South Fork

South Fork 6-25-13

Big stoneflies are hatching  in good numbers on the river at least as far as Burns Creek.  Golden stoneflies and yellow sallys are coming out, too.  So it is time to enjoy this great event in a  year when low water may have impact on fishing later in the summer.  Flow out Of Palisades Dam remains at 12800 cfs, the same as it has been since mid-June.  Flows will likely drop later this summer.

South Fork 6-13-13

The flows on the south fork have stabilized at 12,800cfs at Paslisades Dam and 14,000 at Heise. This should be the flow for much of the summer. Run off has peaked according the Bureau of Reclamation and Palisades Reservoir will not fill this year which points to an early stonefly hatch. Traditionally the hatch starts the last week of June but I’m sure we’ll see it start earlier. We floated from Byington to  Lorenzo yesterday and had very good fishing with a pair of Bennett’s brown rubber legs. The fish were holding below the drop offs and troughs in the riffles. We did not see any stone adults but we saw a hand full of yellow sallies and green drakes. Some of the fish had bulging bellies from eating stone nymphs.

We’ll keep you updated on the status and progress of the hatch. Meanwhile the fishing with nymphs and streamers should be very good. The river is the perfect “south fork green” color for this time of year.

South Fork 6-5

Flows on the South Fork have been increased this week. Currently the flows this morning are 12,300. The rise in flows are due to irrigation demand that is being called for downriver. We haven’t heard of these increases hurting the fishing. The water is beginning to warm up and we will see stoneflies in the next few weeks. Everyone in the shop expects the stoneflies to be early this year with the water conditions and how low the reservoir is. We will update you when the flows level out.

South Fork 6-3

Flows have remained steady at 10,800 cfs. The river is fishing good with nymphs. I realize we have written the same thing for the past few posts but we want to keep this report updated and let you all know whats going on. The water quality is really clear and fish have seemed to start to move to the banks and pile up in the riffles. Stonefly nymphs and San Juan worms have been the ticket for hooking lots of fish. The streamer fishing is also good as well. The overcast days are going to be the best days for streamer fishing. If you don’t mind fishing indicators you can catch a lot of fish right now.

South Fork 6-1

The water flows have leveled off at 10,300 cfs. The nymphing and streamer fishing is really good right now. The water temp is still pretty cold but the fish are beginning to move into the riffles and the banks. Right now Rubberlegs and a san juan worm have been killing it. Various other bead heads have been working as well. If you don’t mind nymphing the South Fork is an awesome place to fish right now and avoid crowds. This is a great oppertunity to do an overnighter as well. I have a feeling we will be seeing an early hatch this year for the Salmon flies. So get ready!

South Fork 5-28

The fishing is pretty good on the South Fork right now. It’s all nymphing and streamer fishing. No dry flies yet. Look for fish on the seam lines and in the tailouts of riffles. The water is still pretty cold so a moderately slow retrieve is effective for streamer fishing. Stonefly nymphs, San Juan worms, and pheasant tails have been working well. Go deep on those nymph rigs 7-8 feet should get you on the bottom.

Flows have been dropped down to 11,400 cfs today. We were informed it would hold steady at 13,000 cfs however the demand for irrigation must not be there to warrant the higher flows. Once flows level out we will report it here. As for now if you want to get away from the crowds chasing dry flies on the Henry’s Fork, Rollin says he and a friend were the only boats on the river yesterday.

South Fork 5-22

Just wanted to give you all a heads up on the fishing conditions on the South Fork. Rollin fished yesterday and they caught plenty of fish. He mentioned they caught fish on the riffles and a few on the banks. Egg patterns and San Juan worms were the best flies yesterday. The water clarity is good and the flows are continuing to drop I expect the flows to level out on Friday around 13,000 cfs. If you want to escape the crowds chasing salmon flies on the Henry’s Fork, the South Fork should be a great alternative this weekend.