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South Fork

Jimmy's All Seasons Angler / South Fork (Page 5)

South Fork, August 2nd, 2023

It’s a living river: look at the side channels

Flow out of Palisades dam is reducing to usual for the time of the season ( 9900 cfs at Irwin, 10400 cfs at Heise, 4800 cfs at Lorenzo) as irrigation demands stabilize. With PMD populations reaching summertime levels, don’t overlook AM spinner falls as well as daytime riffle visits. No AM mutant golden stone activity yet, but keep on using those hopper-dropper rigs as bank side hoppers are becoming abundant.

We continue to have big boat traffic on the river, and first responders beg that folks within each wear life preservers. We had a recent incident where a boat wedged against a bridged abutment in Swan Valley. Human occupants, not wearing these jackets were pitched out, but luckily were picked up downstream. The lone occupant remaining boat-wise was a dog willingly geared into a life jacket. Makes one wonder who was the smartest of that bunch!

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South Fork, July 26th, 2023

No matter where you choose to launch that boat, you will be met with scene like this for much of the remaining fishing season. Not all folks using these places will be anglers, some will be recreationists taking part in the “plastic boat hatch.” They have a right to use these facilities, but they have an obligation to do so in a courteous and thoughtful manner. The same applies to anglers.

The stonefly hatch has pretty much run its course on the river which has an essentially constant flow of cool, clear water. The mutant golden stone fly hatch is next. Now a growing PMD ( and terrestrial insect population) and afternoon caddis hatch are bringing on top water fishing.

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South Fork, July 22nd, 2023

There has been no significant change in flow down the river (12800 cfs at Irwin, 13600 cfs at Heise, 6400 cfs at Lorenzo) for several days. Palisades Reservoir is a around 90% of capacity. So we are in summertime flow conditions where irrigation demands seem to stabilize a bit. The giant stone fly hatch, being closer to the dam, is not far from ending. The golden stone flies are not far behind with some green drakes and an increasingly active PMD population following. All this means boat launch facilities, especially on the upper river, are crowded , and recreational floaters coming on. Evening remains a best time to fish the river. Daytime heat is decreasing, wind is dying, caddis are active, big browns are foraging, and most anglers are heading home or to the nearest water hole/eatery.

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South Fork, July 15th, 2023

Flow out of Palisades Reservoir has been essentially constant for about a week. It is clear and cool enough to slow mayfly activity, but not that of caddis.The big top water happening is the giant stone fly hatch. Some green drakes and PMDs are following downstream. The stonefly peak activity is above the canyon and fish near it are full of them. If you travel from Swan Valley to Victor via Highway 31, you will not only see them flying, but also have them splatting on your windshield at least as far as the Pine Creek crossing. So the best float fishing strategy would be to launch at Huskey’s and float to Spring Creek or Conant ( both very busy) in order to find where the fish have realized their presence and started feeding.

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South Fork, July 11th, 2023

Flow has been up & down slightly and around 13200 cfs at Irwin (13900 cfs at Heise, about 6000 cfs at Lorenzo), and Palisades Reservoir is essentially full.The giant stone fly hatch is in the canyon, and is being attended by boating anglers. So boat launch facilities from Conant Valley to Byington are getting use. Above, the river remains a bit cool, so top water fishing is yet to peak. Try rubber legs, annelid and stone fly nymph patterns and fly rod jigs. There is certainly less boat traffic from the dam down to the Spring Creek site than on the river below.

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South Fork, July 7th, 2023

Other than the big stone fly event ( Bugs are now into the lower canyon), we had a serious incident on the river yesterday. Three anglers in a drift boat got too close to the big feeder gates and came nearly getting sucked through. They were luckily relieved of the situation by efforts from hard working first responders.

A long boating season is coming up on this big, powerful river, and the potential for unhappy incidents like this one, and worse, are bound to happen. We and all other businesses that serve boating, and wading fly fishers ask that we do as much as possible to remain safe. It is not because you are customers, it is because you have families and/or are part of the community to which and you contribute to in many ways. So please resolve in the hours before you arrive on the river that you will strive to be safe.

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South Fork, June 27th, 2023

No significant giant stonefly or mayfly activity yet. Water needs to warm up. To some extent Dr. Rob Van Kirk’s comments on Henry’s Fork aquatic insect hatches being late this year applies to those on the South Fork. Palisades Reservoir is near 100 % of capacity, and flow out of it was deceased very slightly yesterday with no impact on the relatively slow fishing.

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South Fork, June 24th, 2023

Flow out of Palisades Dam has been nearly constant for about a week. Streamer, rubber leg, woolly bugger patterns and annelid presented in slower waters will interest some fish. Changes are coming soon with the stonefly hatches just around the corner. We will keep track of these and their progress and report on this web site.

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South Fork, June 20th, 2023

Only change is a small increase in flow out of Palisades Dam on June 15th. This will not impact fishing which has best results through using such as rubber legs, woolly bugger types and streamer patterns. Anchoring a boat to fish these types deep just below Palisades Dam could be productive.

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South Fork, June 17th, 2023

Palisades Reservoir is nearly full, and it appears that upstream run-off has peaked. So flow below the dam has been reduced (now 12000 cfs at Irwin,12900 cfs at Heise an about 6000 cfs at Lorenzo). These are about the same as summertime flows and are likely to stay close to these levels until the end of irrigation season. However water needs to warm some for major inset hatches to begin.

Now is a good time for boating fly fishers to review boat ramp and on-the-stream diplomacies which will be needed for the upcoming season.

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