Fishing remains slow. Water temps are in the 50s in deg. F, water is mostly clear, with weed growth beginning. A few fish are being caught around submerged springs through using midge pupa patterns suspended under indicators. Better days are ahead!
Green Drakes are out on the lower river with best concentrations below Ashton Dam to above Chester backwaters. Although they inhabit many section of the river, this is the best hatch in terms of numbers. They may have peaked here, but there are enough to make a visit worthwhile. Days with higher relative humidity, little wind, and even overcast will bring out the best concentrations. But as with the feeding on stoneflies a few weeks earlier, they will become filled and head to the depths to digest. A strategy is to give them time to digest, then come back later with life form patterns, and you will have some action.
Fishing on the lake has been uncommonly slow so far. IDF&G surveys indicate fish are there but why the inactivity is anybodies guess.
A Windy Day on Daniels Reservoir
Windy times on Daniels Reservoir means fishing the edge of mud plumes with annelid and other such patterns can be effective. Kelly-Toponce Road is open, so boat launch area on Chesterfield Reservoir is easily approached. Reservoir water quality is good. Slow trolling and casting leech patterns using intermediate lines brings some success, but better fishing is ahead. The road to Twenty-Four Mile Reservoir is open. To date we have no info on fishing success there.
The Tubs
Here is some good info from Dr. Rob Van Kirk’s Water Status report filed yesterday for the Henry’s Fork watershed.
Water quality
Overall, water quality continues to be excellent throughout the watershed. Turbidity has increased a little at most locations over the past day or two due to rain but remains much lower than it had been during the peak of snow melt a few weeks ago. Water temperatures are in or slightly below the optimal range for rainbow trout watershed-wide. Dissolved oxygen concentrations are also optimal. Timing of aquatic insect hatches at Flat Rock, Pinehaven, Ashton and St. Anthony is staying around 1–4 days later than average but 1–3 days earlier than last year. Hatch timing at Marysville and Island Park Dam is 7–8 days later than average and about 1–3 days later than last year. I do not expect hatch timing to change much with respect to average for the foreseeable future.
Rob Van Kirk, Ph.D.
Senior Scientist
P.O. Box 550
Ashton, ID 83420
208-881-3407 CELL
Consider that Dr. Rob is talking about the peak of insect hatches. This means that a few insect are emerging now, but achieving peak concentrations are delayed.
The above photo shows The Tubs area above Mack’s Inn. Try pitching streamer patterns into these deep holes. You will find some relative solitude before recreational floating gets going.
Madison River between Hebgen Dam and Quake Lake can be fished but is low and discolored as the lake above is being filled. Streamer fishing brings some success here and in the lake above. Run-off from incoming creeks depends on weather with rain sure to bring in more discolor through increased run-off.
Centennial Valley streams are high with run-off. The road into Elk Lake and the resort is open and fishing is picking up for those using streamer and woolly bugger patterns along shorelines. Fish these deep, and you may tie into a resident lake trout.
Now is the time to fish Wade Lake before recreational boating gets going big time. Slow trolling streamer patterns close to shorelines can be productive until damsel flies and speckled duns emerge in numbers good enough to attract trout.
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.
Pauls Reservoir
Let’s take a look at some small still waters in the area because many host some surprising trout. For example, both Snow Creek Pond and the Harriman Fish Pond host large holdover rainbow trout. Horseshoe Lake offers grayling, and Pauls Reservoir offers active cutthroat trout. Other than holdover trout, most of the hosted salmonids are small with a few ranging to moderate size. But being easily approached they are ideal for novices, the physically challenged, seniors, or just plain solitude. Closer to home and again ideal for a wide range off abilities the two Rider Park ponds off Sunnyside Road and Gem Lake can be considered. For youngsters, the Rexburg Kids and the Victor Kids ponds are safe and easily approached and annually stocked with catchable trout.
Nearly all Caribou-Targhee National forest roads are open. The Bear Creek road is the big exception. It could remain so for at least weeks. However most streams are high with run-off, meaning best fishing is ahead of us. Birch Creek is an exception and offers good fishing especially above Lone Pine where the Sorenson family has a public fishing area. It is an ideal place to take a youngster for introducing fly fishing. Small, but aggressive brook and rainbow trout inhabit the stream. Safe and easily approached, small wet flies work best, but when insect become active, top water fishing can be very good. Try dry and wet traditional patterns. All this applies also to Little Warm River, that reach above Warm River Spring where brook trout quickly respond to any small fly offered..
Today there are more folks on the upper river than in the rest of Fremont County. Look at the attached photo to see anticipation camps on the river below Osborn Bridge.Today is also the last of the Henry’s Fork Foundation Henry’s Fork Days event sited at Last Chance. Harriman State Park opened to fly fishing a few days ago, and green drakes should begin hatching in numbers soon. If you are looking for them, they are most active on cool days having higher air relative humidity. Seems like we have had a lot of those days lately! They are getting going on the lower river along with golden stones and caddis and the number of anglers are less than on the river above.