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Fishing Reports

Jimmy's All Seasons Angler / Fishing Reports (Page 136)

Yellowstone Park 9-23-17

Lewis R. channel.jpg

Lewis River Channel

It’s time to go back to the Firehole River as cooler weather means cooling water to offset the thermal water input. Fall season BWOs and caddis will bring action especially under low light conditions.  Some trico spinner falls remain on the Madison River with BWOs are coming on strong.  If you prefer to pitch streamers, the Madison River in the Park and the Lewis River between Shoshone and Lewis Lake and just below Lewis Lake  are the best places to try,  and these waters will see more trout moving in (browns in the Lewis River, browns and rainbows in the Madison River) as we go through October.  Brown trout runs in other streams (Gardner, Gibbon, Snake) will peak later in the month. Don’t overlook the Yellowstone River for presenting streamers to large resident cutthroat in areas open to fishing from the lake to the falls. Streamer fishing in Heart, Shoshone, Lewis, and Yellowstone Lakes will improve, but the weather will not, so prepare accordingly especially if you pack into any of these lakes.  With killing frosts look for terrestrial insects to diminish, but presenting hopper patterns on meadow sections of all streams will be effective well into October during good weather.

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Henry’s Lake 9/20/17

Well, we got the weather change we all wanted! Unfortunately for us, it came pretty hard and fast and has slowed the fishing down. As soon as the weather mellows out and warms back up, it will be go time up at Henry’s. Leech patterns in darker colors should be the go-to for the rest of the fall. As far as location goes, anywhere with fairly clean water will fish well. Concentrate fishing in water under 10ft with the appropriate lines. A lot of the big fish lately have come in very shallow water and we have started carrying a couple new lines in the shop to help you get to these fish. Give us a call at the shop about these new lines and we can get you squared away!

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Seasonal Changes Arriving 9-16-17

Blackfoot R. 1 (2)

 

Looks like a change in season is arriving! Although summer officially ended Friday, September 22nd, we received an early taste of high country autumn the last few days.  The impact with respect to fishing will be some wanted changes. Dry fly fishing on the Henry’s Fork below Ashton Dam will pick up with BWO hatches of the season.  So will chances for very large trout responding to streamers, especially as weather worsens. The South Fork will offer BWO and mahogany dun activity for the dry fly enthusiast and also increased chances to encounter large trout for the streamer enthusiast. Many of our still waters, so dormant last summer, will offer improved fishing as waters cool. That includes Henry’s Lake, to the relief of its many enthusiasts. Word is going around  that there may not be as many fish in the lake (there are still plenty), but what is there seems to run larger than in recent years. In all waters hosting them, brown trout will begin migrations to spawning areas, and there are plenty of area streams inhabited by browns. With all these changes impacting angling strategy, rest assured that we will continue our practice of offering information, products, and services for enjoying fly-fishing.

We see winter arriving on the scene in a few months, and that arrival signals time to begin planning our winter schedule.  Look for our annual fly tying demos to begin this November and continue, barring holidays, into March, 2018.   We will offer entry level fly tying classes during certain week-day evenings throughout the winter.  Specialty workshops are also being considered and will be offered if sufficient demand arises. Look for scheduling  of the demos, entry level tying classes, and other activities on our web site and in our Facebook announcements.  Winter is not time to be an “armchair fly-fisher” in our region. It is the time to tie flies, build rods, clean, repair and replace equipment, and make plans for the next season.  In addition there will “bluebird days” during the winter when getting out on the water will be a pleasure. So for all these activities, regardless of the season, All Seasons Angler will be here to serve you in any fly-fishing capacity.

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South Fork 9-19-17

For the last several days USBuRec has ramped down flow out of Palisades Dam to its present level of 6970 cfs. Look for more flow reductions coming up as water storage in the reservoir progresses. These actions will allow an increase in wading opportunities. Currently the river features very good BWO emergences in riffles with some mahogany duns showing. This cooler weather will bring PMD activity to an end, but hoppers and other terrestrial insects will remain in well vegetated areas until a killing frost arrives. Streamer fishing during low light conditions is another aspect that will improve anywhere along the river. All this means that some of the best fishing it can offer this year could be coming up on the South Fork.

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Henry’s Lake 9-18-17

Again. we emphasize that current weather is turning on fish in the lake.  Look for improved fishing in all locations. It is tough to recommend any particular fly on an overall basis because physical conditions at locations around the lake vary. Thus your fly box should contain a variety of flies including such as leech and streamer patterns, midge and speckled dun life cycle patterns, traditional Henry’s Lake flies, and attractor patterns. Some of the best fishing on the lake is when weather is at its worst, so dress for the occasion. So if you are fishing from a boat, especially under such conditions, do so with care, and include all suitable safety equipment in enough quantity for all occupants. .

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Still Waters 9-16-17

We have not received much information on which of the popular area still waters are producing consistently. But the current change in weather should reduce water temperatures in the shallow ponds and lakes where fishing action will improve.  On getting such information, we will be able to make meaningful recommendations.

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Southwestern Montana 9-16-17

The recent and continuing unsettled weather signals that Hebgen Lake brown and rainbow trout are moving toward the Madison River meaning that they concentrate in the Madison Arm. For now they are on their way into Yellowstone Park and therefore moving into the river between the Highway 191 crossing and the lake where streamer fishing will become increasingly effective.   Presenting streamers in the river between Hebgen and Quake Lakes will also become effective as we move into October.

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Yellowstone Park 9-16-17

Big news here is that Hebgen Lake browns and rainbows are beginning to move into the Madison River above. So streamer patterns presented on sink tip lines will become increasingly effective here as the season advances to the first weekend in November when the Park fishing season closes.  The other happening is that the Firehole River is cooling off to the point that resident trout are not in survival danger on being caught and released.  Look for good BWO and caddis activities to attract fish here. The Gibbon River along with Grebe, Wolf, and Ice Lakes have been chemically treated to remove resident rainbow trout and grayling which are to be replaced with grayling themselves. Thus reliable grayling fishing in the park is reduced to Cascade Lake in the Yellowstone River drainage.

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Henry’s Lake 9-16-17

More “just what the doctor” conditions are happening here.  Water temperatures are dropping from the sixties to the low fifties in degrees F.  Some rough weather can be expected for the near future meaning boating should be done with caution.  But combining this weather with cooling water means nothing but fishing improvement can happen. For now, try leech patterns around creek mouths. Fish are beginning to move into shallow areas throughout, so consider spending more time on these along such as the north and west shorelines where gold and olive crystals, small fly rod jigs, streamers, peacock leeches and traditional Henry’s Lake patterns will become increasingly effective.

 

 

 

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Henry’s Fork 9-16-17

As is happening on the South Fork, BWOs and mahogany duns are showing up and down the river whether in the Last Chance-Harriman section or the lower river.  The best fishing on the lower river at present seems to be in the Warm River to Ashton section where streamer fishing is bringing responses from large brown trout as a result of the unsettled weather conditions.  Rely on terrestrial insect patterns being effective during sunny days anywhere on the river.  Look for streamer fishing to be increasingly effective almost everywhere on the river as we advance into the fall season.

Flow out of Henry’s Lake has been essentially cut in half as storage begins. Thus fish in the Flat Ranch reach move downstream into the Henry’s Fork proper. This will make streamer fishing very effective in “The Tubs” area, especially early and late in the day.  Some of the largest Henry’s Fork whitefish populate this part of the river. If you are looking to supply fish for the smoker, midge and BWO life cycle patterns really interest these salmonids residing here in good numbers.

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