-8-10
Most of these remain high and discolored because of the near tropical rains we have had. Birch Creek in an exception. Fish are not feeding on top because the slightly high water erodes banks to send food into the stream. For sure a 14″ ‘bow is a braggin’ fish here, but the action is unbeatable. Take the lightest rod you have, some nymph patterns, peacock woolly worms, San Juan worms, and head for the Family Area above Lone Pine.
When this stormy weather is over there will be many smaller waters to choose from for great fly-fishing experiences. We will post here the best of these for you to consider. You can always contact the shop for up to date information.
South Fork 6-7-10
In order to make room in Palisades Reservoir for run off the South Fork was increased today from 7,900 to 11,000 cfs. There will be another increase tomorrow of an additional 3,000 for a total of 14,000 cfs. Needless to say the Henry’s Fork above the mouth of Fall River would be a good option until the weekend. It would also be a good opportunity to try one of the many still waters in Eastern Idaho. By the weekend things will have settled down on the South Fork and we will be able to start fishing streamers and nymphs again.