Big stoneflies are just now beginning to emerge and fly in Box Canyon. Later this weekend should be the best time to get into fish taking them there. From Riverside Campground down to Mesa Falls is a good bet to find fish taking the big bugs now, but be sure to have caddisfly life cycle patterns in that fly box. March brown dries still produce on the lower river.
Hatchery catchable rainbow trout will be released in the Harriman Fish Pond soon after June 20th.
The Firehole River will be in prime shape for the fishing season opening this Saturday (tomorrow). Expect fish to key on BWOs and various caddisflies.Yellowstone Lake, now free of ice, also opens to fishing on Saturday, and you must kill all lake trout caught. Lewis Lake is free of ice and opens to fishing Saturday. Presenting streamers while wading the shoreline (insulated waders will help you stay in the water!) will bring responses from resident brown trout. Go to the Park web site to view waters closed to fishing.
The Ashton-Flagg Road is open only to Calf Creek Hill. About two feet of snow remains on the road beyond that point. From the Wyoming side the road will not open until June 1st.
North shore of Hebgen Lake is fishing well for those presenting streamer and big woolly bugger patterns. Try big stonefly nymphs and rubber leg patterns below Hebgen Dam. Some rainbows remain in the South Fork of the Madison River estuary, and they will take any streamer pattern you present.
Beaverhead River is low, but fishing is good. Try cranefly larva patterns, streamers and woolly buggers in deeper waters.
Red Rock Creek in Red Rock Lakes Wildlife Management Area is closed to fishing through June 15th in order to allow grayling to spawn with minimal human interference.
Not many fish are being landed from Treasureton Reservoir, but those that get that far are big. Try damselfly nymph and snail patterns. Midge pupa patterns under an indicator and at taking depth will get you into fish on Daniels Reservoir. Twenty-Four Mile Reservoir offers good fishing for those using leech and damselfly nymph patterns and midge pupa patterns under an indicator. At Hawkins Reservoir try damselfly nymph and leech patterns in front of the dam for some action.
Big stoneflies are flying everywhere in Cardiac Canyon, Warm River to Ashton, and Vernon Bridge to Chester. As of today, they are not flying in Box Canyon, but any day now they will. Best reports we’ve had for fish responding to dry stonefly patterns come from Mesa Falls to Warm River and from Warm River to Ashton sections.
BuRec is decreasing the flow out of Palisades Dam. Look for flow there to be around 13000 cfs soon. BWOs are out in huge numbers, but not many fish responding to them. Here’s why: flush has scoured nymphs and aquatic worms out of stream bed so that many are drifting. Fish do not have to rise to feed. They sit deep and pick off drifting bugs and worms. So present your rubber legs and San Juan worm patterns deep, and you will get results.
There are loads of big stoneflies out on the Warm River to Ashton section of the river, but success has been spotty recently. The same goes for the river from Vernon Bridge to Chester backwaters where action was good last weekend. The few fish we caught in both locations two days ago were stuffed full of bugs. The longer it lasts, the current cool wet weather will delay the big bugs from flying big time. But the longer it lasts, the better are chances for action to pick up on ending. By then big bugs could be flying up the river as far as Riverside or even Box Canyon.
As we reported last Saturday, the flow out of Palisades Dam is ramping up. Current flow out of dam is just over 15200 cfs on its way up to 19000 cfs later this week. For the next week, you may as well go to the Henry’s Fork and look for fish taking earlier than usual big stonefly adult patterns!
Big stoneflies are flying from Vernon Bridge down to top of Chester backwaters. We have reports of folks catching fish on big dries in this area. So even though this event is about ten days early, it’s time to keep track of the adult stage moving on up the river. We have not heard of them flying further up the river, but any day now reports will come in and we will post them.