With flow out of Mackay Dam around 350 cfs, wading the river below requires a bit of care. Afternoons feature BWO, caddis and some yellow sally activity. So life cycle patterns of these and woolly bugger patterns are working.
With 450 cfs coming out of Mackay Dam wading in the river below remains a bit tough. Try San Juan and squirmy wormy type patterns during these and higher flows.
Most boat traffic now is on the Warm River to Ashton section of the river. But the most fish responding to the stone fly hatch is from Riverside Campground down to Bear Gulch with activity in Box Canyon coming on. Look for boat traffic on these sections to be on the increase. Give the lower river some more days before fish there begin looking for stoneflies again after digesting those from the early days of the hatch. Fall River is putting in much run-off water. This will impact fishing below Chester Dam in the negative.
With 211 cfs coming out of Mackay Dam, wading the river below is safe. If you want to avoid crowds such as on the Henry’s Fork and Henry’s Lake, the river here is a good choice with rainbows and an occasional brookie responding to PM BWO and all day midge activity.
Flow out of Mackay Dam remains about constant at just under 250 cfs. This is a good flow for wading the river below, and it looks like some BWO weather will arrive in a few days. So the river here offers a chance to get away from the crowds getting ready for stone fly activity on the lower Henry’s Fork.
Flow out of Mackay Dam currently is about 132 cfs, making the river below very approachable for wading. This flow rate has been near constant for several days, and with warming weather stream-side ice & snow is disappearing. Midge and BWO activity make presenting life cycle patterns effective and the same can be said for presenting any small or medium sized nymph patterns. Social distancing is an active part of fly-fishing, so getting out to the water is about as safe an activity around.
The Big Lost River becomes a popular fishery this time of year as snow melt increases to give some access below Mackay Dam. Midge and BWO activity makes for good fishing. The Mackay area got hammered with about a foot of snow this last weekend, but the river below the dam is accessible where some snow banks remain. Flow out of Mackay Dam was increased to 320 cfs last Tuesday.
Current midge activity and that upcoming for BWOs results in good fishing. Flow out of Mackay Dam is around 175 cfs. The big “if” is access because plenty of snow remains along the river below the dam. You might be able to park off the highway, but be ready to walk a ways with some “post holing” to get to the river.
Flow below Mackay Dam is 108 cfs. That makes wading easy. BWO and midge activity bring trout to the surface, but nymphing might bring better action during these nice days.
With flow below Mackay Dam just a bit above 200 cfs (normal for this time of year is about 180 cfs) wading is safe and even though terrestrial insect are gone for the year, BWOs and midges are quite active.