Southwestern Montana 8-31-13
In last several days the gulper activity has picked up on Hebgen Lake. Try #18 dun and spinner patterns. Action should be good, with Madison Arm best location, until wind kicks in or until around mid day.
August 2013
South Fork 8-31-12
Flow out of Palisades Dam is down to 8000 cfs with a water temperature of 64 deg. F. The recent drops in flow have been small, but they add up. Best strategy remains fish early, fish late.” Hopper patterns and chenobyl types trailed by your favorite bead head pattern seem to work best with most strikes coming to the dropper. Evening caddis hatches bring some action and streamers fished early and late can do the same. With streamers location is more important than pattern. Sounds a bit like a broken record, but changes are on the horizon as we move through September.
Today at Jimmy’s 8-28-13
We are really excited about a new (to us) rod we now have in the store from Winston. The new rod is Winston’s BIII SX and it replaces the old BII MX. The BIII SX is a super fast, powerful, smooth rod that would be a great big nymph, windy day, steelhead, or streamer rod. I have cast this rod a few times and this thing is a cannon. Be sure to come down and check this rod out as we are approaching streamer and steelhead season.
Here is some additional information from Winston on the BIII SX
This breakthrough new series was designed to truly handle the most demanding and extreme salt and freshwater fishing situations. And while SX stands for “super” fast-action, the unprecedented power and strength of these rods does not come at the expense of smoothness and feel. Whether you are making long casts directly into the wind, throwing big bulky flies or wielding an aggressive sink-tip line in steelhead waters, these rods will come through. They are unlike any other fast action rod made. Boron III-SX rods feature a superlight matte black reel seat with R.L Winston Rod Co. engraved on the barrel. The trout rods are available with the same wood reel seats as our Boron IIIx rods. The 9’6″ 5 and 6-weight models have fighting butts for versatility and battling larger fish. All come with our graphite rod tube.
Big Lost River 8-27-13
With 250 cfs coming out of Mackay Dam, wading is easy in the river below. This makes for a great choice for a morning visit as tricos are quite active. After they wind down go to terrestrial patterns and a great day of fishing can result.
Still Waters 8-27-13
With low, warm conditions most still waters are weeding up. So look for channels in the weeds on where to concentrate your efforts. If you see adult damsels lighting on the water for egg laying or breeding purposes (and rising fish), that’s a “no brainer” on what to use. Just waiting for a fish to take a dry damsel adult pattern can be about as interesting as presenting a mayfly dun pattern on a stream. Right now Springfield Reservoir is a good candidate for trying this. Look for the channels through the weed beds. Get off to the side of one (never locate on top of a channel), and put that dry damsel on its surface. We have dry damsel patterns here in the shop, the right tackle for presenting them, and ideas on fishing still waters this time of year. Stop by or get in touch for any of these!
South Fork 8-27-13
Flow out of Palisades Dam is going down at a slow rate so far. But reservoir above is not far from 10% of capacity with inflow about half of outflow. So the flow out of the dam is certain to go down more quickly soon as irrigation season winds down and storage season begins. Jimmy floated from Cottonwood to Byington yesterday with good results pitching a chernobyl ant trailed with bead head. A few mutant stones were around, and the partly cloudy conditions helped bring good action.
Today at Jimmy’s 8-26-13
Simms is always coming out with awesome new products to help us enjoy our time on the water better and the new “Slick Jacket” does just that. The Slick Jacket is designed to be very clean on the front of the jacket so nothing hangs up or catches while you are fishing. The jacket is made of a 3 layer gore tex pro shell and has the hidden cuffs like the classic “guide” jacket. This is an awesome jacket that would be a bulletproof steelhead, saltwater, or rainy day on the South Fork jacket. Come by the shop and check this thing out!
Here is some additional information from simms;
When rainfall powerwashes the Pacific Northwest, find returns of ocean-bright steelhead and seek fortress-like shelter in Simms’ new Slick Jacket. Propelled by GORE-TEX® Pro Shell fabric, with stretch, the Slick flows with your body for superior mobility, while the ultraclean outside-in design delivers snag-free performance from hood to bottom hem. Features include ample storage via large integrated chest pockets for fly boxes and tip-wallets, coupled with internal organization for river mainstays such as sunglasses, tippets, and leaders. Watertight, adjustable cuffs and a dual draw-cord waist keep the dank out, while plush hand warmer pockets with interior pass-thru zips allow you to access waders lying within, without breeching your external bulwark.
Features
- 2 large chest pockets capable of storing a “6-pack” of fly boxes with internal organization
- 2 large hand warmer pockets with YKK® VT9 AquaGuard® VISLON® ultra water-resistant zips and interior pass-thru zips for access to inside of jacket
- Watertight adjustable cuffs & dual draw-cord adjustable bottom hem
- 3-layer GORE-TEX® Pro Shell fabric; 92% Nylon, 8% Elastane; 100% Nylon backer interior
- Approximate weight 27 oz./ 765 g
- S, M, L, XL, XXL
South Fork 8-26-13
The South Fork is still chugging along through the dog days of summer. The river is right around 9,000 cfs coming out of the dam and is still fishing pretty decent for those willing to work for their fish. Fishing early in the morning and then again late in the evening has been producing best. Try throwing mutant stone patterns against the banks early and add a dropper or switch to nymphing as the day progresses. Streamer fishing has been okay with the best fishing on overcast days or early in the morning. Towards the evening try fishing with caddis emergers. If you have any other questions please contact us at the shop!
Big Elk Creek
Big Elk Creek
Thanks to deep holes hosting cool waters and abundant in-flow from springs, this stream remains excellent fishing in this year of low water. You must walk up about two miles to enjoy the best of what it offers, but the further up you walk, fewer anglers will be encountered. You get to the Big Elk Creek trail head by driving to the end of the road that begins off US Highway 26 on the northwest side of Big Elk Creek Arm of Palisades Reservoir. Driving up the road you pass the USFS’s campground just below the trail head, and this well kept campground could make a great base of operations for fishing the creek and other near-by waters during a several day stay. Another plus is that like Palisades Creek , Big Elk Creek is non motorized. The lower end of the creek is mainly higher gradient meaning a smaller number of larger fish. Thus the need to walk upstream for the best fishing. Yellowstone cutthroat are the sole salmonid resident here except for kokanee which enter this time of year to attempt spawning. These do not have a negative impact on cutthroat activity, but do bring a number of anglers trying to entice them to strike. Fortunately, most of these stay within the lower mile of the creek. Unfortunately there is a remnant subculture bent on snagging these fish. IDF&G asks that on observing such activity you report it to them. In fact IDF&G has undercover agents watching the stream, so that cowpuncher-looking gent or lady on horseback may observe you and ask for you fishing license. No problem if you are fishing dry flies which is by far the most interesting way for action on this creek.
So when is the best time of day to fish this stream and how about strategy? It’s a high country water, so it radiates heat as soon as the sun leaves, and that happens in late afternoon because of the adjacent steep country. If you are a dry fly enthusiast the best time of day for action begins mid afternoon when water temps get into the mid 50s in degrees Fahrenheit. Fish become more active then in search of terrestrial insects, so try around overhangs above depth and in front of undercuts with your favorite terrestrial patterns. But this time of year as soon as flavs begin emerging, action really turns on. Look for fish in the deeper water, like that in the above pic, to take at the top of holes, or if the surface remains a bit broken throughout, just about anywhere. Choose a pattern you can see on a broken surface. My favorite is the out of style, but classic blond humpy in size 12. I can see it anywhere. I’ve tried CDC renditions for flav duns. They work as well for sure as that out of date humpy, but they are no where near as rugged. That being said, Mike L. might ask me to plug EP fibers for winging and to bring my fly selection into the 21st century! In any case your favorite flav dun will do if you present it correctly. In the case of this creek that would be an upstream presentation because of the angle the sun makes on the creek. You can enjoy Big Elk’s flav activity into September, so there is plenty of time to give it a try. When you do, bring a camera because the country side is gorgeous. Bring potable water or a purifier because as pristine as the creek looks, sheep graze some of the surrounding highlands. That is the only thing that alters the water quality in this unique stream.
Yellowstone Park 8-24-13
Are you a fan of morning trico activity? It’s is going on now many Park waters. One of the best anywhere , if you do not mind walking about four miles, is around the Boundary Creek- Bechler River confluence. This location is at the bottom of Bechler Meadows and best approached from the Bechler River Trail beginning at the ranger station. Start your walk in about 7AM, and expect action until about noon. Try the river just above, at, and below the confluence. When tricos slow down, switch to terrestrial patterns and use all the stealth you apply for the river in Harriman State Park. Want to try a small stream in the Park offering reliable action but not requiring a long walk? Obsidian Creek between Norris and Mammoth is one of the best. The meadows are a “stone’s throw” off the highway, access is easy, and aggressive brookies will take just about any floating offering in small and medium sizes.